27th Day, The (1957)

This quite extraordinary anti-communist tract masquerades as naive science fiction.

An alien (Arnold Moss) transports five people from five different countries on Earth to his spaceship where he gives each a box of capsules capable of destroying human life within a 3,000-mile radius if used.

The alien’s idea is to let the people of Earth destroy themselves so that his people can take over (as their own planet is dying).

The capsules become harmless after 27 days or on the owner’s death. The rest of the film deals with what they do with their capsules in the 27 days they are given.

The quintet includes sweet English girl Eve Wingate (Valerie French), Chinese peasant Su Tan (Maria Tsien), cynical American newspaperman Jonathan Clark (Gene Barry), kindly German scientist Professor Klaus Bechner (George Voskovec) and Russian soldier Ivan Godofsky (Azemat Janti).

Suicide or destruction is the only choice until the Russians decide to annihilate the western world.

The leads are extremely well supported by actors such as Stefan Schnabel as the warmongering Russian general, Friedrich von Ledebur as the sincere Dr Neuhaus, and Paul Birch as an American admiral.

A real Cold War curio with an equally bizarre payoff despite pedestrian direction by William Asher, who graduated to making Beach Party movies. Based on a novel by John Mantley, who also wrote the screenplay.

Jonathan Clark
Gene Barry
Eve Wingate
Valerie French
Professor Klaus Bechner
George Voskovec
The Alien
Arnold Moss
Su Tan
Maria Tsien (Maria McClay)
Ivan Godofsky
Azemat Janti
Soviet General
Stefan Schnabel
Mr Ingram
Ralph Clanton
Dr Karl Neuhaus
Friedrich Ledebur
Admiral
Paul Birch
Gorki
Charles Bennett
Dr Schmidt
David Bond
Agent Kelly
John Bryant
Ward Mason
Paul Frees
Brakovich
Arthur Lovejoy
Colonel Gregor
Theodore Marcuse
Harry Bellows
Don Spark
General Zamke
Sigfrid Tor

Director
William Asher

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