Them! (1954)
Them! (1954)
A HORROR HORDE OF CRAWL-AND-CRUSH GIANTS CLAWING OUT OF THE EARTH FROM MILE-DEEP CATACOMBS!
The earliest atomic tests in New Mexico cause common ants to mutate into giant man-eating monsters that threaten civilization.
I love this movie. Arguably a kaiju film and I think it's super watchable compared to other horror films of the era.
YES! I watched it on bootleg VHS about 100 times when I was a kid. It has so much to love.
*myrmecologists *a lady scientist *flamethrowers and gas bombs *LA sewer tunnels *some psych ward patients who make some great points (eg - Do you think there's a black market for hot sugar? They were ants, I tell you!) *walk by cameo by a young Leonard Nemoy; he was just an extra at that point *an entire informational film strip about ants
They also do a really good job of investigating and escalating the emergency response to a very bad and weird situation. Good writing and good acting.
A classic of the giant irradiated creature genre..
Never seen ants with eyes like that lol
The slow burn on introducing the ant was awesome. Everyone complains about the smell, not knowing it's formic acid and a tell tale sign of ants, and slowly the answer is revealed but it's unbelievable by most. It was that tension from the dramatic irony that helped make Them! the defining movie of the giant creature genre. Such a great movie.
If you like Them! check out Tarantula.