The Lost Missile (1958)

Starring Robert Loggia, Ellen Parker, Phillip Pine, Larry Kerr, Marilee Earle
Directed by William Berke
(actor & director credits courtesy IMDB.com)

Two atomic scientists in love have to put their planned wedding on hold when an unidentified missile begins scorching the Earth with million-degree heat.

With this picture primarily assembled from stock footage to convey the plot line of Earth's nations and military preparing for a deadly attack, Berke and his crew do an admirable job of editing that footage together with scenes with the film's actors as well as their special effects sequences.  The combined film meshes well together, although its singular focus on the impending doom, and the sheer volume of the stock footage, makes for a rather stale production until things liven up at the end when Loggia puts everything on the line for the sake of the world.   It's also fairly disappointing that when the origins of "the lost missile" are finally revealed there's no time to spend on exploring where it came from or the motives of those who launched it.  After growing up seeing Loggia in countless character parts, it's interesting to see him here, although short shrift is given to the love story involving him and Parker.