Must-see movies are futuristic classics that shouldn’t be missed. Of course, not every must-see is perfect. That’s why we’ve rated them 1-5 on the patented “crunchy goodness” scale. Written by James Rocchi.
Title: Quatermass and the Pit
Date: 1967
Vitals: British series character Dr. Quatermass (Andrew Kier) was a brilliant-but-cynical scientist — who risked the world as often as he saved it. In this installment, Quatermass is on the team investigating a mystery found under a British Underground station: A swarm of proto-human skeletons … surrounding an unearthly vessel. The alien inhabitants of the craft are long dead, but breaching their ship soon activates a siren song that no human can resist … Quatermass and the Pit may have a twenty-dollar budget, but it’s got billion-dollar ideas.
Famous Names: Andrew Kier, Julian Glover (Cast).
Crunchy Goodness: 4
Most Painfully Dated Moment: When it’s painfully clear the ‘levitating’ objects in the Martian craft are held aloft by very visible fishing twine.
Bang for Your Buck: The apocalyptic closing scene, with all of London in the sway of long-dormant genetic programming that’s been re-activated, turning a great city into a howling spasm of chaos. …
Spinoffs/Sequels and Prequels: The Quatermass character was a lynchpin of British sci-fi — featured in five TV serials, three movies and one radio serial over four decades.
