X the Unknown is a 1956 science fiction “monster movie” produced by Anthony Hinds for Britain’s legendary Hammer Film Productions. The film would be released in the US in 1957 by Warner Bros as half of a double billing with The Curse of Frankenstein.
X the Unknown was directed by Leslie Norman, who would also direct the original 1958 version of Dunkirk. Norman would later serve as the first director of another Hammer film release, 1968’s The Lost Continent, but would be replaced early in shooting by Michael Carraras (who produced numerous releases for Hammer and would direct two of the later Hammer “Mummy” films.) X the Unknown would be scored by another Hammer regular, James Bernard, who is presumably best known for his iconic theme to Horror of Dracula.
Perhaps most importantly, X the Unknown would serve as the first script from a true master of cinematic horror storytelling: Jimmy Sangster. Sangster followed up X the Unknown with scripts for Hammer’s next two horror projects, and what would undoubtedly be their biggest successes, The Curse of Frankenstein in 1957 and the aforementioned Horror of Dracula in 1958. While most Hammer fans should know that Sangster was responsible for penning many of the studio’s most memorable films, including The Mummy, Scream of Fear, Paranoiac, and a few of the Dracula and Frankenstein sequels, some may not be aware that Sangster’s non-Hammer work includes titles such as Blood of the Vampire, Jack the Ripper (1959), The Legacy, Whoever Slew Auntie Roo?, and (one of my faves) The Trollenberg Terror (aka The Crawling Eye). Sangster also wrote episodes of television series such as “Cannon”, “The Six Million Dollar Man”, “Wonder Woman”, “B.J. and the Bear”, and “Kolchak: The Night Stalker” in his later years.
While performing routine Geiger counter training somewhere in Scotland, one soldier is killed and another seriously injured when the very ground upon which they stand violently erupts beneath their feet, emitting a plume of radioactive smoke. Called in to help investigate the matter is Dr. Adam Royston (Dean Jagger – White Christmas, Alligator), who I think would technically be labelled a “nuclear physicist”, although I’m not certain that the term even existed during this era. However, before Royston can even learn of the occurrence, the viewer first learns a little about Royston. He seems like an amicable enough fellow whose biggest worry would appear to be a rather uptight and narrow-minded “administrator” who is none-too-pleased that his son, Peter (William Lucas – The Shadow of the Cat, Tower of Evil), has been assisting with Royston’s various projects. As Royston’s work involves nuclear energy and highly volatile atomic particles, his biggest worry really should be accidentally blowing us all the Hell up.
Royston begins by inspecting the large fissure (or “pit”, as it is referred to in the film) in the ground caused by the eruption, but finds no trace of radioactivity still present at the site. However, upon examining the victims, there is no doubt that their injuries are radiation burns. While Royston may not know what caused the eruption, he does know that the commonly associated factors generally don’t feature the emission of radioactive gases as a side effect.
The true “cause” soon reveals itself to a young boy who encounters the entity while walking through a nearby wooded area. Although the viewer must wait to witness it for themselves, the experience not only visibly frightens the boy, but also leaves him with first-degree radiation burns. Not long after, Royston discovers that his laboratory has been inexplicably damaged and covered in a strange soot-like substance. Even more bizarre, a sample that he’d been using for his experiments has been mysteriously drained of all radioactivity.
The boy later dies from his injuries, making the incident officially a “police matter”, and an Inspector McGill (Leo Kern, who appears uncredited in Children of the Damned and the first two The Omen films) is assigned to the case. McGill visits Royston and the two quickly hit it off, partnering to solve the mystery at hand. The situation escalates into something profoundly more dire and strange when a doctor at the same hospital is melted to death after coming into close contact with the still unseen entity. Although quite possibly nothing more than wax melting off of a prop skeleton, and considerably tame by the standards of modern horror filmmaking, the sequence is still effectively grim and somewhat sudden, but must have been considered particularly gruesome and explicit by the standards of its era.
While Royston may be unable to determine just what these misfortunate souls encountered, he is able to conclude that the entity has the ability to change shape, slipping undetected through air grates or under doors. In time, he proposes the concept that another form of life was born from the energy created by the molten core of our planet, and has now escaped. In an effort to help prove or disprove this theory, Peter volunteers to be lowered into the pit to investigate. Not only does he discover the partially dissolved bodies of some unfortunate soldiers below, but he also finds that this new lifeform had returned to its hiding spot.
Unwilling to take any further unnecessary chances with whatever it is living in the pit, the military make the decision to fill the cracks with cement. That said, they hit that bitch with plenty of explosives and flamethrowers first. You know, “for good measure”. As the film is far from over, it’s a certainty that these methods won’t contain the beast for very long. It does, however, buy Royston enough time to explain his experiments in neutralizing radioactive materials through the use of sound waves, which he now formulates can be used against the creature. This is immediately followed by our first glimpse of the titular “unknown”, essentially a highly radioactive black and white version of The Blob, as it breaks free from it’s temporary confinement.
As this “toxic booger” oozes its way through town, dissolving civilians in its wake, Royston continues to test his theories. Along the way, he determines that the entity is feeding off sources of radiation (and whatever other organic matter is encountered on its way), following the exact same route back to the pit after every “meal”. He, somewhat safely, hypothesizes that the “glob” will eventually target the local nuclear power station, after which it will be unstoppable. However, the creature first stops by Royston’s office at the vaguely named Atomic Energy Lab and makes a snack of the radioactive materials that the scientist had been using for his experiments.
Although he’s never actually able to conclusively prove his theories about the neutralization of radioactivity, Royston is forced to put them to the test against the creature. Sure, the resulting effect might be an explosion that kills everyone in the vicinity, but the other option is that it continues to grow and kills everyone in the town, if not the world. Either way, fun times!
As one should probably expect, the mission is a success and the threat to humanity is destroyed, but not before a couple mishaps and delays occur to not only crank up the tension for the film’s climax, but also add a few more minutes to the film’s already brief eighty minute runtime. While Royston’s science indeed does the beast in, it’s actually the bravery of another that helps save the day.
Although the film is sure to draw many comparisons to The Blob, X the Unknown was actually released nearly two years prior to that film. However, while The Blob is undoubtedly a cosmic-based horror, the gelatinous monstrosity found in X the Unknown, like many of its 1950’s cinematic brethren, is undoubtedly a reflection of the Cold War fears of the era. The Les Bowie-created “glob” does look somewhat unconvincing in a couple of scenes, but then again, how truly realistic can a snot monster actually look?
X The Unknown also shares quite a few thematic and plot elements to another Hammer hit, 1955’s The Quatermass Xperiment. These similarities are surely due to the fact that X The Unknown was originally conceived as a sequel to that earlier film. Alas, writer Nigel Kneale would not grant permission for another writer to use the character of Professor Bernard Quatermass. So, the film was rewritten and retooled, although presumably not that drastically. The sequel to The Quatermass Xperiment was called Quatermass and the Pit, after all.
While X the Unknown does feature respectable performances throughout, there’s nothing here that I consider particularly noteworthy, nor does any one performance stand out over the others. It seems ludicrous to me that half of the film’s $60,000 (estimated US) budget went to covering Jagger’s salary when he’s really no stronger than any of the other cast members and creates a character that’s far less memorable and charismatic than counterpart Brian Donlevy’s “Quatermass”… and that guy’s an arrogant prick! The film also features appearances from Hammer stalwart Michael Ripper as a military officer and Anthony Newley (who did every possible thing in showbiz, but is sadly best remembered by current generations for co-starring in the abysmal The Garbage Pail Kids Movie) as an ill-fated soldier.
As previously mentioned, X the Unknown was released in the US as part of a double billing with The Curse of Frankenstein, which must have been both something of a blessing and a curse. While being paired with what would become a hit film (based on a well-known story that had already once been adapted into a blockbuster film) undoubtedly helped X the Unknown draw a few more viewers than if it had screened on its own, this black & white creeper must have paled in the eyes of many audience members when compared to the full-color horrors that Lee and Cushing were about to bring to the screen. That said, there’s still plenty to love about X the Unknown.
While a slowly-expanding radioactive mud puddle with the ability to move may not seem like the most creative of monster concepts to modern fans, “atomic death” was clearly all the rage at the time, as evidenced in damned near every science fiction and horror film released during the decade. Okay, so that last sentence featured more than an ounce of hyperbole, but it’s not that far-fetched of an exaggeration. However, as a large number of the decade’s other “monster movies” generally featured giant animals, usually also created via some atomic mishap (or Bert I. Gordon), a sentient toxic waste dump seems comparatively more creative and original. Still, creative or not, I do find myself wondering why none of the victims ever thought of just running from the damned thing.
As alluded to earlier, X the Unknown does have something of a “nastier” side, melting down innocent people and killing children, all while keeping any comedic elements to a bare minimum. Sure… there’s some lighthearted banter between a couple of infantrymen, but as these men are only steps away from meeting their demise, the moment still carries its fair share of dread and impending doom. The film does show some restraint in refusing to kill off a toddler that wanders into the creature’s path as it travels through town. However, while the child’s last minute rescue from the clutches of death surely provoked many “oohs” and “ahhs” from audience members of the era (and presumably still today for some viewers), the toddler did spend more time in closer proximity to the creature than the young boy killed earlier in the film. So, it’s a sure bet that this kid will be transitioning from Pull-ups to Mop-ups very soon.
At least in this reviewer’s completely irrelevant opinion, X the Unknown isn’t quite as impressive and compelling as The Quatermass Xperiment, nor is it the schlocky (said respectfully and admiringly) fun of The Blob. That said, it’s still a great film and comes highly recommended. X the Unknown was released to blu-ray (in the US) by Scream Factory in early 2020. I do believe that the release may have gone out of print recently, but copies do still pop up frequently on Amazon for around $20. The film also often airs on Turner Classic Movies during October. However, as of this writing, X the Unknown is currently unavailable to stream on any platform.
Horror And Sons 