When Worlds Collide

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When Worlds Collide

G

1951

1h 21m

Sci-Fi

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Popcornmeter

81%

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26 Reviews

64%

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2,500+ Ratings

After Dr. Bronson (Hayden Rorke) discovers Zyra, a new planet, fellow astronomer Dr. Hendron (Larry Keating) checks Bronson's data and reaches the horrifying conclusion that Bellus, a star in Zyra's orbit, is doomed to crash into the earth within a matter of months. Meanwhile, Hendron's daughter, Joyce (Barbara Rush), has grown fond of pilot David Randall (Richard Derr), and pleads to have him brought along as a small group is relocated to Zyra to avoid the impending mass destruction.

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Bob Thomas

Associated Press

When Worlds Collide continues the current rage for science fiction movies and it is one of our better ones.

Aug 5, 2019

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Jonathan Rosenbaum

Chicago Reader

This probably looks about as stodgy now as it did back then.

Jun 7, 2007

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Variety Staff

Variety

Top honors for this inter-planetary fantasy rest with the cameramen and special effects technicians rather than with performances of the non-name cast.

Jun 7, 2007

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Christopher Lloyd

The Film Yap

Though it's a tad hokey and the special effects are embarrassingly dated, this sci-fi disaster flick is more contemplative about the nature of mankind than you'd expect.

Rated: 4/5

Jan 9, 2023

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Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

An example of superior sci-fi cinema.

Rated: 3/4

Oct 1, 2022

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Yasser Medina

Cinefilia

A science fiction film that, even with its narrative inconsistencies, seems quite entertaining to me when it offers its show about the catastrophe of the end of the world. Full review in Spanish

Rated: 7/10

Mar 28, 2022

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D. Hunter P

This is a pretty good classic end of the world movie. Its actually really interesting to see how this is done long ago as opposed to how they do epic set piece movies now on such topics. I was curious how they were going to handle the effects for all of these things with the quite literal colliding of planets. The answer is, they didn't show any of it, you just saw the effects and how the actors reacted to it. The end is satisfying and the matte painting backgrounds are quite beautiful.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

12/15/24

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William B

A golden oldie in film form

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

10/11/24

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Julian S

Noah’s Arc on crack.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

09/24/24

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Robert L

Not bad for 50s tech and 50s special effects. Some of the visuals were very good. Some parts slightly cheesy.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

07/30/24

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dave s

When Worlds Collide turns out to be a pretty decent apocalypse film. When astronomers discover a pair of planets rocketing towards Earth, their calculations indicate that impact will be made within the year, guaranteeing the annihilation of the planet. Despite a degree of skepticism concerning matters, plans are made to build a craft that will transport forty humans to a new planet, thereby saving the human race from extinction. While the special effects are actually pretty decent considering that the film was shot in 1951, the filmmakers wisely focus on the human elements of the impending disaster, making When Worlds Collide one of the better sci-fi efforts from a decade that produced some notably bad films in the genre.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

03/30/23

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robert p

A grandiose attempt to present Science Fiction!!!

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

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Rudolph Maté

Director

Richard Derr

David Randall

Barbara Rush

Joyce Hendron

Peter Hansen

Dr. Tony Drake

Larry Keating

Dr. Cole Hendron

John Hoyt

Sydney Stanton

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Synopsis

After Dr. Bronson (Hayden Rorke) discovers Zyra, a new planet, fellow astronomer Dr. Hendron (Larry Keating) checks Bronson's data and reaches the horrifying conclusion that Bellus, a star in Zyra's orbit, is doomed to crash into the earth within a matter of months. Meanwhile, Hendron's daughter, Joyce (Barbara Rush), has grown fond of pilot David Randall (Richard Derr), and pleads to have him brought along as a small group is relocated to Zyra to avoid the impending mass destruction.

Director: Rudolph Maté
Producer: George Pal
Screenwriter: Edwin Balmer, Philip Wylie, Sydney Boehm
Production Co: Paramount
Rating: G
Genre: Sci-Fi
Original Language: English
Release Date (Streaming): May 1, 2012
Runtime: 1h 21m

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