The 1950s were a significant decade for the genres of science-fiction and horror, and the two were often blended together in creative ways. The sci-fi horror of this time was largely dominated by creature features that often revolved around mutated animals or alien entities that would wreak havoc. Tarantula, The Giant Leeches, and The Blob are some significant examples in this regard.
Films like The Fly and The Thing From Another World eventually led to significant remakes and reboots that revolutionized commercial sci-fi. While most of these films might look goofy in present-day-standards, their reliance on practical effects and atmospheric terror is worth-noting, providing audiences scares that might stun audiences even today.
Them! - Naval Slaughter
To put it simply, Them is a film about irradiated ants that gain bloodlust and colossal physique. The film is regarded as a cult hit for ushering in an era of 'big bug' and 'nuclear monster' films.
While the prospect of killer ants is scary in itself, the creepiest scene has to be the monster attack sequence aboard a ship. As a queen ant hatches her brood aboard a freighter, her forces go on to attack and slaughter the crew. The violence, combined with the ant's screeching cries, helped in achieving a haunting effect.
The Angry Red Planet - 'It's Alive'
To replicate the surface of Mars, The Angry Red Planet made use of the Cine-Magic technique of film processing. In layperson terms, Cine-Magic involves combining hand-drawn illustrations with live-action footage.
The technique proved to be effective for several terrifying visuals. When the astronauts initially explore the seemingly harmless ecosystem at Mars, they seem to chance upon a rock-like structure that turns out to be an ant's pincer. As the Martian ants terrorize the crew, viewers get a closer glimpse into the creatures' body structure. The razor-sharp fangs and spiked limbs are too realistic to behold, and the red screen filter adds to the chaos.
Invasion Of The Body Snatchers - The Pods
The titular body-snatchers in this 1956 classic refer to the physical copies of people created by alien pods, as a part of a typical invasion plan. As emotionless duplicates of missing citizens prop up in a sleepy California town, the townsfolk fall into mass hysteria.
Some of the protagonists end up discovering the cause in a greenhouse when they find eerie plant-like spores that develop into larger parasitic pods, eventually snatching the body of a human host. The pods might not be at par with the other conventional monsters of 1950s Hollywood, but the gooey, frothy visual style is enough to fill humans with dread.
Tarantula - Lab Attack
As expected, this is yet another film where a creature, a tarantula, in this case, turns into an abomination after a science experiment goes wrong. Scarier than the gigantic spider's rage is the scene that involves the spider leaving a laboratory.
As Dr. Matt Hastings experiments with a growth formula on plants and animals, a mysteriously grotesque figure attacks him from behind. The ominous figure shows up unexpectedly, and, while attacking the scientist, he sets the lab on fire. Taking the opportunity of this chaos, a captive tarantula walks away freely. Their overall tension in the fast-paced scene also foreshadows major plot points towards Tarantula's third act.
The Man Who Could Cheat Death - 'Get Out'
The real horror in The Man Who Could Cheat Death was brought about by leading man Anthony Diffring's menacing facial expressions. He plays a 104-year-old doctor and sculptor who manages to look young through parathyroid gland transplants. When his anti-aging process finally gets disrupted, he starts showing signs of pale green skin. To maintain his youth, he must drink a potion every six hours.
As he plans to consume the fluid, one of his models encounters him and bombards him with questions. The camera zooms in on Diffring's face as he yells "Get out!" When the lady doesn't comply, he strikes her down with his hand, leaving a burn mark on her face.
The Blob - The Blob Visits The Theatre
Interestingly, The Blob marked not only the first appearance of the alien amoeboid entity, but the film is also notable as Steve McQueen's screen debut.
The blob, especially by today's standards, really isn't that scary and usually takes the form of a red gelatin-like semisolid mass. Yet, the way it slowly engulfs human bodies might be disgusting for some. A prime example of this is the scene at the Colonial Theatre. While audiences have a good time laughing at their film and munching on popcorn, the blob wraps itself around the projectionist, asphyxiating him in an instant. As it proceeds to consume on the other moviegoers, the entire theatre gets engulfed in panic.
The Fly - The Head Reveal
Even though the 1986 remake has gained more popularity over the years, the original version of The Fly was ahead of its times, overturning several body horror tropes. David Hedison stars as André Delambre, a scientist obsessed with a matter transporting machine called integrator-disintegrator.
When he decides to test the device on himself, a housefly accidentally enters his chamber, resulting in both of their atoms being blended in bizarre ways. This eventually gives Delambre the head and left arm of a fly. Understandably, his wife starts yelling in shock when he finally reveals his transformation. For first-time viewers, the scene is particularly harrowing.
The Killer Shrews - The Taming Of The Shrew
The savage and hyperviolent shrews were mostly played by costumed hounds. As for the closeup shots of these shrews, hand puppets were used, and despite the low budget, the hand puppets with their piercing eyes and sabretooth look were pretty terrorizing for their time.
As these genetically-modified shrews garner feral tendencies, the inhabitants of an island lock themselves up for safety. Through a broken window, one of the shrews reaches the basement of a building and brutally bites off the flesh of one man's leg. As he writhes in pain, the protagonist Thorne Sherman (James Best) shoots down the shrew. A zoom-in shot details the shrew's slow death, as it lays its head gently over a pool of blood.
The Giant Gila Monster - Slow Walk
Directed by The Killer Shrews' Ray Kellogg and filmed around the same time, this monster classic created the effect of an enhanced giant Gila Monster by filming an actual Mexican bearded lizard against a scaled-down model landscape. Perhaps this is what adds to the realism evoked by the reptile. No stop-motion. No hand-puppets. The monster in this case was an actual living creature.
As a young couple parks their car near a ravine, the lizard emerges out of the ravine. Rather than the lizard's attack, it's the stealthily-paced walk that is intimidating. The reptile keeps on walking casually, occasionally revealing its forked tongue. The chilling silence before its hunt makes for a nightmarish experience.
The Monster of Piedras Blancas - Decapitated Head
Inspiration from previous monster films like Creature from the Black Lagoon is quite evident in The Monster of Piedras Blancas. But, somehow, the amphibious monstrosity looks more hideous than its predecessors, with its long claws and veined skin.
The prehistoric amphibian terrorizes a small lighthouse town and often decapitates its inhabitants. In one such scene, he proudly walks along a beach holding one such severed head. Even though the head clearly looks fake, the monster's costume and the deafening background scare takes the scare-factor a notch higher above usual low-budget monster films.