The Red Scare


Like all science fiction, the story is at least partially figurative. 1955. An outside threat infiltrates and controls the thoughts of the weak-minded and the young. America prevails.

This was probably a real fear at the time, but as it turns out the weak-minded are pretty well controlled by capitalism. America prevails.

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Ironically, the score for this film was lifted largely from Shostakovich's 10th symphony, probably because there was little or no copyright agreement with the Soviet Union at that time. The composer was in and out of favor with the communist government and this symphony was written only a few years before Corman produced the movie. Some music critics believed the movement used in the film was intended by the composer to represent Stalin himself. Now that the US is pressuring Russia to abide by copyright laws, one wonders if this film is, in fact, infringing by using this symphony without permission.

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I doubt if any Russian apparatchiks are aware of the existence of The Beast with a Million Eyes, so the owners of this movie are quite likely safe from any lawsuits.

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Just a little over a generation after the fall of the Berlin Wall, America is sorta like a barrel floating in space. Mindless materialism is also a dead end.

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That was funny. Thanks!

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