CRACK IN THE WORLD (1965) / CERT: U / DIRECTOR: ANDREW MARTON / SCREENPLAY: JON MANCHIP WHITE, JULIAN ZIMET / STARRING: DANA ANDREWS, KEIRON MOORE, JANETTE SCOTT / RELEASE DATE: AUGUST 5TH
Deep below the arid desert in Tanganyika in Africa, scientists and technicians at Project Inner Space are making final preparations to drill deep into the Earth’s crust in an attempt to tap into the planet’s geothermal energy in the hope of releasing an endless supply of power which will benefit Mankind for generations. However, in order to penetrate the crust they need to detonate an atomic device at the bottom of the borehole. The project’s director, Stephen Sorenson (Andrews) is convinced that the bomb will simply pierce the crust and harmlessly release the energy. Chief geologist Ted Rampion (Moore) – a former student of Sorenson’s and also – awkward – former lover of Sorenson’s wife Maggie (Scott) is worried that years of underground nuclear testing have weakened the crust and that there’s a risk that the planet could be cracked open by the detonation. You’ll never guess what happens when the bomb drops…
Crack in the World was a staple of ‘adventure movie’ filler slots on British TV throughout the 1970s but revisiting it on this new Blu-ray reveals a slow-burn character piece – the love-triangle between Sorenson, Rampion, and Maggie provides the film’s backbone – rather than a bang-crash apocalyptic sci-fi movie. The film is permeated with a sense of dread and unease; the title tells us what’s coming but we’re still on edge as the detonation approaches and Rampion and Sorensen each passionately argue their corner. Rampion – rugged, manly, probably flies a helicopter to the shops – is at loggerheads with Sorenson (referred to as ‘the old man’ in the movie despite the fact that Dana Andrews was only fifty-six when the film was made in 1965) who discovers that he’s terminally ill and yet remains determined to see the project out to its conclusion. Of course, all seems well after the explosion but before long a series of devastating earthquakes and tsunamis cause havoc and massive loss of life; a crack has opened and it’s haring its way around the world. Another bomb is detonated in the hope of halting its progress but it only succeeds in changing its direction. It seems that we’re all doomed.
Despite being dialogue heavy and largely lacking in spectacle (the finale is suitably apocalyptic – although the budget clearly ran out before one key effect could be achieved right at the end of the film) Crack in the World is a powerful and evocative film and although its potency has worn off somewhat since the 1960s when the world was living nervously in the shadow of ‘the bomb’ it still packs a punch thanks to earnest performances and an almost documentary detachment and matter-of-factness that only adds to its air of believability and its disquieting sense of impending disaster.
