The Day the Earth Stood Still

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David L I must've been five or six when I first saw this film and yet when I watched it again 50 years later I was still on the edge of my seat as the saucer lands on the White House lawn. yes it is a 50s movie but that is a huge part of its charm to this day. It's critique of the insane idea of surrounding an extraterrestrial craft with tanks and fidgety young soldiers is brilliant, and it still terrifies us today to think of the sort of lame brains that are often in charge at the top. I love the comparison between the way the military treats the visitor and the way the scientists and cultural leaders do. The theremin score still makes the hairs stand up on the back of my neck! This movie is a must see if you want to understand our time Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 12/15/24 Full Review Tam W Good movie for it's age and still worth a watch if you enjoy classics. Not great but not bad either. Just fine. Rated 2.5/5 Stars •  Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 09/15/24 Full Review Sérgio N Reassistido depois de mais de 10 anos. Esse filme possui um ritmo incrível. É impossível parar de assistir. Uma obra de arte em diversos sentidos. O discurso final é impecável: "Deve haver segurança para todos, ou ninguém estará seguro." Rated 3/5 Stars •  Rated 3 out of 5 stars 06/29/24 Full Review John S The consensus is that this movie "isn't" didactic? I disagree. Klaatu came from a society on a planet ruled by robots they created to govern themselves, that could turn them into dust for having a violent moment. That's carrot and stick and the lesson is mandatory. (Though it really shouldn't be that hard to not be violent.) Maybe it IS a utopian society. Anyhow... Very enjoyable film. I do enjoy a morality tale through a sci-fi lens. I'm rewatching this for the first time in decades thinking we humans haven't learned a damned thing. A movie made in 1951 could still be a great education to many in 2024. This movie. Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 04/21/24 Full Review Steve D It may look dated but the story isn't. Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 04/04/24 Full Review Matthew B The 1950s was a decade in cinema that included a lot of stories about hostile alien visitations. Imagine this one. A flying saucer lands on the grass just outside the White House, causing frightened locals to run for cover. An alien steps out who cannot be easily killed by bullets. Accompanying him is a menacing robot that is impervious to damage, and which vaporises the army's weaponry. This alien comes with a threat to destroy the world, but he soon escapes the custody of the army. Cut to scenes of a frightened woman ushering her child into the house. This alien talks about levelling New York or sinking the Rock of Gibraltar as a show of power, before finally paralysing the planet with his superior technology. The people of Earth resist, and the alien finally returns to his flying saucer and leaves the planet. Here are the ingredients of an exciting alien invasion movie, but doubtless you will balk at the idea that I am accurately describing The Day the Earth Stood Still. We all know this is about a well-meaning, Christ-like alien who brings a message of peace. While movies such as The Thing from Another World upset some sci-fi fans by setting in motion a wave of monster movies, The Day the Earth Stood Still was one of the ground-breaking sci-fi stories of the 1950s that showed contact with a friendly alien. Actually neither description is accurate, and yet the film arguably contains elements from both of the summaries I just gave. Klaatu is not a malevolent alien with evil intentions towards the Earth, but the prevailing mood of the film is one of fear, reflected in the haunting and eerie music score provided by Bernard Herrmann. At the helm was an experienced and professional director, Robert Wise. Wise tries to make the story as realistic and believable as possible. He tells the story in the cinema vérité style that would become common in sci-fi films of this decade. Wise included scenes showing military experts considering the threat, journalists and newsreaders describing the story, and politicians thinking about what to do next. By way of contrast, the film also includes ordinary people discussing what they are hearing on the news, and giving their impressions. Klaatu's role in arriving on Earth is not to negotiate peace or decide the planet's future, but to warn us against a risk that he cannot prevent. Inter-planetary peace and harmony has only been achieved with the threat of total annihilation, an argument that sounds curiously similar to that applied to the nuclear deterrent. It is an interesting thought. I would not wish to push it too far and suggest that Klaatu is a threatening or intimidating figure. I doubt many people who have viewed the film would be convinced if I did. Klaatu is a benign and appealing figure, but his message is not a blandly friendly one – he brings a dire warning with him, and it is unclear at the end whether we are mature enough as a species to heed his words. I wrote a longer appreciation of The Day the Earth Stood Still on my blog page if you would like to read more of my thoughts: https://themoviescreenscene.wordpress.com/2019/04/13/the-day-the-earth-stood-still-1951/ Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 08/23/23 Full Review Read all reviews

The Day the Earth Stood Still

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