The Earth Dies Screaming by Terence Fisher (1964)
Make no mistake: I started watching The Earth Dies Screaming for its title alone. The film’s opening minutes, as people suddenly keel over and British streets become strewn with corpses, are effectively eerie and chilling. At first blush, it seems like it’s going to be something along the same lines as a Twilight Zone episode. As it progresses, however, The Earth Dies Screaming moves more and more into “B” movie territory, especially when characters start doing really dumb and predictable things (like failing to close and lock doors behind them when they’re being chased). The Earth Dies Screaming never gets too schlocky or MST3K-worthy, the main villains’ costumes notwithstanding, but I am glad that it clocks in at just over an hour, which prevents it from becoming tedious.
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