The Cosmic Man (1959) User Reviews

Slow, but OK

[trans_mauro · 6/10 · 1 May 2009]

Others have said, "The Cosmic Man" draws heavily on the ideas, characters presented on "The day Earth Stood Still", and I agree with them.

But, it is still a decent low-budget movie. It is well-intentioned and one can feel that a honest effort was put into making it.

Special effects are at a minimum. The Cosmic Man's spaceship is nothing more than a white sphere with a somewhat irregular surface. There are no blinking lights, no rubber-suited monsters.

The Comic Man is one of these movies to be watched on a rainy Saturday night when there is nothing else to do. In this type of circumstance, "The Cosmic man" can be a good time-filler.

Watch and enjoy for what it is.

Semi Classic 50s Sci-Fi drive in movie

[ChuckStraub · 5/10 · 19 March 2004]

It reminded me of "The Day The Earth Stood Still" but it wasn't as good. Not so scary creature and a very unusual spaceship. It has to be considered in the context of the times, which was the late 1950s. During it's day it probably was a good, scary Sci-Fi movie that gave the viewers nightmares after watching it. Over the years it's lost a lot of it's effectiveness. Consider that you are going to watch a 1959 movie. Things were different then. This movie should be considered a semi classic Sci-Fi, old fashioned drive in movie. It wasn't the best that came out of the 50s but I thought it was very enjoyable and a must see for any classic Sci-Fi viewer.

A Legacy of love and peace

[bkoganbing · 5/10 · 17 October 2014]

Although the idea for the story is completely ripped off from The Day The Earth Stood Still and the production values are practically opaque in this film, The Cosmic Man has a nice story to tell with a good cast of sincere competent players. Seeing John Carradine heading the cast I know the man was not to discriminate in those science fiction films he starred in I was expecting the worst. I was pleasantly surprised at how good it was.

Instead of Washington, DC for a landing, a small spherical spaceship travels and lands in a mountainous of the USA. It is plain that a man not like any we know has emerged and is in the area. Played by John Carradine The Cosmic Man is human like in general appearance, but he's not threatened by any of our more conventional like weapons. He takes refuge in a resort lodge owned by Angela Greene and he bonds with her son Scotty Morrow who is crippled and terminal.

The debate between scientist Bruce Bennett and military man Paul Langton as to what to do with this alien invader takes up a lot of the film. If you remember in The Thing the same debate takes place between Air Force Colonel Kenneth Tobey and scientist Robert Cornthwaite. Here we have a different winner.

I can't go further about the plot, but The Cosmic Man is a sincere plea for peace not just on earth. In the end Carradine The Cosmic Man leaves a legacy of love that there is no mistake about.

This is not The Day The Earth Stood Still, but this particular science fiction film from The Fifties while not great is unjustly neglected.

An enjoyable late 50's alien invasion movie

[chris_gaskin123 · 21 April 2004]

I have just watched The Cosmic Man for the first time and rather enjoyed it, despite reading several bad reviews about it. This was released on video in Britain as part of the Killer B's series, now out of print. I have an NTSC copy which is part of the excellent Science Fiction Gold series. It is basically a remake of he Day The Earth Stood Still.

A strange sphere from outer space lands in a canyon in California, and the Air Force come and investigate it. The same night, a strange, half invisible figure is seen roaming around the local town and not long after, a man in a rain coat and hat comes to stay at the local mountain lodge. He makes out he is a scientist who is investigating the sphere, but is actually the Cosmic Man from the sphere. After making the lodge owner's crippled son walk again, he is shot and the sphere explodes.

Despite being first billed, horror legend John Carradine as the Cosmic Man doesn't appear a great deal. This movie also stars Bruce Bennett, Angela Greene and Scotty Morrow as the crippled boy.

This movie is worth watching if you get the chance.

Rating: 4 stars out of 5.

Cosmic Carradine and his golf ball from outer space

[Coventry · 4/10 · 27 April 2013]

"The Cosmic Man" is a charming attempt to make a $5.00 version of "The Day the Earth Stood Still". It's an extremely low-budgeted Sci-Fi movie from the late fifties, so this generally means there are stern scientists talking a lot of pseudo-philosophical gibberish and asking themselves way too many rhetorical questions, villainous looking military men fantasizing about weapons of mass destruction and mysterious alien forces with minds that are immeasurably superior to ours. When a spherical UFO – a gigantic golf ball actually – is discovered in a small Californian canyon community, the army wants to nuke it and a local scientist wants to study it. Meanwhile, the alien passenger sneaks out of his interstellar golf ball and begins exploring the earthly habits, rites and inhabitants. This is where our cute and cheap little B-movie rips off "The Day the Earth Stood Still", in fact, as the alien witnesses the imbecility and self-destructive nature of the human race. How come aliens get such a kick out of observing how stupid we are? Like in a few hundred of the films he starred in, John Carradine receives top-billing even though he appears all together perhaps for a whole five minutes. "The Cosmic Man" is often rather dull and doesn't contain any real action, but it certainly has good intentions and an earnest supportive cast.

Drab, minor science fiction

[bru-5 · 4/10 · 29 December 2004]

You can say a lot about John Carradine but dull he isn't except, of course, in THE COSMIC MAN. He has very little screen time and when he does appear it's behind the darkest pair of goggles this side of The Invisible Man. His affected, halting "alien speak" hampers him even further so he's not a exactly ball of fun and neither is the movie. I know it's a personal quirk but even as a kid I never liked genre films with child actors as major characters and when they play for sympathy (the boy has polio) it gets even more cloying.

On the plus side, there are atmospheric touches in a couple of scenes with Carradine printed "in negative." This, however, is more than balanced by scads of talking head scenes, some of which includes the leading lady wavering between her two oldish, low-charisma suitors Bruce Bennett and Paul Langton. It's a very slow go.

I recall back in the seventies when THE COSMIC MAN seemed to be a lost film, a friend of mine, a die-hard science fiction fan, was determined to track down a copy. He finally got his opportunity when the film suddenly became available on home video. Even he gave it a big Thumbs Down.

When John Carradine provides a warning, you better listen!

[mark.waltz · 4/10 · 26 December 2016]

With that booming voice pulling its strings to get your attention, you have no real choice, and it's obvious that he's going to command your attention no matter how bad the film. Coming down to earth in a bubble not unlike Glinda the Good's in "The Wizard of Oz", he is as far from over the rainbow as a visitor from elsewhere can be. Wearing a long overcoat, huge hat and over-sized lensed glasses, it's apparent that he's on earth for a mission that the military guarding this huge ball does not want to hear. Speaking calmly but with great commanding presence, it's obvious what he's there for. After all, we've seen this plot line in dozens of science fiction B movies since the early 1950's, and one more attempt won't hurt

Watchable and fun, it's somewhat talky and dull whenever Carradine is not on screen. Former athlete turned character actor Bruce Bennett is the other fairly known actor in the film, playing the man in charge, and unsure how to deal with Carradine's presence. Angela Greene plays the mother of a young boy who befriends Carradine, while Paul Langton is the military leader who finds himself at odds with doctor Bennett over how to deal with the unearthly visitor. It's apparent that once again, earthlings have no hospitality towards other worldly beings, and that could eventually mean our planet's doom.

Cosmic Reality?

[kapelusznik18 · 4/10 · 13 June 2014]

***SPOILERS*** Traveling at speeds of 180,000 MPH the Cosmic Man, John Carradine, lands on earth in what looks like an either giant beach or cue ball in the western desert of the USA. At first seen only in shadows the Cosmic Man later fills out and is almost, but not quite, human looking as if he has just been liberated from a Nazi concentration camp. What his mission on earth is isn't made clear only that he's looking for rock and soil samples for his planet that it needs to survive.

It's Dr. Karl Sorenson, Bruce Bennett, who feels that Cosmo or Mr. Cosmic is of no harm to the US and only wants to get a chance to talk with the guy about the peaceful use of nuclear power. It was in fact Dr. Sorenson who was one of the inventors of the atomic bomb that in flattening Hiroshima & Nagasaki in WWII that killed upwards of 200,000 innocent human beings. With that guilt on his head Dr. Sorenson wants to make good use of nuclear power not have it used as a weapon of mass destruction like in was in WWII. But the US military has other ideas. They want to do in the what turns out to be peace loving and harmless Cosmic Man because they fear that he has the same destructive ideas as they do in using his knowledge of advance nuclear power to conquer not only the USA but the entire earth!

Taking a brake while picking rock & soil samples Mr. Cosmic runs into the polio stricken 12 year old Kenny Grant,Scotty Morrow, whom he feels that with his advanced knowledge on medical science he can help to walk again. He also gets smitten by Kenny's mom Kathy ,Angela Greene, a Korean War widow who's had to see and confront the hard reality that her bright little boy will not ever walk again but has barely, due to his illness, a year left to live.

***SPOILERS*** With the US military determined to take Mr. Cosmic into custody and force him, by water-boarding if necessary, to tell them the secrets of the universe as well as advance nuclear energy, that they can use against the USSR Communist China and possibly Communist Cuba, they send from the Penatgon this warmongering crazed mad scientist, a former member of Hitler's medical experiment team, Dr. Ignots "Man Dog" Steinholtz, Hal Torey, to keep the Cosmic Man from taking off on his giant beach or cue ball for home. That mad and insane attempt by Dr. Steinholtz to destroy the man, the Cosmic Man, from outer space in fact proved to be his, in never being taken seriously by the US Government again, demise! After collecting the rock & soil samples he was after in a show of good faith Mr. Cosmic also cured little Kenny of his polio even without the use of the Salk or Sabin vaccine.

Frugal spin on the saviour-from-space storyline

[jamesrupert2014 · 4/10 · 3 April 2020]

A strange orb appears near a California research institute, intriguing the scientists and worrying the military. Soon it is apparent that someone or something has emerged from the floating sphere as local labs are infiltrated and disrupted; meanwhile, an unusual stranger appears and befriends a crippled lad. Best known as a thread-bare knockoff of the iconic 'The Day the Earth Stood Still' (1951), 'The Cosmic Man' doesn't have much to offer. As the titular being, ubiquitous B-horror thesp John Carradine delivers his lines in the classic stilted alien-monotone (why can so few aliens master both vocabularies and intonation?), and the scenes where he is shown in his (presumably) native form (some kind of a semi-translucent, anti-matter wraith) just look like badly done matte shots. There's is lots of pseudo-science offered up by sage Dr. Karl Sorenson (Bruce Bennett) sprinkled with the occasional fact such as the speed of light but at least his observation that the alien could be completely different from us is a welcome change from the genre's usual expectations. The pacifist message is heavy-handed and the military is represented by a strawman-character, the supercilious Col. Matthews (Paul Langton), who is intent on exploiting the alien technology in the Cold War and fearful about the Reds beating him to it. In case the dangers posed by the ignorant are not sufficiently obvious, Sorenson opines how "Everyone is afraid of scientists", suggesting that fear of knowledge is the real problem. There is an awful proto-romance scene involving war-widow Kathy Grant (Angele Greeene) and the Colonel, and Grant's son, crippled and doomed by some mysterious disease, is an unnecessary intrusion into the story that just sets up a predictable and saccharine event at the climax. The only novel thing in the production is the white sphere floating in the desert (not surprisingly, in Bronson Canyon). The effect is clever and quite well done, especially the scene in which the army engineers futilely try to move the alien artifact. By 1958, the 'alien saviour' storyline had been tapped numerous times (1951's 'The Day the Earth Stood Still', 1954's 'Stranger from Venus', even 1958's abysmal 'The Astounding She-monster') and 'The Cosmic Man' doesn't offer anything new or interesting to the canon. Recommended only to genre-aficionados or fans of the gaunt star.

....proving once again that people are stupid!

[planktonrules · 7/10 · 30 August 2009]

Even though this film is essentially a reworking of THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL (hence, lacking some originality), it still is one of the better sci-fi films of the 1950s and is well worth watching. It's also far better than the paltry 4.0 rating would indicate.

The film is another struggle within the human race over whether to openly embrace an alien or blow the snot out of him out of fear. On one hand, you have Dr. Sorenson (Bruce Bennett) who has a wait and see attitude--we can't act with hostility towards the alien until we know it means us harm. On the other, you have the military guys who want to exploit the space ship for military reasons and kill the alien because...well, just because! All this come to be after an odd floating sphere arrives in a rural place in the mountains. Oddly, this space craft defies gravity and just hovers--impervious to being moved in any way. They aren't sure exactly what sort of craft it is, but they are fairly sure it's unmanned because it's pretty small. Of course, since the film is called "The Cosmic Man", we know that someone (John Carradine) is inside. Interestingly, he doesn't even make an appearance until late in the film--long after the military start attacking the sphere with blowtorches and heavy equipment (to no avail).

What's particularly interesting about this film is that there are no clear answers. Carradine is just visiting the planet to see what's here and when he's met with such stupidity, he decides to leave. After all, why would aliens want to deal with such a group of morons?! Well written and intelligent, this is no bug-eyed monster sort of sci-fi film. Good acting and a decent production all around.

By the way, Bruce Bennett soon went on to play a character 100% different in one of his next films, "The Fiend of Dope Island"--a terrible film due to the fact that Bennett plays one of the most berserk characters in movie history! Also, if you get a chance, read Bennett's IMDb biography--it's really, really interesting and he only recently died at age 100.

He's mysterious, he's cosmic, he's dull as dirt

[Eegah Guy · 4/10 · 13 April 2001]

Earnest but boring 50s sci-fi for John Carradine completists only. Borrowing ideas from DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL this film has ideas but forgets to add thrills to the mix. Carradine is only in the movie for maybe 5 minutes, and even then he's sometimes a black shadow giving lectures on the follies of man going into outer space. The film is an OK time-waster.

Nifty 50's sci-fi

[Woodyanders · 8/10 · 14 July 2015]

An alien (a fine performance by John Carradine) arrives on earth in a spherical spaceship. Is he here to help mankind or destroy us? Ramrod Colonel Matthews (nicely played to the stern hilt by Paul Langton) assumes the worst while kindly scientist Dr. Karl Sorenson (a sound and likable portrayal by Bruce Bennett) tries to protect the cosmic man.

Director Herbert S. Greene relates the absorbing story at a steady pace, does a sturdy job of crafting an intriguing mysterious atmosphere, and maintains an appropriately earnest tone throughout. Arthur C. Pierce's intelligent script brings up a few interesting philosophical issues and provides a pointed critique of gung-ho paranoid military types. The sound acting from the capable cast rates as another major plus, with especially praiseworthy contributions from Angela Greene as cheery innkeeper Kathy Grant, Scotty Morrow as Kathy's sweet, yet sickly son Ken, and Herbert Lytton as the hard-nosed General Knowland. Moreover, the titular character makes neat use of Carradine's trademark deep booming voice. Both John F. Warren's sharp black and white cinematography and the spare moody score by Paul Sawtell and Bert Shefter are up to par. The special effects are pretty hokey by today's standards (for example, the cosmic man's spaceship looks like a giant golf ball!), but still do the trick just the same. A worthwhile science fiction outing.

Not bad little sci-fi tale.

[Hey_Sweden · 7/10 · 1 August 2015]

"The Cosmic Man" is about an alien craft that arrives on Earth. While the humans involved argue over how to deal with the situation, the Cosmic Man himself (John Carradine) materializes. But it's not certain just what his presence means; the Cosmic Man is interested more in observing human behaviour.

This little film may test the patience of some viewers because it's much more dialogue driven than action driven. There's a lot of information to digest here, but the script by Arthur C. Pierce is intelligent, and touches upon still common ideas. For example, the conflict between a scientists' methods and the military way of thinking. Our hero scientist, Karl Sorenson (Bruce Bennett), is regarded as being somewhat dubious by people such as jut jawed Colonel Matthews (Paul Langton).

Director Herbert S. Greene goes for a rather sedate pace, but he creates some undeniable suspense and creepiness. Before the Cosmic Man appears in the form of Carradine, he's very wraith like. (The special effects are actually pretty decent.) One might also wish that Carradine had more to do, as he doesn't turn up on camera until well into the film. But it's a treat to hear him spouting exposition in that unmistakable voice of his.

The rest of the cast is solid. Bennett is a likable co-lead, and Angela Greene is similarly engaging as the love interest, Kathy Grant. Scotty Morrow is very appealing as Kathy's disabled son.

One does see examples of the kind of unfortunate thinking which The Cosmic Man criticizes. This would make an interesting B feature to play along with "The Day the Earth Stood Still" (1951).

Seven out of 10.

Another "Day The Earth Stood Still" Sci-Fi Clone

[zardoz-13 · 3/10 · 10 November 2010]

The marginal but interesting sci-fi saga about a large white cue ball shaped spacecraft that comes to Earth and hovers in place without the slightest sign of movement is another "The Day the Earth Stood Still" clone with a wholly predictable plot about an alien being who is intent on thwarting mankind's nuclear impulses. John Carradine appears occasionally without a costume as the sinister being. He runs around looking like a negative image and then masquerades as an old timer in a hat, big coat, and large spectacles. The military send a notable scientist (Bruce Bennett of "Treasure of the Sierra Madre") to conduct tests of the giant cue ball. Eventually, the cosmic man appears before Pentagon generals and gives them a lecture about mankind's predisposition to kill itself and perhaps harm others in the vast universe. Just to show that the cosmic man is not without sentiment, he heals a little boy who cannot walk. Totally forgettable epic was only one of the two movies that director Herbert S. Greene helmed. The other was "Outlaw Queen." This mediocre, black & white, Allied Artists release clocks in at a trim 72 minutes and most of the footage with the giant cue ball spacecraft was lensed on location in Bronson Canyon where "The Robot Monster" was shot. Nobody dies in this earnest little movie that was a product of the Cold War.

Enjoyable low-budget version of Day the Earth Stood Still

[rixrex · 13 September 2006]

Not expecting much at all, I was a little surprised at how much I enjoyed this very small budget take on Day the Earth Stood Still. For all the plodding along and pretty miserable effects, the story is quite literate and even has some elements of HG Wells First Men In the Moon, that being the idea of space travel via an "gravity" repelling shutter device. The lead scientist does his part well, in a role that would have been Peter Graves' had he not been busy on Beginning of the End. He has a certain combination of ease and comfort in his role and it comes across as very realistic, the best of the cast, and livens up all the scenes which he is in. John Carradine puts in a typical decent performance but has to do double-duty since there is no Gort available here. Unfortunately, this weakens the film, and we wish there were more of a menace on his part, or more of some kind of ultimatum, but then that's why we return to view Day the Earth Stood Still again and again. Yet you can watch this "version" at least one time and not feel disappointed.

Dull, lifeless, generic sci-fi

[DrSatan · 3/10 · 12 June 2000]

For once Maltin has reviewed something correctly: The Cosmic Man is a sad Day the Earth Stood Still rip-off. We have the alien representative who disguises himself as a human and befriends an intelligent, open minded scientist and a single mother and her child, we have the closed minded military men who want to capture and question the alien to gain his knowledge, and we have the "fantastic" special effects. Only the acting, fx, and dialogue don't quite measure up to The Day the Earth Stood Still. A key example of this is the kid in this: apparently being a child wasn't enough, but instead they had to make him a cripple to heighten the messianic qualities of the alien. I say watch "The Day the Earth Stood Still" instead, and all you'll miss is a standard Carradine performance.

Ball in the Air

[bnwfilmbuff · 2/10 · 22 April 2017]

Very boring sci-fi involving an alien visitor (John Carradine) coming to earth in a spherical UFO ostensibly to play chess with a boy stricken with polio (Jeff Morrow). No plot detectable in this outing. The military wants to capture the alien to force him to tell them the basis of his technology. Bruce Bennent is the local scientist called in for advice which is quickly discarded when it's determined that he's too interested in proceeding intelligently. Everybody takes the discovery of a ship and visitor from outer space matter-of-factly. Bad script, acting (with the exception of Bennent), and storyline add up to a waste of time.

Even John Carradine can't save it

[kevinolzak · 3/10 · 22 March 2019]

Steering clear of the horror genre for much of the 50s, financial necessity finally beckoned John Carradine in 1956 with "The Black Sleep," "The Incredible Petrified World," and "The Unearthly." His tremendous output combining both movies and television nearly reached 500 credits, but his identification as a horror star didn't truly take hold until the mid-60s, after which he received fewer parts in straight films. As a starring vehicle 1958's "The Cosmic Man"" hardly taxes his considerable abilities, little screen time as a micro budget Klaatu, his rather small spherical spaceship sitting in Bronson Canyon as his mostly invisible presence is occasionally seen in dark silhouette peeking through windows or solving complex scientific equations for the benefit of Bruce Bennett's insufferable scientist. Finally appearing in corporeal form he takes a room at a small inn, befriends the crippled son of the widowed owner, and in doing so somehow cures the boy of his terminal illness. This sadly does not exempt him from being a target for the unthinking military, yet he and his ship disappear into the ether even as Bennett assures us he'll be back some day. Viewers familiar with 1951's "The Day the Earth Stood Still" would find this a rather difficult sit, the central character off screen most of the running time, so Carradine wasn't granted the opportunities that made Michael Rennie's visitor such an engaging, sympathetic figure. And boy does this cloying kid make one miss Billy Gray! This was the first screenplay cranked out by Arthur C. Pierce, who followed on with more low budget efforts like "Beyond the Time Barrier," "Women of the Prehistoric Planet," "Dimension 5," Michael Rennie's "Cyborg 2087," and even Carradine's Jerry Warren fiasco "Invasion of the Animal People."

For stubborn movie lovers only!

[RodrigAndrisan · 1/10 · 5 June 2018]

Herbert S. Greene directed only two films, this one and "Outlaw Queen"(1957). In this second one, the actors are all convincing, but the story is not at all. Although trying to look very well scientifically grounded, everything is puerile.

Even Carradine makes himself scarce in this bomb

[scsu1975 · 2/10 · 14 November 2022]

More or less a rip-off of "The Day The Earth Stood Still," minus the talent, suspense, special effects, and pretty much everything else.

A ball-shaped UFO arrives in a canyon, and the military, led by sourpuss Colonel Paul Langton, investigate. They are joined by Bruce Bennett, who plays an astrophysicist from Pacific Tech. The producers should have gotten a running back from Georgia Tech. Bennett looks tired and uninspired, but must have needed a paycheck. There is an immediate clash between Langton and Bennett, due to the usual debate between military and scientific methodology. Eventually, we discover that Bennett was responsible for the creation of the A-bomb; now, we can partially blame him for participating in this bomb. While they spar, local innkeeper Angela Greene drives up with her wheelchair-bound son, which should tug at your heartstrings, but instead, gives you heartburn. Langton tries to impress Greene's son with football talk, while Bennett tries to impress the kid with astronomy talk. Yet, no one in his/her right mind would believe either of these clowns has a shot at Greene. But hey, you never know in science fiction.

Langton's men and Bennett take turns playing with the giant ball, getting nowhere fast. Meanwhile, a shadowy figure is seen wandering around the neighborhood, resulting in women screaming, police cars speeding down streets, and audience members heading for the exits.

Shortly thereafter, John Carradine shows up at the inn and asks for a room. Carradine wears glasses that would make Marvin Kaplan envious. Greene gives him a room in the back of the inn, and forgets about him.

Bennett and his associate, a character oddly named Dr. Rich Richie (you can't make this stuff up) collaborate on a plan of action:

Bennett: "And suppose this phantom atom contains particles of a mass of m minus vibrating along the axis x under a force of kx towards the origin. You know the equation, Rich."

Rich: "Got it."

Bennett: "If left alone, those particles should vibrate with a constant amplitude and frequency of six minus forever, right?"

Rich: "Right."

I'm no astrophysicist, but this is actually the correct equation for generating bullscrap. I've tried it, and it works.

Greene finally remembers there is a stranger at the inn. Now the shadowy figure shows up (with John Carradine's voice ... surprise, surprise) and we get the obligatory alien warning to grow up, stop fighting, use contraceptives, eat your spinach, etc. He also says he will be taking off soon (assuming he's not flying United). So Langton and his imbecilic General devise a plot to stop the alien. But Carradine snatches Greene's son and heads for the big ball. Will the boy be rescued? (yes) Will the boy be miraculously cured? (yes) Will Carradine get attacked? (yes) Will either Bennett or Langton score with Greene? (don't make me nauseous)

Greene, who was wasted (her talent, not her physical condition) in "Night of the Blood Beast," at least has something to do here, and looks pretty good. Bennett looks tired, old, and uninspired; he must have needed a paycheck. Carradine is only onscreen for a few minutes; I doubt that was also him as the shadowy figure, which looked like Zorro in a tutu.

More philosophical than science fiction, but decent.

[actherandomthought · 7/10 · 7 July 2016]

I have recently gotten into the habit of watching these old science fiction movies from the fifties and sixties, and I have to say that, even though they are a bit ridiculous and campy, some of them are actually very well put together, such as this one.

Cosmic Man is a film about a UFO landing in a California desert while government officials decide what to do with it. During their debate, a transparent figure (John Carradine) emerges secretly from the UFO and begins to aid a doctor (Bruce Bennett) in his research, unbeknownst to the doctor. While it seems as if this transparent figure is harmless and wishes only to seek information from these people, a general (Herbert Lytton) thinks otherwise.

Through a very lengthy monologue, the transparent man (now known as the "Cosmic Man") explains his actions and his wishes to the doctor and the general. While the Cosmic Man commends the doctor for his progressive outlook towards him and other civilizations, he harshly criticizes the general for his barbaric thoughts and plans. This does not sit well with the general and he threatens to harm the Cosmic Man if he does not comply with the general's demands.

Rejecting the general's demands, the Cosmic Man attempts to escape. In a climactic scene pitting the Cosmic Man against the general and other government officials, the Cosmic Man is shot before he can reach the UFO. As the general goes in to finish the job, the doctor talks him out of it, predicting that the general in doing so would bring worse possible outcomes in the future.

The Cosmic Man disappears along with the UFO, without any indication as to whether or not he survived the gunshot from the general. Though the outlook for the Cosmic Man does not seem good, the doctor says that he will indeed be back.

While the film was a little bit campy, I really did enjoy it. It was very well put-together and acted out, for a B-grade 1950's science fiction film. While there is not much in the way of science fiction (other than the UFO and the Cosmic Man himself), the film certainly makes up for in philosophy and speculation.

The doctor's philosophy towards the Cosmic Man and the other possible universal civilizations that could be eventually discovered are very progressive in the sense that the doctor wants to befriend the Cosmic Man and make peace with him so as to show other civilizations that he wishes to "collaborate" with them in inter-spatial and intergalactic affairs. It also demonstrates really well in speculation as to why UFO's are being seen at such an alarming rate and what business they might have in being on Earth. During this time, UFO's had been seen quite often which could be a possible reason why this film was made.

Overall, I found the film to be very enjoyable and quite thought-provoking as well. While it is very campy in some aspects, it is a very intricately performed and produced film that I will probably watch multiple times in my life. I give this film a seven out of ten.

The Cosmic One

[BandSAboutMovies · 4/10 · 26 October 2023]

USAF Col. Matthews (Paul Langton) and Dr. Karl Sorenson (Bruce Bennett), an astrophysist at the nearby Pacific Institute of Technology (PIT), are called as a UAP flies over Oak Ridge, CA at 180,000 miles an hour and coming to rest in Stone Canyon, floating off the ground. That night, a creature from inside the ship goes to the lab of Sorenson and Dr. Richie (Walter Maslow) to solve some problems that have puzzled them for months. They see whatever it is as friendly, but Matthews sees it as an enemy.

Kathy Grant (Angela Greene) is a widow whose fighter pilot husband died in the Korean War. She runs a lodge near the canyon while caring for her wheelchair-bound terminally ill son Ken (Scotty Morrow). A stranger (John Carradine) arrives and she thinks he's a scientist. He's the alien, of course, and begins to learn how play chess from the young boy.

Known as the Cosmic Man, the alien appears to the scientist and military. He tells them that as mankind is about to go into space, they must learn to stop being prejudiced or they will never be able to live with other races. He says that he will leave in the morning, so the military guys start shooting him. He walks away like it's no big deal. The humans in this movie are the worst, trying to kill the Cosmic Man even when he heals Ken and helps him walk again.

At the end, the UAP flies away and Sorenson says, "He'll be back." I hope not. We treated him like a jerk. I also hope Sorenson realizes that Kathy is an attractive woman in her late thirties, in the full bloom of sexual power, and stops spending all night in the lab and more in the lodge. Both she and Ken need a daddy, after all.

Director Herbert S. Greene only made one other movie, Outlaw Queen, which has Andrea King from The Beast with Five Fingers as a Greek immigrant who starts her own casino in the Wild West. If you think to yourself, "Who could write a movie like that?" the answer is Edward D. Wood Jr.

The Phantom Atom...

[poe-48833 · 9/10 · 24 June 2016]

THE COSMIC MAN may be a low budget rehash of THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL, but it's still solid SF cinema. The identity of the alien caught me by surprise, but who can argue with the choice- I mean, John Carradine as Klaatu Two (KlaaTwo...?); who would've thunk it...? THE COSMIC MAN is simple but effective low budget filmmaking, tight as a drum (the kind of movie, one imagines, that Ed Wood would've loved to have had the skill(s) to pull off); it touches on but doesn't belabor the inherent mistrust between the nerds (the scientists) and the jocks (the military). There are a couple of nice visual touches: at one point, the scientist investigating the mysterious globe has drawn a sphere on a chalkboard; his silhouette appears INSIDE the drawing; in another, a transition shot, we see the wheels of a child's wheelchair dissolve into the spinning wheels of a truck mired in the dirt as it tries to haul the sphere away. In the end, Carradine goes Klaatu one better and makes a crippled boy walk again. You could do a lot worse than THE COSMIC MAN.

Above Average Sci-fi Film

[Freedom060286 · 7/10 · 23 August 2023]

The basic plot of this movie is similar to several others made in the 1950s and early 1960s, but is somewhat different in the details and the sequence of events.

The screenwriter's dialogue is generally well-written. John Carradine is one of the best actors of the 1940s and 1950s and played his role very well. Scotty Morrow does an excellent job of playing the crippled boy Ken Grant. The rest of the cast are fine as well.

There is no vulgar language or extreme violence so this movie is suitable for all ages.

Although somewhat predictable, overall the story is fairly entertaining. The film deserves a somewhat better rating.

Dull & Drab...Awkward & Stilted Dialog & Messaging...Carradine & Bennett...Not Much Else

[LeonLouisRicci · 4/10 · 16 June 2023]

Besides a Millennial Old Reiteration Reformatted for Sci-Fi Films and Delivered by "Klaatu", a "Strange Visitor From Another Planet"...Peace, Love, and Understanding as an Ultimatum...

"Change Your War-Locked Ways or Your Planet Will Be Reduced to a Burned Out Cinder...It's Your Choice".

Bruce Bennet as a Nuclear Physicist who had a Hand in Developing the A-Bomb and Paid the Price of a Guilty Conscience.

On the Flip Side...the "Shoot First and Ask Questions Later" Military Representative in the Form of an Air Force General.

The Film's Message is a Noble One, but Seems to have Difficulty in Articulating the most Basic Terms through Awkward Dialog and Sentence Structure.

The SFX, a Prerequisite in Most, but Not All Sci-Fi Films, are Dull to the Point of a Floating Golf-Ball, and that's About It.

John Carradine is the Astronaut, with Healing Powers (Get It), Here to Observe and Offer Sane Advice.

Will the Human Race Heed...Stay Tuned.

The Virtually Lifeless Artless Movie is Not Worth the Time Revisiting Old Themes of Philosophy, in Odd, Stilted Ways.

Might as Well Say a "Prayer" for Mankind and Move On.

For Those of You who Must See...

It's Short but Not so Sweet Going Down.