An American-Japanese co-production, featuring a primarily western cast with Japanese production staff, and directed by Kinji Fukasaku, who directed the Japanese segments of 'Tora! Tora! Tora!'  The result is the quality production value of other Japanese films with a more Western storytelling structure and acting.

     A huge asteroid is detected on a collision course with Earth. An expedition is mounted to encounter the asteroid, plant bombs, and blow it up (like Armageddon, but good). However, the mission winds up carrying back a small bit of green slime which, when exposed to radiation, winds up growing into a bunch of creepy crawly rubber-suit monsters which threaten the Earth-orbiting space station.  It a battle royal between the vulnerable humans and the hideous monsters of the Green Slime in a pitched battle for their survival....

     There's also a simmering potboiler love-triangle, the typical scientist who insists that the monsters be captured for their scientific value, a macho rivalry between the two male leads, and lots of deaths of bit characters at the hands of the monsters.  What's not to love?

     This is a great looking, colorful energetic film.  A lot of fun and an entertaining watch.  There's tons of great space hardware, flaming rockets, and Japanese-style special effects.  Sure, they're rubber monsters, but that's really the charm of the particular kaiju eiga (Japanese for 'monster movie') genre, isn't it? This is the kind of movie that's fun as a romp, for some over-the-top fun. Go with it.

     The scenes on the asteroid have a comic book color to them, almost lurid.  You can't say that the effects are great or convincing, but man, there's something about them.  They're infinitely more interesting than 90 minutes of CGI monsters could ever hope to be.

     Probably one of the best 1950s space movies made in 1969, The Green Slime is no classic, but it's a heckuva lot of fun.

3½ rocketships (out of five)

PLUSES: Great designs, props, visuals, and cornball cheese.  But what cornball cheese...!

MINUSES: You'll hate yourself when you admit you like it.