Battle Beneath the Earth (1967)
Encyclopedia
Battle Beneath the Earth (1967) is a British sci-fi-espionage
movie starring Kerwin Matthews. It was released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
. The film also features character actor
Ed Bishop
who would later go on to star in the Gerry Anderson
cult-tv show UFO
.
The film is remarkable for its politically-incorrect depiction of the Chinese
, played mostly by English actors. The action scenes―especially for a low budget matinée programmer―are brisk and occasionally bloody.
-type TV programs before the historic sale of the MGM/UA
film library. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer originally handled North American theatrical distribution
It was released on DVD
by Warner Home Video
on 7/29/08, as a Best Buy
exclusive double feature with The Ultimate Warrior (1975 film)
. ISBN# 1-4198-6943-4, UPC# 883929023790.
Espionage
Espionage or spying involves an individual obtaining information that is considered secret or confidential without the permission of the holder of the information. Espionage is inherently clandestine, lest the legitimate holder of the information change plans or take other countermeasures once it...
movie starring Kerwin Matthews. It was released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. is an American media company, involved primarily in the production and distribution of films and television programs. MGM was founded in 1924 when the entertainment entrepreneur Marcus Loew gained control of Metro Pictures, Goldwyn Pictures Corporation and Louis B. Mayer...
. The film also features character actor
Character actor
A character actor is one who predominantly plays unusual or eccentric characters. The Oxford English Dictionary defines a character actor as "an actor who specializes in character parts", defining character part in turn as "an acting role displaying pronounced or unusual characteristics or...
Ed Bishop
Ed Bishop
Ed Bishop was an American film, television, stage and radio actor based in Britain.-Early life:Bishop served in the US Army from 8 October 1952 to 24 September 1954, working as a disc jockey with the Armed Forces Radio at St. Johns in Newfoundland...
who would later go on to star in the Gerry Anderson
Gerry Anderson
Gerry Anderson MBE is a British publisher, producer, director and writer, famous for his futuristic television programmes, particularly those involving specially modified marionettes, a process called "Supermarionation"....
cult-tv show UFO
UFO (TV series)
UFO is a 1970-1971 British television science fiction series about an alien invasion of Earth, created by Gerry Anderson and Sylvia Anderson with Reg Hill, and produced by the Andersons and Lew Grade's Century 21 Productions for Grade's ITC Entertainment company.UFO first aired in the UK and Canada...
.
The film is remarkable for its politically-incorrect depiction of the Chinese
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
, played mostly by English actors. The action scenes―especially for a low budget matinée programmer―are brisk and occasionally bloody.
Plot
The plot involves rogue elements of the communist Chinese army who use fantastic burrowing machines in an effort to place atomic bombs under major U.S. cities. The U.S. Navy sends troops underground to combat them.Cast
- Kerwin MathewsKerwin MathewsKerwin Mathews was an American actor best known for playing the titular heroes in The 7th Voyage of Sinbad , The Three Worlds of Gulliver and Jack the Giant Killer .-Life and career:...
as Cmdr. Jonathan Shaw - Viviane VenturaViviane VenturaViviane Ventura is a British actress. She was born on December 5, 1947, in London, but spent her childhood in Bogotá, Colombia. In 1958, she returned to the UK, where she started her film career. Ventura has made films for 20th Century Fox including High Wind in Jamaica and Lord Jim...
as Tila Yung - Robert AyresRobert Ayres (actor)Robert Ayres was an American film, stage and television actor.-Selected filmography:* The Black Widow * Delayed Action * A Prize of Gold * It's Never Too Late...
as Adm. Felix Hillebrand - Peter ArnePeter ArnePeter Arne was a British character actor best known for various performances in British film and television, including supporting roles in the television series The Avengers, Danger Man, as well as villains in Blake Edwards' Pink Panther series, in a career that spanned 40 years...
as Arnold Kramer - Al MulockAl MulockAl Mulock was a character actor, born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.He attended the Lee Strasberg Actors Studio, then started "The London Studio" which taught "The Method" to British actors....
as Sgt. Marvin Mulberry - Martin BensonMartin Benson (actor)Martin Benjamin Benson was an English character actor, who appeared in films, theatre and television. He appeared in both British and Hollywood productions.-Career:...
as Gen. Chan Lu - Peter ElliottPeter Elliott (actor)Peter Elliott is a leading New Zealand actor. He has appeared in numerous television shows including Shortland Street, Gloss and Homeward Bound. He has also appeared in several movies including Heavenly Creatures.-Shortland Street:...
as Dr. Kengh Lee - Earl CameronEarl Cameron (actor)Earl Cameron, CBE is a Bermudian actor. He is known as one of the first black actors to break the "colour bar" in the United Kingdom, along with Cy Grant...
as Sgt. Seth Hawkins - John Brandon as Maj. Frank Cannon
- Ed BishopEd BishopEd Bishop was an American film, television, stage and radio actor based in Britain.-Early life:Bishop served in the US Army from 8 October 1952 to 24 September 1954, working as a disc jockey with the Armed Forces Radio at St. Johns in Newfoundland...
as Lt. Cmdr. Vance Cassidy - Carl JaffeCarl JaffeCarl Jaffe was a German Jewish actor. Jaffe trained on the stage in his native Hamburg, Kassel and Wiesbaden before moving to Berlin, where his career took off....
as Dr. Galissi
Release
The movie received a VHS home-video release in the early 1980s. It was also a staple of afternoon-movie or Saturday-morning Creature FeaturesCreature Features
Creature Features was a generic title for a genre of horror TV format shows broadcast on local U.S. television stations throughout the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s...
-type TV programs before the historic sale of the MGM/UA
United Artists
United Artists Corporation is an American film studio. The original studio of that name was founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charles Chaplin, Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks....
film library. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer originally handled North American theatrical distribution
It was released on DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
by Warner Home Video
Warner Home Video
Warner Home Video is the home video unit of Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., itself part of Time Warner. It was founded in 1978 as WCI Home Video . The company launched in the United States with twenty films on VHS and Betamax videocassettes in late 1979...
on 7/29/08, as a Best Buy
Best Buy
Best Buy Co., Inc. is an American specialty retailer of consumer electronics in the United States, accounting for 19% of the market. It also operates in Mexico, Canada & China. The company's subsidiaries include Geek Squad, CinemaNow, Magnolia Audio Video, Pacific Sales, and, in Canada operates...
exclusive double feature with The Ultimate Warrior (1975 film)
The Ultimate Warrior (1975 film)
The Ultimate Warrior is a 1975 science fiction and action-adventure film directed by Robert Clouse. One of the first in a series of post-apocalyptic films from the 1960s and 1970s, it is set in post-civilization 2012 New York City and depicts the struggles of a small enclave of inhabitants...
. ISBN# 1-4198-6943-4, UPC# 883929023790.