Search - The Day the Earth Caught Fire on DVD

MPAA Rating: NR Content Advisory: Suitable for Children Movie Release: 1961 DVD Release: 06/12/2001 Format: DVD - Black and White,Enhanced Wide Screen Letterbox for 16x9 TV Audio Tracks: English Subtitles: English SwapaDVD Credits: 1 Number of Discs: 1 Run Time: 1 hrs 39 mins Studio: Anchor Bay Members Wishing: 8 Genres: Drama, Science Fiction, Sci-Fi Disaster Film

Despite its come-on title, The Day the Earth Caught Fire is an intelligent, disturbing piece of speculative fiction. Through the eyes of British reporter Peter Stenning (Edward Judd), we learn that both the U.S. and the U.S.S.R. have simultaneously set off nuclear explosions to test their efficiency. The twin blasts have caused the Earth to go off its axis. The result is a disastrous upheaval in the balance of nature; floods and fires being the principal plagues. With the end of the world staring everyone in the face, chaos reigns. The only hope lies in another massive nuclear explosion, which will hopefully rebalance the Earth. The film ends ambiguously, with viewers allowed to decide for themselves whether or not the world has been saved. In the original prints of The Day the Earth Caught Fire, the opening and closing reels were tinted yellow, representing the scorching heat beating down on the frightened populace. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Janet Munro - Jeannie
Leo McKern - Bill Maguire
Edward Judd - Peter Stenning
Bernard Braden - News editor
Michael Goodliffe - Night editor

Born in 1911, director Val Guest recorded the commentary track for The Day the Earth Caught Fire at the age of 90, and from the sound of it he was bright, lucid, and proud as he could be of his 1961 apocalyptic sci-fi classic. His running commentary with journalist and sci-fi movie expert Ted Newsom on this DVD is a highlight as Guest reflects on a career that includes enduring titles such as When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth, Casino Royale, and The Quatermass Xperiment. The widescreen disc gets a somewhat "deluxe" treatment -- the theatrical trailer, four TV spots, four radio spots, a still gallery, and an abbreviated text bio of Guest -- and it's been remastered from "vault materials," according to the jacket copy, and includes the restoration of the orange-tinted scenes that begin and end the tightly paced, dialogue-driven film, which won the British Academy Award for best screenplay. ~ Buzz McClain, All Movie Guide