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Released by: MGM Limited Edition Collection
Released on: December 14, 2012.
Director: Curt Siodmak
Cast: Richard Carlson, King Donovan, Jean Byron, Jarma Lewis
Year: 1953
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The Movie:
Produced and co-written by Ivan Tors, 1953's The Magnetic Monster is an interesting mix of fifties era Puritanism and Cold War paranoia. The film follows a scientist named Dr. Jeffrey Stewart (Richard Carlson) who works for the high level government agency called O.S.I. - short for Office Of Scientific Investigation. He and his partner, Dan Forbes (King Donovan), are sent to investigate a strange occurrence at a hardware shop (that also seems to specialize in clocks and appliances) when all the clocks inexplicably stop with their hands in the same position.
It turns out that this is being caused by some sort of magnetic interference coming from above them - they wisely prove this by tossing a bunch of washers and bolts at the ceiling where they stick. But there's more to this than that, as they soon learn when their Geiger counters go nuts, indicating high and dangerous levels of radiation. When stuff like this starts becoming common in the area, they're sent to investigate and soon find that an aging scientist has created an isotope that has been growing at a far faster rate than normal and which, if not stopped, will soon be laying waste to pretty much everyone in the vicinity. Not wanting to die of radiation poisoning and not wanting his wife to have any difficulty carrying what he hopes will be a 'fat, sassy baby' to term, Stewart and a few other officials turn to the only place that can help them - Canada!
While the science behind this one may be a little more than dubious, you can't fault the film for pacing. Clocking in just a hair over seventy five minutes this one moves quick and actually does a good job of holding your interest. This plays more like a long episode of The Twilight Zone than it does a typical sci-fi film (and despite what the title may allude to, there's no actual 'monster' here per se) but it does what it does quite well. Some stock footage and inserts from a thirties era German film called Gold spills the beans on the film's low budget but the acting is decent, if a little on the hammy side. The witty banter between Dr. Stewart and his lovely wife (Jean Byron), four months pregnant but not showing, is funny but also genuinely touching later in the film when there's cause for concern. Both Carlson and Byron play these roles well and if Donovan isn't given as much heavy lifting to do in this area, well, he's fine as the tagalong.
This one won't have you running out of your living room screaming in mortal terror, but it will certainly entertain you for the better part of an hour and a half. It's a deceptively simple idea made with some fairly primitive and sometimes borrowed effects pieces, but Carlson is good enough here to make it worth a watch. How much it will appeal to those outside the preexisting fan base for fifties sci-fi/B-movies is certainly debatable, but if you count yourself as a member of that group, by all means give it a shot as it's definitely worth seeing.
Video/Audio/Extras:
The Magnetic Monster looks surprisingly great in this 1.33.1 fullframe transfer which appears to preserve the film's original aspect ratio (at least if the compositions are anything to go by) and presents it in black and white as it should be. Contrast looks solid, blacks are nice and deep and detail is very strong. Some very minor print damage shows up now and then do what look like chemical burns or emulsion marks of some kind but this is nitpicking, the movie looks great here. Some stock footage stands out as being of lesser quality than the footage shot specifically for the movie but that's part for the course.
The English language Dolby Digital Mono track is of pretty good quality, offering up clear dialogue that's easy to understand and which is properly balanced against the sound effects and the score.
Sadly, aside from the standard static menu and chapter stops that we get on these releases, the only extra is the film's trailer.
The Final Word:
Maybe The Magnetic Monster isn't a classic but it's certainly brisk and entertaining, anchored by good performances from Carlson and Byron. MGM's MOD/DVD-R release is typically light on extras but looks and sounds quite good.
