My Top Ten Favorite Early Alien Invasion Movies

Like many geeks, I’m a big fan of science fiction movies. There are a huge number of sci-fi films that feature alien invasion. For example, “Independence Day” (1996) seems like it’s shown on TV every weekend. But I’m particularly fond of the earliest alien invasion movies from the 1950s. Here are my top ten.

1. Invaders from Mars (1953)– A young boy thinks he sees a flying saucer land during a storm at night. Nobody believes him. They should have. Everyone I know who saw this movie on TV when they were young had nightmares for years about the path to the sandpit. Brilliant cinematography from William Cameron Menzies and some of the best sound effects (including some based on Gustav Holst’s “The Planets”) of any science fiction film from any era.

2. The Crawling Eye (1958) – In the Swiss Alps, a mysterious cloud appears. People who go into the cloud don’t come back. Clever plot and good acting make this an excellent movie if you can suspend disbelief. Known as “The Trollenberg Terror” in the UK where is was made.

3. Enemy from Space (1957) – Professor Bernard Quatermass investigates strange happenings in a British village and a large industrial plant just outside town. Intelligent script and good direction transmit a real sense of paranoia. Known as “Quatermass 2” in the UK where it was made.

4. The Atomic Submarine (1959) – In “the near future” (relative to 1959) the USS Tigerfish atomic submarine investigates the disappearance of shipping in the Artic. Very creepy scenes inside the alien spacecraft when the alien attacks the sub’s investigating crew.

5. Earth vs. the Flying Saucers (1956) – The title pretty much sums it up. I could never quite determine if the aliens were evil from the beginning, or if they retaliated against the Earth after a soldier shoots and kills one of them. Excellent special effects from the famous Ray Harryhausen.

6. The Thing from Another World (1951) – One of the first science fiction movies to be made with high quality production values, script, and actors. A flying saucer crashes in the Arctic. A large, plant-man alien isn’t very happy. I love the intelligent dialog in this movie.

7. It Came from Outer Space (1953) – A giant spherical spaceship crashes in the desert. Townspeople start acting strangely. As it turns out, the aliens are just repairing their ship and aren’t evil, so this really isn’t a pure invasion film. I never quite understood the eerie scenes with the telephone lines.

8. Target Earth (1954) – A group of people wake up one morning in Chicago and find the city deserted. The city has been invaded by robots sent from Venus. This is one of the earliest pure alien invasion-for-conquest films (following “War of the Worlds” by one year).

9. War of the Worlds (1953) – A loose adaptation of the H. G. Wells novel. Aliens land. They’re here for one thing: extermination of humans. The aliens seem invincible but are finally doomed by ordinary Earth germs, for which they have no immunity. Best special effects of any of the movies on this list. Great double introductory narration from Sir Cedric Hardwicke (“Across the gulf of space, minds immeasurably superior to ours regarded this earth with envious eyes, and slowly and surely, they drew their plans against us.”) and from Paul Frees.

10. Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956) – Pod people. Alien plant spores have fallen from space into Santa Mira, California. Each pod is capable of reproducing a human. Very well directed and acted.

Honorable Mention

The Brain Eaters (1958) – A weird movie. Small parasites can take over humans (similar to the famous Robert Heinlein novel “The Puppet Masters”). Very low budget, and the plot is often incomprehensible, but still, this movie has some charm.

The Mysterians (1957) – A fairly inscrutable Japanese film. The Mysterians are, well, rather mysterious. But they’re not nice.

Kronos (1957) – Kronos is a giant energy-collecting machine sent to Earth by unknown aliens. Decent special effects but not a great plot or acting.

The Man from Planet X (1951) – Arguably the first major movie to feature an alien. Strange film, but has some excellent scenes on the Scottish moors.