''It Came from Beneath the Sea'' is a 1955 American
science fiction
Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...
monster film
A monster movie, monster film, creature feature or giant monster film is a film that focuses on one or more characters struggling to survive attacks by one or more antagonistic monsters, often abnormally large ones. The film may also fall und ...
from
Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mu ...
, produced by
Sam Katzman
Sam Katzman (July 7, 1901 – August 4, 1973) was an American film producer and director. Katzman produced low-budget genre films, including serials, which had disproportionately high returns for the studios and his financial backers.
Ea ...
and
Charles Schneer
Charles Hirsch Schneer (May 5, 1920 – January 21, 2009) was an American film producer, best known for working with Ray Harryhausen, the specialist known for his work in stop motion model animation.
Life and career
Born in Norfolk, Virginia, he ...
, directed by
Robert Gordon Robert Gordon may refer to:
Entertainment
* Robert Gordon (actor) (1895–1971), silent-film actor
* Robert Gordon (director) (1913–1990), American director
* Robert Gordon (singer) (1947–2022), American rockabilly singer
* Robert Gordon (scr ...
, that stars
Kenneth Tobey
Kenneth Jesse Tobey (March 23, 1917 – December 22, 2002) was an extremely prolific American actor who performed in hundreds of productions during a career that spanned more than half a century, including his role as the star of the 1957-1 ...
,
Faith Domergue
Faith Marie Domergue (; June 16, 1924 or 1925 – April 4, 1999) was an American film and television actress. Discovered at age sixteen by media and aircraft mogul Howard Hughes, she was signed to a contract with Hughes' RKO Radio Pictur ...
, and
Donald Curtis
Donald Curtis (born Curtis D. Rudolf; February 27, 1915 – May 22, 1997) was an American actor who had roles in dozens of films and television series.
Biography
Curtis was born in Spokane, Washington, the son of Mr. and Mrs. Carl W. Rudol ...
. The screenplay by
George Worthing Yates
George Worthing Yates (14 August 1901 in New York City – 6 June 1975 in Sonoma, California, Sonoma) was an American screenwriter and author. His early work was on Serial (film), serials shown in cinemas; he later progressed to feature films, ...
was designed to showcase the
stop motion animation
Stop motion is an animated filmmaking technique in which objects are physically manipulated in small increments between individually photographed frames so that they will appear to exhibit independent motion or change when the series of frames i ...
special effects
Special effects (often abbreviated as SFX, F/X or simply FX) are illusions or visual tricks used in the theatre, film, television, video game, amusement park and simulator industries to simulate the imagined events in a story or virtual wor ...
of
Ray Harryhausen
Raymond Frederick Harryhausen (June 29, 1920 – May 7, 2013) was an American-British animator and special effects creator who created a form of stop motion model animation known as "Dynamation". His works include the animation for '' Might ...
.
A monstrous giant octopus rampages along the west coast of North America after becoming too radioactive from nuclear testing in the South Pacific for it to be able to hunt its natural prey in the
Mindanao Deep.
''It Came from Beneath the Sea'' was released as the top half of a
double feature
The double feature is a motion picture industry phenomenon in which theatres would exhibit two films for the price of one, supplanting an earlier format in which one feature film and various short subject reels would be shown.
Opera use
Opera ho ...
with ''
Creature with the Atom Brain''.
Plot
A
nuclear submarine
A nuclear submarine is a submarine powered by a nuclear reactor, but not necessarily nuclear-armed. Nuclear submarines have considerable performance advantages over "conventional" (typically diesel-electric) submarines. Nuclear propulsion, ...
on its
shakedown cruise
Shakedown cruise is a nautical term in which the performance of a ship is tested. Generally, shakedown cruises are performed before a ship enters service or after major changes such as a crew change, repair or overhaul. The shakedown cruise s ...
in the
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...
, captained by Commander Pete Mathews, comes into contact with a massive
sonar
Sonar (sound navigation and ranging or sonic navigation and ranging) is a technique that uses sound propagation (usually underwater, as in submarine navigation) to navigation, navigate, measure distances (ranging), communicate with or detect o ...
return. Unable to outrun and outmaneuver the object, the boat is disabled, but frees itself and returns to
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the Naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Re ...
. Tissue from a huge sea creature is discovered jammed in the submarine's dive planes.
![It Came From Beneath the Sea (1955) trailer - Sixtopus 2](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d3/It_Came_From_Beneath_the_Sea_%281955%29_trailer_-_Sixtopus_2.png)
A team of
marine biologist
Marine biology is the scientific study of the biology of marine life, organisms in the sea. Given that in biology many scientific classification, phyla, family (biology), families and genera have some species that live in the sea and others th ...
s, Professor Lesley Joyce and John Carter of
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...
, is called in; they identify the tissue as being a small part of a
gigantic octopus
The kraken () is a legendary sea monster of enormous size said to appear off the coasts of Norway.
Kraken, the subject of sailors' superstitions and mythos, was first described in the modern age at the turn of the 18th century, in a travelogu ...
. The military authorities are unconvinced, but are finally persuaded after receiving reports of missing swimmers and ships at sea being pulled under by a large sea creature. Both scientists conclude that the animal is from the Mindanao Deep, having been forced from its natural habitat by
hydrogen bomb
A thermonuclear weapon, fusion weapon or hydrogen bomb (H bomb) is a second-generation nuclear weapon design. Its greater sophistication affords it vastly greater destructive power than first-generation nuclear bombs, a more compact size, a lowe ...
testing in the area, which has made the giant octopus radioactive, driving off its natural food supply.
The scientists suggest the disappearances of a Japanese fishing fleet and a Siberian seal boat may be the work of the foraging giant. Both Mathews and the Navy representatives express doubt and demand further proof. Later, as Mathews assists Joyce and Carter, a report comes in of an attack on a Canadian freighter; several men escaped in a life raft. The survivors are questioned by psychiatrists, but when the first sailor's description of a creature with giant tentacles is doubted, the other sailors refuse to testify. Joyce is able to convince the first sailor to repeat his story. The U.S. government officials halt all sea traffic in the North Pacific without revealing the reason. Carter flies out to sea to trace a missing ship, while Mathews and Joyce follow up on a report of five missing people off the coast of Oregon.
The local sheriff, Bill Nash, takes Mathews and Joyce to the attack site, where they find a giant suction cup imprint in the beach sand. (At this point, the two have become romantically involved.) They request that Carter join them. Nash is later attacked along the beach by the giant octopus; the two nearby scientists barely escape. Together, they hastily arrange for all Pacific coast waters to be mined before departing for the navy's base in San Francisco.
An electrified safety net is strung underwater across the entrance to
San Francisco Bay
San Francisco Bay is a large tidal estuary in the U.S. state of California, and gives its name to the San Francisco Bay Area. It is dominated by the big cities of San Francisco, San Jose, and Oakland.
San Francisco Bay drains water from a ...
, protecting the electrified
Golden Gate Bridge
The Golden Gate Bridge is a suspension bridge spanning the Golden Gate, the strait connecting San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean. The structure links the U.S. city of San Francisco, California—the northern tip of the San Francisco Pen ...
. Carter takes a helicopter along the shoreline and baits the sea with dead sharks in an effort to lure the creature inland. Joyce demonstrates to reporters a special jet-propelled atomic torpedo, which they hope to fire at the giant, while driving it back to the open sea before detonating the weapon. Later that day, the creature demolishes the underwater net, irritated by the electrical voltage, and heads toward San Francisco.
The navy orders the Golden Gate Bridge abandoned; Carter learns that the electric circuit was left on, so he races to the bridge to shut it off. The giant creature, however, catches sight of the bridge and attacks, the electrical voltage irritating it even more. Mathews is able to rescue Carter before a bridge section is pulled down by a giant tentacle.
The residents of San Francisco panic and begin a mass exodus. The navy struggles to evacuate the
Embarcadero and the
Ferry Building, which is battered by the creature's giant tentacles. When more people are killed, the
Defense Department authorizes Mathews to take out the submarine and fire the torpedo; Carter joins Mathews aboard while Joyce remains at the base.
Flamethrower
A flamethrower is a ranged incendiary device designed to project a controllable jet of fire. First deployed by the Byzantine Empire in the 7th century AD, flamethrowers saw use in modern times during World War I, and more widely in World ...
s drive the giant tentacles back into the sea. When Mathews fires the jet torpedo into the giant creature, it grabs the submarine. Using an
aqualung, Mathews swims up to the massive body and places explosive charges before being knocked out by the shockwaves from their premature explosion. Carter then swims out and shoots at one of its eyes, forcing the giant octopus to release the submarine; he then pulls Mathews to safety. Back at the base, as the creature turns toward the open sea, the torpedo is detonated, completely destroying the giant
cephalopod
A cephalopod is any member of the molluscan class Cephalopoda (Greek plural , ; "head-feet") such as a squid, octopus, cuttlefish, or nautilus. These exclusively marine animals are characterized by bilateral body symmetry, a prominent head ...
. The trio later celebrate the victory at a restaurant, where Mathews makes an impromptu proposal, and Joyce accepts.
Cast
*
Kenneth Tobey
Kenneth Jesse Tobey (March 23, 1917 – December 22, 2002) was an extremely prolific American actor who performed in hundreds of productions during a career that spanned more than half a century, including his role as the star of the 1957-1 ...
as Commander Pete Mathews
*
Faith Domergue
Faith Marie Domergue (; June 16, 1924 or 1925 – April 4, 1999) was an American film and television actress. Discovered at age sixteen by media and aircraft mogul Howard Hughes, she was signed to a contract with Hughes' RKO Radio Pictur ...
as Professor Lesley Joyce
*
Donald Curtis
Donald Curtis (born Curtis D. Rudolf; February 27, 1915 – May 22, 1997) was an American actor who had roles in dozens of films and television series.
Biography
Curtis was born in Spokane, Washington, the son of Mr. and Mrs. Carl W. Rudol ...
as Dr. John Carter
*
Ian Keith
Ian Keith (born Keith Ross; February 27, 1899 – March 26, 1960) was an American actor.
Early years
Born in Boston, Massachusetts, Keith grew up in Chicago. He was educated at the Francis Parker School there and played Hamlet in a school p ...
as Admiral Burns
* Dean Maddox Jr. as Admiral Norman
* Chuck Griffiths as Lieutenant Griff
*
Harry Lauter
Herman Arthur "Harry" Lauter (June 19, 1914 – October 30, 1990) was an American character actor.
Early years
Lauter was born in White Plains, New York. He worked as a model for a professional photographer and was a rodeo rider before m ...
as Deputy Bill Nash
* Richard W. Peterson as Capt. Stacy
Production
Development
The film was made by producer Charles Schneer under the supervision of
Sam Katzman
Sam Katzman (July 7, 1901 – August 4, 1973) was an American film producer and director. Katzman produced low-budget genre films, including serials, which had disproportionately high returns for the studios and his financial backers.
Ea ...
who had a B picture unit at Columbia. Schneer said the idea for the film was inspired by the first explosion of the hydrogen bomb in the
Marshall Islands
The Marshall Islands ( mh, Ṃajeḷ), officially the Republic of the Marshall Islands ( mh, Aolepān Aorōkin Ṃajeḷ),'' () is an independent island country and microstate near the Equator in the Pacific Ocean, slightly west of the Internati ...
, saying he felt if some creature came out of the deep "and then destroyed the Golden Gate Bridge, that would be a hell of a film."
[Swires p 59]
The title was inspired by Universal's science fiction hit ''
It Came from Outer Space
''It Came from Outer Space'' is a 1953 American science fiction horror film, the first in the 3D process from Universal-International. It was produced by William Alland and directed by Jack Arnold. The film stars Richard Carlson and Barbara ...
''. Schneer had been impressed by the effects for ''
The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms
''The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms'' is a 1953 American science fiction monster film directed by Eugène Lourié, with special effects by Ray Harryhausen. The film stars Paul Christian, Paula Raymond, Cecil Kellaway, and Kenneth Tobey. The screenp ...
'' and hired
Ray Harryhausen
Raymond Frederick Harryhausen (June 29, 1920 – May 7, 2013) was an American-British animator and special effects creator who created a form of stop motion model animation known as "Dynamation". His works include the animation for '' Might ...
. "I don't think I would have made that type of picture if I hadn't been able to get Ray to do the FX," Schneer said later.
Shooting
Much of the filming was done at the
San Francisco Naval Shipyard
The Hunters Point Naval Shipyard was a United States Navy shipyard in San Francisco, California, located on of waterfront at Hunters Point in the southeast corner of the city.
Originally, Hunters Point was a commercial shipyard established i ...
, including scenes aboard a submarine, and several naval personnel were given supporting roles.
[ Warren, Bill. ''Keep Watching the Skies'' Vol. I: 1950–1957, McFarland, 1982. .]
To keep shooting costs low, director Robert Gordon shot inside an actual submarine, both above and under water, using handheld cameras. For a scene that takes place on a stretch of Pacific coastline, Gordon and his crew dumped several truckloads of sand onto a sound stage at Columbia, which they backed with a
rear projection
Rear projection (background projection, process photography, etc.) is one of many in-camera effects cinematic techniques
in film production for combining foreground performances with pre-filmed backgrounds. It was widely used for many years in d ...
screen. During their scene together, Kenneth Tobey found himself sinking through the sand to the point of appearing shorter than Faith Domergue on camera, forcing him to dig himself out of the hole between every take. A more extensive love scene had been written for the characters but was literally torn out of the shooting script by Sam Katzman, to keep
principal photography
Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production.
Personnel
Besides the main film personnel, such as actor ...
from going over schedule.
When animator
Ray Harryhausen
Raymond Frederick Harryhausen (June 29, 1920 – May 7, 2013) was an American-British animator and special effects creator who created a form of stop motion model animation known as "Dynamation". His works include the animation for '' Might ...
s special effects were budgeted, studio head Sam Katzman allowed Harryhausen only enough money for animating ''six'' of the octopus' eight tentacles; two were eliminated on the final shooting miniature. Harryhausen jokingly named his giant octopus "the sixtopus". For the scenes where a single tentacle is seen moving on screen, Harryhausen used a large model tentacle instead of employing the complete stop-motion animation model. Some of the later Golden Gate bridge scenes employ a shooting miniature of a bridge support; these were composited in
post-production
Post-production is part of the process of filmmaking, video production, audio production, and photography. Post-production includes all stages of production occurring after principal photography or recording individual program segments.
The ...
over live footage of the real support (this is the section that the "sixtopus" is seen clinging to in the bridge scene).
Schneer was refused permission to shoot on the actual Golden Gate Bridge, so he put the camera on the back of a bakery truck and drove it back-and-forth over the bridge several times to get the needed footage.
[Swires p 60]
Reception
''It Came from Beneath the Sea'' was teamed on a theatrical release
double bill
The double feature is a motion picture industry phenomenon in which theatres would exhibit two films for the price of one, supplanting an earlier format in which one feature film and various short subject reels would be shown.
Opera use
Opera ho ...
with Columbia's ''
Creature with the Atom Brain''.
The film's success led to Harryhausen collaborating again with Schneer for ''
Earth vs. the Flying Saucers
''Earth vs. the Flying Saucers'' (a.k.a. ''Invasion of the Flying Saucers'' and ''Flying Saucers from Outer Space'') is a 1956 American science fiction film from Columbia Pictures. It was produced by Charles H. Schneer, directed by Fred F. Sears, ...
'' the following year.
Critical
''
Time Out
Time-out, Time Out, or timeout may refer to:
Time
* Time-out (sport), in various sports, a break in play, called by a team
* Television timeout, a break in sporting action so that a commercial break may be taken
* Timeout (computing), an enginee ...
'' called it a "minor entry in the '50s cycle of radiation-paranoia sci-fi pics"; and ''Moria'' noted, "Most of the film is told in a stolid, flat style that seems more like an Army training documentary than a dramatic film. The problem is that one has to plod through three-quarters of the film to get to the monster sequences...Certainly, when the climactic scenes of wholesale destruction do arrive they are great"; whereas ''
Allmovie
AllMovie (previously All Movie Guide) is an online database with information about films, television programs, and screen actors. , AllMovie.com and the AllMovie consumer brand are owned by RhythmOne.
History
AllMovie was founded by popular-cult ...
'' wrote that the film "utilized elements of the documentary, with a narration that makes the first half of the movie seem almost like a newsreel, which gives the action a greater immediacy. And...This is all presented in a cool, clipped realistic manner, with a strong but convincingly stated macho tone...It all served to make the first quarter hour of the film almost irresistibly suspenseful, and gave Harryhausen one of the best lead-ins that one could ask for, for his effects";
Leonard Maltin
Leonard Michael Maltin (born December 18, 1950) is an American film critic and film historian, as well as an author of several mainstream books on cinema, focusing on nostalgic, celebratory narratives. He is perhaps best known for his book of fil ...
also praised the film's "Breathtaking special effects"; and the ''
Radio Times
''Radio Times'' (currently styled as ''RadioTimes'') is a British weekly listings magazine devoted to television and radio programme schedules, with other features such as interviews, film reviews and lifestyle items. Founded in May 1923 by J ...
'', while acknowledging it as a "classic monster flick", also called the film "Predictable tosh, but good 1950s fun".
Legacy
The four-issue comic book miniseries ''
It Came from Beneath the Sea... Again'' (2007), released by
TidalWave Productions
TidalWave Productions (previously known as Bluewater Productions, StormFront Media/Publishing & Storm Entertainment) is an independent production studio of comic books and graphic novels. Based in Portland, Oregon, United States, Bluewater publis ...
as part of their
Ray Harryhausen Signature Series, continued the story. A preview of the first issue was included on the 50th Anniversary DVD release of the film.
A clip from the film was used in the second episode of the TV series ''
Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea
''Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea'' is a 1961 American science fiction disaster film, produced and directed by Irwin Allen, and starring Walter Pidgeon and Robert Sterling. The supporting cast includes Peter Lorre, Joan Fontaine, Barbara Eden, M ...
'', which also features a giant man-eating octopus.
The animated series ''
TaleSpin
''TaleSpin'' is an American animated television series first aired in 1990 as a preview on Disney Channel and later that year as part of ''The Disney Afternoon''. It features characters adapted from Disney's 1967 animated feature ''The Jungle Boo ...
'' has an episode that parodies both the name and plot of the film.
In ''
The Mitchells vs. the Machines
''The Mitchells vs. the Machines'' is a 2021 Computer animation, computer-animated science fiction comedy, science fiction comedy film produced by Sony Pictures Animation. The film was directed by Mike Rianda (in his feature directorial debut) an ...
'' (2021), a theatrical release poster for ''It Came from Beneath the Sea'' can be seen in Katie Mitchell's bedroom.
See also
*
List of American films of 1955
A list of American films released in 1955.
The United Artists film '' Marty'' won the Academy Award for Best Picture for 1955.
A–B
C–D
E–H
I–L
M–R
S–Z
See also
* 1955 in the United States
External links
1955 filmsat ...
*
List of stop-motion films
This is a list of films that showcase stop motion animation, and is divided into four sections: animated features, TV series, live-action features, and animated shorts. This list includes films that are not exclusively stop motion.
Stop motion ...
*
USS ''Cubera'' (SS-347)
*
List of killer octopus films
Natural horror is a subgenre of horror films that features natural forces, typically in the form of animals or plants, that pose a threat to human characters.
Though killer animals in film have existed since the release of '' The Lost World'' in ...
References
Bibliography
*
*
External links
1996 soundtrack rerecording*
*
*
*
ttp://thethunderchild.com/Movies/1955/ItCameBeneathSea/ItCameIndex.html ''It Came From Beneath the Sea'' Sourcebookat The Thunder Child
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:It Came From Beneath The Sea
1950s monster movies
1950s science fiction films
1950s science fiction horror films
1955 films
1955 horror films
American black-and-white films
American monster movies
American natural horror films
American science fiction horror films
Columbia Pictures films
1950s English-language films
Films about cephalopods
Films directed by Robert Gordon
Films set in San Francisco
Films set in the Pacific Ocean
Films set in the San Francisco Bay Area
Films shot in San Francisco
Films using stop-motion animation
Giant monster films
Films produced by Charles H. Schneer
1950s American films