Quatermass 2

"A horrible enemy from the unknown strikes terror across the earth!"

1957 1h 25m EN

😐

6.4

MID

🍅

83%

FRESH

⭐

6.7

IMDB

★6.4TMDB · 154🍅83%Rotten Tomatoes★6.7IMDB · 5,565

Science FictionHorror

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

In England, a group of space scientists led by Bernard Quatermass, who have developed plans for the first Moon colony, learn that a secret, ostensibly government-run, complex of identical design has been built in a remote part of England and is the focus of periodic falls of small, hollow "meteorites" originating in outer space. Quatermass determines to investigate and uncovers a terrifying extraterrestrial life form which has already begun action to take over the Earth.

“A horrible enemy from the unknown strikes terror across the earth!”

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Cast

Brian Donlevy
Prof. Bernard Quatermass
John Longden
Chief Inspector Lomax
William Franklyn
Dr. Tom Brand
Bryan Forbes
Marsh
Charles Lloyd Pack
Work Camp Manager Dawson
Tom Chatto
Vincent Broadhead, M.P.
John Van Eyssen
The Plant Tour Guide
Sidney James
Jimmy Hall

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Val Guest
Writers: Nigel Kneale, Val Guest
Languages: English
Countries: United Kingdom

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

85 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

69 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

CINEMA

Did you know

Part of the "Quatermass (Hammer) Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Directed by Val Guest, shot by Gerald Gibbs. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by James Bernard. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor James Needs shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

Brian Donlevy and John Longden and William Franklyn carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "A horrible enemy from the unknown strikes terror across the earth!".

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Val Guest directs. Gerald Gibbs behind the camera. James Bernard scores. James Needs cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in United Kingdom. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

185 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.
269 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
3Part of the "Quatermass (Hammer) Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.
4Directed by Val Guest, shot by Gerald Gibbs. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Original score by James Bernard. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
6Editor James Needs shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
7Brian Donlevy and John Longden and William Franklyn carry the top of the cast.
8Marketing tagline: "A horrible enemy from the unknown strikes terror across the earth!".
9IMDB entry: tt0050873 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
10Classified under 26 themes, including "mind control", "monster", "scotland yard", "meteor".

The technical file

Cinematography: Gerald Gibbs
Original score: James Bernard
Editing: James Needs
Makeup / hair: Philip Leakey
Runtime: 85 min · 1h 25m
Status: Released
Original language: EN
IMDB: Quatermass 2 (1957)
Rotten Tomatoes: 83% 🍅 Fresh
IMDB rating: 6.7/10 · 5,565 votes
MPAA: Approved

Part of

Quatermass (Hammer) Collection

A Hammer Film Productions science fiction horror film series based on the BBC television series The Quatermass Experiment.

Also by

Val Guest

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2026-07-18
★ 7/10
Brian Donlevy sort of grows into his part as the acclaimed scientist "Quatermass" in this quite menacingly put together sequel. He and his colleagues have been developing a plan to put a colony on the moon but when he encounters a man who is very, very, sick and then discovers a supposedly government run facility that is prone to meteor strikes, he begins to smell a rat. That's not all he smells as the place seems to be processing ammonia - but why would a food processing plant need that? Moreover, those exposed to this substance soon appear to assume zombie-like qualities that arouses his suspicions still further. Now allied with his police friend "Lomax" (John Longden), wily journalist "Jimmy" (Sidney James) and his no-nonsense assistant "Sheila" (Vera Day) they attempt to get to the bottom of this heavily militarised secret. This packs quite a lot into not even ninety minutes, and both the pacing and the writing help Donlevy to keep the story moving along rapidly without (thankfully) much reliance on the type of third-rate special effects we've become used to with low budget British sci-fi thrillers. There's also a little more of scientfic substance to an imaginative plot that also illustrates just how post-war British communities were coming to terms with their new society and proves how ineffective government oversight really was when official-looking military projects (our's or anyone else's) are protected by armed guards, barbed wire fences and conspiracy. It's a different sort of film from the "Quatermass Experiment" (1955) and it's really only the character himself who provides any sense of continuity; but it's well worth a look if you want something creepily plausible.

Production companies