646f9e108c South African bush pilot and carefree ladies man Dave Randall finds he has been let in on the greatest and most terrible secret in the world when an eminent astronomer pays him to deliver some mysterious photos from to an equally prominent colleague in the U.S. The recipient, Dr. Hendron, confirms the awful findings of the sender: the star Bellus will collide with Earth, destroying our planet. Despite widespread disbelief, Marston and Spiro, a pair of millionaire philanthropists, give Dr. Hendron all their assets to begin construction on a huge rocket ship that will, at least theoretically, transport a nucleus of survivors to Zyra, a planet which orbiting Bellus that may or may not be habitable. The funds aren't enough to complete the spaceship, and Dr. Hendron solicits a contribution from elderly wheelchair-bound tycoon Sydney Stanton, a wheelchair-bound old man who, unlike the selfless Marston and Spiro, demands a place on the rocket, even though space and weight will be too precious for anyone but young, skilled men and women. Even as doomsday approaches, Randall is surprised to find himself in a love triangle with Dr. Hendron's daughter and her fiancé. Humanity is in peril, and only a modern-day Noah's ark, and the continued need of a man for a woman, can save it. What would happen if a rogue planet flew into our solar system and slammed into the Earth? That question is answered in this apocalyptic sci-fi tale. An astronomer discovers an object that has just entered the solar system. His calculations show him it's big and headed straight for the Earth. The only problem is convincing the rest of the world. The crisis brings out the best and worst in humanity. Before Deep Impact and 2012 there was When Worlds Collide. I was born in the 70's but I love these old sci-fi movies from the 30's to the 60's. So when I came across this movie with a respectable IMDb rating of 6.7 I had high hopes for a nice evening at the movies (the theater being my computer). I was loving every aspect... impending disaster, romance, drama, story, acting, etc. and then the end came. I would have easily given it a 7 but I had to drop a point for that painted landscape and sunrise. Wasn't there any place close to shooting that had vegetation and the sun? Seriously, how much could it have cost? I recommend this movie to any early sci-fi movie fan or to anyone who wants to point to the younger generation and say 'see, it's been done before' - and better, I might add. I guess it annoys me because the rest of the movie was so good but hey, everybody has a bad day! Hayden Rorke and his team of astronomers in Johannesburg, South Africa discover a star and an accompanying orbiting planet are on a direct course for our solar system. In a year they will hit earth. Rorke dispatches Richard Derr to his colleague Larry Keating in the USA for confirmation. It's true the worlds will collide in about a year on August 12. <br/><br/>When Worlds Collide is the story of a few scientists and their efforts to save mankind by taking a few over to that orbiting planet Zaira which will pass close before the star itself overwhelms earth with heat before the collision itself. It is mentioned that other countries are undertaking rocket building, but When Worlds Collide concentrates on the USA where the claims are met with derision by the scientific community so Keating and colleagues go out on their own. The main financial sponsor is multi-millionaire John Hoyt who believes his millions entitle him to some special consideration. The conflict between Keating and Hoyt is what drive the film.<br/><br/>Below that there is a subplot involving Richard Derr and Keating's daughter Barbara Rush. He breaks in and steals her away from Peter Hansen who also works with Keating. <br/><br/>The lack of name players gives a bit of realism to When Worlds Collide although these character actors are a pretty familiar lot. When Worlds Collide has come down to us via its reputation for its special effects because of the deserved Oscar it won. But director Rudolph Mate got good performances from his cast.<br/><br/>It never ceases to amaze me how the invention of the computer is never factored in and it certainly was thought about and invented very shortly although those early machines were big. Among the necessary items thought for survival were books, the Bible, Principia Mathematica and the Encyclopedia Britannica. These of course would all be on discs now. This is the third science fiction film from roughly the same era and none of them imagined that one.<br/><br/>Although the concepts are dated and the science fiction a bit flawed, When Worlds Collide still has great entertainment value. Zecharia Sitchen ?