The Incredible shrinking man

This low-budget feature is a powerful and perverse example of American Cold War cinema. While holidaying with his wife, Scott Carey sails into a radio-active storm. He slowly becomes aware that his body is changing and he descends into despair as he continues to shrink until he is only a few inches tall. His familiar suburban world begins to transform into a nightmare jungle. The staircase becomes an impenetrable cliff wall and the family cat, a terrifying monster. Suprisingly the special effects stand the test of time. It is easy to laugh at the fears expressed in this film but the terror unleashed by the atomic bomb, and the resulting awareness of humanity’s mortality, still manages to disturb and confront. Ultimately “The Incredible Shrinking Man” turns out to be a less propagandic and more humane film than much of Cold War science-fiction.