The Story of Mankind

Future disaster-movie king Irwin Allen, whose blockbusters include The Poseidon Adventure and The Towering Inferno, made this portentous rubbish in which the question of whether or not the human race should be allowed to survive is debated in front of a heavenly tribunal. Ronald Colman (giving a convincing performance in what was, sadly, his last and most unworthy film) is the Spirit of Man, advancing the argument in favour of human kind; Vincent Price gleams with wicked delight as the Devil, listing examples of man's appalling record of inhumanity. Based on Hendrik Van Loon's bestseller, this is generally, and rightly, acknowledged as one of the worst films ever made, but for those who can tolerate it, it is absolutely hilarious. Overflowing with a bounty of miscast stars, its mirth-making delights include the spectacle of Harpo Marx as Sir Isaac Newton, Virginia Mayo as Cleopatra, Edward Everett Horton as Sir Walter Raleigh and, best of all, gorgeous glamour girl Hedy Lamarr as Joan of Arc.