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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
62 of 67 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Not what I expected. It was MUCH better. A classic film!,
By
This review is from: The Incredible Shrinking Man [VHS] (VHS Tape)
I had not even HEARD of this film until I saw an ad for it in TV Guide a few years back. Naturally my first reaction was "WHAT???" I thought to myself "Great, another junky low-grade 50's sci-fi flop. "See the amazing side show freak, but look QUICKLY because he's getting tinier by the second. Whoops! There he goes!" *Clears throat* Excuse me. :)ANYWAY, that's what I EXPECTED of this film. What I actually GOT was much different. I LOVE this thing even though so far I've only gotten to see it in its entirety one time. For the 1950's the special effects are incredible. They do not look fake at all, and you marvel as you watch a normal man get ever-tinier before your very eyes. The terror here is totally in the mind. It has nothing to do with zombies, ghosts, vampires or typical movie monsters, it plays with your head. Like most Hitchcock movies this one deals with a normal man facing extraordinary circumstances. The fun, the adventure, the involvement, and the horror of this film comes from watching thee everyday world take on staggering proportions. Normal activies like eating become a chore and a death-defying quest. Just imagine YOURSELF being that tiny. Everything you took for granted is much harder to do. A trip across the room could take hours or days instead of seconds. Your husband or wife could step on you and kill you and not even know it untill it was too late. Your pet dog or cat could mistake you for dinner. Life becomes an obstacle course in every sense of the word. The acting here was great. I really felt for the hero as he struggled with a situation that he was powerless to control. Even the other people in here I could sympathize with a lot. Imagine thinking that you have lost someone you love and having no idea whether they are alive or dead. How would YOU feel if YOUR spouse or a loved one was shrunk to the size of a gnat? It would be PRETTY hard to deal with, or even to picture, wouldn't it? One thing I love is the point that this film makes. A lot of people attach great importance to size, whether it be physical body size and strength or how much money or status we have or how many things we own. It is heartbreaking to watch our hero lose all contact with his family and loved ones, to see him become "nothing" to the normal world of people. But there is a ray of light. As our hero faces this horrible ordeal he comes to terms with his tiny size and overall condition. He learns to accept himself, and he learns, as we all should, that in the eyes of God, no one is insignificant. God loves everyone and everyone has worth. In short this is NOT your typical sub-par 50's sci-fi slop. This is a tragic but ultimately beautiful story that you makes you think and feel. It really tugs the heart strings. Please don't miss it. You just might love it as much as I did, or maybe even more than I did, and that says alot, since I REALLY loved this film even after only one complete viewing of it so far. Peace.
29 of 30 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Gripping Journey Into A Frightening Oversized World,
By Simon Davis (Melbourne, Australia) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Incredible Shrinking Man [VHS] (VHS Tape)
"The Incredible Shrinking Man", is one of the great Sci Fi movie titles from the 1950's thats not as well remembered as other landmark efforts of that time like "The Thing From Another World". That is unfortunate as here we have a really ground breaking effort that not only boasts stunning special effects, but also restrained performances and an interesting premise that is handled with integrity by director and cast. The film of course will always be talked about for the innovative and at times quite frightening process by which the main character shrinks away to practically nothing. Equally amazing in my mind after a viewing of "The Incredible Shrinking Man", is how this film gives us a view of the "normal", everyday world suddenly becoming a dangerous and potentially lethal environment where everyday things like the family pet or a spider in the basement take on life threatening personas. The story starts out innocently enough with young couple Scott and Louise Carey (Grant Williams and Randy Stuart), who are spending some time on Scott's brother's boat. While Louise is below getting some refreshments Scott notices a strange mist approaching the boat and before he can take cover it envelopes the whole boat and he is covered in a strange glittery substance. It is just passed off as some unexplained happening and then the story jumps ahead six months to when strange developments start to occur. One morning Scott notices that his shirt seems too big for him and blames it on the cleaners. However it is not long before many other strange things begin to happen that arouse real fears in him. Going to his local doctor (William Schallert), Scott gets a clean bill of health and Louise feels that it is simply a lack of proper diet that is effecting her husband. To be sure however Scott is referred to a specialist Dr. Silver (Raymond Bailey), who gauges that Scott is actually loosing height over a number of weeks of examination and tests. The source of this strange occurance is narrowed down to the now forgotten glittery mist on the boat which further testing reveals to be some sort of radioactive body that causes the body to shrink. Dr. Silver injects Scott with a serum that will hopefully stop the shrinking process. Meanwhile the media have latched onto the newsworthy story of the "incredible shrinking man" and Scott and Louise become prisoners in their own home as curious busybodies begin making their life a misery. Scott is replaced in his employment which makes it dificult to live and causes further friction between he and Louise. Soon Scott's shrinking begins again and he experiences a rapid and terrifying drop in size. Back at the house Scott is reduced to living in a doll's house and one day when Louise by mistake leaves the door open and the family cat gets inside a new nightmare begins as Scott is hunted by the now "Giant", cat and after falling into the cellar having to face terrors like a hungry "Giant Spider". Everything in Scott's existence now holds unknown terrors and after Louise believes that Scott has been eaten by the cat he is now all alone with no assistance from anyone. After facing all of these terrors in his own home Scott does make his escape and now too small to be detected by any human beings begins a new existence where survival is his sole aim. The story of "The Incredible Shrinking Man", may read like your usual sensationalist 1950's science fiction however it is far from that. It presents a quite thought provoking idea that we could all possibly imagine ourselves in. Noticeably absent in this film are the usual 1950's invading aliens or oversized creatures. Instead here the really frightening elements in the story are the simple household features that we encounter everyday like the family cat, a stray spider in the room or a leak in a water heater. Because of the shrinking of the main character these elements take on quite terrifying proportions. Director Jack Arnold wisely stays away from the more sensational potential of this story and in his direction even makes the scene where Scott's wedding ring rolls off his finger a seemingly frightening occurence. The performances here are first class and Grant Williams does a sterling job as the young husband who finds himself fighting for survival in his own home. His fear mixed with developing personal strength intent on survival makes for a great performance. Randy Stuart as wife Louise also deserves special mention as she delivers a well thought out performance as the first disbelieving wife who has to take over the leader role in the household as her husband literally shrinks before her eyes. The cast also features supporting performances from future comedy series regulars in Raymond Bailey and William Schallert who will always be rembered for their work in "The Beverly Hillbillies", and "The Patty Duke Show", respectively. "The Incredible Shrinking Man", contains many memorable scenes that boast special effects achievements that even today still cause amazement. Foremost among them of course are Scott's ongoing battle with the ferocious spider in the celler and his terrifying flight from the clutches of the family cat which is now 10 times his size. Those scenes present images that have rightly gone down into Science Fiction folklore. Despite the films almost surreal ending which plays almost like a sermon delivered by Grant Williams the rest of the film dates amazing well despite the passage of over 47 years. Even the introduction of computer technology to achieve incredible special effects in my belief has not dulled the sheer genius evident throughtout this gripping sci fi tale. It certainly is one of my favourites of these efforts in the 1950's and deserves to be better remembered. For a thrilling piece of sci fi action from the golden era of these movies in the 1950's you can't get better than Jack Arnold's "The Incredible Shrinking Man".
20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
'so close, the infinite, and the infinitesimal...like the closing of a gigantic circle',
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: The Incredible Shrinking Man [VHS] (VHS Tape)
This film almost defines its own genre. First, it might be said that it is a "grade B" film, with an A+ rating. But it is also not really a cult film, either, so...
It is the story of the inward development of an ordinary man, who, externally, gets smaller and smaller due to the blow-back mankind is about to experience from nature (following the inadequate attempts at forcing it to yield to his caprice through technology). The culprit: radioactive insecticide. On the external side of things, left to technology, insects get the upper hand. But, on the internal side of things, the human spirit refuses to be crushed, and the individual man, continually adjusting himself to his circumstances, triumphs and becomes the pioneer for future humanity... In a way the film begins in the middle, after he falls into the basement when he is about 3 inches tall. But it also begins at the end, when he leaves the cellar by stepping out through the screen of the cellar window. From the beginning of the film he tells the audience his story first hand, as a recollection, but we don't quite know from where... In terms of the special effects, it is quite amazing what it accomplished. Having some minor flaws, it would be helped by a computer enhancement. But it would not be improved upon in any way if a remake were attempted using only computer generated images. In fact, it would suffer. If you like science fiction, see the film. If you like finding a sense of wonder in a blade of grass, see the film. If you like stories about persons finding inner courage and character as they deal with life's blows, see the film. If you like stories about fighting monsters and dragons and the like, see the film. If you like films with philosophy and speculations about the meaning of life, see the film.
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