In my estimation, it doesn’t get more classic ’50s sci-fi than 1951’s When Worlds Collide. A rogue star is heading towards Earth, spelling its certain doom, and humanity has to work together to create a rocket that will send designated survivors to live on a new planet. It is exactly the kind of old sci fi movie that is fascinating to revisit in our modern age, with its limited use of effects aging gracefully and with a story that makes you wonder how we’d handle the scenario now, both in real life and on the big screen. It also proved to be quite an influential film, with Emory University Physics Professor Sidney Perkowitz citing the movie as the genesis of the sci-fi tradition of heroic scientists forced to face a catastrophe. It was even remade via a melded plot with Arthur C. Clarke‘s 1993 novel The Hammer of God to create the basis for 1998’s Deep Impact.
When Worlds Collide strikes both a bleak and hopeful tone. It starts out fairly cynical, with many experts and world leaders refusing to believe the main scientists’ findings, desperate and in denial. There is a sardonic moment early on when a few characters in the know decide to light cigars with flaming wads of cash.
When the world finally does come together, however, the movie gets quite optimistic and kind of heartwarming. Hundreds if not thousands of people unite together to keep humanity alive, even though their individual fates will be determined by a lottery. There is even a young lad who gives up his seat on the rocket to safety because his sweetheart wasn’t chosen as well, though not everyone in the film is quite that loving.
Of course, it doesn’t all go smoothly, with some hiccups and well handled drama. There’s even a twist involving a wheelchair-bound scientist who’s been hiding a gun underneath the blanket all this time. He’s played by character actor John Hoyt, who was fresh off the excellent 1950 film noir The Lawless.
Generally, the ’50s sci-fi films I think are great are not big on spectacle, because it’s so difficult for special effects back then to look good today. But Rudolph Maté’s direction thrives on spectacle. The giant sets, the detailed miniatures, the matte paintings, and the extras impress even today, and just nothing beats that classic Technicolor look.
If you want to see the world working together to find a solution against an apocalyptic event without sacrificing character conflict and drama, you can do far worse than this. There’s plenty of excitement, and the story will instantly grab you, just like it grabbed audiences way back in 1951.
Finally to conclude, I’m introducing something that I’ll continue to use moving forward in this series:
GSC’s Official ’50s Sci-Fi Tier List
S-Tier: The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)
A-Tier: vacant
B-Tier: It Came from Outer Space (1953), Them (1954), When Worlds Collide (1951)
C-Tier: Gorgo (1961)
D-Tier: The Invisible Boy (1957)
F-Tier: vacant
