Four Sided Triangle

Rather clever, perhaps over-drawn science fiction(for lack of another fitting category) about two young men who discover how to replicate any matter whatsoever. The two lads are assisted by gorgeous Barbara Payton and only one of the guys gets the girl. Soon the other pines for his lost love and tries sending live matter through the replicating devices with the express purpose of duplicating his lost love Lena. Hammer horror icon Terrance Fisher directs this early Hammer film with style albeit on a small scale with a very limited budget. The science of the film shouldn't be dwelled on too terribly long if you want to buy into the film, and it is the means to tell a story of a love triangle which soon has a fourth side - a four sided love triangle. The film has a lot of narration by James Hayter as a doctor that took in one of the men as a boy. Hayter adds some much needed credibility to the film and is a voice of reason - to a degree - and compassion. The implications of the new technology are only superficially explored and soon you see the plot turning into yet another Frankenstein -type film with man destined to try and become God and create life. What makes this film work is Fisher's low-key direction and simple yet sturdy performances by all concerned. Payton is very lovely as well. While certainly not in the ranks of great Hammer films or great Fisher films, Four Sided Triangle is thought-provoking, engaging, and predictable.

I would never have bought this early Hammer film but as it was included as a special feature on "The Curse Of Frankenstein" Blu Ray I thought I would give it a watch. The sci fi elements to the plot made it bearable but I thought the main cast were rather bland and uninteresting. I really didn't care about the characters or the love triangle that soon gains a fourth side. For me Hammer really begins with "The Quatermass Experiment" so this film and the one I watched the other day ("Stolen Face") are nothing more than curios that I suppose act as a prologue to the iconic run of films that the studio was soon to produce. 3/10 - Bad.

Bill and Robin are scientists, and rivals for the affection of Lena (played by Barbara Payton-- being the love interest of two men is basically the same role she played in "Bride of the Gorilla"- 1951). It's amazing what two scientists can do, in a barn they bought and converted into a workshop, and with only £2,000 for research funds. They create a machine called a "Duplicator," a.k.a. a "Reproducer," with 2 identical pods, (much like would be used in "The Fly"- 1958). This can "convert energy into matter" (more on that next paragraph). At first they make an exact replica of a watch, then another small object. The plot thickens: Robin marries Lena. Even though Bill could create copies of anything in the world-- gold, rubies, rare drugs, radium-- Bill only wants to create another Lena. The Duplicator has only worked on inanimate objects; Bill modifies it so it can make perfect duplicates of small animals. Oddly enough, Lena agrees to be duplicated. So now we have Lena, and her duplicate Helen. But, since Helen is a perfect copy, she too is in love with Robin! What will the lovesick Bill do now? A hokey, no-budget movie, typical of 1950s flicks with pseudo-science and trite plots. It's curious that even though inventor Bill can be a genius at science, he is a knucklehead at love.

The theme of this movie reminds me of lyrics to the song "Money for Nothing" by Dire Straits-- "Money for nothin' and your chicks for free." The Duplicator seems to create things: effortlessly, cost-free, and out of thin air, sort of like Barbara Eden did in "I Dream of Jeannie." Oh, they say that the matter "is created from energy." According to Einstein's equation, "E equals m c-squared" you can convert matter into energy (a lot of energy). In an atomic explosion, about one gram of matter (Uranium-235) will turn into the energy of 18-kilotons of TNT. This works both ways. You could theoretically convert energy into matter-- but then, it would take the energy of an 18-kiloton atomic bomb to produce one gram of matter! So it would take about the energy of 450 atomic bombs to create one pound of matter. Since Helen weighs over 100 pounds, you would need the energy of 45,000 atomic bombs to create that much matter. Wouldn't it be easier for Bill to try a dating service?

One of my sci-fi/horror/fantasy reviews written 50 years ago: Directed by Terence Fisher; Produced by Michael Carreras and Alexander Paal, for Hammer Films, released in America by Astor Pictures. Screenplay by Fisher, Adapted by Paul Tabori from William Temple's novel; Photography by Reginald Wyer; Edited by Maurice Rootes; Music by Malcolm Arnold. Starring: Barbara Payton, Stephen Murray, John Van Eyssen, James Hayter, Percy Marmont and Kynaston Reeves.

A complicated British science fiction movie with a love story, concerning scientists who are also romantic rivals. In a nod to "Frankenstein", Murray attempted to electronically duplicate Miss Payton, and thus make everyone happy and satisfied with their chosen girl.

Early Hammer film before they hit upon the idea that horror was the way of the future. This one is a sci-fi effort about two young scientific geniuses who invent a duplicating machine; they both are in love with the same girl but she is in love with just one of them, so the other lovesick boffin asks her if he could make a duplicate of her. That'll save the day and make everybody happy, right? Wrong! This love triangle plus duplicate is the four sided triangle of the title. I suppose the sci-fi is more of a maguffin that allows the story to explore human emotional elements. Its not a bad effort really.