Atomic Submarine

In the future, giant submarine liners ferry passengers and freight under the Arctic ice. But someone--or something--has made eight of them vanish without a trace. The U.S.S. Tiger Shark, the most powerful nuclear sub in the fleet, is sent to investigate and uncovers an alien life form that threatens to wipe humans off the face of the earth. This 1959 low-budget sci-fi flick deals with "atomic power" as a menace--and protector--of mankind. The sets and special effects are definitely low-budget, but the filmmakers showed what you can do with a smart script, a solid cast of character actors, a dark soundstage, and some imagination. A veritable crossroads of '50s low-budget filmmaking talent: producer Alex Gordon cowrote Ed Wood's Bride of the Monster, special effects supervisor Irving Block cowrote the classic Forbidden Planet, and composer Alexander Laszlo was a regular on Roger Corman pictures. Includes the original theatrical trailer. --Geof Miller