IMDb > The Quatermass Xperiment (1955)
The Quatermass Xperiment
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The Quatermass Xperiment (1955) More at IMDbPro »

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Overview

User Rating:
6.7/10   1,247 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Down 2% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Writers:
Richard H. Landau (screenplay) &
Val Guest (screenplay) ...
(more)
Contact:
View company contact information for The Creeping Unknown on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
June 1956 (USA) more
Genre:
Tagline:
Beware of "THE CREEPING UNKNOWN!" more
Plot:
A missile, launched by the team led by Prof. Quatermass, lands in the English countryside. Of the three members of the crew... more | full synopsis
Plot Keywords:
NewsDesk:
Sci-Fi Guru Val Guest Dead at 94
 (From WENN. 23 May 2006)

User Reviews:
Classic sci fi chiller! more (59 total)

Cast

  (in credits order) (verified as complete)

Brian Donlevy ... Prof. Bernard Quatermass
Jack Warner ... Insp. Lomax

Margia Dean ... Mrs. Judith Carroon
Thora Hird ... Rosemary 'Rosie' Elizabeth Rigly
Gordon Jackson ... BBC TV producer
David King-Wood ... Dr. Gordon Briscoe (Quatermass' associate)
Harold Lang ... Christie (man who helps Victor escape)
Lionel Jeffries ... Blake
Sam Kydd ... Police sergeant questioning Rosie
Richard Wordsworth ... Victor Carroon (spaceship crew member)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Jane Aird ... Mrs. Lomax (uncredited)
Margaret Anderson ... Maggie (uncredited)
Jane Asher ... Little girl (uncredited)
Harry Brunning ... Night porter (uncredited)
Eric Corrie ... Maggie's boyfriend (uncredited)
Edward Dane ... Station policeman (uncredited)
Gron Davies ... Charles Green (spaceship crew member) (uncredited)
Basil Dignam ... Sir Lionel Dean (uncredited)
James Drake ... Sound engineer (uncredited)
Mollie Glessing ... Mother at zoo (uncredited)
Michael Godfrey ... Crash site fireman (uncredited)
Donald Gray ... TV announcer (uncredited)
Arthur Gross ... TV floor director (uncredited)
Ernest Hare ... Crash site fire chief (uncredited)
Betty Impey ... Central Clinic nurse (uncredited)
Fred Johnson ... Inspector (uncredited)
Maurice Kaufmann ... Marsh (Quatermass' assistant) (uncredited)
John Kerr ... Film lab technician (uncredited)
Henry B. Longhurst ... George (Maggie's father) (uncredited)
Arthur Lovegrove ... Sgt. Bromley (uncredited)
Barry Lowe ... Tucker (night nurse) (uncredited)
Mayne Lynton ... Zoo superintendent (uncredited)
Bartlett Mullins ... Zookeeper (uncredited)
Frank Phillips ... BBC announcer (uncredited)
George Roderick ... Local policeman (uncredited)
John Stirling ... Major at crash site (uncredited)
Marianne Stone ... Central Clinic nurse (uncredited)
Toke Townley ... The chemist (uncredited)
Stanley Van Beers ... Dr. Ludwig Reichenheim (spaceship crew member) (uncredited)
John Wynn ... Det. Sgt. Best (uncredited)
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Directed by
Val Guest 
 
Writing credits
Richard H. Landau (screenplay) (as Richard Landau) &
Val Guest (screenplay)

Nigel Kneale (television play)

Produced by
Anthony Hinds .... producer
Robert L. Lippert .... producer (uncredited)
 
Original Music by
James Bernard 
 
Cinematography by
Walter J. Harvey (director of photography) (as Walter Harvey)
 
Film Editing by
James Needs 
 
Art Direction by
J. Elder Wills 
 
Makeup Department
Monica Hustler .... hair stylist
Philip Leakey .... makeup artist (as Phil Leakey)
 
Production Management
T.S. Lyndon-Haynes .... production manager
 
Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Bill Shore .... assistant director
Aida Young .... second assistant director (uncredited)
 
Art Department
Arthur Banks .... master plasterer (uncredited)
Jim Day .... props buyer (uncredited)
Tom Money .... props (uncredited)
Fred Ricketts .... construction manager (uncredited)
 
Sound Department
H.C. Pearson .... sound recordist
Don Alton .... sound camera operator (uncredited)
Percy Britten .... boom operator (uncredited)
Ken Cameron .... dubbing sound (uncredited)
J. Woodiwiss .... sound recordist (uncredited)
 
Special Effects by
Les Bowie .... special effects
Ray Caple .... special effects assistant (uncredited)
Roy Field .... special effects assistant (uncredited)
Vic Margutti .... special effects assistant (uncredited)
 
Visual Effects by
Roy Field .... visual effects assistant camera (uncredited)
 
Stunts
Nosher Powell .... stunts (uncredited)
 
Camera and Electrical Department
Len Harris .... camera operator
Steve Birtles .... electrician (uncredited)
Jack Curtis .... chief electrician (uncredited)
Tom Friswell .... clapper boy (uncredited)
John Jay .... still photographer (uncredited)
Harry Oakes .... focus puller (uncredited)
George Robinson .... electrician (uncredited)
Charles Stanbridge .... electrician (uncredited)
 
Costume and Wardrobe Department
Molly Arbuthnot .... wardrobe
 
Editorial Department
Henry Richardson .... assistant editor (uncredited)
 
Music Department
John Hollingsworth .... conductor
 
Transportation Department
Len Ingram .... unit driver (uncredited)
 
Other crew
Renée Glynne .... continuity (as Renee Glynne)
Larry Edmonds .... accountant (uncredited)
Ken Gordon .... cashier (uncredited)
Pauline Harlow .... receptionist (uncredited)
Dora Thomas .... production secretary (uncredited)
 
Crew verified as complete


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Additional Details

Also Known As:
Shock
The Creeping Unknown (USA)
The Quatermass Experiment (USA)
X the Experiment (UK) (informal alternative title)
more
Runtime:
82 min | USA:78 min
Country:
Language:
Aspect Ratio:
1.66 : 1 more
Sound Mix:

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
The British Board of Film Censors had instituted the use of the "X" certificate in 1951 to indicate that certain films had themes that might be too strong or intense for persons under the age of 16. The film's title exploited the fact of receiving this "honor" by the spelling of the word "Xperiment". more
Goofs:
Continuity: When Victor Caroon's wife tries to get him out of the hospital, she and her friend Christie are standing outside in the rain, and you can clearly see that Christie's lab coat is getting wet. When he walks in the hospital, it is dry. He walks in and out a couple of times, but inside the hospital his lab coat is always dry. more
Quotes:
Insp. Lomax: Nobody ever wins a cold war. more
Movie Connections:

FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
3 out of 4 people found the following review useful.
Classic sci fi chiller!, 21 May 2003
Author: Infofreak from Perth, Australia

'The Quatermass Xperiment' was the first Hammer horror/SF movie and despite being close to fifty years old is still very creepy and entertaining. Oldies who saw the original British TV version (now lost, I believe) claim that it was superior, and as I have compared the TV and Hammer movie versions of 'Quatermass And The Pit', I tend to believe them. Anyway, the movie version is still very, very good. Brian Donlevy's Quatermass is much gruffer, more take charge and less likeable than Andre Morell's or Andrew Keir's Quatermass, but once you get used to his approach it works well with the material. Richard Wordsworth is surprisingly good as the astronaut who returns from space with, well, a little extra, and Jack Warner is fine as Inspector Lomax. The special effects for the most part are very effective, and I think the movie has really stood the test of time. The basic concept may have been used before in SF literature, but the movie undoubtedly had a strong influence on subsequent similar movies. Quatermass creator Nigel Kneale is one of the most important science fiction popularizers of the post-WW2 period, and his TV shows and movies have had a huge impact on the genre, most notably on 'The X-Files'. Many people think Chris Carter owes Kneale some acknowledgement, and I agree with them. 'The Quatermass Xperiment' is an excellent sci fi chiller in its own right, but I also highly recommend the other movies in the series, and also Kneale's underrated ghost story 'The Stone Tape'.

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Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for The Quatermass Xperiment (1955)
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How times have changed - is it a good thing? nigel-235
Upside-down hatch on Rocket will7370
Milli Vanilli,Ashlee Simpson...Margia Dean? Little Minx
How come Quartermass has no British accent? will7370
John Carpenter definitely influenced by this movie shatnershairpiece
Deptford Creek carlin4737
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