The Wild Blue Yonder

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The Wild Blue Yonder

2005

1h 22m

Sci-Fi

Documentary

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

69%

Tomatometer

35 Reviews

56%

Popcornmeter

2,500+ Ratings

The film follows a hypothetical proposition: a group of astronauts are circling the earth in a spacecraft, but they cannot return, as our planet has become uninhabitable. The cause of this remains open; all-out war, outbreak of a new disease beyond control, radiation after the complete disappearance of the ozone layer, or whatever. The crew of the spacecraft has to find a more hospitable place out there in space, and releases a probe from their cargo bay, Galileo. But Galileo -- after sending back very disquieting data -- has to be sent on a suicide mission.

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Critics Consensus

An intriguing blend of low budget and high concept, The Wild Blue Yonder brings Werner Herzog's distinctive sensibilities entertainingly to bear on the sci-fi milieu.

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Anthony Quinn

Independent (UK)

Herzog remains a one-off in German cinema - eccentric, infuriating, cherishable - and nothing in this will detract from his legend.

Rated: 2/5

Jun 15, 2007

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Derek Malcolm

London Evening Standard

An unlikely combination, but then Herzog never ceases to surprise and here, despite some dull patches, does so with an off-centre film of an almost dreamlike quality.

Rated: 3/5

Jun 15, 2007

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Phelim O'Neill

Guardian

This is just further proof that Herzog can make a film about anything, and indeed, from anything.

Rated: 3/5

Jun 15, 2007

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Fernando F. Croce

CinePassion

Raw materials are mingled with staged performance, context is scrambled, all of it is transformative

Aug 28, 2009

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Jennie Kermode

Eye for Film

Rated: 4.5/5

Dec 7, 2007

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Rob Humanick

Projection Booth

Herzog's use of cinema defies the very fabric of our known world.

Rated: A

Jul 3, 2007

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jimmybisk

I have to say that I think this was a significantly better effort than the previous outing. I did get quite nostalgic seeing Donna and the Doctor off on their own adventuring like old times. The story had a significant creep factor & of course seeing Wilfred (Bernard Cribbins) at the end was a really pleasent surprise. It wasn't the best of the best however and I found some bits a tad tedious and predictable (still a little peppered with politically correct drama) as well as harking back to tried and trusted formulas which felt a little familiar (how many stories have featured dopplegangers of the Doctor + campanions), but overall a much better effort.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

12/04/23

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Ignac P

This time it was classic RTD as well - but much for the better than last time! The horror element and Wilf made the episode thrilling and warm. EDIT: INCORRECT REVIEW, PLEASE DELETE

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

12/03/23

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William H

Much better episode than the week before. Still had a dumb beginning but once if got going it was a great story, quite creepy in places, and good performances from Tennant and Tate. Also made a change from the usual earthbound stories that RTD seems to revel in.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

12/03/23

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John A

Bizarre and a bit tepid but also fascinating and cosmically profound.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

11/15/23

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Audience Member

Herzog's pessimistic, bewildering observation of humanity at its climax is more-so a mood piece than an entertainment. It creates an environment with minimalist technique.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

01/14/23

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Audience Member

Bold and hypnotic. Hertzog blends real footage of a NASA shuttle mission, exploration underneath the ice shelf in Antarctica, and mathematicians explaining the gravity tunnels between planets and weaves a fictional narrative around it all with Brad Dourif playing an alien from Alpha Centari. The music is incredibly alien and often nearly overpowers the imagery onscreen, which says something as some of the footage is pretty incredible. The underwater sequences is repeated in Hertzog's later documentary about the Antarctica, Encounters at the End of the World, but here is used convincingly as an alien landscape. Its just amazing to see how well he weaves footage of things as mundane as a satellite being built and astronauts exercising on the shuttle into a movie about a mission to another planet. Its really quite inventive.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

02/07/23

Full Review

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Werner Herzog

Director

Brad Dourif

The Alien

Werner Herzog

Writer

André Singer

Producer

Lucki Stipetic

Executive Producer

Christine Le Goff

Executive Producer

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Synopsis

The film follows a hypothetical proposition: a group of astronauts are circling the earth in a spacecraft, but they cannot return, as our planet has become uninhabitable. The cause of this remains open; all-out war, outbreak of a new disease beyond control, radiation after the complete disappearance of the ozone layer, or whatever. The crew of the spacecraft has to find a more hospitable place out there in space, and releases a probe from their cargo bay, Galileo. But Galileo -- after sending back very disquieting data -- has to be sent on a suicide mission.

Director: Werner Herzog
Producer: André Singer
Screenwriter: Werner Herzog
Production Co: Werner Herzog Filmproduktion, WestPark Productions
Genre: Sci-Fi, Documentary
Original Language: English
Release Date (Streaming): Mar 9, 2021
Runtime: 1h 22m

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