Teenagers from Outer Space

'teenagers from out of space' has grown on me a LOT since the first time i saw it. true, it isn't a very good movie, but considering how they used what little they had to work with (budget-wise, acing-wise, etc.) i'd say this movie deserves a bit more respect. the effects were cleverly planned (if not well-executed), the fairly inexperienced actors weren't terrible ( except for TORCHA! guy, but he's so bad he's great), and it had a decent plot with a fairly atypical ending. (okay, there's no excuse for the lobster. the lobster was just terrible.) it's no 'godfather' (heck, it's not even 'cannibal: the musical'), but, in the vein of 'night of the living dead', 'teenagers' takes very little and makes something decent with it.

I saw this film as a little kid and was absolutely terrified. I was really, really afraid of skeletons. You see, it was skeletons under my bed, not monsters. If any part of me dangled off the bed, they could grab me with those bony fingers and pull me under... anyway, this film holds a special place in my heart because I was SO frightened! They even killed a little dog, boo hoo. Of course, as an adult, this movie is quite laughable. But if you are a fan of campy, corny old sci-fi, you have it by the bucket here!!

The Spacemen are Coming! The Spaceships Have Landed! The Fifties are highlighted with stunning sequences of cars with flatheads, chrome and stick shifts. Nifty neighborhoods and helpful, unwitting locals who point humanlike aliens to the heroine and local vistas. Plus a warm-voiced Grampa who always seems to be asleep, just awakened, yawning or giving detailed, correct directions to the villain who is seeking Grampa's granddaughter and friendly alien renter. Curiously, Grampa never asked for rent in advance? But what the heck this is the Fifties, right?

Derek who is the hero Martian is a bit stiff. However, Derek's nemesis, Thor is swift of foot, quick to ray gun anyone or thing (dog, tree, sideview mirror) in his way. However, Thor MUST hurry and scamper he does in this movie, as Derek needs to meet his Dad at the spaceship. Unfortunately, Derek had never previously met his Dad and that is a curious plot twist. The beard on Derek's dad is not to be believed as are most of the effects but this is the Fifties, right?

The skeleton/ ray gun/ defleshitizer twang is ahead of its time by about 10 laser years. So, one must give the movie a few points for a non-screaming manner of death and no need for blood capsules for the humans. Also, the alien costume is quite trendy and should be awarded an extra stitch in the rankings. The heroine is heard to comment plurally on her need to change clothes which means she had THREE costumes. Everyone else except Derek only had one costume. Actually , Derek's second costume was probably what he wore to the set. The reporter clicks a few bulbs on the all time low budget reporter meter for his hat which he never loses. The t.v. announcer rates a special mention as he continues to scare the woodangie out of the village populace with reports of invading, impending and impatient aliens with their shrilled-voiced uncooked mega lobster monsters who eat humans. A subtle message here seems to be that if you don't carry a gun near the monster, you probably will not be eaten. One could regard this as abstract pacifism with a dash of vegetarianism in this stretch of Cold War craziness. It certainly adds pepper to the stew of the lobster monster creation. Locals are warned to go to their basement or fallout shelters- this is the Fifties, right?

I have always regarded this movie as essential in the timeline of Fifties space invaders movies. Not a major league effort but a more than what you expected plot that intertwines invaders in nifty Mel's Drive-In costumes, exceptionally small space vehicles, stilted alien conversations and phrasing, Ozzie & Harriet neighborhoods, and an ending replete with a face in the sky reminding us that he will always be with us. "He" being Derek who looks a bit like Duane Eddy or a very young Michael Rennie. As I mentioned a curious mix of teenage love but only one kiss in the twilight, a bit of religious symbolism, real auto sounds and a screaming- no, make that shrieking crustacean given to weapon carrying villagers for appetizers. Never forget the light-emitting Ray Guns! What?! A movie that demands an imagination? No graphic violence? You gotta work with me here- this is the Fifties, right?

This film is a prime example of the low budget 1950s B movie sci-fi. This movie is the 50s and that's the best reason of why you should see it. Anyone who is interested in 50s sci-fi, has to see Teenagers From Outer Space. The flaws are so numerous they can't be counted, and the acting is as bad as the script. The only monsters in the movie are the Gargons, which are lobsters. Apart from these flaws, Teenagers From Outer Space is a fun movie. I've watched it several times and find it very entertaining. The alien's death ray gun is quite impressive, as are the scenes in which it is used. View this movie remembering it is 1959. I would think this film would have been quite popular and very scary back then. Sit down, relax and get a bowl of popcorn. Pop in the DVD or VCR and have a good time watching this fun, exciting 1950s sci-fi thriller.

Tom Graeff's entire film career consisted of this one film and work editing another. He shot it for $5000, performed much of the work himself, and gave his boyfriend David Love (Charles Robert Kaltenthaler) the lead role. Graeff was 28 and Love 23 when the film was shot. Graeff died 12 years later after an apparent mental breakdown; no one seems to know what happened to Love. Amazingly, Warners paid $25,000 for distribution rights for this clunker at a time when teen audiences were eating up sci-fi movies. More bizarre details about the film, including props and locations used, are at the Daddy-O's Drive-In Dirt website.