The Blob

The Blob is a classic 1950s B-movie sci-fi flick. You probably know the story: two teens (Steve McQueen & Aneta Corsaut) see a meteorite hit the ground, and when they go to look for it, they run into an old man with some weird...blob attached to his arm. They take him to the doctor's office, and then go to find out what happened. From there, the blob spreads, eating everyone in its path. The special effects are cheesy fun, as is the story. There are a lot of great touches, like the cop who plays chess over the radio with a cop in another district. It's no masterpiece, but it has a special place in its genre. Steve McQueen is very good. 8/10.

I look at this page, and it seems disapproving to me to have to listen to someone ramble and rant at a real classic. Sure, I agree to let everyone have their opinion, but here's mine:

This movie should not be missed by any classic horror watcher, and should be seen many casual viewers around the world. Sure, it has lost some of it's flair and greatness with age, especially in todays world of CGI effects, but that's not why you should like it.

You should like it because it actually is a scary movie, even for today's standards. It's overall ickyness will creep you out just as much as the original audiences, so don't slam a classic if you haven't given it a chance. Watch it, but not with a critical attitude. Watch it to have fun, how it was originally intended.

Who would think Andy Griffith's "Helen Crump" (Aneta Corsaut) had a Steve McQueen movie in her past? But that is only one of several weird and wonderful things about the ultimate 1950s teenagers-battle-creatures movie, which might best be described as Rebel Without A Cause meets God Knows What From Outer Space. The Rebel is Steven McQueen (who would shortly decide that "Steve" sounded less prissy), a good boy with just enough wild to be interesting; the very wholesome yet understanding girlfriend is the aforementioned Aneta Corsaut. It was bad enough when their date was disrupted by teenage hot-rodders, but they are considerably more nonplussed when they encounter a gelatinous, man-eating What Is It that rides down to earth on its own hotrod meteor--and begins gobbling up townfolk right and left. But will the grown ups believe them? Of course not, what do they know, they're just kids!

The movie is teeny bopper at its teeny bopping best. The actors take the rather pretentious script very seriously, with many a soulful look into each other eyes, and the "adult" supporting cast probably says "Kids!" very third sentence or so. But the real pleasure of the film its creature, which is well imagined, well-executed, and often manages to generate a surprising degree of suspense. And although clearly on the cheap side (check out those miniature sets, guys!), THE BLOB is actually a fairly well-made film--and there's that catchy little theme song thrown in for good measure. The 40-plus crowd (myself included) will enjoy the movie as nostalgia, but that won't prevent them from hooting right along with the younger set at its whole-milk-and-white-bread 1950s sensibility, and the film would be a great choice for either family-movie night or a more sophisticated "grown ups only" get together. Make plenty of Jello cubes for movie snacking! Gary F. Taylor, aka GFT, Amazon Reviewer

A horror film that is both goofy and strangely terrifying. One has to wonder about what the Creator/Deity was thinking when The Blob was made. What kind of world did it come from? When it's in it's normal habitat what does The Blob feed on? When you think about it The Blob is your ultimate doomsday weapon.

The soon to be legend Steve McQueen got his first starring role in The Blob, a 28 year old playing a teen who is out getting down to business with Aneta Corsaut when a passing meteor lands, cracks open, and out pops this Jello like creature which just absorbs whatever is living around it on contact and just grows. In the end it is covering your average greasy spoon diner with McQueen, Corsaut, and others inside.

Most of the film is McQueen trying to warn folks about it with the help of Corsaut. Of course the adults, especially law enforcement don't believe him after all he's a typical Eisenhower era teen with girls and hotrods on his mind. In fact in the middle of a mission, he takes time for a little drag race.

But it's Steve who actually discovers the secret of if not killing The Blob at least rendering it helpless and inert. McQueen was paid $2500.00 for the film, in two years that might have paid for one of his entourage.

The Blob was the farewell film of character actor Olin Howlin who usually played rustic types in a couple hundred films. He's The Blob's first victim that McQueen and Corsaut discover.

After over 50 years still an interesting and camp film.

This hugely entertaining b-movie starts off with an insanely catchy rockabilly song that perfectly sets the mood for what's to come. This movie never makes the mistake of taking itself seriously, which is what made it such an effective thriller.

The acting was actually pretty stiff, and the main characters aren't that interesting, but the director is really good at keeping this viewer in suspense. The blob was pretty ridiculous, but I still tensed up whenever I saw it on screen. And like I said in the summary, this movie has a sense of humour, which is important in low budget science fiction.

I also found the special effects to be clever. The Blob slithered under doorways, through vents, and up people's legs. It was kind of obvious how they did a lot of it,but I personally think that's part of the charm of pre-cgi effects.

Bottom Line: If you're expecting great acting and character development, skip this, but if you like b- movies, it's a masterpiece.