The Day The Earth Stood Still [DVD]

"The Day the Earth Stood Still" is arguably the most religious science fiction film ever made. It is hard to miss the religious symbolism of Klaatu (Michael Rennie), the strange visitor from another planet, who explores the neighborhood under the name of "Carpenter," especially when he is killed and resurrected by his robot companion Gort (Lock Morton). The parallels between Klaatu and Christ continue as the alien brings a message for all of the people of earth that the people of earth are not all that interested in hearing. It seems that now that Earth is developing atomic power, the other inhabited planets of the galaxy are concerned that the new kids on the block are not mature enough to avoid destroying everything.

I remember Michael Rennie from "Lost in Space," where he played "The Keeper," and he brings the same sort of strong, dignity to the role of Klaatu. The alien might be here to lecture the Earth people, but he sounds so reasonable in his condemnation. Besides, how can you disagree with his reasoning? Patricia Neal as Helen Benson is the calmest and most rationale female lead every seen in a science fiction film, black & white from the Fifties or any other type. Helen accepts the reality of the rather remarkable situation she and her son Bobby (Billy Gray) find themselves involved in without really batting an eye. Nor does her voice tremble when she utters the greatest alien phrase in cinematic history. Sam Jaffe is equally unperturbed as Professor Jacob Barnhardt, the smartest man on Earth, who comes back from lunch and finds somebody (Klaatu) has been editing the formula on his blackboard. In contrast to these paragons of humanity is Hugh Marlowe as Tom Stevens, who has been stepping out with the widow Benson but throws all that away to be the man who captures the fugitive alien. The man is just such a schmuck.

The film is based on the Harry Bates short story "Farewell to the Master," which was first published in the October 1940 issue of "Astounding Stories." Actually, screenwriter Edmund H. North only keeps the first part of the story, when the spaceship lands on earth, Klaatu and the robot emerge, and the humanoid is shot (check out the original story if you can track it down). Of course, in the 1950s, Hollywood was always taking great liberties with classic science fiction short stories. The other great example of this would be "The Thing From Another World," based on John W. Campbell's short story "Who Goes There?"

"The Day the Earth Stood Still" provides one of the most unambiguous alien messages to be found in a science fiction film (cf. "2001: A Space Odyssey"). As an extra bonus, you have Aunt Bee sharing her thoughts on aliens. This remains a classic science fiction film, a rare opportunity for the intellectualism of the genre to be given free reign on the big screen. Not my favorite Fifites sci-fi film, but certainly should be on everybody's top 10 list for the decade. However, watching the movie again this time I was struck by the fact that Robert Wise took the same sort of approach when he directed "Star Trek: The Motion Picture." The weaker moments in both of those films have a lot in common.

Few films are as iconic as this one - this became the template for sci-fi films...

This film will be 60 years old in just a few years time, and watching it now, you can't help but think that the central message has been conveniently ignored. This film was released only 5 years after the Second World War and the ironic ultimatum of peace or obliteration doesn't look like it's been heeded.

Klaatu the humanoid alien lands in Washington and emerges from his flying saucer in one of cinemas greatest moments. The message of peace seems seems even more relevant the moment you flinch as the nervous soldier shoots our inter-planetary neighbour. Already, you feel the shame of humanity - and just to make us feel even smaller (quite literally!) Gort the eight-foot robot appears and zaps away all the military's weapons without actually hurting anyone.

Michael Rennie is perfectly cast as Klaatu, he is a good looking fella, but with something odd about him. He has an extra-terrestrial air about him, and much of his acting is done through subtle smiles which hints at his superior knowledge, he seems to find some of what he experiences here to be either quaint, or plain silly. He manages to bring charisma in buckets to a role which would have ended up too wooden by many other actors.

Patricia Neal puts in a convincing performance as Helen. Helen isn't your average 50's sci-fi lead lady - she isn't relegated to 'screamer'. Yes, she does have a few moments of over-acting, but that's the charm of the era/genre - and her portrayal is on the whole quite natural. Kudos to Billy Gray, the young lad who befriends Klaatu and enjoys his tales of advanced technology.

The film hasn't dated that badly - you don't cringe at the special effects because they're actually very good, the spaceship is the best I've seen! A smooth metallic structure with no discernable joins, the door opens and the ramp appears from the base in perfect synchronisation. Gort is now a legendary figure in sci-fi history - okay, his suit looks a bit rubber at the end when you see it bending as he walks - but that could be down to the unique metal he is made from, it could flex. Well, it could!

The film focuses on the role of the media in a media-obsessed post-war America. This is another parallel with the modern day, we are media-saturated, but now instead of radio and newspapers - we rely on television and the internet. When the world experiences the 30 minute powercut it brings pandemonium and panic, the world today would be brought to it's knees.

There is a remake planned for this soon, with Keanu Reeves as Klaatu. I'll watch it - to see how bad it is. This is a film perfectly casted, and superbly directed. In short - it does not need remaking. It's unfortunate that many filmgoers refuse to watch an old black and white film, but would rather watch a CGI laden slick flick. This film was made with a genuine passion for the final message, being released so soon after a world war the fear and hope was genuine. The remake is made with a passion for generating revenue; you chose which will stand the test of time.

In a nutshell: Everything from the electronic music, the flying saucer, the robot Gort, the scientist complete with mad-scientist hair, and the special effects have been emulated by many other films since. This is an important film, it gets you to think - the final message isn't one to embrace, it's one to consider. The society as explained by Klaatu of his own planet doesn't seem appealing (zero tolerant nazi-robots who enforce the law in order to force social order), but then, neither does the one we have now. With wars and genocide, if we continue to behave like that off our own planet then we will be destroyed. From the point of view of an alien, our wars do seem petty and childish - maybe we need that perspective to realise that we are in charge of our own destiny. Maybe it will take the discovery of intelligent alien life to view ourselves as a single human race.

"The universe grows smaller every day, and the threat of aggression by any group, anywhere, can no longer be tolerated. There must be security for all, or no one is secure."

Before the review, a little about the Cinema Reserve series from 20th Century Fox (this issue is one of those titles).

"Cinema Reserve" is the title given to Fox's "premium" issues and releases started in February 2006 & are on-going. The blurb inside each tin promises best digital transfers, best audio, best extras, dedicated and unique booklet - and all of it wrapped up in a rather delicious metal tin exterior with slightly altered artwork. The series is numbered on the spine of the tin - from 001 on upwards (see list below). Most are 2DVD sets where the standard issue or Studio Classics issue is often only 1 disc. (Some of the doubles in this series are the 1st UK release of already released doubles in the USA on Region 1.)

I mention all of this because when you type in "Cinema Reserve" into the Amazon search engine, you get only 2 entries - "The Seven Year Itch" and "The Fly". No one at Fox seems to have alerted Amazon of the releases nor provided them with all of the proper artwork. Amazon's system has most of the titles available (not all) but they're not highlighted or recognised as "Cinema Reserve" releases. (The unique artwork is an easy way to spot them). It looks like the series will contain almost 20 titles by the end of the year. I've bought 6 others to date and 2 of them do have stock faults despite the "pristine transfer" claims in the booklet (more of those in later reviews). Still, if most are like this title (superb), then you may want to start saving! And the tin effect looks soooo good too - craftily geared towards the collector in us all!

For those interested, I've compiled an alphabetical list with the Series Number, Film Title, Film Release Date and finally the Cinema Reserve Release Date (including forthcoming titles):

1. Number 003: All About Eve (1950) (26 Feb 2006)
2. Number 013: Beyond The Valley Of The Dolls (1970) (12 Feb 2007)
3. Number 007: Butch Cassidy & The Sundance Kid (1969) (22 May 2006)
4. Number 019: Cleopatra (due 2007) - CANCELLED
5. Number 001: The Day The Earth Stood Still (1951) (26 Feb 2006)
6. Number 009: The Fly (1986 Remake) (3 July 2006)
7. Number 010: The Hustler (1961) (18 Sept 2006)
8. Number 011: Kagemusha (1980) (27 Nov 2006)
9. Number 004: Laura (1944) (27 Feb 2006)
10. Number 005: Lifeboat (1944) (27 March 2006)
11. Number 018: The Magnificent Seven (1960) (due 2007) - CANCELLED
12. Number 016: Midnight Cowboy (18 June 2007)
13. Number 002: My Darling Clementine (1946) (27 Feb 2006)
14. Number 006: Patton (1970) (24 April 2006)
15. Number 008: The Seven Year Itch (1955) (19 June 2006)
16. Number 017: Some Like It Hot (1959) (23 July 2007)
17. Number 012: Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970) (18 Dec 2006)
18. Number 015: Valley Of The Dolls (1967) (14 May 2007)
19. Number 014: The Verdict (1982) (19 March 2007)

Back to this release. The film itelf is on Disc One and is a fully restored print in black and white - and looks just sensational. So good in fact that it's prompted my title for this review. There's a scene where the seven-foot seven Lock Martin (formerly a doorman at a Hollywood Theatre) who plays Gort the Robot has to pick up Patrica Neal in his cumbersome silver suit. It was impossible to do. So they had string pullies yank her up - the restoration shows us the strings as she gallantly lets out one of those blood-curdling screams Fifties women seemed to do in Fifties Sci-Fi movies - which is both funny and cute!

Michael Rennie, superbly majesterial as Klaatu the interstellar messenger, was new to American screens. After being manhandled by the army and jailed by Washington types who take his requests to meet all leaders of the world as being impossible to achieve, Gort blasts a wall and helps him escape. He meets an understanding widow and her family in a boarding house he takes refuge in. Helen (Neal) and her son Bobby (played by Billy Gray - interviewed on Disc 2) say that Klaatu must meet the smartest man in the world, Doctor Barnhardt (veteran actor Sam Jaffe, an obvious ringer for Einstein). The Doctor says the world still won't listen; Klaatu tells them there will be a sign of his race's power; he stops everything at twelve noon one day. Great stuff!

For a movie that could have so easily descended into the clunky and even preachy, all the dialogue was superbly handled. The script was clearly one of the reasons why the film got made. And the great "message" given by Klaatu at the end of the movie about the Human Race growing up or the world will destroy itself could be quoted word-for-word now and not be out of place (dialoue from it titles this review). Throughout the film Rennie calls himself Mister Carpenter and the inference to Jesus was subtle but deliberate by the screenplay writer.

After the movie, there are a few superfluous Movietone News Events of 1951 on Disc 1 that seem irrelevant to the movie really (but part of the movie experience of the time).

However, the real goodies start on Disc 2 with an 80-minute featurette on the Making Of the film. Although short on actual on-set footage, there are stills and fascinating features on each of the actors. Patricia Neal openly admits that she couldn't stop giggling in a lot of scenes at the poe-faced seriousness of it all - but the endlessly patient Rennie took it. There are interviews with the producers about the politically difficult times in which it was made. The downside is that Fox clearly don't have interviews with Rennie or Jaffe or Martin - and footage of the actual shoot is practically non-existent, so many of the interviews are peppered only with a photo of what/whom is being discussed - when you long for more.

Cinema cards, the iconic posters, the cinema stands at the premier are all talked of - even ownership of the prop that was the flying saucer is touched upon. There's the nervous preview-screening where the audience giggled at the opening army shots of trucks rushing to the scene - much to the terror of the film makers who thought they might have a turkey on their hands. There's a bit on the restoration process, a trailer, stills gallery - all very good.

And then there's Bernard Herrmann's score - ripped off by every Sci-Fi movie ever since - a huge part of the scare factor. Astonishingly ahead of its time - and so on the money.

All in all, this is a superb issue of a ground-breaking movie. Sure it'll be boring to some of our CGI saturated kids, but watching it all the way through now - some 55 years after the event - it's astonishing how relevant it was then - and still is.

So puny Earthlings, in the words of your friendly alien, "Klaatu Barada Nikto". Indeed!

PS: The above review was posted in May 2007; it's April 2008 now and many of you will have noticed that numbers 18 and 19 in the series haven't turned up at all - and given the transition to HD/Blue Ray - they're unlikely too. I bought "Some Like It Hot", 17, the last number issued - so it looks like the entire series and its excellent packaging has been unceremoniously dumped. Having said that, if you're still prepared to fork out, I've noticed many of the titles are now available at greatly reduced prices - and all bar "The Lifeboat" (terrible print) are worthy of your attention. I've amassed 15 of the 17 and will try to post reviews of them in the near future. The black and white print on "The Hustler" in particular is spectacular... Also the ltd edition 'tin' that came with original Cinema Reserve issues of "Day" has unfortunately been replaced with a card wrap with the same artwork as above.