The Earth Dies Screaming (1964)
When you think of Terence Fisher, one of British cinemas greats in my opinion you should instantly think of his Hammer film catalogue - Dracula, The Mummy, Curse of Frankenstein and The Devil Rides Out - are all part of a significant canon of classic British horror films directed by Fisher. Among all the Hammer was this curio, The Earth Dies Screaming. A science fiction gem that is often overlooked.
Clocking in at a mere 61 minutes the film romps along following a small band of survivors after an unexplained event left the country's population dead. However this disparate group are not alone as alien robots are also stalking the countryside.
Following one of the most downbeat openings i can recall, Fisher throws us straight into a 70's Doctor Who adventure as it utilizes much of the aspects of 70's Who. The sleepy English village, a race against time,walking corpses, Cybermen...but Fisher and script writer Harry Cross gave us this well before Doctor Who even thought of these ideas, making The Earth Dies Screaming something of a visionary piece of British sci-fi.
Cross's script is simple but intelligent. We don't get any answers as to why and how events took place nor who or what the robots are. Like the characters, we just know they did take place. Also the resolution is worked out through guess work and understanding communication methods rather than on an interplanetary scale.
It's not all brilliant, though much of it is. Lead actress Virginia Field appears to play her role in slow motion, especially when pursued and... No, that's about it. The Earth Dies Screaming is actually rather brilliant.
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