Sie kamen von jenseits des Weltraums

I think both the '50s and '60s were a golden age for Sci-Fi films and after Roswell, it seemed everyone was having a try at 'alien invasion' films. Okay, this film isn't going to set the World alight with its plot, acting, music, or anything else but it's still a delightful watch for fans of the genre, either as a nostalgic look back at Sixties Britain, or for those interested in the history of such films. Incidentally, being a big fan of TV and film from that time, probably as I grew up with it, I kept recognising classic sound effects, many of which probably also 'served' in other movies and ITC TV series of the time.

Throughout the mid 60s and early 70s Amicus Productions churned out a series of wonderful little horror anthologies including my favorite, TALES FROM THE CRYPT.

But, before launching into the more-profitable horror genre, where low-budgets were more easily forgiven, Amicus produced some full-length features, including THEY CAME FROM BEYOND SPACE.

However, the music is overbearing; and, distracting. The acting is good; but, not outstanding. The special effects are okay, some even good. The launch of the moon rocket even looked plausible. And, who dressed these people anyway?

Well, that's the bad; but, the good is the sets are quite striking. The cinematography, as with other Amicus Products, was beautiful. And, I thought the plot moved along nicely.

However, the reason for my comment is the number of films and stories that this movie seems to have inspired (based on the book The Gods Hate Kansas, so not sure if it's the book or this film that's the inspiration).

Some think that Stephen King may have been inspired by this one. My thinking is that perhaps even the new series "V" may have been inspired by this. Especially the creepy comment by the security officer that the work would result in "saving" the planet, or all mankind. And, WHAT do they need all the bodies for -- both V and these moon creatures?!?

Amicus really defined the horror anthology genre for me. But it is good to see they had a fairly decent feature film before launching those. Next up: THE DEADLY BEES!

Considering that this film was obviously shot on a tight budget, it worked out to be an enjoyable film nonetheless. I haven't seen many Hutton films, but I like his Style of thinking, cerebral hero who reasons first, shoots later.

This film must have been very inspirational to Stephen King, as the plot of his book "The Tommyknockers" was nearly identical to the plot of this movie - right down to the hero with a metal plate in his head.

Of course, the only real down side to this film is the fight music. All it consists of is Someone pounding on a snare drum. they could have done better here.

All in all, it's an enjoyable film of it's era, and one I Will probably watch again.

This movie is passable at best. It has an interesting plot: some aliens are trying to find a way to survive by building a base on earth. They are seen as hostile because, for heaven's sake they take over people's brains and use them to construct their stuff. A scientist who has had brain surgery and has a silver plate in his head, is immune to this. Later, a buddy of his puts a colander on his head with a silver plate and is able to infiltrate the "evil forces." Along the way, our hero, who suffered his initial brain damage in a car accident, drives around in a classic roadster (he must be trying not to be conspicuous) which he is always parking somewhere and setting the hand brake. He flies in the faces of the aliens who seem to tolerate him a lot more than they should. His girlfriend, who finished in third place in the Lucille Ball look-alike contest is a scientist who is carrying the soul of an alien around with her. There is so much coming and going, we never quite understand what the heck they're doing. Only that they seem to make frequent trips to the moon. The ending is full of emotion and good will and, yes, overacting. Captain Kirk would have been proud. Sometimes you see a film that has a good skeleton plot and with a few bucks and a little imagination, it could have been OK. What is lacks is the human element.

"It Came From Outer/Beyond Space" Could this be the Brits' version of a pretty cool old movie? Hmmmm. Similar story but nowhere near the level of "...Outer Space".

Now "...Beyond Space" isn't really that bad. I got a kick out of it. It reminded me a bit of the Quatermass movies with set styles along the lines of Dr. Who. It's a little disjointed from time to time, but the story was decent with plausible details and kept me interested. And generally the acting wasn't all that bad either. There is a little too much "spying" going on however. Every other scene has our hero peeping thru the bushes, following baddies, sneaking in and out of places, etc. Avengers style. Unfortunately, the ending was a little goofy too.

The effects weren't good, but certainly not as hokey as some I've seen. The rocketship actually looked like one, and the lift device was realistic too (except for the yellow & black striped paint job). Sets were fair (especially for low budget) and had little extra touches (like the automated robot rolling around). I bet the actors tripped more than once on that railroad track thing tho.

Had there been more money and time available, I think this could have been changed from "mediocre" to "brilliant." It seems the talent, plot, and expertise were there just waiting to be brought out.

For a sci-fi fan this should fulfill one of those "night owl" sessions when you just don't want to go to bed. Definitely not an addition to my coaster collection.