REVIEW: ‘Unknown World’ finds scientists headed to a world beneath this world
Image courtesy of Severin / Provided with permission.
Severin recently released the 1951 sci-fi adventure film Unknown World, billed as a loving ripoff of the far more effective feature Journey to the Center of the Earth. This one is steeped in the Atomic Age, with fears of the big bomb decimating planet Earth and causing a havoc amongst the world’s population. In order to find a means of survival, an outré scientist develops a theory that one can head inside of the planet, beneath the crust, and find an entirely new and habitable world. This hollow-Earth theory apparently was a fad mid-century and made its way into a few sci-fi films of the era.
As always, Severin does justice to the obscure film. One could even argue that they go above and beyond for a title that is quite secondary on the large scale of sci-fi flicks from the 1950s. It’s not that Unknown World is bad; in fact, it’s eminently watchable and runs shy of 80 minutes. But it also fails to push the genre forward. Its most interesting aspect is an opening newsreel sequence that gives a lay of the land, and offers viewers a journalistic account of where the scientific and ethical debate current stands with the hydrogen bomb.
The actual adventuring into the caverns and fissures of the Earth are a tad boring, perhaps because these nature-based sci-fi movies are largely villain-less. The motley crew of researchers who are heading into the depths are mostly an admirable bunch, and one could not call an individual amongst their ranks as treasonous or antagonistic. Instead, they are fighting their own ambition, which is an interesting premise, similar to the main drama that can be found in Space Race flicks like Apollo 13. Ultimately death and demise are owned by the humans on the trip because they refuse to backdown, even when faced with insurmountable obstacles.
One could make the case, and it’s been made many times before, that the latter part of the 20th century was filled with needless human experimentation on a grand scale. (For more on this theory, check out this book on The Twilight Zone.) Rather than developing technology that would be driverless or robot-led, both real life and cinematic stories based on real life placed delicate humans right in the danger zone, sacrificing their bodies in the name of science. Some would say that the space programs like Mercury, Gemini and Apollo were troublesome efforts that certainly achieved unbelievable accomplishments, but the preciousness of human life was tested and sometimes failed. The same can be said for the expedition in Unknown World. One wonders why a team of actual living, breathing people need to be the candidates to head toward the Earth’s core. If they are advanced enough to head there themselves, aren’t they advanced enough to develop driverless, remote-controlled technology that could take a look around and see if it’s safe?
The actual vessel that transports the researchers is the one and only part of Unknown World that deservedly demands some chuckles. The submarine-looking ship, which looks more like a McDonald’s toy, has not held up well over the past 75 years. It’s smooth on the outside and surprisingly spacious on the inside. Best of all, it has a digging contraption in the front in order to clear the path through the fissure. It’s a hoot and a half.
The acting from Otto Waldis, Marilyn Nash and company is enjoyable and never over the top, which is a rarity in these mid-century sci-fi flicks. The script is actually solid as well, so kudos to Millar Kaufman (Severin also alludes to Dalton Trumbo possibly co-writing). Normally the dialogue and the interpreters of that dialogue are the rough spots in a 75-minute black-and-white adventure tale, but for Unknown World, those two categories are quite strong. The issue with the film is that it’s simply an OK movie, nothing more, nothing less.
Terry O. Morse directed and edited the feature. He also cut his teeth on Godzilla: King of the Monsters, so he’s a master at these big-concept, low-budget affairs. And, for the most part, his efforts pay off with an interesting movie that holds one’s attention. His smartest move was starting the movie with that prolonged newsreel. That sequence sets the scene and catapults the plot into action, providing exposition on the characters and cutting out any unnecessary asides.
Unknown World, premiering on Blu-ray, comes with a host of special features, including commentary from film writer Stephen R. Bissette, contextual interviews and a trailer. Severin always has fascinating bonus features for the movies in its collection.
By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com
Unknown World (1951). Directed by Terry O. Morse. Written by Millar Kaufman. Starring Otto Waldis, Marilyn Nash and Victor Kilian. Running time: 75 minutes. Rating: 
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