Welcome to the Galactic Theater, where we'll explore the works of master manipulators of light waves, examine the themes brought to play, and critique the final products of months of hard work.

This review does not represent the opinions of the general public. It reflects my personal thoughts and opinions on the movie.

That said, on to the review!

Most people know that plants consume animal wastes for its nutrients. Trees, ferns, and nearly all other forms of flora draw upon the rotting corpses and the defecation of fauna. Some plants, however, go a step further and devour the animals themselves. The pitcher plant, the sundew plant, and the Venus-flytrap are probably the best known of these carnivorous plants. They are relatively small and primarily consume insects. However, what if there were plants large enough to consume human beings? What if plants that seemed common enough to daily existence suddenly mutated and began hunting people? That is the premise in The Day of the Triffids.

Years ago the plants known as "triffids" came to Earth upon meteorites. These plants from outer space took root and flourished. Then, one night a strange meteor shower illuminates the night sky all over the world. It is a once in a life time opportunity, and anybody that can watches the display. Who could guess what terrible price a fascination with the heavens would exact? For the meteor shower had a horrible, devastating side effect: anyone who watched the display awoke completely blind the next morning. It might not be so bad. Blind people can still function normally in society. But what if that society is comprised almost completely of sightless people?

The world grinds to a halt. Passengers and crews on airplanes die as they fly aimlessly overhead until their fuel runs out. Ships at sea become ghost ships as they float with the tides, unable to dock and obtain supplies. Trains roar into stations and crash, discharging confused, blind passengers unable to avoid those that stumbled off ahead of them. Working eyes becomes a priceless commodity, and humanity turns savage as the blind seek to possess the seeing. Worse than that, however, is the strange and bizzare mutation going on in the plants that came to Earth upon a meteorite: exponential growth, mobility, and deadly intentions! The few individuals still capable of comprehending the strangeness in the world seek solutions to their many problems.

Bill Masen (Howard Keel) is one such individual. He had the fortune--or misfortune--to undergo surgery several days before the meteor shower. In fact, the bandages over his eyes were scheduled for removal the morning after the shower. He first senses that something is wrong when nobody comes to take off the bandages. He does it himself and discovers that he is all alone in the hospital. He releases himself and head out into the streets of London, where he finds that everyone is in the same state: absolutely blind. He gradually makes his way to his ship, but at a train station he ncounters a mindless mob seeking to possess a young orphaned girl, Susan (Janina Faye). He rescues her and together continue to his ship. No one is there, but they learn of a symposium in Paris where those with sight are trying to decide what to do. They depart for continental Europe. The meeting is a bust, but they meet and join up with Christine Durrant (Nicole Maurey), a forceful Frenchwoman doing her best to minister to the blind. She, too, was in the hospital during the meteor shower, under heavy sedation as a result of an accident.

Tom and Karen Goodwin (Kieron Moore and Janette Scott) were working devotedly inside a lighthouse during the shower, unable to see it because of their extreme concentration. They learn later of the meteors' effect, but are unable to do anything because of their isolation. Then, Karen discovers a triffid atop the island. She and Tom go out to destroy it, but while they're searching their island, it enters the lighthouse and attacks them when they return. After a short, dangerous battle, Tom thinks he's killed the triffid and begins experimenting to find a way to destroy the killer plants. Later that night, however, the triffid escapes. Tom and Karen board up the hole, the door, and the windows and prepare for a seige.

In France, Bill discovers that the triffids are preparing to release their spores to the winds. An unexpected problem forces him, Susan, and Christine to flee the mansion they'd been staying at for a possible rescue at a military base. When they arrive there, however, they find the triffids had already destroyed the area. They decide to cross the country to Spain. There they discover the de la Vegas, a couple expecting a baby. The trio remain there until the baby's birth, but the triffids soon gather around the property, cutting off hopes of escape to the Straits of Gibraltar, where submarines submerged during the shower have established a rescue site. Back on the island, the triffids begin their assault on the lighthouse, driving Tom and Karen up level by level until there is nowhere else to go. They have no weapons to turn against the plants, and none of their experiments proved successful. What can they do? What will Bill and his "family" do? Will the world survive the invasion of the Triffids?

The Day of the Triffids is over three decades old, but it is still a stupendous example of movie magic to watch. I think it was originally in black and white, but you can also view it in color, like I did. You won't see ray guns or giant robots or flying saucers, but you'll get to see implacable foes that refuse to let anything stand in the way of their appetites. For the most part, however, the movie is primarily about the drive to survive against overwhelming odds. The triffids are a rather extreme method of culling the weak and infirm, but the selected medium is an innovative one (in my experience, anyway).

The scene that I best remember from this movie appears close to the end when Bill Masen and the others first realize they are completely surrounded by triffids. Perhaps it was my eyes playing tricks on me, or perhaps it was a trick of the lighting, or perhaps it was a trick of the background scenery, but the army of triffids seemed absolutely endless! Their dragon-like heads atop their long neck-like stems just added to the strange organization of the masses of triffids. I don't know if a plant really did fall to earth on a meteorite, but I definitely hope it won't turn out like the triffids!

You can purchase The Day of the Triffids on videotape at just about any video store you go to. Black and white or color--either one is worth the price.

Interested in buying this video? You can! Just follow the link to order the VHS version. You can also visit the Stellar Video Store for other titles.

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