In the land of creature features and science fiction dramas, one name typically stood out as someone who you should pay close attention to if you wanted something of substance: Jack Arnold. Films such as It Came From Outer Space or the iconic Creature From The Black Lagoon had so much going on beneath the pulpy surface. One of his greatest works is the deceptively insightful drama The Incredible Shrinking Man from 1957. In contrast to the terrifying monsters and far-off adventures that populated the silver screen, Shrinking Man was relatively modest in comparison. The danger was larger than life, but not quite beyond the realm of possibility during the nuclear age. You can reasonably believe that you will not find yourselves on an alien planet, but what would you do if you developed a medical condition where your life was slowly slipping away from you? While exaggerated, the fear is one that countless people face every year. The film is about a man slowly getting smaller, but more acutely it wrestles with the impotence one feels when faced with the vastness of reality.
Based on Richard Matheson’s 1956 novel The Shrinking Man, the plot of this feature film is revealed through the title. Grant Williams plays Robert “Scott” Carey, a distinctly average man who we know only a few precious moments before the plot begins in earnest. After the unsettling title sequence, we find Scott and his wife, Louise (Randy Stuart), leisurely soaking in the sun on the deck of a boat while they playfully banter like a couple who still have a romantic spark. We hear Scott in voiceover as he guides us through the twists and turns of the “unbelievable” story. More than most films, the use of voiceover gives the story an added layer of narrative depth, especially by the time we reach the end. While Louise vacate the deck to fetch Scott a drink, we see a strange cloud rolling in that Scott hesitates too long to avoid. For a brief moment he was overtaken by the mist, but it is not until six months later that anything seems amiss. He is dismissed by Louise when he brings up his weight loss, but when it becomes undeniable that he is actually shrinking, the movie shifts gears quite astutely.
Arnold ensures that no extraneous fat is left on this very spry tale. Yes, Scott is shrinking, but this is not truly a story of trying to rescue his existence; the doctors do their level best stop the progression, but his condition marches slowly forward. Where the film finds purpose is showing how a man contends with his own mortality, the loss of himself. His story is turned into a sensational news piece, but as with every news piece there is a human being on the other side. This film manages to evoke empathy for the bereft Scott, and in the process take to task the audience who wanted a peak at the shrinking man just like the characters on screen. You feel for this man as you see the pain Louise is trying to hide, suddenly towering over him as if he was a child. The visual gags with oversized items in the production design do not hold up to logical sense – children who are three feet tall don’t look like they are handling giant pencils – but it is a shorthand for his situation which the audience accepts. Scott cryptically says a lot about his fragile state of mind within the boundaries of the Hays Code. He is both rebellious and dejected, still trying to understand his place in the world.
Does this sound too heavy for what is supposed to be a fun sci-fi drama? This subtext remains but Arnold ensures that audiences will not leave without being taken on a momentous journey. As Scott makes it to dollhouse height, terror begins to creep in from previously innocuous situations. A cat who once used to cuddle by his side now sees him as a potential play thing. When he falls into his basement, he is thrust into a world from which he fears he will never be able to escape. A fearsome spider who becomes one of his biggest deadly threats serves as the big “monster” of the film, but is somehow less campy when you put it into proper context. The use of visual effects and layered editing continue to hold up pretty well visually even when you can readily see the seams. To know that a tiny Scott is running across these areas is quite exciting. Even more finely executed is the impressive production and prop design where all minute details are suddenly massive. A single match is turned into an essential torch. A sewing pin could be a life-saving sabre. It’s a thrilling bit of B-movie wonder.
The Incredible Shrinking Man ends up delivering all of the B-movie thrills that an audience could want, but once again it is not a film content to go with the easy or expected. In one of the boldest choices I could imagine a studio allowing to hit the screen, the film fully embraces its themes and goes out in a metaphysical blaze of glory. Those who have yet to see the film should not fear, particulars will not be expanded upon. The film is a crowdpleaser, but it has much more depth than your typical genre picture, a subset of films that are unfairly disregarded for more typical, “respectable” fair. Great science fiction has always aimed to reveal a truth about the human condition, and this is exactly what this film does. It may have a silly title, but those who take the time to consume and truly reflect upon this narrative are bound to unlock something worthwhile in their minds.
Video Quality
The Incredible Shrinking Man makes its Blu-Ray debut in its original 1.85:1 thanks to The Criterion Collection with a brand new 1080p master from a 4K restoration undertaken by Universal Pictures from the 35mm Original Camera Negative. Given the groundbreaking special effects utilized in the film and how all of the material was edited together, the transfer we have here is quite incredible. The lovely black-and-white photography shot by Ellis W. Carter shines in high definition with natural grain intact. Black levels are strong with no overwhelming occurrence of black crush or compression artifacts, but the grain can fluctuate in some sequences. There is a great amount of detail present with nice textures on the clothing and within the production design, especially the larger-than-life items. The new transfer shows off a great amount of depth and enhanced detail within the film’s composition. There are only occasional moments where the density is a bit inconsistent due to the state of the source elements. The contrast is well defined, and the track only experiences a minor amount of flicker and stray specks on the print. The Criterion Collection has done as great of a job as they possibly could with this material.
Audio Quality
The Blu-Ray comes with an excellent LPCM 1.0 audio track that serves this movie really well with a pleasing fidelity. This track does not present with any amount of faint hissing or strained elements. The powerful, memorable music never overpowers the dialogue or other important information. Dialogue and background noises are represented in perfect harmony with all competing elements. The more dynamic elements such as the “creature” attacks are given a pleasing intensity that is to be admired. There are optional English (SDH) subtitles included for the feature film. The team at the Criterion Collection have done a great job to provide the most stable track possible for this one.
Special Features
The Criterion Blu-Ray of The Incredible Shrinking Man includes a booklet featuring the new essay “Other Dimensions” by author Geoffrey O’Brien in which he discusses the themes of the story, the real-life influences on the narrative, the legacy of the picture and more. This piece provide a great amount of context and insight into the film that is very worthwhile. The on-disc special features are as follows:
- Audio Commentary: A newly-recorded commentary featuring genre-film historian Tom Weaver and horror-music expert David Schecter who provide a very informative and entertaining commentary track. Weaver discusses the differences between the final film and the script, the performances, the place of this feature amongst other science fiction properties, the ways in which it has influenced or been integrated into what has come since, the production design, the career of the featured kitty in the film, and so much more. Weaver dominates this track with only brief insights from Schecter.
- Auteur On Campus – Jack Arnold At Universal (Director’s Cut): A new 50-minute documentary which examines the career and legacy of director Jack Arnold and how horror films evolved after the war at Universal Pictures. There are numerous fascinating insights from author and film historian Tom Weaver, director Dana M. Reemes, and author and film historian C. Courtney Joyner, and many more. There is a substantial portion of this dedicated to The Incredible Shrinking Man and how they pulled off all of the visual effects. This will make you want to seek out a number of films discussed within this one.
- The Infinitesimal – Remembering The Shrinking Man: A new 11-minute featurette in which writer Richard Christian Matheson (son of the author/screenwriter) reflects on the era in which his father created this story and how the themes reflected what was happening in society at the time. There are some great personal insights you could not have gotten from anyone else.
- Terror At Every Turn!: A new 25-minute featurette with visual effects supervisor Craig Barron and sound designer Ben Burtt in which they discuss the unique qualities of Jack Arnold films and the unique special effects work implemented in the film. These two offer some thoughtful analysis of the work which puts it into a more narrow context.
- Let’s Get Small: A new 23-minute conversation between filmmaker Joe Dante and comedian and writer Dana Gould in which they discuss their love of the film. Through this discussion, the two delve into historical details and the themes which elevate this picture above many in the genre. This is well worth a watch as both participants are well informed and entertaining.
- Jack Arnold (1983): A 27-minute collection of excerpts from interviews with Jack Arnold conducted by German journalist Roland Johannes in August 1983 on the Universal Studios lot. Most of these interviews were never released until now. The bulk of the comments address the preparation and production of the film, its themes, and appearance and much more that fans will love.
- 8mm Home Cinema Versions: A nearly 17-minute collection of two at-home versions of the film that were heavily condensed into eight-minute versions of the feature. Thank goodness home entertainment has evolved since this time.
- Teaser: The thirty-second teaser narrated by Orson Welles is provided here.
- Trailer: The two-minute trailer is provided here.
- The Lost Music Of The Incredible Shrinking Man: A seventeen-minute piece in which horror-music expert David Schecter presents previously lost and unused music from the score of the film. There are some lovely pieces included here.
- Suspense – Return To Dust: A 19-minute radio play about a scientist in his lab desperately trying to reach a colleague for help, originally aired on February 1, 1959. This is a very effective program that serves as a nice companion to the feature film.
Final Thoughts
The Incredible Shrinking Man is not only an excellent piece of science fiction storytelling, but it is a thoughtful drama that tackles themes that audiences rarely get to engage with in such a profound and entertaining manner. Those who want a surface level experience will have a blast with the fun special effects and creature feature touches, but those who want to engage on a deeper level will have a lot to reflect upon once the credits have stopped rolling. The great Jack Arnold created a rich work that has aged gracefully and still packs a punch all of these years later. The Criterion Collection has released a new Blu-Ray that sports a lovely A/V presentation and a host of supplements that are not to be missed. This is an essential for fans of the science fiction genre, but even those who normally do not engage with such titles will find something special about this one. Highly Recommended
The Criterion Collection edition of The Incredible Shrinking Man is available to purchase on Blu-Ray and DVD.
Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.
Disclaimer: The Criterion Collection has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.
Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.