The Day the Earth Stood Still has long been considered a science fiction masterpiece. In an era when science fiction usually meant bug-eyed monsters or clunky robots with a fetish for white women, this movie stood out because of its subdued nature and the strength of its message. This movie stands for something, and even though it’s understandably dated, it remains a masterpiece fifty-seven years after it first released because of the quality of the writing, acting, and directing.
A spaceship lands on a baseball field in Washington, D.C. The United States military surrounds it with troops, tanks, and howitzers. Suddenly a human-looking being dressed in a shiny jumpsuit and space helmet steps out of the ship. He reaches into his suit and pulls out a strange tube, the end of which opens like a blossoming flower, and a nervous soldier shoots him in the shoulder. While the military tries to restore order a seven-foot tall robot steps out of the ship and disintegrates the guns, tanks, and howitzers until the spaceman tells it to stop. The military takes him to Walter Reed hospital where later the spaceman tells an envoy from the president that he has a dire message for all of the world’s leaders, but what that message is, he won’t say.
If that brief description of the first few minutes of the movie sounded tense, keep in mind that watching it is even tenser. The filmmakers wonderfully capture the sense of fear that human beings would undoubtedly feel if we ever did encounter an alien being, and they maintain it all through the movie. The constant speculating by the talking heads on the radio and TV, who alternately call for people not to automatically fly off the handle or to kill him to ensure our way of life, and the very real fear shown in the people on the street gives a sense of gravity to the situation and honestly feels like how real people would react to the situation.
Heightening the tension is the film’s noir style. Light and shadow are masterfully used to highlight the fear and paranoia that runs throughout The Day the Earth Stood Still and helps keep a story about an encounter that affects the entire world on a highly personal, relatable level.
But the real strength of the movie lies in Michael Rennie’s portrayal of Klaatu the alien. Rennie radiates a cool, detached charm while at the same time conveys a real sense of ominousness. You can’t help but like him, but at the same time you’re not sure if you should, which places you in much the same situation as the characters in the movie.
In the end, what makes this movie work so well, and the reason why it’s considered a masterpiece of science fiction, is because everyone involved treated the subject manner in a serious, intelligent way, and made it a story about people – not monsters, spaceships, or special effects. Like other truly good works of science fiction, the science fiction elements serve the story, not the other way around, and it concerns itself with very basic, very important human questions. And even though parts of it are understandably dated, such as the use of a newspaper headline montage or the figures of speech, it’s those basic human issues that makes this movie just as relevant today as it was in 1951.
The movie is presented in Full Frame 1.33:1 aspect ratio with the sound available in English 5.1 Dolby Digital Surround, English Mono, Spanish Mono, and French Mono, and the both the sound and video quality are excellent.
Remake Preview (7:48) – This preview for the new version starring Keanu Reeves and Jennifer Connely plays like a preview just before the menu screen pops up. After watching Michael Rennie’s performance, I have to say that I don’t think Keanu will be able to do the role justice, but hopefully I’m wrong.
Commentary by Director Robert Wise and Nicholas Meyer (Director, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan) – Good commentary with lots of interesting information.
Commentary by Film Historians John Morgan, Steven Smith, William Stromberg, and Nick Redman – Another good commentary.
Isolated Score Track – Great moody, atmospheric music.
The Making of The Day the Earth Stood Still (23:52) – Very interesting, especially in the way the documentary talks about what was occurring around the world at the time the movie was being made and how it affected the movie’s message.
The Mysterious, Melodious Theremin (5:40) – A staple of science fiction movies, this was the first use Theremin in the genre.
The Day the Earth Stood Still Main Title Live Performance by Peter Pringle (2:17) – I think I could watch somebody play the Theremin all day: very cool featurette.
Farewell to the Master: A Reading by Jameson K. Price (41:27) – This story by Harry Bates served as the loose basis for the movie. It’s a fun pulp tale from the glory days of science fiction magazines, but other than one or two minor details, it’s almost completely different from the movie.
Fox Movietones (6:20) – An old newsreel from 1951 that’s an amazing look at what was going on in the world at the time The Day the Earth Stood Still was made.
Teaser Trailer (1:09)
Theatrical Trailer (2:09)
The Day the Earth Stood Still 2008 Trailer (1:48) – This version is way more special effects heavy than the original, which makes me a little worried. Hopefully they’ll keep to the original idea.
Decoding “Klaatu Barada Nikto”: Science Fiction as Metaphor (16:13) – Like many of the featurettes on this release, this one goes on quite a bit about the events and politics that were going on at the time of the movie. It’s a very interesting look at how science fiction can be used to comment on important matters.
A Brief History of Flying Saucers (34:00) – This should really be called A Brief History of American Flying Saucers because it doesn’t address any sightings in other parts of the world. That aside, this is an interesting look at the UFO phenomenon in the US which definitely favors the skeptics.
The Astounding Harry Bates (11:02) – A rather sad look at one of science fiction’s forgotten writers and editors.
Edmund North: The Man Who Made the Earth Stand Still (14:43) – A great, but brief, biography of a very versatile, socially-conscious screenwriter.
Race to Oblivion: A Documentary Short Written and Produced by Edmund North – This first aired in 1982 and was sponsored by the Las Angeles chapter of Physicians for Social Responsibility and was hosted by Burt Lancaster. North was passionate about nuclear disarmament and this short is positively chilling. Lancaster’s interview with one of the few survivors of the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki nearly made me cry.
I love science fiction, and this movie rightly deserves its label as a masterpiece of the genre. The acting, directing, writing, and cinematography were all top-notch, but more importantly, this was a movie that set out to tell a real story with a real message and wasn’t a showcase for special effects. My only concern is that younger viewers who didn’t grow up watching old black and white movies like I did when I was a kid may not be able to get into this movie because it’s too (pardon the pun) alien. Still, this belongs on every science fiction fan’s shelf. Highly recommended.
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20th Century Fox presents The Day the Earth Stood Still. Directed by Robert Wise. Starring Michael Rennie, Patricia Neal, Hugh Marlowe, Sam Jaffe, Billy Gray, Frances Bavier, and Lock Martin. Written by Edmund North. Running time: 92 minutes. Rated Not Rated. Released on DVD: December 2, 2008. Available at Amazon.
