The Amazing Colossal Man

I have seen The Amazing Colossal Man several times and is one of Mr BIG's better movies.

As a plane crashes just before an atomic test at Camp Desert Rock, Glenn Manning goes to see if there are any survivors despite the danger. The bomb goes off and he gets caught right in the middle of the blast. He suffers 90% burns but doctors are very baffled when they take his bandages off to find him without any scars at all. Gradually, he increases in size and eventually, he goes on the rampage through Las Vagas and kills Major Lindstrom when he injects him with a formula to reduce him in size with the needle. Manning is shot by the Military and falls into the Colorado River but is not dead...

One of the better parts of the movie is where Manning kills the Major with the needle he was going to inject him with.

The cast includes Glenn Langan as Manning and 50's sci-fi regulars Cathy Downs (The She Creature), Russ Bender (It Conquered the World) and James Seay (Killers From Space). Most of the cast are used to fighting giant creatures looking at other sci-fi movies they were in at this time.

Despite the low budget, this movie was fun to watch.

Rating: 3 stars out of 5.

Bert I. Gordon directed this surprise hit about Lt. Col. Glenn Manning, who is accidentally exposed to a plutonium blast at a desert Army base, burning him extensively, but survives. However, he mysteriously starts to grow, reaching 50Ft. He becomes an object of study, but is gradually losing his mind because of both the situation and decreased blood supply to his brain. Glenn, enraged and despondent, escapes and goes on a rampage, forcing a showdown with the Army he once served in. Despite a good performance from the lead actor, and a sympathetic script, the F/X are shoddy and the ridiculous plot dissolves into an obvious chase melodrama, ending at a dam. Not yet on DVD for some reason, though was on YouTube for awhile.

One of my sci-fi/horror/fantasy reviews written 50 years ago: The brainchild of Bert I. Gordon, who produced, directed and co-wrote, with writer Mark Hanna, the film stars Glenn Langan, Cathy Downs and William Hudson.

The sentimental monster is created when an enlisted man grows huge after being exposed to a nuclear bomb test. When he starts creating havoc, nothing can stop him until he falls off Grand Coulee Dam.

The American-International Pictures release was photographed by Joseph Biroc, whose movies include "It's a Wonderful Life", "Bwana Devil" (the original 3-D feature) and "Blazing Saddles"!

Burt I. Gordon's "The Amazing Colossal Man" was the first sci-fi film I saw as a kid that actually scared me. But it wasn't the effect of a bald Col. Glenn Manning running around Las Vegas that I found frightening; it was the actual atomic bomb test-blast footage I found so horrific. At the age of six, seeing houses blown like matchsticks into blazing debris was enough to cause nightmares. The same footage (recently restored by Peter Kuran for the "explosive" documentary "Trinity and Beyond: The Atomic Bomb Movie") can still sends shivers down the spine of any self-respecting anti-nuker.

"The Amazing Colossal Man" still ranks as one of the better b-grade drive-in movies. It is unintentionally funny, full of impossible science and very entertaining. The cast does their best with the material (from a script by George Worthing Yates) but I suspect no one took the project very seriously, least of all Mr. Gordon. It is also highlighted by another thunderous Albert Glasser score.

Actually, I have seen this on and off, but watching it again in its entirety actually was a good thing. This is rare when describing Gordon's works.

Glenn Manning is the unfortunate guy who gets the full blast of a plutonium bomb. Poor guy is real mad about growing every day and being treated like a freak (hey, who doesn't). Although the effects are pure de Monsieur Gordon, it does work well with the film (I was cracking up with the big syringe). Glenn's rants and angina attacks do create some sympathy, but man, his girl sure stood by his side!! Some parts do tend to drag, there are lots of dimly lit hallways perfect for subterfuge and the miniature knick knacks were classic!

Um, there's a sequel?? Can I change my vote?