The Day The Earth Stood Still (1951)
October 1951
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Synopsis
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Michael Booth
The Day the Earth Stood Still may at first look like goofy, outdated science fiction, but its timeless warnings about violence, nuclear confrontation and the difficulties of policing the planet have made it an enduring cultural classic.
Dave Kehr
Like most of Robert Wise's work, this slickly constructed 1951 science fiction film settles squarely in the middle of its genre, better than some and worse than others.
Cast, although secondary to the story, works well.
Edmund H North's intelligent script and Wise's smooth direction are serious without being solemn, while Bernard Herrmann's effectively alien-sounding score reinforces the atmosphere of strangeness and potential menace.
Glenn Abel
Today, wistful viewers might ask: Where are Klaatu and Gort when we need them most?
Bosley Crowther
It is comforting, of course, to have it made plain that our planetary neighbors are much wiser and more peaceful than are we, but this makes for a tepid entertainment in what is anamolously labeled the science-fiction field.
Critic reviews
Michael Booth
The Day the Earth Stood Still may at first look like goofy, outdated science fiction, but its timeless warnings about violence, nuclear confrontation and the difficulties of policing the planet have made it an enduring cultural classic.
Dave Kehr
Like most of Robert Wise's work, this slickly constructed 1951 science fiction film settles squarely in the middle of its genre, better than some and worse than others.
Edmund H North's intelligent script and Wise's smooth direction are serious without being solemn, while Bernard Herrmann's effectively alien-sounding score reinforces the atmosphere of strangeness and potential menace.
Glenn Abel
Today, wistful viewers might ask: Where are Klaatu and Gort when we need them most?
Bosley Crowther
It is comforting, of course, to have it made plain that our planetary neighbors are much wiser and more peaceful than are we, but this makes for a tepid entertainment in what is anamolously labeled the science-fiction field.
User reviews
![Ken Lefebvre avatar image](https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-tjD0msfvlnY/AAAAAAAAAAI/AAAAAAAAAV0/QhR1NXGPs2k/w48-c-h48/photo.jpg)
The Red Scare, Nuclear Proliferation, and Aliens This is a film in which science fiction, peppered with a drippy theremin soundtrack, carries a relatively simple, straightforward message about the madness and paranoia of the Cold War. A fear of such unintelligible magnitude that it could potentially aggravate conflict even if a peacekeeping mission were to arrive from another planet. It would instantly be made into a self-aggrandizing us vs. them than East v. West. This is the basic premise of the film. It shows the self centeredness of this wardrum bureaucracy. This alien being, exactly the same as any human anatomically, is vilified not unlike any of our enemies in any grand war. He is made into something less than human, ironically showing greater benevolence, humanity, and good humor than anybody else on screen. The exception being perhaps the young boy, Bobby in his innocence. Everyone is terrified of control, the alien, Klaatu (or Mr. Carpenter as his assumed human moniker, is this a biblical reference perhaps?) can’t help but laugh. He’s afraid. It’s funny, even in all this chaos the white suburban 1950s idylls that Hollywood had put out in such classic TV standards as Leave it to Beaver are ironically imposed on this scen
Cast and credits
Actors | Billy Gray, Hugh Marlowe, Patricia Neal, Michael Rennie, Sam Jaffe |
Director | Robert Wise |
Additional information
Rotten tomatoes® score
Audio language
Subtitles
English
Rental period
Start within 30 days, finish within 48 hours.
Info cards
Run time
92 minutes
Rating
G
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