# Help ID this movie **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 20, 2011, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-id-this-movie/589763 "2011-07-20T21:11:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2011, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-id-this-movie/589763/1 "2011-07-20T21:11:06Z")
How many threads like this have there been? Okay, I saw this movie on TV a couple of times when I was growing up, mid to late 1960’s. It was a British film, in color. There’s some work being done in a subway tunnel. After digging something is uncovered, but it’s metal. A guard or watchman, left there during the night, goes crazy when something from inside the structure “wakes up” That’s the best way I can describe what happens. Near the end of the movie scientists figure out how to watch some kind of recording from the vessel, and you see a fuzzy picture of a crowd of creatures that look kind of like grasshoppers or praying mantis. a giant ghostly figure of the same kind of creature appears above ground and the lead character sacrifices himself to destroy it. I don’t remember the means except he was on a tall crane or something, putting him on a level with the head of the creature. That’s it. For the kid I was then it was kind of scary, and I’m wondering what it would feel like now that I’m so much older. If you can help figure out what movie this might be I’d sure appreciate it. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2011, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-id-this-movie/589763/2 "2011-07-20T21:25:15Z")
[Quatermass and the Pit](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quatermass_and_the_Pit_%28film%29), perhaps? ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2011, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-id-this-movie/589763/3 "2011-07-20T21:26:13Z")
I beat someone beat me to this. It’s **Quatermass and the Pit** , also known as **Five Million Years to Earth**. edit: I was right! ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2011, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-id-this-movie/589763/4 "2011-07-20T21:28:27Z")
You’re both right! I recognized the title Five Million Years to Earth when I saw it. Thanks a lot for the speedy replies. One of the reasons I love this place so much. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2011, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-id-this-movie/589763/5 "2011-07-20T21:38:17Z")
I’ve been waiting an official DVD release of this for a long time. Maybe I should just settle for the apparently-bootlegged $26 version available on Amazon. ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2011, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-id-this-movie/589763/6 "2011-07-20T21:52:16Z")
Ah, one of my favorite saturday midnight movies. I think I have seen it dozens of times, usually late at night, early in the morning on some sort of Elvira type movie show =) ---
**Author:** ![The\_Hamster\_King](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8edcca/32.png) [@The\_Hamster\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Hamster_King)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2011, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-id-this-movie/589763/7 "2011-07-20T21:55:23Z")
LOL. I knew what it was when I read “There’s some work being done in a subway tunnel … .” in mouseover. However, I was too slow. ---
**Author:** ![Rocketeer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rocketeer/32/4437_2.png) [@Rocketeer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rocketeer)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2011, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-id-this-movie/589763/8 "2011-07-21T00:09:32Z")
There’s a couple versions of this out: One that was a [six-episode 1958 TV series](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0051305/), and a 1967 [theatrical movie remake.](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0062168/)