After Sleepaway Camp, it was time to return to a family-friendly Halloween pick, something my parents and sister would watch with me. And I found that in 1958’s The Blob!
You can’t get much better than this. With a mysterious meteorite, an alien parasite, and lots of squishy special effects, The Blob is as iconic as it is entertaining. That opening song will stay in your head for a while!
This movie has a case of the Grease – that is, actors in their late 20s-early 30s playing high school kids – but I’m not complaining. The characters are surprisingly relatable. After all, if I was trying to win over a girl on a date when I saw a meteor crash to Earth, I’d definitely hop in my car and bring the girl with me to investigate!
Sally’s pretty great in here, honestly. She does more than sit around and scream; she sneaks out with Steve to investigate what’s going on in the town! Plus, there’s something so wholesome about a group of teenagers trusting their friend and helping him spread the news of this “monster.” And hey, this is exactly how I’d handle a horror movie! Instead of taking the typical route of “let’s kill this thing!”, Lightning McQueen Sr. rounds up the whole town in hopes of someone else knowing how to handle it. Now that’s a relatable hero!
The Blob also does a great job of isolating the police. With one cop who doesn’t trust teenagers and another who can’t find any evidence, it makes sense for them to be unhelpful right up until the end. It’s a realistic way of keeping the authorities out of the plot.
With entertainingly cheesy effects and surprisingly likable characters – not to mention so much open communication! – The Blob makes its mark as a great B-level scare. But it’s the ending and that ominous final line that push it into brilliance. With its tentative solution and heavy foreshadowing, The Blob gives an extra layer to the threat of global warming. It’s clever, creepy, and hey – the dog lives, too!
