MovieChat Forums > Quatermass and the Pit (1968) Discussion > Colonel Breen - a complete idiot.

Colonel Breen - a complete idiot.

posted 17 years ago by Altho73
20 replies | jump to latest

The point that strikes me about this film is what a complete idiot Colonel Breen was. This is emphasised when he insists that the Martian spaceship with the green lizards was a propoganda device sent across by the Germans in 1944 (when they realised that they were losing the war) to create panic and hysteria!
The spaceship was discovered buried several feet underground and only found when workmen were digging a new tunnel for a subway train. How did the Germans get the propoganda weapon that far underground, did they sneak over in the middle of the night, dig a huge hole, bury the spaceship then fill the hole in without anyone noticing!!!!!!!!!!!! Amazingly the Government officials agreed with him, showing that they were complete idiots as well!

[–] nebka23 17 years ago

Because his mind could not take the idea that it could have come from Mars then he tought oh the Germans sent it and nothing would change his mind and those in the Goverment

[–] paintedplates 17 years ago

Ya I found that another plothole. One possible way around it is the argument ufologists use to explain why the government doesn;t come clean: that the existence of aliens would cause mass panic. Not an explanation I believe, but hey, it might do.

Otherwise, why would he care one way or the other? And why would everyone in government become hostile, and instead follow him? It's not as if he had immense influence.

Besides, if the Germans had developed such a metal (or whatever), surely someone would have said something when they surrendered. I mean, all their rocket scientists joined NASA, they were very willing to share their discoveries. A scientist who developed such a metal would stand to make a fortune.

Also, if they developed such a metal, would they not use it on other weapons, such as tanks ... Why a rocket, which is supposed to blow up, and doesn't need to be encased in a shell like that for protection, it would be travelling too fast to be intercepted anyway.

[–] Altho73 17 years ago

''One possible way around it is the argument ufologists use to explain why the government doesn;t come clean: that the existence of aliens would cause mass panic.''

Certainly Governments believe that the appearance of aliens from another planet would cause mass panic amongst the general public.
But I don't think that the general public would be as concerned as Government officials believe.

On the whole the general public have behaved in a remarkably restrained manner in a variety of incidents of stress, for example the public in the United Kingdom during the Nazi bombing of World War 2, people in the USA during natural disasters - floods, hurricanes, earthquakes etc.

[–] bgrubb 16 years ago

"Besides, if the Germans had developed such a metal (or whatever), surely someone would have said something when they surrendered. I mean, all their rocket scientists joined NASA, they were very willing to share their discoveries. A scientist who developed such a metal would stand to make a fortune."

Quartermass makes a comment regarding this saying that the Germans didn't build it and then lose the secret. "You ask von Braun." Modern viewers may not be familiar with him but Wernher von Braun was the head of the German rocket program and after the war became the head of the American rocket program that finally put a man on the Moon.

[–] captlupin 15 years ago

They still find the odd german bomb in places. and the army have to destroy them. but yes he was a moron

[–] turbo445 17 years ago

While I agree Breen was not the brightest, I don't think he should be considered stupid, for initially thinking the "ship" was in fact unexploded Nazi ordinance from WW2. The German blitz was not THAT distant amemory in the minds of most British (remember, this story was originally broadcast on the BBC in 1958), they were finding unexploded bombs in the wreckage of bombed out neighborhoods for months after the war. There are probably STILL unexploded, corroded bombs deep in the ground, dropped from high altitude and designed to bury themselves before detonation.

Of course, once more of the ship was uncovered, it became harder and harder to justify his position, but I believe at least initially, he was employing Occam's Razor, which says the simplest explanation for something is usually the true one. Obviously having been in the war, Breen's memories of the German Blitz and its aftermath would still be relatively fresh. It's much more rational to believe a manufactured object (like a bomb) was dropped and forgotten and subsequently buried over time, than to automatically just dump four of the five major philosophical disciplines (not even counting religion) and immeidately unequivocably believe it's space aliens, especially ones who don't look ANYTHING like us.

[–] 17 years ago

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[–] rarema 15 years ago

Well said, Turbo.

At the same time, the colonel represented goverment 'blindness' to individual thinkers like Quatermass.

The same elements - as well as the WW2 themes - are important in the first two Quatermass films too.

Have you seen the original TV versions? I bought the DVD box some time ago but haven't gotten around watching it yet.

http://www.play.com/DVD/DVD/4-/620110/Quatermass-Complete-Collection/P roduct.html

[–] 15 years ago

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[–] Jasons_Argonaut 14 years ago

Have you seen the original TV versions? >>> Yes, and it is worth noting that the site where the Martian capsule in unearthed is not as deep as the one depicted in the film. The serial was merely a newly developing construction site, as opposed to a deep subway tunnel like in the film. It is easier to follow Colonel Breen's logic in the serial, even though he is still in denial when it comes to the advanced metal used, as well as the location of the skeletal ape remains that prove that there was a connection between them and the ship. Everyone needs to remember that, if faced with facts that counter what we strongly believe about ourselves, that people have a tendency to stick their heads in the sand no matter how much facts there are that prove otherwise. I think the film is marvelous in the way it depicts this very real aspect of humanity...our ability to be closed off to what we simply don't want to hear.

[–] SanityLapse 14 years ago

In a movie, it's a lot easier to convince the audience that they should believe it's aliens. It's easy for us to point and say "what a dumb character", but really put yourself in a situation where something 'odd' happens. Pointing to aliens wouldn't be one of your first reactions, if you aren't a total nut.

Sure, it eventually became more obvious, but there are probably two reasons for him denying it. 1. It was such a shock. He probably didn't want to believe it, and just wanted to convince himself it wasn't true. And 2. He may have been doing it to prevent mass panic. If word of something like that got out, there would be a lot of chaos. People get worked up over little things that they aren't even sure will happen. Remember Y2K?

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I know what gold does to men's souls.

[–] Rob-Slide 14 years ago

On the conspiracy line did anybody ever wonder if the huge upswing in SF is to get us ready for First Contact?

[–] MaxxDragon 14 years ago

On the conspiracy line did anybody ever wonder if the huge upswing in SF is to get us ready for First Contact?

They said the same thing about ALF 25 year ago, that he was a 'friendly' alien so people would be more accepting of the real ones that handn't been revealed to the public yet.

[–] jarnoldfan 13 years ago

Rod Serling's TWILIGHT ZONE series in the 60's was cited as prepping humanity for First Contact, as was CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND in 1977. As to the reason for government secrecy: suppose that a world government admitted that they have known of alien visitation for decades, but kept the public in the dark. I believe that the public reaction would be ANGER at the lying bureaucrats who played us for suckers; and who suppressed alien technology that could benefit all mankind (much like the minority groups in the USA who believe that HIV/AIDS was created by the CIA to depopulate the Third World, and that a secret vaccine has existed for years). Tell me, would YOU ever trust your government again?

[–] MaxxDragon 10 years ago

I dont trust my government now. Aliens or no.

[–] zooeyhall 10 years ago

If it wasn't for guys like Col. Breen and his men, Quatermass and Prof. Roney would be doing Nazi salutes in this film.

[–] KobiyashiMauru 9 years ago

Col. Breen was made that way so people in the audience could applaud his horrible death. Sheesh. 😵💀

[–] first-things-first 9 years ago

I agree, the unredeemable character is always killed in a spectacularly.

If we can save humanity, we become the caretakers of the world

[–] hifijohn 8 years ago

breen like many people may have had tunnel vision , he loved his explanation so much he refused to believe it couldnt be true.people do that all the time, carefully cherry picking ideas that fit their conclusions.

[–] marcigabrielle 8 years ago

In London the subway runs a level bellow the water and power lines. After the bombings in WW2, all that had to be re-created, which meant moving large amounts of soil out of the way.

It is possible they had moved the bomb deeper underground during those operations, so it was only found when the deeper excavations for the underground in that area started.

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Space For Sale.