Synopsis

A wealthy woman in a troubled marriage encounters a mysterious alien spacecraft and is exposed to radiation that causes her to grow into a towering giantess. As her unfaithful husband plots against her, Nancy Archer struggles to control her new strength and turns her anger toward those who have exploited and betrayed her.

Factoids & Trivia

• The film was shot in only eight days and was completed for approximately $89,000, making its spectacular premise a notably low-budget production.

• Filming began on January 8, 1958, under the working title "The Astounding Giant Woman." Other proposed titles included "The Mammoth Female Monster" and "The Colossal Female Monster."

• Director Nathan Juran used the professional name "Nathan Hertz," taking his middle name as a credit reportedly because he was embarrassed by the film's modest production values.

• The movie's effects relied on rear projection, double exposure, oversized props, and scale photography. Its crude but memorable spacecraft and giant hand became part of the film's enduring drive-in appeal.

• Allied Artists released the film on May 18, 1958, as a double feature with "War of the Satellites."

• The picture became a cult favorite and an enduring example of 1950s giant-monster cinema, notable for placing a woman at the center of the size-changing fantasy.

• A planned color sequel in CinemaScope was developed several years later, but the project never went into production.