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      First Men in the Moon

      Released Nov 20, 1964 1h 42m Sci-Fi List
      67% 9 Reviews Tomatometer 54% 1,000+ Ratings Audience Score Around the turn of the 20th century, Joseph Cavor (Lionel Jeffries), a brilliant British scientist, creates his own spacecraft and takes a trip to the moon, accompanied by explorers Arnold Bedford (Edward Judd) and Kate Callender (Martha Hyer). After landing, they encounter an insect-like alien race that lives under the moon's surface, which has an air-like atmosphere. After glimpsing the extraterrestrial society, the group must soon escape back to Earth. Read More Read Less Watch on Fandango at Home Premiered Mar 13 Buy Now

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      Critics Reviews

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      Mike Massie Gone With The Twins Definitely unusual for a sci-fi project, the moon walkers' space suits don't have gloves, leaving their hands exposed to the harsh atmosphere. Rated: 3/10 Aug 24, 2020 Full Review Matt Brunson Creative Loafing The incessant comic relief, clumsy and cumbersome, too often gets in the way of a cracking good tale. Rated: 2.5/4 Apr 4, 2015 Full Review Steve Biodrowski Cinefantastique Despite its flaws, FIRST MEN IN THE MOON remains a charming entertainment that stirs our Sense of Wonder with its fantastic imagery... Rated: 3/5 Jul 26, 2014 Full Review Dennis Schwartz Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews A heavy slog. Rated: C+ May 6, 2008 Full Review Mark Bourne DVDJournal.com Never mind how Cavorite works or whether jumping about on the moon (with wires visible) wearing only a diving suit and no gloves is really a good idea.... [It] remains a delightful B-movie charmer ... that's still endearing and entertaining. Apr 5, 2006 Full Review Emanuel Levy EmanuelLevy.Com Rated: 2/5 Aug 17, 2005 Full Review Read all reviews

      Audience Reviews

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      Sparky B Another in a series of late 50s/early 60s sci-fi romps from the works of H. G. Wells. Back when Ray Harryhausen was a special effects wizard for us baby boomer kids. Does it entertain?....YES. Not to be taken completely seriously...it is, after all, just matinee fodder. Not as good as say.....Jason and the Argonauts (1963) or Journey to the Center of the Earth (1959) or The Time Machine (1960), but every bit as fun as all those other Harryhausen flicks we all adored as children. I, for one, STILL love them. This one included. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 08/25/23 Full Review David W A lovely, family orientated Sunday afternoon movie. Filled with wonderful character actors and a light, whimsical plot. A sci-fi movie without any genuine pretentions to real world science based on an H G Wells story. The film equivalent of being wrapped in a warm blanket and drinking a mug of hot chocolate with marshmallows on a cold day. The cynical need not apply as it's quite daft and is certainly much more fi than sci but anyone with a fondness for those kind of light family comedy drama movies that they simply don't make anymore will love it. Just don't think too much about the science.. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 01/31/23 Full Review Audience Member Harryhausen effects always look phony to Blobbo. Big hole at end plot, where girl? How man catch cold on moon? Film ambitious but lackluster. Tiny blobs up anyway. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/17/23 Full Review Audience Member This could have been a lot better than the final result, even though it was made in the mid sixties. The story begins in the "present" with a UN landing on the moon. For a spoiler reason, it reverts to the past where we're introduced to a Victorian scientist who develops a method of shielding gravity so that he can travel to the moon. His neighbour, a failed businessman and debtor, talks his way into joining him on the trip with hopes of selling the technique. The debtor's fiancee confronts him after the creditors arrive with the police at the precise moment they are launching and is dragged onboard. What they discover under the lunar surface is the meat of the film with Ray Harryhausen providing his trademark dynamation. The problem is the the half hour that follows after we meet the three central characters. It is played with the slapstick comedy of the era and is tonally different from the other 65 minutes. This has a jarring effect as nowadays the humour falls short, and in any event doesn't sit well with the thriller aspect drama. Edward Judd, who plays the debtor, is given a horrible script that makes him annoying. There's a certain sincerity in Lionel Jefferies' performance and character. Mather Hyer is solid and beautiful. As you'd the special effects {other than Harryhausen's} are weak by today's standard. If those offending 30 minutes were edited down to ten and the stale humour removed, it would be a watchable film. Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 02/27/23 Full Review Audience Member This odd early-sixties H.G. Wells adaptation centres on an eccentric inventor of an anti-gravity paint (think Flubber) who persuades a penniless neighbour and his girlfriend to join him on a trip to the moon. As you do. Thank God for Lionel Jeffries, mysteriously third-billed, as the inventor: the only member of the cast to transcend the ridiculous premise and give the enterprise some oomph and comic energy. There are a couple of matte shots that could have been inspiration for Kubrick's 2001, but otherwise this moon is 100% cheese, and matters aren't helped by Edward Judd's characteristically stolid and self-absorbed performance. Bizarrely, an uncredited Peter Finch turns up briefly as a very hammy bailiff. Perhaps he was filming on a neighbouring soundstage? Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/27/23 Full Review harry r A wonderfully fun movie that is great for the whole family that makes up for where it slumps in terms of the reasoning behind the science. You can easily fall into the movie despite. If you take it for what it is worth and enjoy the premise with out over analyzing it the movie is a great movie to watch at any time. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Read all reviews Post a rating

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      First Men in the Moon

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      Movie Info

      Synopsis Around the turn of the 20th century, Joseph Cavor (Lionel Jeffries), a brilliant British scientist, creates his own spacecraft and takes a trip to the moon, accompanied by explorers Arnold Bedford (Edward Judd) and Kate Callender (Martha Hyer). After landing, they encounter an insect-like alien race that lives under the moon's surface, which has an air-like atmosphere. After glimpsing the extraterrestrial society, the group must soon escape back to Earth.
      Director
      Nathan Juran
      Screenwriter
      Nigel Kneale, Jan Read
      Production Co
      Ameran Films
      Genre
      Sci-Fi
      Original Language
      English (United Kingdom)
      Release Date (Theaters)
      Nov 20, 1964, Original
      Release Date (Streaming)
      Jul 1, 2012
      Runtime
      1h 42m
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