Battle Beneath the Earth

Battle Beneath the Earth
Battle Beneath the Earth
Directed by	Montgomery Tully
Written by	Charles F. Vetter
Produced by	Charles Reynolds; Charles F. Vetter;
Starring	Kerwin Mathews; Robert Ayres; Peter Arne; Al Mulock;
Cinematography	Kenneth Talbot
Edited by	Sidney Stone
Music by	Ken Jones
Distributed by	Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Release dates	October 1967 (United Kingdom); 15 May 1968 (United States);
Running time	91 minutes
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English

Battle Beneath the Earth is a 1967 British sci-fi thriller film starring Kerwin Mathews. It was released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. The film also features character actor Ed Bishop.

Plot[]

Scientist Arnold Kramer believes that rogue elements of the communist Chinese army headed by fanatic General Chan Lu are using advanced burrowing machines in an effort to conquer the U.S. by placing atomic bombs under major cities. He is committed to an asylum, but when he is visited by U.S. Navy commander Jonathan Shaw, what he tells him lines up with observations Shaw's made himself. Shaw gets him released and produces enough evidence to convince his superiors that the story is on the level, and he is ordered to lead troops underground to defeat the red army and defuse the bombs.^[1]

Cast[]

Kerwin Mathews as Cmdr. Jonathan Shaw
as Tila Yung
Robert Ayres as Adm. Felix Hillebrand
Peter Arne as Arnold Kramer
Al Mulock as Sgt. Marvin Mulberry
Martin Benson as Gen. Chan Lu
Peter Elliott as Dr. Kengh Lee
Earl Cameron as Sgt. Seth Hawkins
John Brandon as Maj. Frank Cannon
Ed Bishop as Lt. Cmdr. Vance Cassidy
Carl Jaffe as Dr. Galissi
as Professor Blackthorne
Sarah Brackett as Meg Webson
Bee Duffell as Matron's Friend

Release[]

The movie was featured on the CBS Late Movie, in late-December 1973. The picture later received a VHS home-video release in the early 1980s.

It was also a staple of afternoon-movie or Saturday-morning Creature Features-type TV programs before the historic sale of the MGM/UA film library. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer originally handled North American theatrical distribution.

The movie was released to DVD by Warner Home Video on 29 July 2008, as a Best Buy exclusive double feature with The Ultimate Warrior.^[2]

Reception[]

The film has been described as "deliriously paranoid".^[3]

Score[]

The film features a fast-paced "crime-jazz" / jazz-noir musical score by Ken Jones.

References[]

^ Rovin, Jeff (1987). The Encyclopedia of Supervillains. New York: Facts on File. p. 138. ISBN 0-8160-1356-X.
^ Battle Beneath the Earth (DVD), ISBN 978-1-4198-6943-3
^ Chapman, James (2006) [2002]. Saints & Avengers: British Adventure Series of the 1960s. Popular Television Genres. London: . p. 124. ISBN 978-1-86064-754-3. … most notably the deliriously paranoid science-fiction film Battle Beneath the Earth (1967) in which the Chinese attempt to invade America by burrowing under the ocean.

External links[]

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[1] Rovin, Jeff (1987). The Encyclopedia of Supervillains. New York: Facts on File. p. 138. ISBN 0-8160-1356-X.

[2] Battle Beneath the Earth (DVD), ISBN 978-1-4198-6943-3

[3] Chapman, James (2006) [2002]. Saints & Avengers: British Adventure Series of the 1960s. Popular Television Genres. London: . p. 124. ISBN 978-1-86064-754-3. … most notably the deliriously paranoid science-fiction film Battle Beneath the Earth (1967) in which the Chinese attempt to invade America by burrowing under the ocean.

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