At first glance, The Quatermass Xperiment may not appear to be anything particularly special. It seems like yet another low-budget science fiction film from the 1950s, which told bizarre tales of the unknown, interlaced with metacommentary surrounding the Cold War. However, a slightly deeper look will reveal how absolutely essential this film is, a vital entry into the genre that was defined by this story. Based on the television serial written by Nigel Kneale, The Quatermass Xperiment is responsible for launching not only Hammer Studios, arguably one of the most influential producers of horror, science fiction and other genre films, but played a role in the development of half a century of speculative fiction. It’s well-documented that had this film and its original serial, as well as its sequels, not existed, it isn’t very likely that influential works like Doctor Who and The Hitchhiker’s Guide to Galaxy (two of the gold-standard examples of British science fiction) would likely have not existed. It’s a revolutionary work that inspired countless others – but yet, it still remains relatively obscure, being appreciated only by devotees to the genre, who endlessly praise this film, but still fail to have it recognized as the essential piece of cinema it deserves to be seen as. However, there is a growing sense of respect being asserted on this film from the culture as a whole, and it is slowly making its way out of the shadows – and considering how it continues to weave itself into conversations, it’s quite likely that a critical reappraisal is soon to emerge, with both this film and its source material finally receiving the admiration it deserved from the moment of its conception.

The film focuses on Professor Bernard Quatermass (Brian Donlevy), a world-renowned scientist who has recently pioneered the very first manned journey into outer space, in which he sent three brave astronauts into the unknown. However, his plan is far from foolproof, and the mission results in a failure. The space shuttle crashes down to earth, and upon opening it, they’re aghast to find only one of the men is on board. Carroon (Richard Wordsworth) stumbles out of the ship, and can only say the words “help me”, the sole survivor of this wretched, doomed mission. This is made even more bewildering by the lack of the other two astronauts – not even their corpses are on board, with only their spacesuits found, which concerns everyone involved, since they apparently disappeared into thin air, which is entirely impossible, considering the scope of the mission. The initial aim is to try and decode Carroon’s steadily declining state – the combination of his growing despondence to the real world, and a series of mysterious physical changes alert both the scientists and authorities to the fact that he isn’t quite the same as he was before he left. Quatermass starts to suspect something else is at work here, a kind of mysterious force that has invaded Carroon and turned him into this zombie-like being, acting as a vessel to an otherworldly entity that seems to be intent on taking over the world. It’s up to Quatermass to take accountability for designing this mission, and to do his best to prevent this creature from reaching the rest of the world. However, this proves to be remarkably difficult, especially when the subject escapes from his guarded sanctuary, and ventures into the open world, the parasite within him gleefully frolicking through the streets, ready to find fresh hosts.

The Quatermass Xperiment was produced during a decade when science fiction was reaching one of its most substantial peaks, to the point where the concept of the “1950s sci-fi film” has become a genre all on its own. It goes without saying that there was a wealth of fascinating productions – but this film in particular stands out for a number of reasons. Firstly, it is one of the best uses of real-world issues as a framing device for the story, since throughout the film, there are explicit references made to the Cold War and the Space Race (it’s surprising to realize this film was made several years before the first human was sent to outer space – it’s understanding of the mechanics of space travel is truly ahead of its time), rather than just mere implications, which was more common at the time. So much of this story is centred around a scientist trying to resolve an enormous threat that is on the verge of enveloping the earth, which is truly just a thinly-veiled critique of Communism, which was a cause for so much concern in the western world at the time (the American title for this film was the very heavy-handed “The Creeping Unknown”, which only adds to the concept of the Red Scare encroaching into the modern world). There is a lot of complex commentary that underpins this film and makes it such a strangely hypnotic exercise, and the deft combination of science fiction tropes with deeply compelling storytelling that relates to the state of the world at the time, and how it was steeped in a kind of terror that went far beyond the fears of unknown worlds, immediately makes The Quatermass Xperiment an essential work for anyone with even a passing interest in how the culture perceived the outside world during this era, and the tensions that were at staggering heights as a result.

Paranoia abounds in this film, and it becomes less about the scientific details, and more about the cultural anxieties surrounding experimentation. The entire film is centred around the titular character and his wildly ambitious attempts to push further than any human has before. In films like The Quatermass Xperiment, there is always a sense of the now-common idea of someone being too preoccupied with seeing if they could accomplish something, rather than stepping back and wondering if they actually should. The story is one that speaks to the general mentalities of the time, which not only makes it a terrific work of science fiction, but a fascinating document of a time and place, with Guest putting in a great deal of effort to capture the general despair that the regular world citizen felt during this period of uncertainty. The best kind of genre film is one that isn’t bound to its conventions, but rather assimilates some very real ideas into the discussion. The Quatermass Xperiment isn’t a very typical science fiction horror – the characters are filled with depth, including the titular Quatermass, who isn’t portrayed as some maniacal, mad scientist, but rather someone whose ambitions went too far, and his only option is to take responsibility and do his best to prevent this from happening ever again. It’s a peculiar change of pace for a genre that often enjoys supporting its wildly bizarre premises with eccentric characters and excessive, heightened portrayals of the world. This film is a lot more subtle, to the point where, had it not had the general framing structure of someone returning from space, it would be closer to a gritty crime drama than a science fiction thriller. The director knows how to control the tone and tempo of the story, and gradually unveils several sinister surprises, without becoming too ensconced in the madness inherent to this story. Descending into unmitigated terror would’ve been easy, so the fact that Guest kept everything quite simple is an achievement all on its own.

The Quatermass Xperiment may not be a film that absolutely everyone will enjoy – after all, this era in science fiction has always been an acquired taste. It is also a very simple film that often deviates towards being so subtle, some may lose interest in the story, since there are long stretches of very passive storytelling. However, beneath the surface, there is a dynamic, complex film that is brimming with a very peculiar energy. Nigel Kneale put together a fascinating concept in the original six-part serial, and it was here transformed into a truly compelling, often wickedly demented, story that uses real-life situations, drawn from the general fear of nuclear destruction and ideological perversion, to portray the deepest anxieties that swept over much of the world during this era. The Quatermass Xperiment may be a better account of the Cold War than more direct historical dramas, since while it lacks the very clear biographical context, very few films have been able to capture the terror quite as well as this. As both an intricate, character-driven account of the Red Scare, and as a work of influential science fiction, this film is absolutely spellbinding, a thrilling and terrifying work of speculative fiction rooted in reality, and executed with nuance, complexity and conviction. If there was ever a property that deserved to be resurrected and introduced to new audiences through the growing advancements in technology, it would certainly be the story of Professor Quatermass and his efforts to prevent the end of the world, since there is an endless stream of ideas embedded in this story that could captivate even the most cynical of viewers. Yet, this film on its own is still a perfect embodiment of the mad, fascinating sub-genre that is 1950s science fiction, and a triumphant achievement all on its own.