Review of Phase IV (1974) by Kurt A — 08 May 2010

This movie is a bit strange. Ok, so it's really strange. That is part of the reason why I like it. The other reason why this movie is good is simply the level of detail and passion that went into filming the ants. It's the best you'll see outside of dedicated nature discovery programs. I still don't know how they put logos on the ant's foreheads.

So what is this movie? Simply put it is a bunch of ants who are under some alien influence tearing a swath through the desert. Anything or anyone who stands in their way is summarily discontinued. That means people, cattle, other insects, buildings, and everything else. The government builds a dome right next to heart of the ant colony and gives two scientists all of the equipment they should need to learn about them and devise a strategy for defeat. After weeks of idle observation the government gets impatient and the scientists are forced to goad the ants into attacking them. BAD IDEA! The ants do attack and they soon realize just how smart they are when they manage to destroy the only machine keeping them in the fight.

This movie hearkens to an earlier time in technological history. A time in which computers could do anything simply because they were computers. A time when all you needed was a plotter and a sonar dish and you were the biggest badass around. I think you get the idea. Also, nowadays if we saw a message from the ants that consisted of a circle with a dot in it we wouldn't be able to figure it out. The arrogant people of our generation would look at that and say "Stupid ants drew a circle" not "Oh, hey I get it.".

I think the true terror of this movie comes in the form of the cold calculating hive mind of the ants. There are numerous shots of their collective blank stare which makes you think they're somehow plotting your death. It's pretty creepy actually. Then ending doesn't bode well for humans either, so that also has a contributing effect.

What am I trying to say? This is a good movie. It is shot in a trippy and artistic way that is very refreshing. The lead scientist is very unfriendly but extremely intelligent. It's not every movie that has the balls to throw a lead character at you who has no remorse for death of people. I also really like the 70's technology used in the film.

Should you watch this movie? If you like watching ants and if you like weird 70's horror/sci-fi movies then yes, you should. Everyone else will probably just scratch their head and say "You're watching what?".

There's only one thing about this movie I don't get. How do ants make concrete?