It Came from Outer Space
1953 · Movie · 80 min · ★ 6.3 · 74% critics
After a blazing object crashes near a small Arizona town, a local writer and amateur astronomer investigates and becomes convinced it wasn’t a meteor at all. With officials and neighbors doubting him, strange incidents begin to ripple through the desert community, raising uneasy questions about what arrived—and what it wants.
Also known as Atomic Monster · Strangers from Outer Space · The Meteor
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Details
- Years
- 1953
- Release date
- 1953-06-05
- Language
- English
- Runtime
- 80 min
- Max quality
- UHD
- Critic score
- 74/100
- TMDB rating
- 6.3/10 (249 votes)
- Budget
- $800,000
About
You’ll likely enjoy this if you want a moody, mystery-leaning 1950s alien tale with paranoia and desert creepiness, closer in spirit to The Blob or Creature from the Black Lagoon; Not for you if you need fast action or lots of monster screen time.
Pros: eerie desert mood; intriguing mystery setup; thoughtful sci-fi themes | Cons: slow pacing; limited creature glimpses; some stiff acting
Themes
- spacecraft
- small town
- arizona
- alien life-form
- meteorite
- astronomer
- black and white
- school teacher
- angry mob
- crash landing
- xenophobia
- small town sheriff
- +9 more
Cast & crew
Richard Carlson
as John Putnam
Barbara Rush
as Ellen Fields
Charles Drake
as Sheriff Matt Warren
Joe Sawyer
as Frank Daylon
Russell Johnson
as George
Kathleen Hughes
as Jane Dean
Dave Willock
as Pete Davis (uncredited)
Alan Dexter
as Dave Loring (uncredited)
George Eldredge
as Dr. Snell (uncredited)
Edgar Dearing
as Sam, a hobo (uncredited)
Directed by Jack Arnold