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The Blob

Play trailer 1:54 Poster for The Blob Released Sep 12, 1958 1h 22m Sci-Fi Play Trailer Watchlist
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67% Tomatometer 30 Reviews 52% Popcornmeter 25,000+ Ratings
A drive-in favorite, this sci-fi classic follows teenagers Steve (Steven McQueen) and his best girl, Jane (Aneta Corseaut), as they try to protect their hometown from a gelatinous alien life form that engulfs everything it touches. The first to discover the substance and live to tell about it, Steve and Jane witness the blob destroying an elderly man and grow to a terrifying size. But no one else has seen the goo, and policeman Dave (Earl Rowe) refuses to believe the kids without proof.

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The Blob

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Critics Consensus

In spite of its chortle-worthy premise and dated special effects, The Blob remains a prime example of how satisfying cheesy B-movie monster thrills can be.

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Critics Reviews

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Variety Staff Variety Neither the acting nor direction is particularly creditable. Mar 26, 2009 Full Review Time Out Arriving from outer space (for which read Russia), a large ball of interstellar snot terrorises a small American town by eating everything in sight. Jun 24, 2006 Full Review Howard Thompson New York Times Unfortunately, [Harris's] picture talks itself to death, even with the blob nibbling away at everybody in sight. And most of his trick effects, under the direction of Irvin S. Yeaworth Jr., look pretty phony. Mar 25, 2006 Full Review Michael Wilmington Isthmus (Madison, WI) A hungry glob of protoplasm from outer space goes on a rampage in this cretinous thriller, which has a totally undeserved reputation as a horror classic. Mar 25, 2019 Full Review Sarah Boslaugh Playback:stl ...there's something charming about it, as if all the tacky aspects of the 1950s (and again, I'm talking about the white, squeaky clean, small town 1950s) were distilled into a fast-moving 86 minutes. Rated: 6/10 Aug 3, 2016 Full Review Tim Brayton Antagony & Ecstasy One of the most personable sci-fi horror films of its generation. Rated: 7/10 Jun 20, 2015 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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DanTheMan 2 A gelatinous mass of laid-back schlocky sci-fi horror and counterculture youth delinquency, The Blob is a fine piece of B-grade pop horror entertainment. Exuberant, extraordinary, and just goopy enough, what the film lacks in urgency, it makes up for in gooey greatness and sheer charm. The tone is established almost immediately, thanks to an incredibly catchy rockabilly song, followed swiftly by an abundance of restless suspense, colourful effects, and moments of both intentional and unintentional humour. The film can unfortunately be overly talky at times, especially when it's mainly repeating the same information we've been told before, substituting any attempt at building an atmosphere with a particular element of goofiness. The Blob itself is rendered fantastically onscreen, even if the effects work hasn't aged that brilliantly. Still, none of that deters from the sheer audacity and ambition of creating a creature quite like it. While the colour palette of the film is certainly pleasing, Irvin Yeaworth's direction itself is fairly one-note. Despite the deeper shades of red growing larger by the minute, the writers seem to have no idea how to frame the veteran vs. youth dynamic that takes centre stage. The acting is pretty stiff, with the sole exception being a very un-Steve McQueen-like Steve McQueen, playing more of a poor man's James Dean. However, despite his noticeable age inconsistency with the rest of the youth, his charisma comes through in spades, showcasing shades of what he would later refine for future roles. If there's anything that The Blob succeeds at, it's in its portrayal of small-town life, complete with all the tacky, squeaky-clean aspects of 1950s America, distilled into a fast-paced 86 minutes, making for an enjoyable, feel-good slice of campy science fiction horror. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 10/06/25 Full Review Josh S Actually enjoyed the special effects and mix of animation. The monster doesn't seem sinister but just moves through the town causally devouring people. Everyone's acting is great in the B-movie style but many of the men, Steve McQueen included, have weird ways of speaking some of their lines. They have a way of holding moving their mouths or licking their lips that make them seem like there on speed and/or have tobacco dip in their mouths. Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 06/27/25 Full Review Elvis D Un clásico del cine de serie B de los años 50, The Blob es una obra de ciencia ficción que no ha perdido su frescura pese a los años que pasaron. No se trata de una película que de miedo y su monstruo tampoco es aterrador. Su mero objetivo siempre fue ser una película que divierta a los jóvenes que solían ir a los autocines. La película brilla con una trama sencilla, pero efectiva. Los personajes de la película cuentan con un buen carisma por parte de los actores escogidos. Steve McQueen es la cereza del pastel por ser esta la primera vez que tuvo un rol protagónico. Esta película marcó tanto el ascenso de McQueen como el de su director Irvin S. Yeaworth Jr. Un director con una trayectoria bastante corta, pero con interesantes obras. Al tratarse de una película de serie B, tiene sus cosas poco creíbles. La escena del extraño organismo atacando el cine y un restaurante se notan bastante que usaron una fotografía de fondo. La secuencia donde electrocutan y congelan al organismo son animaciones tradicionales 2D. El pequeño Danny aparece mágicamente en medio del clímax sin explicación alguna. El organismo monstruoso que aterroriza el pueblo parece más bien un pedazo de gelatina. No lo vemos mucho atacando a los habitantes del pueblo y sus ataques son pocos. Debido a las limitaciones de la tecnología, no había una manera clara de ver como este ser absorbía a sus víctimas. Lo que sucedía con el viejo daba solo una idea que quedaba bajo la interpretación del espectador. Lo sorprendente del organismo es como se las arreglaron para darle vida. Puede parecer una gelatina, pero pudieron darle movilidad. La película puede parecer obsoleta debido a lo cutre que se llega a ver, pero sigue manteniendo su encanto. Es una de esas películas de serie B que tienen corazón y alma. Algo que hace que la esencia permanezca intacta por más que los efectos de la época se vean obsoletos. No hay muchos momentos con el organismo, pero la historia logra ser atractiva. De inicio, la escena inicial en la que vemos al organismo llegar en un meteorito ya presagia que la historia será interesante. La película se toma su tiempo para que conozcamos bien a los personajes, sobre todo a Steve y Jane. Una pareja que es muy cliché de los años 50, pero que son muy empatizables gracias a los actores. Ellos son los que mueven la historia y da deseos de saber cómo harán ellos para resolver el problema que el misterioso organismo está provocando. Eso mantiene el interés por la historia de principio a fin. La película incluso brinda una buena canción original al inicio de los créditos. The Blob es una de esas películas de ciencia ficción cincuentonas que siguen siendo fascinantes y admirables por sus ideas y tener un alma cinematográfica. Si hay algo por lo que este tipo de películas siguen valiendo la pena ver, es esa integridad que tienen por medio de la narrativa o los actores que la mantienen impecable sin importar los años que pasen. Mi calificación final para esta película es un 8/10. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 03/08/25 Full Review The M The story involves a meteriorite that lands on earth in a remote forest, a couple gazing out at the stars encounters an old man with a what seems a hand injury. They take him to the local doctor to treat him, moments later the thing on the old man's hand became increasingly large. Terror soon sets in. The story is a good B Movie blend with sci fi and Horror, it's genre and era is fitting for such a story. The effects are pretty basic with quick scene cuts to ensure the audience doesn't catch on its basic look. The Blobs appearance does make menacing approach, however the character dialog is the only thing eating up things and primarily time loosing opportunities to give more suspense between moments. The characters are basic average Joe's but the most comical aspect is the two police officers continuously disbelieve what's going on until it jumps out in their face. It is an enjoyable B horror. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 12/18/24 Full Review NiB Y BEWARE OF THE BLOB, IT CREEPS AND LEAPS AND GLIDES AND SLIDES ACROSS THE ROOM RIGHT THROUGH THE DOOR BEWARE OF THE BLOB! Rated 5 out of 5 stars 06/02/24 Full Review Lucas t I highly recommend this for b-movie horror fans, this is a very campy 50s film, but with that camp comes charm. This was a childhood favourite of mine, and I still very much enjoy it today. 7.6/10. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/25/25 Full Review Read all reviews
The Blob

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Movie Info

Synopsis A drive-in favorite, this sci-fi classic follows teenagers Steve (Steven McQueen) and his best girl, Jane (Aneta Corseaut), as they try to protect their hometown from a gelatinous alien life form that engulfs everything it touches. The first to discover the substance and live to tell about it, Steve and Jane witness the blob destroying an elderly man and grow to a terrifying size. But no one else has seen the goo, and policeman Dave (Earl Rowe) refuses to believe the kids without proof.
Director
Irvin S. Yeaworth Jr.
Producer
Jack H. Harris
Screenwriter
Kay Linaker, Irving H. Millgate, Theodore Simonson
Distributor
Paramount Pictures, Criterion Collection, Allied Artists Pictures, Video Gems
Production Co
Fairview Productions, Tonylyn Productions Inc.
Genre
Sci-Fi
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Sep 12, 1958, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
May 7, 2015
Runtime
1h 22m
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