Quatermass Collection

BBC, 459 minutes, NR

Region 2 DVD L22.97 (US$42.53)

This collection covers the three British TV serials from the early 1950's, The Quatermass Experiment, Quatermass II and Quatermass and the Pit. While I did not see them in their original broadcast I did see parts of the third serial some years ago and have always wanted to see them all.

Only the first two episodes of The Quatermass Experiment are still in existence. It was broadcast in 1953 at a time when most studios did not film their live broadcasts and it is a pity the remaining 4 episodes do not exist as these two episodes hooked me totally. While the scripts for the remaining 4 episodes are included as PDFs they are a really poor photocopy of typewritten scripts and almost impossible to decipher. This is the only disappointment in the set.

The Quatermass Experiment can be seen today as the typical “menace from space” storyline but in truth it is one of, if not the, first of its kind. A rocket takes off from Earth with three astronauts on board, it goes seriously off course and is believed lost until it crashes in England. But wait - only one of the astronauts is still inside... And there we are left hanging due to the final four episodes being lost *sigh*

Quatermass II finds us some years later with Professor Quatermass working on a new rocket and a plan to colonize the moon and Mars. His daughter’s beau brings a mysterious meteorite for the Professor to examine and we are plunged into a story of alien invasion and government conspiracy.

The final serial of this collection is Quatermass and the Pit, possibly the most ambitious of the three serials. While excavating in London, builders stumble across a skull of an “ape man” that is dated at five million years by Dr Matthew Roney, a friend of Professor Quatermass. As Dr. Roney’s team digs further in the excavation they unearth a strange cylinder of an unknown material. Totally uncovered, the cylinder turns out to be a ship with the remains of an insect type being. As Quatermass investigates, the story comes to a thrilling conclusion as the Martian invaders attempt to finalize their colonization of earth - five million years too late!

Nigel Kneale’s story-telling set the standard for many of the basics that science fiction fans take for granted today. These serials are much superior to the Hammer film versions which most fans will be familiar with. The BBC restoration team has done a good job in cleaning up the film and audio though the subtitles are a welcome addition in several scenes. Most highly recommended - Stephanie L Bannon