20 Million Miles to Earth (1957)

The first U.S. spaceship to Venus crash-lands off the coast of Sicily on its return trip. A dangerous, lizard-like creature comes with it and quickly grows gigantic.

Director:

Nathan Juran

Writers:

Robert Creighton Williams (screenplay), Christopher Knopf (screenplay),

Stars:

William Hopper, Joan Taylor, Frank Puglia

Cast

Complete credited cast:
William Hopper	...	Col. Robert Calder
Joan Taylor	...	Marisa Leonardo
Frank Puglia	...	Dr. Leonardo
John Zaremba	...	Dr. Judson Uhl
Thomas Browne Henry	...	Maj. Gen. A.D. McIntosh (as Thomas B. Henry)
Tito Vuolo	...	Commissario Charra
Jan Arvan	...	Signore Contino - Government Official
Arthur Space	...	Dr. Sharman
Bart Braverman	...	Pepe (as Bart Bradley)

Storyline

The first spaceship to visit Venus crash lands in the sea, freeing a small native Venusian creature called the Ymir. Eventually growing to enormous size, it threatens the city of Rome.

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Plot Keywords:

venusian | military | alien | sicily | astronaut | 

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Taglines:

Monster from outerspace runs wild!

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Genres:

Fantasy | Horror | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

June 1957 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Giant Ymir

Filming Locations:

Hyperion Water Treatment Facility - 12000 Vista Del Mar, Playa del Rey, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures Corporation, Morningside Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

82 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Since he planned to use a real elephant for some of the footage in the zoo, Ray Harryhausen asked for one that was 15 feet tall, but the film was only able to procure an eight-foot-tall one for him. In order to make the elephant look much bigger, a 4'6" actor was cast to play the zookeeper.

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Goofs

In the opening titles, director of photography Carlo Ventimiglia is credited as Carlos Ventigmilia.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Mondello: Pepe! Is it your desire that the fishes, they swim away? Come on! Pull up on the net, here.

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Connections

Referenced in Morte e Morte de Johnny Zombie (2011)

User Reviews

Excellent example of the work of Ray Harryhausen

This movie is a prime example of the work of one of the masters of stop-motion animation, a form of art that is rapidly being supplanted by CGI. Ray Harryhausen was the ultimate master of this technique, having trained under the likes of Willis O'Brian. His work is still the inspiration for many of the special effects wizards today. Granted, the movies of the 1950's do seem stilted and silly, but quite frankly, the worst of them are probably still superior to most of the direct-to-video drek produced today, and likely better than most of the films produced by major studios. I was raised on films such as 20 Million Miles to Earth and have no problem letting my child watch films like this. I cannot say the same for most of what is released today. 20 Million Miles to Earth is a unique, fun film. It, like others of its kind, comes from a different era, when people were not as jaded and world-savvy as they are today. Save the critical eye for the more cynical, overproduced films of today. Enjoy it for what it is.