The Magnetic Monster

Released Feb 18, 1953

1h 16m

Sci-Fi

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24%

Fewer than 50 Ratings

Audience Score

A scientist (Richard Carlson) and his assistant (King Donovan) give an energy-eating isotope a taste of 900,000,000 volts.

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Matt R

"Today new dangers face mankind, dangers which challenge his life, threaten his very existence. Sound frequencies have been found that can penetrate the very brain and destroy life. Deadly isotopes of unknown elements have been discovered, that can burn and sear the flesh. Pilotless aircraft crashing the sonic barrier can gain complete mastery over the skies. To meet this challenge to our existence, a new agency has been formed. OSI, the Office of Scientific Investigation. The operatives of OSI are called A-Men. A-Men sounds like the final word of a prayer. It is not. "A" stands for atom and atom stands for power. Power man has unleashed, but has not yet learned to control," goes the voice over of Dr. Jeffrey Stewart, played by Richard Carlson (Creature from the Black Lagoon, The Valley of Gwangi) even before the title appears on screen. Ivan Tors presents THE MAGNETIC MONSTER That matter of fact documentary like narration sets the tone for a 1950's sci-fi flick leaning hard into being science like instead of fantasy camp. The A-men of OSI, led by Dr. Stewart, race to stop an ominous threat to all mankind. The dangers are unleashed by atomic experimentation and magnetism that creates an element hungry for energy and mass. This monster isn't one of horns, claws, tentacles or teeth. It's invisible to everyone except for those who have access to the electron microscope and M.A.N.I.A.C. "electronic brain" computer. This unseen monster with insatiable hunger kills with radiation and implodes whole buildings as the hero scientists race to stop it and save the world. It's a suspenseful independent film and must have been pretty terrifying 70 years ago when it came out in 1953. With the destructive power of atom bombs fresh in people's minds and a looming cold war present in everyday life, the premise probably felt very real to movie-goers. It utilizes stock footage well and boldly repurposes some incredible imagery from the German film "Gold" (1934) for a tense finale. I now look forward to watching the other two films, "Riders to the Stars" and "GOG", in the OSI Trilogy.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

07/04/23

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Audience Member

Done Dragnet style and excellent considering it was made in 1953.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

01/23/23

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Audience Member

A rather ludicrous premise is carried off remarkably well by the cast & crew in this Ivan Tors production. Though I would characterize this as a horror/fantasy film, not proper sci-fi. Specifically, the danger in this film is from being bombarded with alpha particles (helium nucleus stripped of electrons). Alpha cannot penetrate a single sheet of paper, not even skin! It travels a few millimeters and literally ceases to exist as it hasn't the energy to go further. It is only a danger in ingested in quantity.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

01/25/23

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Audience Member

Neato little oddball science fiction thriller--Unique monster, unknown classic!!

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

02/22/23

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Audience Member

If you're looking for a real and scary monster, you won't find it in this film. I wish I could of gotten more into this film, but I think a lot of it was due to there not being a 'real' monster.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

01/31/23

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Audience Member

In nuclear research there is no place for lone wolves A series of nuclear tests leads to a strange monster being created. The monster can bend and control anything metal and feeds on energy. A scientist and his wife conduct research on the nuclear tests and those responsible for creating the monster in hopes of finding a way to destroy it. "The maniac sings with strange voices when it's working." Curt Siodak, director Bride of the Gorilla, Love Slaves of the Amazons, The Devil's Messenger, and Ski Fever, delivers The Magnetic Monster. The storyline for this picture is fairly standard for the science fiction genre; however, the characters are very well written and presented. Unfortunately, I cannot say the same for the monster, which was disappointing. The cast includes Richard Carlson, King Donovan, and Jean Byron. "It's hungry. It has to feed constantly." The Magnetic Monster recently aired on Turner Classic Movies (TCM) double feature night (they actually aired four monster movies). We looked forward to watching these science fiction pictures and were disappointed by this film. The acting and characters were wonderful and the movie was fairly well written; but without a great monster, it is tough to have a great monster movie. "Police will be instructed to shoot to kill." Grade: C

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

01/19/23

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Curt Siodmak

Director

Richard Carlson

Dr. jeffrey Stewart

King Donovan

Dr. Dan Forbes

Jean Byron

Connie Stewart

Harry Ellerbe

Dr. Allard

Leo Britt

Dr. Benton

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Alberto Abuín

Espinof

'The Magnetic Monster' is one of the most original movies of the vast production that was made in the 1950s. [Full Review in Spanish]

Apr 14, 2020

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Mark R. Leeper

Mark Leeper's Reviews

gives no evidence anyone knew [science]

Rated: 7/10

Sep 9, 2019

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Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

What sounds like a ludicrous exercise in 1950s sci-fi actually turns out to be a fairly involving thriller.

Rated: 2.5/4

Jun 25, 2016

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Dennis Schwartz

Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews

Menacing SF pic about the dangers of nuclear energy in experiments that take a wrong turn.

Rated: B

Mar 24, 2012

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Synopsis

A scientist (Richard Carlson) and his assistant (King Donovan) give an energy-eating isotope a taste of 900,000,000 volts.

Director: Curt Siodmak
Production Co: Ivan Tors Productions
Genre: Sci-Fi
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Feb 18, 1953, Limited
Release Date (DVD): Dec 20, 2011
Runtime: 1h 16m

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