Why you should watch “Phase IV”

Something weird has happened in space. Cosmic rays? Mystic energy? No one is sure, and when the consequences finally arrive on Earth, they almost go unnoticed.

Somewhere in America, the ants are not right. Suddenly, they are better organized, a single colony operating with ruthless efficiency and cold determination. As their natural predators flee, the ant population multiplies, and a pair of scientists are sent to investigate.

There are a lot of killer insect movies. None of them are like Phase IV.

The only film directed by legendary designer Saul Bass, Phase IV explores the results of first contact with a truly alien intelligence. At first, the hapless scientists (Nigel Davenport and Michael Murphy) are content to study and decimate, approaching the ants as a mere scientific curiousity. Later, as the tension rises and the two begin to unravel, they realize that they are pitted against an adversary far more capable than themselves. It seems the only option is xenocide.

The film has little use for special effects, relying instead on innovative camera work to get up close and personal with its true stars. The ants make the film, their opaque eyes and gently twitching antennae shot with clinical detachment. Insects have often been compared to alien life, a characteristic that Phase IV highlights with relish.

According to internet lore, the film’s original ending included a psychedelic montage of consciousness-bending proportions, but even without it, Phase IV is a trip well worth taking.

Stream Phase IV on Hulu or Amazon video.

—

Follow CG Inglis on Twitter @viscereal and on Instagram @viscerealism