Inquiring Minds: THE INCREDIBLE SHRINKING MAN (1957)

This is the column that digs into the science fiction lover’s world, tackling some of the most complex and perplexing that content allows. Is it weird? Most likely. Do we love it? Yes! It’ll likely be thought-provoking, and potentially illuminating. Intriguing minds, unite for the weirdest Film Inquiry Column yet.

The Incredible Shrinking Man was a film that had been on my radar for a long time, but, like many blindspots, had slipped between the cracks. Jack Arnold‘s 1957 science-fiction movie doesn’t just make you think, it makes you dwell. Much of the story ventures into existentialism and the certain identity crisis that would come from such a horrific and unexplainable occurrence.

Scott (Grant Williams) and Louise Carey (Randy Stuart) are on a beautiful boat trip when a mysterious toxic cloud changes their lives forever. Scott is outside, and he accidentally absorbs some of its strange, radioactive quality. In the coming future, he continuously and rapidly gets unexplainably smaller.

Small Man, Big Ideas

At first, it’s a misfit pair of clothing, then a doctor saying it can happen for height to be off, and before you know it, he’s got to outrun his cat and lives in a dollhouse. He’s quickly a national phenomenon searching for a cure but soon comes to the tragic conclusion that it may never happen. How does one reconcile this implausible and terrifying reality?

The Incredible Shrinking Man is at once a frightening concept, but also a deeply lonely one. For the 1950s there are some terrific set pieces and trick photography used to make him look smaller. Despite some occasionally clunky perspectives, it ages fairly well, and is believable, especially in its black and white presence. When Scott gets especially small the viability becomes less, but the striking score emphasizes the horror that he’s struggling with.

Throughout the film, Williams narrates, and it’s his internal monologue that sears the most. As he begins to descend so does his grasp on sanity. It isn’t surprising that one of the screenwriters (Richard Matheson) went on to write several Twilight Zone episodes (a show I hold near and dear to my heart). I feel like this could have easily been one of those. It’s short, introspective, and also creatively unusual.

This is a movie that really reminds us how small we all are in the matter of space and time. One can look out at a starlit sky and feel as tiny. It’s a tough contemplation to swallow, and The Incredible Shrinking Man does so in a way that is both inventive and meaningful. We feel the sorrow and acceptance that slowly builds matched with times of complete submission, and others where the fight comes full forced. There’s also the pain that comes with knowing your spouse is dealing with this and there’s nothing you can do. Randy Stuart plays the part with a palpable heartbreak, as Scott becomes smaller, and the future they hold less certain.

It begs the question, what would you do? Is there anything? So much of life is decided for us, and sometimes that comes in unusual, and ultimately harrowing ways. The terror of what’s to come, what you’ve lost, and the tiny things that go crawling in the night becoming a real threat (along with you beloved pet) makes this picture one that permeates to this day.

While this is a science fiction film, it really benefits from the underlying existential questions it brings forward. Many more movies (including episodes of the aforementioned The Twilight Zone) will take on the idea of shrinking, but The Incredible Shrinking Man does so with a sensibility that makes it unique.

Conclusion:

The Incredible Shrinking Man undoubtedly feels of its time, but it’s messages and deep seeded thought-provoking topics are universal and timeless.

How do you feel about The Incredible Shrinking Man? Has it aged well? Let us know in the comments below!

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