Throwback Thursday: Dare to Visit the Forbidden Planet
Por um escritor misterioso
Last updated 14 junho 2024
Throwback Thursday examines films from the past, “classic” films that might not be in the current cultural zeitgeist but can still be important, interesting, fun, or all of the above.Continuing our look into space opera films, we’re setting the way-way-back machine to the year 1956 and looking at the first science-fiction film to take place entirely away from Earth. That movie is MGM’s Forbidden Planet. While a modest success at the box office, no one could have predicted that it would go on to achieve pop-culture status and be entered into the Library of Congress's National Film Registry.Forbidden Planet follows the Earth crew of a saucer-shaped starship (say that five times fast) sent to a distant planet, Altair IV, to find out what happened to a lost expedition. On landing, Commander John Adams (played by a young Leslie Nielsen) and his landing crew find out that the entire expedition was lost except for Dr. Morbius (Walter Pidgeon) and his daughter Altaira (Anne Francis). The crew of the ship start to experience the same problems that the original expedition did, and it’s up to Adams to figure things out and save the girl (because of course he has to).I will say right off the bat that the role of Altaira is strictly to look good and provide a damsel in distress. Anne Francis plays the role well for how it is written, and she gets a new costume almost every scene she’s in. If you’re looking for a strong female character, this is not going to be a film for you. In fact, she actually gets chastised by Adams for dressing skimpy and leading on his all-male crew. It’s not even a little victim blaming, it’s a lot victim blaming, but please take into account that this film was made in 1956 and adjust your expectations accordingly.What works in this film is that the crew plays the fact they’ve been trapped in a flying tin can for awhile. There’s a certain underlying camaraderie that feels real, with just the right amount of tension. There is a short subplot where Cook (Earl Holliman) convinces Morbius’s robot, Robby, to help him make moonshine. The downside is that the moonshine is created to elicit no hangover the next day, which causes a bit of consternation on Cook's part because he likes to take the bad with the good. All in all, though, this is a film that rests on the backs of Pidgeon and Nielsen and ends up being a great showcase for them to play standard protagonist/antagonist roles in a sci-fi film. The term that best comes to mind is "earnest." It was an acting style of the time, but it’s so refreshing to see when so many modern films rely on sarcasm and ambivalence in their characters.The special effects are top notch and cutting edge for the time. The matte paintings that make the backgrounds look like a foreign planet and are absolutely gorgeous, and when the team embarks into the tunnels of the planet, the sets have a sufficiently gargantuan scope. There’s one scene where the power levels of the alien technology are being used up, and it’s just in the background for the audience to watch while the foreground has all of the exposition and action. A very well-balanced shot and moment. The animators also do a great job of showing that the crew uses a forcefield around their ship, along with lasers to fend off a creature terrorizing them. Between all those things and the down-to-earth Robby the Robot, it’s a science-fiction fan's delight. Robby the Robot was so popular that he was used in another film, The Invisible Boy, the next year (along with quite a few TV appearances). The director, Fred Wilcox, does a fantastic job building up the tension in regards to Robby and how he will interact with the crew. Also adding to the ambience is the electronic score. The first film to do so, it provides a deeply unsettling mood that has been co-opted in so many films and TV shows since. When listening to a John Carpenter score, you can definitely hear the building blocks of what he would do. A debt of gratitude goes out to Bebe and Louis Barron, who took this chance with the film. It definitely succeeds.I don’t want to give too much of the plot away because there are a few twists and turns for new viewers, but this is a film that should be on your watch list if you are a science-fiction fan and haven’t seen it yet. Aspects of the film have become so ingrained in popular culture that in 1990 there was even a stage musical made, loosely based on the original plot. It gives it more of a Shakespearean Tempest bent, and sprinkling with vintage ’50s rock-and-roll tunes, it’s also a fun diversion if you ever get the chance to see it on stage.This film can be found on both Blu-ray and DVD. It is currently available via Netflix, but streaming offerings change frequently, so keep an eye out. Feel free to discuss further in the comments below; just keep it respectful.If you think there’s a film Throwback Thursday should cover in the future, please let me know in the comments.
A Throwback Thursday review of Forbidden Planet.
A Throwback Thursday review of Forbidden Planet.
Airplane! (1980) - News - IMDb
🚀 Keep Watching the Skies! Science Fiction Cinema of the 1950s
Western MA Hiking Trail with Breathtaking Views, Named Best in US
🚀 Keep Watching the Skies! Science Fiction Cinema of the 1950s
There's world war in 1940, chaos in 1970 and a sterile utopia in 2036, as predicted by H.G. Wells.
HG Wells - Things to Come
Forbidden Planet - Day One @ - UK and
Forbidden Planet - Latest Emails, Sales & Deals
Silent Running [DVD] : Movies & TV
Forbidden Planet (Two-Disc 50th Anniversary Edition) : Leslie Nielsen, Walter Pidgeon, Fred Wilcox: Movies & TV
Forbidden Planet (Two-Disc 50th Anniversary Edition)
Find a Way: The Inspiring Story of One by Nyad, Diana
When Dan Dare tie-in fiction went woefully wrong – a sorry tale of
Forbidden Planet [Blu-ray] [1956][Special Poster Edition] [Region
Forbidden Planet (Two-Disc 50th Anniversary Edition
Dan Watters Adapts David Bowie's The Man Who Fell To Earth As A Comic
9 Creepiest Places You Should Probably Never Visit
Recomendado para você
-
Forbidden Planet (DVD) (Rpkg) : Nicholas Nayfack, Walter Pidgeon, Anne Francis, Leslie Nielsen, Warren Stevens, Jack Kelly, Richard Anderson, Earl Holliman, George D. Wallace, Robert Dix, Jimmy Thompson, James Drury, Harry14 junho 2024
-
Forbidden Planet George Eastman Museum14 junho 2024
-
FORBIDDEN PLANET (REGION B IMPORT) BLU-RAY14 junho 2024
-
Forbidden Planet by David Lynch : r/midjourney14 junho 2024
-
Forbidden Planet – PGosh14 junho 2024
-
Forbidden Planet Is Not Closing, Just Moving Again - Gothamist14 junho 2024
-
UK and Worldwide Cult Entertainment Megastore14 junho 2024
-
Surprising 'forbidden planet' discovered outside our solar system14 junho 2024
-
Best Buy: Forbidden Planet [DVD] [1956]14 junho 2024
-
Forbidden Planet Posters, by Robert Bertie Classic sci fi movies, Forbidden planet, Science fiction movie posters14 junho 2024
você pode gostar
-
All Star Tower Defense Codes (December 2023) - Gems, Stardust & more14 junho 2024
-
GitHub - Kylart/KawAnime: Desktop app for anime fans14 junho 2024
-
Arco de La Villa - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (with Photos)14 junho 2024
-
Fantasia Infantil Roupa Menino Fantasma Halloween C/ Máscara14 junho 2024
-
Os 10 Melhores Notebook para Jogar Roblox de 2023: Dell, Acer14 junho 2024
-
Glen Williams on X: Peter Whittingham is named as Cardiff City's14 junho 2024
-
Destiny-Roleplay14 junho 2024
-
Miriam - Pokémon: Scarlet And Violet - Mobile Abyss14 junho 2024
-
Top game online miễn phí bạn sẽ phải chơi ngay trong tháng này14 junho 2024
-
Bridget (GUILTY GEAR) page 2 of 9 - Zerochan Anime Image Board14 junho 2024