When I was a kid I thought this was a great movie! I was impressed by how it was more a straight sci-fi story than a monster movie at all. I liked the way it showed how exponential progression takes you from interesting lab effect to massive destruction with surprising speed. And I loved the energy of the climactic scene in the power plant.
Well, through the magic of Youtube I just today saw it again after a space of 40 years at least. And the wonder wasn't there. On the science side ... what a jumble. I mean, science fiction pretty much automatically involves made-up stuff. But it ought not to involve throwing existing science into a blender. In MM, terms like "atom", "molecule", "electron", "monopole", and "nucleus" are interchangeable. Magnetism and radioactivity are confused throughout. At one point we are given to understand that nuclear fission can be induced by an electric current. And it's never clear to me why the dangerous aspects of the substance are so variable and unpredictable. Why is it ever possible to transport it, for example.
On the plot side, scientists act very strangely. At one point an apparently British scientist puts a safety regulation ahead of the survival of the planet. The "A-men" of the Office of Scientific Investigation apparently have Lensman-level powers; at one point one of them orders all planes in the country grounded "on my authority." And then the action is interrupted here and there with discussions of whether Dr. Stewart's wife has gained enough weight in her pregnancy and whether they can get a house. I confess I had forgotten that whole subplot.
On the other hand you may like it if you are willing to put up with these flaws for the sake of a scene with cool sound effects and electric arcs...
Well, through the magic of Youtube I just today saw it again after a space of 40 years at least. And the wonder wasn't there. On the science side ... what a jumble. I mean, science fiction pretty much automatically involves made-up stuff. But it ought not to involve throwing existing science into a blender. In MM, terms like "atom", "molecule", "electron", "monopole", and "nucleus" are interchangeable. Magnetism and radioactivity are confused throughout. At one point we are given to understand that nuclear fission can be induced by an electric current. And it's never clear to me why the dangerous aspects of the substance are so variable and unpredictable. Why is it ever possible to transport it, for example.
On the plot side, scientists act very strangely. At one point an apparently British scientist puts a safety regulation ahead of the survival of the planet. The "A-men" of the Office of Scientific Investigation apparently have Lensman-level powers; at one point one of them orders all planes in the country grounded "on my authority." And then the action is interrupted here and there with discussions of whether Dr. Stewart's wife has gained enough weight in her pregnancy and whether they can get a house. I confess I had forgotten that whole subplot.
On the other hand you may like it if you are willing to put up with these flaws for the sake of a scene with cool sound effects and electric arcs...