I realize that I mention this in almost every post about vintage films but, cultural snapshots remain one of my favorite things about these old gems. I have had The Blob from 1958 on my watch list for a long time. I found it free on YouTube, so I gave it a watch. Let’s talk about this classic piece of film history and American culture.
A few things I picked up on were in some ways reminiscent of my childhood in the 80s and early 90s. First, and in line with my childhood, was that everyone in the town knew everyone. This even trickled down to the police officers who threatened to tell the kids’ parents as opposed to arresting them. Another view of cultural differences from 60 years ago, the kids worried about the consequence of their parents getting involved. One more thing that reminded me of the “good ol’ days” was that you could actually help people without worry for your own wellbeing. It was no big deal to stop and pick up the old man to rush him into town to the doctor. If you do that now, you will likely get beat up and/or robbed or worse. Our society and culture have plummeted so much since midcentury. It’s so unfortunate and, I know that people who lived then must struggle with so much today. Philosophy isn’t the point here so, let’s move on.
Some more notes about the culture that I want to mention are the lingo, the sci-fi theatre, the small-town doctor, and that he had to load his gun. Today it’s “bro”, “DM me”, and whatever else the kids are saying. In this film, the coolest thing I heard said was, “I thought you cats didn’t dig spooky shows.” This is so cool that I plan to do something artistic around it. Anyway, obviously sci-fi was popular back then. The movie the kids are watching is a sci-fi movie and the posters on the wall are also of this genre. I thought it was cool when one character mentioned that the movie had cost him 80 cent – that’s what a single kernel of popcorn costs now! I had a conversation with an old man recently about the 50s and our conversation touched on sci-fi films. This fellow mentioned that he was a fan of the genre and had gotten to see them all. My favorite part of our interaction was that he made sure to mention he had seen them “…while they were still fiction” (Personal Communication, 2022). We all know the cars were so much cooler in the 50s and apparently racing them was popular too. This was a theme touched on in The Blob. I can’t talk enough about the awesome clothes people wore – especially those iconic 50s dresses – wow! I thought it was significant too that the doctor had to load his gun before use. I know we do that in films now to add to the story but, reality for me is that mine are ALWAYS loaded. At one point, a door is opened to reveal a house party going on. The lights in the house can be seen, the attire people are wearing, and the music playing are all a visual opiate to me.
The beginning of this movie starts very similar to Killer Klowns from Outer Space. The couple is at “Lover’s Lane”, which I imagine was hopping in the 1950s, and they proceed to chase a comet/star that they see fall close to them. They don’t find a circus tent but, there is an old man and a dog. The comet, of course, turns out the be The Blob. There’s no real explanation of anything, just this crazy creature whose weakness is finally discovered and exploited. You see the stuff coming a mile away. Another example is when The Blob squeezes under a door frame to access a room where people are. While I wasn’t surprised, I knew that this stuff had people on the edge of their seats in the middle of the century. There was no terror or fear for me but, I was in the clutches of this film. Factor in too that it was in color. This allowed me to appreciate the movie differently, not that I don’t dig B&W. Some scenes were in a grocery store which offered a view of chromed out vegetable racks. A large majority of the final scenes were in a diner. This allows you to see the bar, the chrome bar stools, and that iconic checkered pattern on the floor. The 50’s and the 60’s were the most artistic parts of our history in my opinion.
It seems that I remember my mother mentioning this film to me a long time ago. Perhaps I’m wrong in that memory but, I’m glad I watched this one, nonetheless. I don’t know that I will watch The Blob again anytime soon but, I enjoyed this film. Anyone into classic films or classic horror, should add this to their watch list. I don’t think that anyone into these types of movies will be let down. I wasn’t for sure. It was everything that I expected. I knew that this film held a place in history but, it is a cult classic. According to Today.com, fans swarm the town of Phoenixville, PA every year to reenact scenes and participate in all kinds of other events related to this film (2008). I’m going to try and talk my wife into visiting this place to see this film’s impression on American culture firsthand.
Reference List
Cinema Masterpieces. (2022). The Blob original movie poster from 1958. [Photo]. Cinema Masterpieces. https://www.cinemasterpieces.com/aapics09/blobjul09.jpg
Today.com. (2008 August, 12). How ‘The Blob’ transformed one town. The Associated Press. https://www.today.com/popculture/how-blob-transformed-one-town-wbna26162563