Them (1954)

Directed by Gordon DouglasIn the New Mexico desert, people die under mysterious circumstances. Sergeant Peterson and his team search for the reason. He finds out that there are mutated giant ants near a nuclear weapons test site. Together with the army, the nests are to be destroyed. But two queens manage to escape.

In the 1950s, atomic bombs and radioactivity provided the theme for several later classic films. What are the consequences of the new technology? Gordon Douglas shows a monstrous answer in his science fiction film.


REVIEW

In the desert of New Mexico, nuclear tests are carried out in which the atomic radiation creates giant ants that attack the surrounding area and abduct and eat numerous people. As the authorities investigate the brutal murders, the gruesome truth is discovered. An FBI agent and two scientists join forces with the army to try to fight the mutant monsters....

A little girl wanders alone through the desert. Police officers find the distraught girl. The destroyed and devastated trailer of the girl's family is found. There is no trace of the parents. An unknown force has taken them into the desert.The catatonic child is loaded into an ambulance. Before the ambulance leaves, a strange sound comes from the desert. The policeman and the doctor listen to the strange sound. Behind them, the girl on the stretcher suddenly rises. The child's eyes are widened in fear. When the strange sounds cease, the girl sinks back again, exhausted. This scene from the beginning of 'Formicula' by Gordon Douglas from 1954, illustrates the mechanisms of tension generation that make a low budget necessary.Today, computer-generated animation (CGI) technology offers the possibility of bringing almost any imaginable monster to digital life.

More than sixty years ago, this was not possible. Therefore, in 'Formicula' director Gordon Douglas uses the sound level (the eerie sound of the monster ants) and the reaction of the actors (in this case the little traumatized girl (played by Sandy Descher)). The tension is created with minimal means. The giant ants in the film, which are over 3m tall, are used as little as possible, as their mechanical appearance already seemed unconvincing at the time.


As later in 'Jaws' (1974) and 'Alien' (1979), the horror works best when you get to see as little of the monster as possible. The viewer's imagination creates much more threatening scenarios than the animation technicians were able to.Modern examples of such an approach can still be found today, however. For example, in the remake of 'Godzilla' (2014), director Gareth Edwards made the monster appear as little as possible. Rather, the gigantic consequences of the destruction wrought by the monster were the focus of the action (and the camera). 'Formicula' was a success with audiences and critics in its time. Today the film is considered a classic of 1950s science fiction films.

Experte

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Paul Ziemba
Faculty of Biology
Sensory Physiology Group