When Worlds Collide (1951) — Classic Science-Fiction Disaster Film
When astronomers discover that a runaway star and its orbiting planet are hurtling toward Earth, humanity faces an unimaginable catastrophe. With only months to prepare, a small team of scientists and volunteers races to build a spacecraft capable of carrying a handful of survivors to a new world. Tension mounts as the impending collision threatens civilization and desperate people struggle with the question of who will be saved.
Film and DVD Details
- Year: 1951
- Director: Rudolph Maté
- Producer: George Pal
- Based on: The novel by Philip Wylie and Edwin Balmer
- Genre: Science Fiction / Disaster / Adventure
- Runtime: Approximately 83 minutes
- Rating: G (DVD classification)
- Format: Used DVD, full-screen, Region 1
- DVD distributor: Paramount Home Entertainment
- UPC: 097360510645
Cast and Characters
- Richard Derr — David Randall
- Barbara Rush — Joyce Hendron
- Peter Hansen — Dr. Tony Drake
- John Hoyt — Sydney Stanton
- Larry Keating — Dr. Cole Hendron
- Hayden Rorke — Dr. Emery Bronson
- Frank Cady — Harold Ferris
- Rachel Ames — Julie Cummings
Five Film Facts
- The film was released in 1951 during the golden age of American science-fiction cinema.
- Producer George Pal was celebrated for pioneering large-scale fantasy and science-fiction productions.
- The screenplay adapts the 1933 novel by Philip Wylie and Edwin Balmer.
- The film won the Academy Award for Best Special Effects.
- The story features the threatening star Bellus and the potentially habitable planet Zyra.
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