Them! (1954; USA; B&W; 94m) ∗∗∗∗ d. Gordon Douglas; w. Ted Sherdeman, Russell S. Hughes, George Worthing Yates; ph. Sid Hickox; m. Bronislau Kaper. Cast: James Whitmore, Edmund Gwenn, Joan Weldon, James Arness, Onslow Stevens, Chris Drake, Leonard Nimoy, Dub Taylor, Fess Parker. That ol’ cinematic devil the A-bomb has spawned a colony of giant murderous ants bent on destroying humanity in this, the seminal big bug movie (an obvious and oft-credited influence for ALIEN among countless others). Influential sci-fi thriller capitalises on paranoia surrounding radiation fallout from the testing of atomic weapons – here mutating ants into giant killers. Arness and Whitmore make effective leads and Gwenn is good as the eccentric scientist. Good use of sound and lighting to maximise thrills. Fans of the later ALIENS (1986) may find certain similarities in the bug hunt. The sound that the giant ants make as they approach their prey is a recorded chorus of bird-voiced tree frogs (Hyla avivoca) of the southeastern US. Received an Oscar nomination for Best Special Effects. Warner’s highest-grossing film for the year. [PG]