# Them! (1954) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 26, 2011, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/them-1954/594111 "2011-08-26T00:56:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Number](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/number/32/242_2.png) [@Number](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Number)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2011, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/them-1954/594111/21 "2011-08-26T22:12:38Z")
“You ever hear of a fence for hot sugar?!” ---
**Author:** ![BMalion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e274bd/32.png) [@BMalion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BMalion)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2011, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/them-1954/594111/22 "2011-08-27T00:40:23Z")
“They didn’t even give me a rope to hold up my pants.” ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2011, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/them-1954/594111/23 "2011-08-27T01:05:48Z")
> [@StusBlues](#): > > A question on the politics of this movie: > > Most 50s sci-fi monster films (_The Blob_, _The Giant Gila Monster_, _Invasion of the Body Snatchers_) feature plucky individuals taking care of business (or trying to, as in IotBS) after authority figures have either denied the problem or proven ineffectual. _Them!_ is the rare film (I think) that shows the government as responsible and competent in dealing with the monstrous threat. Given the context of 1954, does this make _Them!_ an exceptionally conservative film or an exceptionally liberal film? Or am I reading too much into a movie about giant ants? It’s not particularly one or another, but the idea that you lock someone up in a mental institution because he wants to say something the government doesn’t want revealed smacks of totalitarianism (Fess Parker – note what the government agents tell his doctors). But as **CalMeachum** points out, the government is often involved in fighting monsters in 1950s monster movies (add **Tarantula** to the list, where the air force, led by an almost unrecognizable Clint Eastwood, takes care of the monster). People still remembered WWII and how the government dealt with a monster then. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2011, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/them-1954/594111/24 "2011-08-27T01:16:56Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > (add **Tarantula** to the list, where the air force, led by an almost unrecognizable Clint Eastwood, takes care of the monster) Yes, the Mayor or someone calls up the local USAF base. “We’ve got a giant spider terrorizing the town!” “OK, we’ll send a Sabre jet right over!” 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2011, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/them-1954/594111/25 "2011-08-27T03:21:39Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > as noted, it had Arness, and also James Whitmore. And Richard Deacon in a bit part as a reporter at the press conference. ---
**Author:** ![BMalion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e274bd/32.png) [@BMalion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BMalion)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2011, 5:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/them-1954/594111/26 "2011-08-27T05:15:59Z")
> [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](#): > > And Richard Deacon in a bit part as a reporter at the press conference. Keep watching the skies. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2011, 5:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/them-1954/594111/27 "2011-08-27T05:30:53Z")
> [@blondebear](#): > > Make me a sergeant, gimme the booze! [‘Make me a sergeant in charge of the booze’ clip](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1PBEcNn8aQ4) Held the cat’s attention for a bit. ---
**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:** [August 27, 2011, 5:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/them-1954/594111/28 "2011-08-27T05:58:43Z")
The movie shows that the government was tapped into the media even back then. Sign in one of the operations rooms: MONITOR ALL NEWS FOR [ol] [li]KIDNAPPINGS MISSING PERSONS[/li][li]UNSOLVED MURDERS[/li][li]ALLEGED SUICIDES[/li][li]MIGRATIONS OF WILDLIFE[/li][li]THEFTS OF SUGAR SYRUPS SWEETS[/li][li]STRANGE PHENOMENON AS[/li][/ol] FLYING SAUCERS STRANGE ODORS HIGH PITCHED SOUNDS UNNATURAL THINGS LIVE OR DEAD ---
**Author:** ![Raguleader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/258eb7/32.png) [@Raguleader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Raguleader)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2011, 7:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/them-1954/594111/29 "2011-08-27T07:23:04Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > Some friends and I were planning on making a spoof of it called _Those!_ but that idea seems to have been shelved. Incidentally, there is a quest in Fallout 3 called _Those!_ involving a town overrun with giant ants. It’s pretty fun. 😃 When I was in college, our sci-fi club managed to arrange a showing of _Them!_. We got out of having to pay licensing fees by finding an entomology professor who was willing to make it part of the syllabus for his class, and he showed up to give a lecture about what the movie got right and wrong, including the reason why ants can’t generally grow to be as big as they did in the movie. ---
**Author:** ![Labtrash](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/labtrash/32/528_2.png) [@Labtrash](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labtrash)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2011, 12:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/them-1954/594111/30 "2011-08-27T12:29:11Z")
Leonard Nimoy also have a bit part as soldier in this. I hate the fact that they used treefrog recordings for the ant sounds - in the spring & summer that’s all I hear where I live, and it always reminds me of this movie. ---
**Author:** ![Scubaqueen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c0e974/32.png) [@Scubaqueen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scubaqueen)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2011, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/them-1954/594111/31 "2011-08-27T15:31:00Z")
> [@blondebear](#): > > I’m curious: what do Dopers think–does **Them!** need to be re-made? not just no, but _ **oh, HELL NO!!!** _ considering the recent track record of remakes - tho i hear fright night may be the exception - i shudder to think what today’s hollywood could make of my (second) favorite 50s scifi flick. the thing has already been remade. i wasn’t overly impressed with what carpenter did to it, as i’m not a fan of blood and gore, altho he was closer to the short story than the original. i’m not going to bother with the prequel. i figure there will be plenty of fellow dopers to report back on whether or not it’s any good. the remake syndrome is out of control. i was in the theater last weekend to see cowboys & aliens. every damn poster i saw in the lobby was an advert for a remake!! :eek: the hell is THAT about?? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/them-1954/594111.md?page=1)