THEY CAME FROM BEYOND SPACE
THEY CAME FROM BEYOND SPACE
RELEASED 8 MARCH 1967 | PG | Blu-ray/DVD/download Director Freddie Francis Cast Robert Hutton, Jennifer Jayne, Zia Mohyeddin, Michael Gough
BLU-RAY DEBUT Gifted one of the great trashy titles – this is actually an adaptation of Joseph Millard’s novel The Gods Hate Kansas – They Came From Beyond Space sees British horror specialists Amicus take on arch rivals Hammer at the Quatermass game.
The premise is familiar: a swarm of meteorites falls in suspiciously precise formation. Bodysnatching shenanigans ensue, the rocks stealing people’s minds as part of an alien conspiracy involving a secret underground project.
Riddled with space race paranoia, the plot unfolds with a low-key, procedural air.Imported American star Robert Hutton makes for a blandly mid-Atlantic lead as an expert on extraterrestrial life even as his penchant for vintage cars tries valiantly to bestow some Steed-like charm. And this is very much Avengerland: red phone boxes, rural lanes, ivy-covered cottages.
The effects are surprisingly decent and there’s a plausible stab at Bond-style actionadventure as Hutton infiltrates a subterranean base. But a last-minute lurch into pure Flash Gordon kitsch leaves you appreciating the Nigel Kneale-like earlier bits.
Nick
Setchfield
Extras Audio commentary by film historian David Del Valle and Creepozoids director David DeCoteau; trailer.