Movie of the Week

 

 (imdb)

WHERE HAVE ALL THE PEOPLE GONE? -1974-This is an ABC movie of the week presentation. Steven Anders (Peter Graves; a year after MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE ended) and his kids Debbie (Kathleen Quinlan) & Alex (George O'Hanlon Jr.) are on vacation, exploring some caves. After his wife leaves to attend to her job, they go to explore a cave. There's an intense flash of light and an earthquake. Everything seems OK but the friend who was with them dies of what seems to be radiation poisoning. They high tail it back to town but the place is devoid of people. In another town, they find the shell-shocked Jenny (Verna Bloom; in HIGH PLAINS DRIFTER the year before) and an angry dog. Later they are held up and stranded when a gun toting motorist steals their car. They come upon a farm and meet Michael (Michael James-Wixted), a young boy whose parents were killed. They travel by a horse drawn buckboard and run into some more canine trouble. When it's discovered wife/mom is dead everything almost falls apart. When Jenny is saved from suicide Ander's survival speech gives them all hew hope. 

What exactly happened isn't explained precisely. Maybe a solar flare caused some kind of epidemic. 

Director John Llewelyn Moxey (from Argentina) began his film career as an editor and second unit director. In 1960, he directed Christopher Lee in THE CITY OF THE DEAD (aka HORROR HOTEL). He did lots of BBC TV productions and in 1966 again directed Lee in CIRCUS OF FEAR. Later he relocated to the US where he worked largely in TV and directed the standout TV horror movie THE NIGHT STALKER (1972).

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Rediscovered

 

 (youtube)

AS THE EARTH TURNS-1938-Amateur science fiction silent film originally made in 1938 but only rediscovered in 2019. A mysterious being known as Pax (the director Richard Lyford) can control the weather and cause earthquakes. He wants the world to stop making war. A newspaper publisher and two reporters (1 male, one female) investigate. Pax plans to "rock the Earth" and seems to succeed but the story ends before we find out. 

This is a trendsetting piece and its restored version looks great but it is an amateur film done in a little by bad SFX, over the top acting and terribly made-up actors. Nice new score by Ed Hartman was added after it's restoration. Director/star Lyford made other experimental short films (most of which are lost) but later he worked for Disney Studios.

 (Los Angeles Times)

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Yongary

  (imdb)

YONGARY, MONSTER FROM THE DEEP-1967-After some stuff about a scientist being called back to work from his honeymoon and an astronaut coming back from space, Korea is threatened by a massive earthquake which turns out to be the legendary giant reptile Yongary until now thought to be a myth. It crashes through the countryside while a group of scientists and the army try to stop it with the help (?) of Iro, a young boy who at one point dances with the giant! This is an entertaining giant monster movie directed by Ki-Duk Kim.

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Fred Sears

THE NIGHT THE WORLD EXPLODED-1957-Short (64 minutes) science fiction quickie features an egghead scientist Dr. Conway (William Leslie; also in HELLCATS OF THE NAVY the same year) and his older mentor Dr. Morton (Tris Coffin) who invent a machine that detects earthquakes. When they find  "a big one" is going to hit LA the warn the governor but he ignores them. After the quake hits as predicted the government wants to know more (things haven't changed that much). Kathryn Grant plays "Hutch" the duo's assistant who's sweet on Conway but he doesn't notice. They all go to Carlsbad Caverns to check out some readings. Along the way they discover a new element that explodes when it makes contact with air.

THE NIGHT THE WORLD EXPLODED almost plays like an episode of TV's SCIENCE FICTION THEATER. It was directed (and narrated) by Fred Sears (for a double bill with his atrocious THE FLYING CLAW), a veteran of extremely low budgets who's rapidity rivaled Beaudine and Newfield. He died suddenly at 54 of a heart attack leaving 5 (!) movies (including WORLD) to be released posthumously. Many of them produced by Sam Katzman (as WORLD was).

Grant who got to be Bing Crosby's widow was in THE 7TH VOYAGE OF SINBAD the next year.

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