4D Man (1959)

He walks through walls of solid steel and stone--into the 4th dimension. Scientific whiz Tony Nelson (James Congdon) has made an amazing discovery. He has developed a method of stimulating the molecular structure of objects so that they can be joined or passed through one another. Stumbling upon this incredible secret is Tony's older brother, Scott (Robert Lansing), a fellow scientist who decides to take the experiment one step further. Soon he is able to pass himself through doors and walls. But his newfound freedom of movement has unforeseen side effects, for each time the power is used, Scott ages a bit and only by touching other living beings, thus taking their lives, can he maintain his age. In addition, this incredible force is driving him quite mad...

Very good and entertaining

Robert Lansing and the rest of the cast did an excellent job. I found the movie to be very good and I enjoyed it. March 14, 2007

Let's be honest.

This is a so-so sci-fi pic from the late 60s -- nothing more, nothing less. To claim otherwise you'd have to be either deluded, or have a personal investment in the film. August 6, 2006

A Personal Favorite!

4D Man is to me one cool flick. Just the scene where he is experimenting and gets part of his hand stuck in metal had me
freakin squirming! Add to that hot babes, a cool hipster outrageous jazz soundtrack and its done nicely in color, its just one of those semi unknown horror flicks that are cool to watch. Highly recommended. August 5, 2006

"He's unstoppable!"

If you're a fan of old sci-fi, "cult" movies, or just enjoy a good bit of cheez-whiz with your popcorn, you really can't go wrong with this. This is a fun little bit 'o nasty... the characters really aren't perfect (it's actually difficult to find someone to *like* in this movie!), there's two-timing, revenge, and people crumbling to dust before your eyes! Add to this mix a really jazzy (if somewhat inappropriate to the storyline) score, some eye-popping colors, and some excellent eye candy... this is a lot of fun.

I would have liked to have seen some more extras on the disk (and PLEASE stop using those damn cardboard holders!), otherwise, I would have given this a perfect score.

Fans of MST3K-ish film... you could do a lot worse! (But you probably already know that!) June 26, 2006

"No wall thick enough or gun strong enough...a man in the fourth dimension is indestructible!"

So what is this concept of the fourth dimension? Well, I'm no brainiac, but in terms I can understand it takes what we already have in our three dimensional spatiality (length, width, and height), and throws in a fourth, that being time. Specifically, one who travels in the fourth dimension may not only be able to traverse the boundaries of time, but also would be able to occupy the same space, at the same time mind you, as an object we third dimension dwellers view as being solid...directed by Irvin S. Yeaworth Jr. (The Blob, Dinosaurus!), 4D Man (1959) stars Robert Lansing (Empire of the Ants, Under the Yum Yum Tree), Lee Meriwether (Batman, "All My Children"), and James Congdon (When Worlds Collide, Seeds of Evil). Also appearing is Robert Strauss (Stalag 17, The Man with the Golden Arm), Edgar Stehli (Atlantis, the Lost Continent), and a very young Patty Duke prior to her dual role as identical cousins on "The Patty Duke Show", which aired in the early 1960s.

As the movie begins we see a lone scientist named Tony Nelson (Congdon) working in a laboratory late at night. Seems he's obsessed with proving the notion that two solid objects can occupy the same space by amplifying their atomic fields, or some such thing. Anyway, the only thing he succeeds in doing is causing a fire, destroying the building, and getting himself canned. Tony hits the road, stopping to see his brother Dr. Scott Nelson (Lansing), the more pragmatic of the pair, who happens to be working on developing a new type of impregnable metal called Cargonite. Tony ends up sticking around, taking a position at his brother's facility, if only to try and advance his theories, but ends up falling for Scott's assistant (and sort of girlfriend) Linda (Meriwether), who seems to have a similar affection for Tony. Turns out Scott's experiments in creating a new super metal are a success, but have some strange side effects (due to exposure of some sort) of his brain working in overdrive, allowing Scott, through the use of his mind alone, to venture into the fourth dimension. Only problem is it takes a great deal of energy to dink around in the fourth dimension, so subsequently anytime Scott uses his newfound abilities, he ages rapidly. Luckily, there's a way around that as he discovers by sharing the same space with another, living creature, he can draw from their life force...the only downside is the person he draws from ends up aging to the point of death. Scott's mind becomes seriously affected (i.e. he loses his marbles) by his new abilities (that, along with the fact his would be girlfriend has eyes for his brother), and soon he turns into a real monster, which presents quite the pickle...how do you stop someone who can become intangible, walking through walls and such like they weren't even there?

One thing that kind of surprised me about this film was how much was actually going on within the story. There's a whole lot of character development, along with a whole slew of subplots including tension between Tony and Scott (one's flighty, while the other is more practical), the romantic triangle between Scott, Linda, and Tony, Scott's chaffing against his credit hogging boss, a fellow weasel of a scientist scheming to steal Tony's ideas, etc. The result is things tend to get a bit messy as the story goes on, but messy in a good way, as these aspects tend to add a sense of realism and relation to an otherwise fantastic, science fiction premise. At times it's almost soap opera-ish, but the focus always remains solidly on the main sci-fi driven plot. I thought all the actors did quite well, although whenever I see Robert Lansing in anything, he always sort of creeps me out. Maybe it was that unnaturally reserved quality he seemed to emanate, or perhaps his pronounced, almost alien facial features...I don't know. One scene I found unsettling was when he sought medical help shortly after experimenting with his new powers, having discovered the after effects in terms of rapid aging. While pleading for help, he accidentally takes a life (unwittingly drawing forth the man's energies), and reacts horrified when he realizes what has happened. This particular moment was odd and unsettling to me, not so much the death of the man, but Lansing's very unreserved reaction, compared to his up until now restrained demeanor. And then later on, once his character starts losing his mental grip, he becomes unstable, materialistic, and extremely self-centered. I thought Meriwether did very well, and was glad to see her role as a laboratory assistant seemed to involve more than just getting coffee for her male counterparts and being just a pretty face. Her character was actually immersed in the scientific process even though her presence was obviously counterproductive to progress as it seemed most of the males were unable to deny irresistible, hotchie mama charms (I can't say that I blame them...did you see her in that Catwoman outfit in the old Batman movie? Zowie!). I thought it odd, though, that her character had to moonlight as a babysitter...perhaps it had something to do with inequalities in the pay structures in terms of women getting less compared to their male counterparts. James Congdon's character came on strong at the beginning, but then it seemed he was relegated to more of a plot device role rather than a integral part of the story as the film progressed. This was a pretty minor element, as I thought the story was written well and extremely thought out. Oh yes, the science is strong in this one, aided by some really good special effects. They may look quaint and even hokey given the achievements over the years, but I bet back in 1959, when the film was released, they were pretty outstanding. Some have mentioned the inappropriate musical scoring of the film, and I can understand their misgivings, as jazzy bebop isn't something one would normally associate with classical science fiction, but I kinda liked it...maybe not in terms of properly enhancing the story, but in terms of a lively score I could listen to on its own, it wasn't too bad.

The picture quality on this DVD, presented in fullscreen (1.33:1) aspect ratio, looks relatively sharp, exhibiting a few minor, expected flaws, and the Dolby Digital 2.0 mono audio comes through clean. There are no special features included, but I didn't mind so much as given the presentation of the film.

Cookieman108

If I learned anything from this film it's that scientists lead interesting and often sordid lives, and that Robert Lansing liked to smoke a whole lot...
March 2, 2006

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