Phase IV

thanks abbott, now I have song titles for my unrecorded album

* Landscape of Thorns
* Spike Field
* Spikes Bursting Through Grid
* Leaning Stone Spikes
* Menacing Earthworks
* Forbidding Blocks

phase iv has no beginning credits, but has interstitials throughout the film marking the beginning of each phase and the last one is PHASE IV roll end credits slow clap saul bass = genius

would love to see the lost end sequence footage

i just saw this film a couple weeks back, it's pretty great. all the shots like the ones shown in the screen caps and the weirdly fascinating pseudo-science chatter is kinda hypnotic.

wow. this movie. wow.

Finally got around to this -- as striking and strange as one could want. I got a pretty clear sense that Chris Carter had to have this in mind for a lot of his work -- the research station in this made me think of the beehive station in the middle of nowhere from the first X-Files movie.

Question, though -- is there any word as to whether the opening voiceover was a last minute studio addition? Not Nigel Davenport's initial thoughts some minutes in but the very first thing from Michael Murphy when the 'Phase I' eclipse starts up -- in watching the film through twice I had a feeling that voiceover was tacked on, less like Harrison Ford in Blade Runner than like Kiefer Sutherland at the start of Dark City, which, yeah, explained a bit of stuff but didn't feel needed in the end and ended up undercutting the impact of the story a bit first time through.

this movie is fucking awesome btw

haha this was recommended to me recently by mr amazon

Ken's earlier film is the next stop if you liked this, not on DVD but I found a torrent.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hellstrom_Chronicle

― Milton Parker, Tuesday, December 16, 2008 2:24 PM (3 years ago)

incredibly, now out on blu-ray

http://www.olivefilms.com/films/the-hellstrom-chronicle-blu-ray/

It's basically a cross between proto-Animal Planet and Rod Serling's Night Gallery. Probably shouldn't have been rated G.

http://twitchfilm.com/reviews/2012/01/the-hellstrom-chronicle-blu-ray-review.php

Professor Hellstrom, a famous entomologist, is so shaken by the savagery and ferocity of the predatory insect world that he films this "documentary" to warn mankind of its danger. Featuring stunning microphotography of a variety of insects and plants that include ultra close-ups of wars between ant colonies and a gigantic praying mantis practicing cannibalism. This unusual blend of horror film and nature study won an Academy Award for Best Documentary in 1972.

The victim in this film, the one who should be hiding in the closet with a knife waiting to fend of his eventual enemy, is you, the viewer.

ha, damn, the review mentions the film's one spoiler. drat. is better not to know going in.

I am watching The Hellstrom Chronicle right now and it is FANTASTIC

I have to see both these movies.

Oooh!

Love Phase IV

who is the "Ken" referred to in the first post tho

first post of this revive, that is

Hellstrom Chronicle is on Youtube in like 10 min parts. Might buy the blu-ray though. This is basically my idea of heaven, evil dead style narration and vicious animal warfare.

Phase IV: The Microcosmic World of Ken Middleham
Cinefex Issue 3 - Article by Don Shay

Phase IV was anything but a typical science fiction film. No spaceships, no alien invaders, no unleashed technological horrors - just ants. But not ordinary ants. Ants with geometric patterns emblazoned on their foreheads; ants unafraid to engage a praying mantis in battle; ants that bestow ceremonial honors on their fallen dead; and ants that transport crystals of posionous material in a suicidal death march. Ace macro cinematographer Ken Middleham discusses the creation and photography of these uncharacteristic ant behaviors.

shot of tarantula's face (?) where you can see a fly reflected in its eyes is amazing. what a great film.

Probably shouldn't have been rated G.

I find myself saying this about other scifi movies of the era - destroy all monsters, beneath the planet of the apes, planet of the apes, and the andromeda strain come to mind, all have pretty violent/disturbing scenes, with (not that I care) nudity in the latter two. MPAA, what happened to you?

bummed that netflix has the DVD of hellstrom chronicle but not blu-ray

The end of the trailer for phase IV clearly uses a few shots from the original ending of the film

The directors cut has got to be out there somewhere

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IuhgBvOWb_k

god I wish that would get discovered

milton maybe you can be the ray carney to saul bass' cassavetes

HOLY

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/saul-bass-phase-iv-original-ending-cinefamily-paramount-341449

!!

phase iv is super creepy & psychedelic, with some of the best acting by real ants ever filmed and a great burbling electronic score. I was talking to a friend who had vague memories of seeing it as a child, but he had perfect recall when it came to the scene where ants started crawling out of the 3 circular holes in a dead guy's hand.

DVD NOW PLZ

-- Edward III, Wednesday, 19 March 2008 14:35 (3 months ago) Link

DVD GODZ HAVE ANSWERED MY PRAYERS

― Edward III, Wednesday, July 9, 2008 4:35 PM (3 years ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

The end of the trailer for phase IV clearly uses a few shots from the original ending of the film

The directors cut has got to be out there somewhere

http://www.youtube.com/v/IuhgBvOWb_k&fs=1&hl=en

― Milton Parker, Thursday, March 29, 2012 10:41 PM (2 months ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

god I wish that would get discovered

milton maybe you can be the ray carney to saul bass' cassavetes

― diamanda ram dass (Edward III), Friday, March 30, 2012 11:15 AM (2 months ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

2 months pass...

HOLY

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/saul-bass-phase-iv-original-ending-cinefamily-paramount-341449

― Ned Raggett, Monday, June 25, 2012 6:15 PM (Yesterday)

my phase iv precog is strong

And for that we thank you.

this would be the point in a twilight zone episode where I'd say I like the film so much I wish it would come true

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/sexymollusk/wtf.jpg

haha what the what

venn diagram of baseball fans & apocalyptic insect enthusiasts

That's fucking ILX in a nutshell! It's obvious that's Morbz right there!

so awesome this has been found. great news.

LOTS OF LOVE FOR THIS FILM.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oHWSAZ3fZsQ

Hey, did you go to either of the showings of the film the last couple weekends? I was told that the suppressed ending was going to be screened, but friends who went just last night said that the ending wasn't shown, due to objections by the estate. What gives?

Cinefamily did mention that the re-discovered ending would only be shown on 24 June. I went to the showing on Thursday... still processing it. I'm not sure if it's even reviewable in the traditional sense.

Man I wish someone would DVD-R release all of Omni Magazine.

Ah, interesting. I'd assumed that once the ending was out there that it'd be shown again.

Or it would at least show up on the net...

Would buy a DVD of OMNI in a heartbeat. Maybe less.

http://drafthousefilms.com/blog/entry/watch_saul_bass_rare_1983_sci_fi_short_quest

also online: audience-cam from the phase iv cinefamily screening

WHERE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=beLpsWaUDNk

thanking u

maybe it's just as well they took that out, it would've blown my childhood mind beyond all repair

The lost ending is without a doubt the coolest thing I have ever seen. I still need to see this movie though.

Are there any other films that have this style trippy amazing 70s psych montage? It is beyond cool.

Oh yeah, "Quest" is pretty cool too!

mr bass and mr middleham would have loved these

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1IugvemOyZY

RIP Nigel Davenport.

And here we go:

http://www.factmag.com/2015/02/20/stream-waxworks-reissued-score-classic-killer-ant-movie-phase-iv/

oh shiiiiit cool! What was obviously the intended album assembly of the OST leaked to the soundtrack nerd forums last year, in listenable but not great sound. Hopefully this is a higher-fi version of that!

Some good reading here (and on uncanny film scoring in general):

http://www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk/features/2011/10/19/phase-iv-synthphony-for-the-ant-nation/

ugh this is so good

is Waxworks a vinyl only label or am I going to be able to buy this?

vinyl only, looks like :-(

oh well glad I downloaded the soundcloud stream even if was only 128 bit.

Finally saw this! Generally amazing. Cut 'utopian' ending is also findable now.

The recent super deluxe Blu-Ray (Euro only) has the lost ending.

On Talking Pictures right now. Pretty great so far.

I’m still waiting for a bluray I ordered back in ... March?

The ants don't want you to have it.

Hell yeah.

https://vinegarsyndrome.com/collections/frontpage/products/phase-iv

3-disc Set: 4K Ultra HD / Region A Blu-ray x2
4K UHD presented in High-Dynamic-Range
Newly scanned & restored in 4K from its 35mm original camera negative
The 84-minute Theatrical Version is available on both the UHD and Blu-ray discs
The 89-minute Preview Version with multiple soundtrack options is included on a Blu-ray disc
Commentary track for the Theatrical Version with film historian Matthew Asprey Gear
"Evolutions: The Making of Phase IV" (48 min) - a brand new documentary by Elijah Drenner featuring interviews with Jeffrey Bass, co-star Michael Murphy, screenwriter Mayo Simon, archivist Sean Savage and design historian/Saul Bass biographer Pat Kirkham
"Formicidae Sinfonia: The Music and Sounds of Phase IV" (15 min) - a brand new featurette with composer Brian Gascoigne and electronic music artist David Vorhaus
Deleted shots and sequences (2 min)
Raw footage from Saul Bass' original ending montage sequence (16 min)