Phase IV (1974)

just watch it!

Dreadfully Boring

Charming and brutal

Absolutely brilliant

I have a default category for movies like this that says - someone, somewhere at some time must have thought this was a good idea for a picture. Paying fairly close attention, I really didn't get the point of this story if there was one, and even by reading the reviews of other folks on this board I'm not getting a clear picture of what this was supposed to be about. There's a pretty good post left by user 'Dr. Wily' in the reviews section, but even after his astute analysis, he comes up with the same conclusion - which is, try to come up with your own. The movie makes as much sense as an old joke it reminded me of as I considered the subject matter. Ready? Say 'dead ant' ten times real fast....Hi-yo Silver, away!!!!

Phase IV is a movie with an interesting premise, with nice imagery and cinematography to boot. It feels somewhat aged, but in a charmingly retro kind of way. Both protagonists were good and played well together. Nigel Davenport especially, with a beard that really stole the scenes. The film became surreal almost, in mixing the shots filmed in studio and Kenya, with those that followed the ants in their colonies and those filmed through their eyes.My main problem with the movie however, and one that destroyed the essence of the premise, was that the ants never felt more than mere ants. This film really needed to establish the ants as highly intelligent and sinister, but unfortunately, accomplished neither. It tried, many times to do this, to no avail. Like an organized attack on a horse and house in the beginning, or the pillar-like colony structures, symbolizing their step out of the ground, their now elevated intelligence and superiority to the humans, the former top of the food chain.Many times it felt almost comical, such as when a woman discovers an ant in an old mans hair in a pickup truck in the beginning, which causes her to burst out in a choir of scream, leading to the truck colliding with an arbitrarily placed metal structure. Though I must admit, there were some scenes with the ants I found great. For example when one ant finds its way into the heart of the humans technological structure and starts to chew its way into the cable only to be eaten by a mantis, who then is attacked by another ant, causing it to slip and short circuit the electronics which ultimately fries it.

There's a rather slow start to this film with a lengthy and unsettling montage of different ant species working together, a little later there is a narration which explains the establishment of a science research facility to study the unusual activity and the decline in the natural predators of the ant population. There are a couple of interesting scenes of the protagonists from the viewpoint of the ants compound eyes which adds interest and creates an unsettling atmosphere. The music is also effective and unsettling. This is the only film to be directed by the graphic designer Saul Bass and there are one or two moments where the film seems a little disjointed – I suspect the film has been cut or re-edited in some way against the original intention. There is a horrible scene where after a chemical spray procedure against the first ant attack some ants crawl from the hand of a dead man ... a cleverly staged sequence shows the ants gradually become resistant to the first spray of yellow poison by absorbing it ... there is then a suggestion that after a queen ant samples it new ants are born which are fully resistant. The ants are very clever – aside from language they build structures overnight around the research centre which reflect sunlight … the premise of this film sounds absurd but somehow it kind of works … flawed but interesting ... The macro photography is excellent. An enigmatic and irritating ending though.

There seems to be a problem with some ants in the desert. One scientist is called upon by a man who is already on the scene for his appraisal of the situation. The senior scientist is focused on his study of these creatures and seemingly has no real interest in the impact to humanity. His young consultant sees the storm coming and his warnings are ignored. The film on it's merits: Well photographed and fairly well acted. The science is plausible and the writing is thoughtful and succinct. The dated technology adds to the charm of a film that was released in 1974. Summary: A very thoughtful film about man and his place on Earth but maybe not in his world. This is science fiction at it's very best. Do we corrupt nature, are we part of it, do we control it or does it control us?I highly recommend this film to hardcore no fluff science fiction fans.