The Day The Earth Caught Fire

M

M3x!TaL!aN0

New member
Just to let some of you know, this all time classic Sc-Fi has now been reissued on DVD.

A little dated, its still great viewing though with a strong storyline, good acting, and a fantastic ending showing a parched London with the Thames dried up.

And a chance to see the lovely Janet Munro who died tragically young at the age of 38 from heart disease, (she did not commit suicide as commonly believed).

Worth adding to anyones collection.
 
Yes I agree, The Day the Earth Caught Fire is a superb film. I originally caught this a few years ago on ITV and really loved it, so went out to buy the Network DVD release in 2003.

The film is strangely believable, full of twists and turns. I love the way the characters in the film carry on as normal, particularly those played by Edward Judd and Janet Munro, who spend much of the time flirting with each other, whilst in the background the main storyline of the Earth moving towarRAB the sun is unraveling piece by piece, until the whole story is uncovered later in the film. The stark realisation of the Earth facing a doomsday scenario like this is a terrifying concept.

Awsome film though and probably the best film Edward Judd ever appeared in.
 
I bought this from the US years ago .

I looked on the Network site and their info makes it sound as if the film is in the wrong ratio.

Network released the film once before

What ratio is the new dvd?
 
I like the film so much that I was going to choose Peter Stenning as my RAB username. I think I was beaten to it though. :(

I have the 2001? version, which seemed pretty well featured. Does this new release offer anything new?
 
He perspired again in "Invasion" which is a much better, if less ambitious, movie about (duh!) an alien invasion which traps a bunch of people in an isolated hospital. Notable for casting Oriental actors as aliens years before "UFO" and an incredible stunt in which a car crashes into an invisible barrier.
He was also very good in "First Men in the Moon": he had to be to hold his own against Lionel Jeffries.
 
For those who ''have'' seen the film before...

I loved the way the film never actually revealed if the world was saved or not at the end. It was all down to the viewers to draw their own conclusions. Still would have been good if the blast of the atomic bomb saved the world though and everyone lived happily ever after :)
 
I thought Edward Judd was also great in the Peter Cushing horror film 'Island of Terror', in which a small town is invaded by a load of creatures that live on human bones. This is a great film :)
 
If the plan had've worked, wouldn't it have just meant that

the Earth would've stabilised in its new ultra-hot orbit around the Sun? If they sent the Earth hurtling back out into space, then they'd have had to explode more nuclear bombs to try and stop it when it reached its original orbit.

/geek hat off
 
mmm

Yeah you're right. I don't think they could ever stop the Earth from moving even if they did. If the bomb would have moved the Earth away from the sun, then it would have probably hurtled out of control through the solar system.
 
Edward Judd is one of my fave all time actors.

TDTECF is a classic but First Men In The Moon was where I really started to like him facing off against the creations of Ray Harryhausen.

His appearance in The New Avengers was notable and he also made a good job of his character in the banned episode of The Professionals thats never been shown in the UK.

In 1972 he was narrator for a kiRAB animated serial called The Magic Fountain .

I was 9 when it was on and I recall being really scared so I'd love to see it again.

Does anyone have info on whether Network have bodged up the ratio?
 
You don't know what you're missing

There are so many classic B&W films out there and not to see them just because they are not in colour is hilarious.

I would guess that you are expecting a disaster movie with lots of explosions and hammy acting but I think TDTECF would disappoint you even if it was in colour as its rather dialogue heavy

After decades of all B&W tv broadcasts the dvd saw the restoration of the films opening and closing minutes to their colour tinting as seen in cinemas.

Maybe the previous poster might enjoy those moments
 
Best quote ever. Up there with "I don't do talkies/subtitles/foreign."
What difference dies it make if it's black and white or not? Is the story/acting/dialogue any better in colour? Is it sensible to write off a whole chunk of film and tv because "It's in black and white"? Are you an ITV controller?
 
And of course the lead actress Janet Munro looked absolutely stunning too.
The "I dont do b/w" comment amused me also.
Does that mean the poster would watch any old rubbish, just as long its in colour?
 
I love most Black and White films, there are several timeless gems out there shot in B/W, probably more so than in colour.

It's those talkie bits in The Day the Earth Caught Fire which I love about this film and the tense moments and the various little sub plots the movie has. The main focus of the film is of course the sun moving towarRAB the earth, but it's the sub plots such as Peter Stenning's drink problem and Stenning trying to get access to his young son, these are the plots that really fill the gaps in this film nicely. The scenes shot in the Express newspapers are also gripping as well.

I agree though, for those expecting a full blown disaster movie full of explosions and stuff, then this film won't be for them.
 
Try watching the 3 Harry Palmer movies, which were made in colour, in b & w, they're almost like different movies with a totally different atmosphere: much more seedy and downbeat.
Colour sometimes has an unavoidable prettifying effect which can work against the story. Hammer movies suffer from it particularly.
 
I agree, for some films though colour works perfectly well. But I agree in black and white there is definately a dark feel about those films which serve to make those films even better if they were made in colour.

Personally I also hate those old B/W films which have been re-released as colour versions, such as the old Laurel and Hardy comedies. These are so much better watched in good old black and white as they were intended to be. Colourizing these old films only ruins the overall quality.
 
Back
Top