Phase IV (1974)

Directed by

Saul Bass

Genre

horror film, science fiction film

Country

United Kingdom, United States

Runtime

1h 24m

Rated

PG

Rating

6.3 of 10 from 298 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

A mysterious cosmic event causes ants to develop a collective intelligence and begin communicating with humans in the desert. Two scientists try to understand and stop the ants as the insects start to systematically take over the landscape.

clinicalominousslow-burncontemplativeunsettlingminimalistcerebralbleak

What happens

Phase IV is a 1974 science fiction horror film directed by graphic designer and filmmaker Saul Bass. It was written by Mayo Simon, who used H. G. Wells's 1905 short story "Empire of the Ants" as inspiration. The film stars Michael Murphy, Nigel Davenport, and Lynne Frederick. Interiors were shot at Pinewood Studios in England and exterior locations were shot in Kenya, though the film is set in the Arizona desert in the United States. It was produced by Alced Productions and Paramount Pictures. The film was a box office flop and thus the only feature film directed by Bass. It has since gained a cult following, due to TV airings beginning in 1975 and also being shown on Mystery Science Theater 3000 during the KTMA era. A novelization of the script, written by Barry N. Malzberg, was published as Phase IV in November 1973. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

Trailer

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• Creation of the Damned (1974)
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