Conquest of Space

Released Apr 20, 1955

1h 20m

Sci-Fi

List

50%

Tomatometer

6 Reviews

26%

Audience Score

500+ Ratings

A captain (Walter Brooke), his son (Eric Fleming), a sergeant (Mickey Shaughnessy) and crew take off from a space station in a rocketship for Mars.

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Variety Staff

Variety

Most of the time the pacing is slowed by the talky script.

Mar 26, 2009

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David Pirie

Time Out

A fascinating relic.

Feb 9, 2006

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André Bazin

L'Obs (France)

It unfortunately confirms ten times over what I have written in the past about science-fiction movies: Hollywood's repeated failures in this field ironically derive from the most realizable and least expensive element, the screenplay.

Dec 8, 2021

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Emanuel Levy

EmanuelLevy.Com

Rated: 3/5

Aug 5, 2005

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David Cornelius

eFilmCritic.com

Despite the occasional sour note, it manages to zing along quite fine.

Rated: 3/5

Feb 2, 2005

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Steve Crum

Kansas City Kansan

Conquest, no; a lot of Space, yes

Rated: 1/5

Oct 19, 2004

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Audience Member

Overall, carrying a few likeable aspects, such as the creativity and futuristic concepts in the world of sci-fi and space, you can't help but admire what the Conquest of Space is. The premise is simple, and the film introduces its characters before delivering a plot that goes from one issue to the next. While not overly exciting and memorable due to the dialogue, which consists of characters being either over the top or complaining a lot, for the year it was made, the creativity and concept of the future are something to enjoy.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

01/11/23

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Audience Member

Unlikely in all respects: the goofy cast, the imitation WWII banter, the silly science, the plot, the ...wait, is that Phil Foster on Mars?

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

01/17/23

Full Review

Audience Member

When I first saw this as a 14 year old in 1965 on the big screen 'Conquest of Space' totally blew my mind. Returning today and viewing this rushed collaboration after Bryan Haskin & George Pal's epic 'War of the Worlds' it's pretty easy to see why this effort tanked at the box office and finished off the career of Pal at Paramount. While the intentions are admirable - examining what is the nature of mankind's existence in the cosmos - the dialogue is welded like a sledgehammer while the militarization of otherworldly travel reduces this to more or less 'Stalag 13' in space. Seen today, the effects run wildly from some truly beautiful moments such as a deep-space burial to obvious models on strings trailing smoke while encountering a rogue meteor. Beyond the erratic special effects - and an exciting soundtrack - this was the second worse effort by George Pal next to his later 'Atlantis: The Lost Continent'.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

02/11/23

Full Review

bill t

Certainly interesting movie about a group of astronauts suddenly chosen to go to Mars. However when they get there, the usual happens, eg astronaut gets killed, crewmember goes nuts, and yes, they get stuck! Nothing REALLY interesting happens on Mars, it's just there, no aliens or anything, so you're just waiting for something to happen. It never does.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

03/30/23

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Audience Member

A serious exploration of a manned mission to Mars; it rises above the genre conventions of its time and delivers a compelling (if contracted) character study.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/07/23

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keith m

One of the first sic-fi movies I ever watched growing up. Based on artist Chesley Bonestell's work who I greatly admired. What a great movie for a kid growing up during the space race!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

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Byron Haskin

Director

Walter Brooke

Gen. Samuel T. Merritt

Eric Fleming

Capt. Barney Merritt

Mickey Shaughnessy

Sgt. Mahoney

Phil Foster

Jackie Siegle

William Redfield

Roy Cooper

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Synopsis

A captain (Walter Brooke), his son (Eric Fleming), a sergeant (Mickey Shaughnessy) and crew take off from a space station in a rocketship for Mars.

Director: Byron Haskin
Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Genre: Sci-Fi
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Apr 20, 1955, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Jul 1, 2013
Runtime: 1h 20m

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