If anyone out there used to read the English comic "Valiant", but in the series "The Steel Claw" there was a story where aliens resembling the ones in this film landed in England with the intention of using the rural community where they had landed as a beachhead for an invasion; fortunately they are defeated by the series' hero Crandell, a "James Bond" parody who (a) possessed a prosthetic hand (the "Steel Claw" of the title) and (b) could become invisible more or less at will! It was a parody three times over; of this movie, of the ABC-TV series "The Invisible Man", and of the James Bond phenomenon of the period (the Sixties).

Forest Tucker meets two attractive sisters on a train to a mountain in Switzerland. Instead of going on to Geneva, one of the young women (part of a pair of professional mind- reader) feels compelled to stop at a remote town which is known for its mountain climbing. It turns out that several climbers have met their fates (including one which we witness at the beginning). So the threesome end up in a mountain chalet with people who are interested in scaling the peak. It turns out that people are being found with their heads missing and it has something to do with a cloud that sits next to the mountain. Everything gets jumbled up. It's the usual thing where people go ahead and stupidly make their way into danger, totally unprepared or ignorant of the dangers. Forest is the hero and he finds himself in the middle of all this. One of the girls is empathic and keeps getting herself in danger. Of course, we eventually see the "crawling eye." It looks like a big pastry with one eye and skinny tentacles. There is also something about the temperature on the mountain. Anyway, it eventually gets down to fighting with fire. It's not that I don't appreciate these kinds of films, but lets not get carried away with praising them, other than their sentimental attraction to drive-in movie goers of the fifties.

A series of decapitations on a Swiss mountainside appear to be connected to a mysterious radioactive cloud, not unlike one that appeared in the Andes years earlier.Although one of the earliest films to be lampooned on "Mystery Science Theater 3000", there is no denying the growing reputation this movie has received over the years: not only was it referenced in Stephen King's "It", but was also the primary influence behind John Carpenter's minimalist masterpiece "The Fog" (which itself has gone on to influence others)."Crawling Eye" was the debut feature for director Quentin Lawrence, and probably remains his best-known work. Writer Jimmy Sangster (adapting the work of Peter Key) had only been working a few years, but was a rising star with such Hammer classics as "Dracula" and "Curse of Frankenstein" under his belt. Here he crafts a tale of science gone wrong mixed with the living dead, and done to perfection.Most interestingly, shortly before the film was released, Lawrence directed a 6-part television miniseries with Key writing the episodes. Today, no copies are thought to exist, and there is no way to know what changes were made for the big screen, as well as what cuts had to be administered to accommodate the shorter running time.Leading the cast is Forrest Tucker as United Nations troubleshooter Alan Brooks. Tucker had been in nearly 100 films during the 1940s and 50s, and easily handles his role here as the hero -- part action star, part scientific genius. He is assisted by Warren Mitchell as a caricatured Swiss professor (a portrayal which provides the film's only comic relief).The standout performance comes from Janet Munro as a semi-psychic young woman who goes into trances when she nears the cloud. One gets the impression that she had a bright career before her, and indeed was given a Golden Globe in 1960. Sadly, she passed unexpectedly at age 38.Today's audiences might find some of the special effects cheesy. Obviously the crew used miniature sets and plenty of rear projection. But in general, there is no denying the impressive use of fog, the freezing effects and the creepy realism of the titular eye. While other 1950s films were busy using radiation as a plot device for large bugs, this one went in a completely different direction -- possibly the only film of its kind.Notably, "Crawling Eye" was the final film to be produced by Southall Studios, one of the earliest pioneer film studios in the UK, which had made a steady stream of films since 1924. They went out on a high note, which is always nice.

Even with some holes in the plot the Queen Mary could have floated through, The Crawling Eye remains a favorite of mine from my adolescence. It's literally filled with atmosphere and it's atmosphere that these nasty eye creatures from some other world are trying to recreate.Wherever these things come from it's real cold so they say on mountain tops. Why this wasn't set in the Himalayas is anyone's guess.They were first reported in the Andes mountains and scientist Forrest Tucker was investigating there too. Now they're in the Swiss Alps and Tucker has responded to a call for help. So has Laurence Payne who is a reporter and smells a story first in the Andes and now in Switzerland.These creatures apparently don't like telepaths, one was killed in Argentina and they've taken an interest in young Janet Munro who has a mind reading nightclub act with her sister Jennifer Jayne. It's Munro whom they're after and they take their below freezing cloud cover atmosphere with them to get her any way they can.Lots of holes in this plot including a locked door murder which might have needed the help of Agatha Christie to get right. But for atmosphere and chilling thrills you can't beat The Crawling Eye.