The Deadly Mantis

The Deadly Mantis is a 1957 film about a giant prehistoric praying mantis that is set free from Arctic ice.

Directed by Nathan Juran. Written by William Alland.

A Thousand Tons of Horror! From A Million Years Ago ...  (taglines)

Dr. Ned Jackson

• In all the kingdom of the living, there is no more deadly or voracious creature than the praying mantis.

• I'm convinced that we're dealing with a Mantis in whose geological world the smallest insects were as large as man, and now failing to find those insects as food, well... it's doing the best that it can.

• The female is larger than the male and invariably destroys her mate when he's fulfilled his function in life.

Col. Joe Parkman

• Maybe there's an ordinary explanation to what happened, but I wouldn't take any bets.

Other

• Narrator: [a volcano near Antarctic erupts, causing an ice flow in the Arctic, which releases the Deadly Mantis] For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.

Dialogue

Dr. Ned Jackson: It looks like you don't have too many women up here, Colonel.

Col. Joe Parkman: Well, we have a little joke up here. The boys say there's a girl behind every tree. Only try and find a tree.

Taglines

• A Thousand Tons of Horror! From A Million Years Ago ...
• The most dangerous monster that ever lived!
• This Was the Day That Engulfed the World in Terror!
• Out of a million years ago ... a thousand tons of horror!

Cast

• Craig Stevens — Col. Joe Parkman
• William Hopper — Dr. Nedrick 'Ned' Jackson
• Alix Talton — Marge Blaine
• Donald Randolph — Gen. Mark Ford
• Pat Conway — Sgt. Pete Allen
• Florenz Ames — Prof. Anton Gunther
• Paul Smith — Corporal, Parkman's Clerk
• Phil Harvey — Lou, Radar Man
• Floyd Simmons — Army Sergeant
• Paul Campbell — Lt. Fred Pizar
• Helen Jay — Mrs. Farley

External links

• The Deadly Mantis quotes at the Internet Movie Database