When Worlds Collide (1951)

In this early entry in the great Fifties sci-fi genre, a South African pilot (Richard Derr) is paid by astronomers to bring a top-secret cache of film to scientists in New York. The scientists confirm the astronomers' worst fear: A star will come close enough to Earth to cause floods, fires, volcanos, tidal waves, etc. A few days later, a new planet will crash into Earth, destroying it. The scientists recruit some industrialists willing to fund a Noah's Ark spaceship that will take just a handful of people and animals to a planet that might sustain life (one of the backers, played by John Hoyt, deserved an Oscar in the "Nastiest Character" category). The acting is pretty broad, except for Barbara Rush, who plays the obligatory love interest. Special effects range from impressive (Times Square NYC flooded by a tidal wave, the space ship launching) to cheesy (the host planet's landscape, looking like a kid's watercolor). But, the movie has good action and raises some thoughtful ethical questions. Not bad at all.


Ntra la porta tua lu sangu � sparsu,
E nun me mporta si ce muoru accisu...
E s'iddu muoru e vaju mparadisu
Si nun ce truovo a ttia, mancu ce trasu.