Wordiezett So much average
ReaderKenka Let's be realistic.
Voxitype Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.
calvinnme This is a very unintentionally funny MST3K style scifi film from the late 50s. Aliens, modeled on a splicing of Nazis with those pesky Commy Ruskies who everyone was afraid of at the time, decide to use earth as a breeding ground for their crop of "Gorgons", animals that are harvested for food and then brought back to their home planet for consumption.Apparently, over the years, this alien civilization has devolved from a civilization of families into an authoritarian planetary military camp in which family units do not exist and thus there are no parents, siblings, etc. Everyone is just a slave to the state. Plus this alien civilization considers itself the master race. Earth is found to be the ideal place for the Gorgon to grow until harvesting, growing from the size of a lobster to a gargantuan size.However, one alien, Derek, has read about how things once were on his planet, and rebels at the idea of leaving the Gorgon there to grow in number and size, wiping out the inhabitants of the planet. He escapes from his alien cadre, and the malevolent Thor is left behind to capture him (turns out Derek is The Leader's son though he doesn't know it) if he can, kill him if he has no alternative. Since Thor just killed a dog for the fun of it, you figure he'll look for any excuse to kill Derek.The dead dog is the catalyst for what comes later. Derek, feeling sad for the unnecessary killing of the harmless dog, takes the ID showing his address and shows up in town. Wouldn't you know the dead dog's owners have a room for rent. Wouldn't you know they have an attractive age appropriate daughter who looks something like a young Drew Barrymore in a bad wig. Of course Derek rents the room.Evil Thor quickly finds a ride into town - let this be a lesson that you should never pick up hitchhikers, especially ones in weird uniforms. Come to think of it, don't rent rooms to strangers in weird uniforms either. Meanwhile, the original Gorgon is in a cave, growing in size and in potential danger to humankind.How will this all turn out? Watch and find out. Don't let the low rating fool you. The acting is wooden, but the film tells you something about small town and suburban life and the good intent we assumed of strangers that we have completely and justifiably lost over the last 60 years, and gives you a feel for what people were afraid of back then - some malevolent force far away, not the lone nuts that walk among us today. I'd recommend it. Just realize you are dealing with, what was from the start, a low budget production.
Leofwine_draca TEENAGERS FROM OUTER SPACE is a classic bad film worthy of the great auteur Ed Wood himself. It's an ultra-cheesy slice of zero-budget sci-fi, a film filled with not-so-special effects and a story neatly tying together the craze for teen rebellion films and alien extravaganzas. Get this: the 'hero' of the piece is a teenage alien, rebelling from his strict elders!It's certainly a sight to see and the sheer cheesiness itself is what makes this worth watching. In parts it feels like THE TERMINATOR crossed with a giant monster spectacle, although the monster is one of the most pathetic ever put on screen. The paucity of the special effects is truly something to behold, from the toy ray guns to the kooky skeleton effects, which are so in-your-face and delightfully camp that they somehow work.What a shame that director Tom Graeff never went on to continue his career as he could have rivalled the sheer enjoyable ineptitude of Ed Wood with a few more flicks like this under his belt. TEENAGERS FROM OUTER SPACE is a bad film, it's true, but it's also a hoot, and never boring. Besides, you can never hate a film which features an alien called Derek...
Wuchak Released in 1959, "Teenagers from Outer Space" chronicles a small group of English-speaking humanoid aliens who investigate Earth as a possible breeding ground for their staple food-supply, Gargans, which are essentially giant lobsters that stand vertical. One of the aliens, Derek (David Love), rebels against the others on the grounds that Earth is inhabited by intelligent humanoid beings. Dawn Bender plays Derek's possible romantic interest while Bryan Grant plays Thor, a particularly malevolent alien. If you can ignore the lameness of the non-special effects and overdone or underdone melodrama, the story is well done in ways and Derek & Dawn are likable protagonists. The movie's also worthwhile simply as a historical artifact to observe American society in the late 50s. However, compared to Sci-Fi giants from the 50s like "The Day the Earth Stood Still" (1951) and the monumental "Forbidden Planet" (1956) "Teenagers from Outer Space" is dissatisfactory and cheesy, not to mention the title is dumb and disingenuous. It can't even compare to 1958's "I Married a Monster from Outer Space" (another dumb title, but at least it's accurate). The flick's worth checking out though for the positive items noted. The film runs 86 minutes and was shot in Bronson Canyon, Griffith Park and Los Angeles, California. GRADE: C-
daikaiju1954 Teenagers from Outer Space is about a an alien named Derek. He rebels against his oppressive dictatorship home world from trying to turn earth into a place to for creatures called Gargons(actually a laughable lobster shadow). I guess they use them to make lobster soup for the whole population of there planet. The aliens use hand-held death ray weapons that causes human flesh melt away but you don't see it happen. All you see is peoples skeletons fall on the ground. It is gruesome but kind of silly.To me, the movie is far from ridiculous. It has a predictable plot, the special effects for the Gargon are laughable, acting is just ludicrous from the get go. So I would not g you should see it. You may recognize the cave the aliens stash their Gargon in. It is the Bronson Canyon -- home base for Ro-Man in Robot Monster (1953).
