Them! (1954)

Starring James Whitmore, Edmund Gwenn, Joan Weldon, James Arness, Onslow Stevens
Directed by Gordon Douglas
(actor & director credits courtesy IMDB.com)

Authorities in New Mexico discover atomic fallout has enlarged a colony of ants to gigantic size, and set out on a race to destroy them before they can migrate and multiply.

In my opinion, this was the best of the giant bug movies of the 1950s, and it holds up remarkably well, due to its excellent special effects and the serious performances of the distinguished cast, particularly Whitmore and Gwenn.  Although the ants are giant mocked-up puppets which are not animated and did not have a wide range of movement, they look very fearsome as manipulated by their handlers and photographed by Sid Hickox, with eerie and deafening sound effects.  But even before the ants appear, we're treated to a mysterious and suspenseful opening of the film which ranks among the best in any science fiction picture, as a young girl in shock wanders aimlessly through a desert and policemen follow her trail to a series of violent and gruesome murders.  There's also plenty of famous names in the cast to spot, from Gunsmoke's James Arness and Davy Crockett's Fess Parker to a very young Leonard Nimoy, and familiar character actors like William Schallert, Onslow Stevens, and Richard Deacon.

Zombies On Broadway (1945)

Starring Wally Brown, Alan Carney, Bela Lugosi, Anne Jeffreys, Sheldon Leonard
Directed by Gordon Douglas
(actor & director credits courtesy IMDB.com)

An ex-gangster opening a new "Zombie Hut" nightclub threatens his press agents' lives unless they bring back a real life zombie to showcase at its opening.

One of a series of pictures from RKO teaming Brown and Carney as a comedy team that never really caught fire, and it's easy to see why, as there's just not enough laughs or funny business, but that doesn't mean this isn't an enjoyable film.  Lugosi is in fine form in one of his last showcases for a major studio, even if the script doesn't give him much to work with, and the characters are so amiable, I was more than willing to forgive the movie's shortcomings.  Fans of Val Lewton's I Walked With A Zombie, which takes place on the same island of San Sebastian, may enjoy the re-use here of some of that's film's actors and sets.  

Way...Way Out (1966)

Starring Jerry Lewis, Connie Stevens, Robert Morley, Dennis Weaver, Howard Morris
Directed by Gordon Douglas
(actor & director credits courtesy IMDB.com)

A reluctant astronaut is assigned to live on the moon for a year, but must first marry a qualified female scientist to take with him.

An unfunny misfire from comedian Jerry Lewis, it's rather surprising he went through with this film, playing a fairly straight-laced character as opposed to his more wacky creations.  Although a fine veteran cast is on hand, including Connie Stevens as an attractive feminine foil for Lewis, the material is beneath them, and the sci-fi setting is hardly taken advantage of for comic effect.  The film does offer a fairly solid framework for what could have been a memorable farce, but fails to follow through on the possibilities.