| Gog | |
|---|---|
Promotional movie poster for the film |
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| Directed by | Herbert L. Strock |
| Produced by | Ivan Tors |
| Written by | Tom Taggart (screenplay) Ivan Tors (story) Richard G. Taylor (dialogue) |
| Starring | Richard Egan Constance Dowling Herbert Marshall |
| Music by | Harry Sukman |
| Cinematography | Lothrop B. Worth |
| Editing by | Herbert L. Strock |
| Distributed by | United Artists |
| Release date(s) | June 5, 1954 |
| Running time | 85 min. |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $250,000 (estimated) |
Gog is a 1954 science fiction film directed by Herbert L. Strock and released in 1954 by United Artists. It is notable for having been shot in color, widescreen and 3-D. It stars Richard Egan, Constance Dowling, and Herbert Marshall.
It is the third episode in Ivan Tors' Office of Scientific Investigation (OSI) trilogy, following both The Magnetic Monster and Riders to the Stars.
Contents |
Unaccountable, deadly malfunctions begin occurring at a top-secret government facility under the New Mexico desert where a space station is being constructed. OSI agents are called in to investigate.
Laboratory supervisor Dr. Van Ness calls in Dr. David Sheppard, a security agent from the Office of Scientific Investigation in Washington, DC, to find the cause of the mysterious deaths. Working with Joanna Merritt, an OSI agent already at the facility, Sheppard determines that the deaths among the lab's 150 top scientists are due to deliberate sabotage of NOVAC (Nuclear Operative Variable Automatic Computer), a central computer which controls all equipment in the underground facility.
But it is harder to determine how the sabotage is being done. The unseen enemy strikes again and again, snuffing out six scientists in quick succession, as well as Major Howard, the complex's Chief of Security.
Eventually, Sheppard determines that a powerful radio transmitter and receiver were secretly built into NOVAC during its construction. An enemy plane whose fiberglass body does not register on radar has been flying overhead, beaming precisely focused, ultra-high frequency radio signals, thereby controlling NOVAC's every function. The computer, in turn, controls Gog and Magog— 2 mobile robots with powerful gripping tools and other implements.
Magog is finally directed to go to the complex's nuclear reactor room and pull the safety rod out of the atomic pile, starting a chain reaction that will soon build to a nuclear explosion, which will destroy the entire facility. Sheppard arrives in time to push the safety rod back into the pile, stopping the chain reaction. He then attacks the robot with a flame thrower and disables it, but Gog soon follows its twin to the reactor room to finish the job. Sheppard's flame thrower runs out of fuel as the robot advances on him. Just when all seems lost, Gog suddenly comes to a halt, its metal arms falling limply to its sides. An American F-86 Sabre jet fighter has finally tracked down the enemy plane and destroyed it, ending NOVAC's reign of destruction.
A few days later, Dr. Van Ness explains the situation to the Secretary of Defense, and informs him that a working model of the space station is about to be launched into orbit. The new station will be equipped with telescopes and television cameras which will spot any further attempts to sabotage the complex in this fashion. The Secretary observes with satisfaction, "We'll never be taken by surprise again!" The film concludes with the successful launch of the rocket containing the working model from the complex.
Gog was shot on two sets at Hal Roach Studios, with exteriors done at George AFB, a former Air Force base near Victorville, California. It took just 15 days to shoot all of the footage needed, and the film's final cost was estimated at a quarter of a million dollars.
Shortly after filming of Gog was completed, Constance Dowling married Ivan Tors and retired from acting.
Although shot in 3-D, Gog was released at the tail end of the 3-D fad of 1953-54 and was therefore shown "flat" in most venues, despite being available in its stereoscopic format. Gog was also filmed in flat wide-screen at an aspect ratio of 1.85:1, which had become standard among US studios the year before.
Critical response was generally positive, with many critics noting the story's basis in science fact, rather than science fantasy. This was a staple of Tors' science-fiction films. His 1955 television series, Science Fiction Theatre, had the same verisimilitude, and often lifted props and situations from Gog and the other OSI films.
Critical response ranged from "good" to "very good" in general. The film was previewed for the press at United Artists' screening room in 3-D.[1]
Motion Picture Herald’s William R. Weaver said of Gog, "The production moves steadily forward, keeping interest growing at a steady pace, and exciting the imagination without overstraining credulity."[1]