Customer Reviews

Red Planet Mars

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Now here's a film that would never be made nowadays, with its remarkable confluence of science fiction and religion and an ending that is literally "The Beginning." You won't see any Martians here, nor any rockets, spaceships, or other images you probably associate with science fiction. Red Planet Mars is all about "the message," one that modern audiences will likely resist much more strongly than the original 1952 American audience. The film's somewhat open-ended conclusion allows for rejection as well as acceptance - another strong point in the movie's favor -and one person's outright dismissal will be another's inspiration. Red Planet Mars is very much a thinking man's movie from the Golden Age of science fiction.

A young Peter Graves plays scientist Chris Cronyn, who has spent years working alongside his wife Linda (Andrea King) constructing a communication device powerful enough to reach Mars. As astronomical observations begin to reveal highly provocative changes on the Martian surface, Cronyn finally gets a response to the signals he has been sending toward the Red Planet. They're just the same signals being sent back his way, but he eventually figures out how to communicate with the aliens, making him an instant celebrity. Unbeknownst to him or the now heavily involved American government, the man who first came up with the technology, German war criminal Franz Calder (Herbert Berghof) is listening to all of Cronyn's messages with his own transceiver, developed with the help of the Soviets who got him out of jail. For the Soviets, hearing all of Cronyn's questions and the replies he receives is just as good as communicating with the Martians themselves.

This contact with Mars quickly results in sweeping, fairly ridiculous changes. Learning that the Martians need no fossil fuels to produce more energy than they know what to do with and can feed a thousand people for a year off of one acre of farmland, the whole American economy all but collapses overnight, American generals contemplate a nuclear first-strike attack on the Soviet Union, while the Soviets themselves sit back and happily watch Western society crumble. Then, the messages from Mars suddenly take on an overtly religious theme, leading to even more sweeping changes across the entire globe.

But are these messages truly coming from Mars? And if they aren't, do you dare let the truth get out after all of the transformative changes that have just taken place? Some viewers, especially liberals and those of the anti-Christian persuasion, will dismiss this film as a product of crazy right-wingers and Cold War paranoia, but those who choose to take the film at face value can't help but appreciate the very big questions it asks - in terms of both personal responsibility and the agents of social change. Many will also find it very inspirational in not only a spiritual but an honest-to-God, unabashed Christian sense. Red Planet Mars is truly a unique science fiction film that deserves more notice than it has received over the years.

Rival scientists from the USSR and the US are engaged in a Contact-the-Martians Race. The scientist from the US makes contact first (or does he?) and those stereotypical 1950s commies (evil vodka swilling atheists all) are upset because the superior Martians with a perfect society are Democratic Christians. So the USSR sets out to prove it is all a hoax being conducted against the world, including against the US government, by the american scientist.

In an extremely interesting twist on the usual 1950s sci-fi movie mindset, the originally thrilled US government also becomes afraid and starts to question its scientist's veracity and motives when the Martians' promises of cheap energy, long life, etc., for all humans on Earth begins to panic big union and corporate interests (fuel companies, pharmaceuticals, etc), and so the scientist also has to fight against his own government trying to put a gag on him (hey, they know where their campaign contributions came from). Even "worse", I'm sure, is the fact that the Martians appear to be Socialists. This all helps make the film far more relevant to today than most 1950s sci-fi since although the "Communist scourge" of the USSR no longer exists, rampant Capitalism is still a threat to Democracy.

At turns, this is a very good sci-fi movie which shows great creativity and insight, or a sugary schlockfest filled with caricatures. In either case, it is entertaining and makes worthwhile viewing.

I thoroughly enjoyed this Sci-Fi classic 1952 production and feel it has been largely under-rated and ignored!

If you've grown tired of the portrayal of Martians or aliens as nasty, freaky bug creatures, "Red Planet Mars" is for you!

It uses a lot of religious symbolism and touches on issues of atheism and theocracy...

I also enjoyed Peter Graves performance as the "pure scientist' who is only following his profession and then finds himself in a theological, ethical dilemma...

The scientist's wife played by Andrea King is interesting character... as she is torn between her fifties dutiful wife role of supporting her husband no matter what and her strong conservative Christian values which sound a lot like the religious paranoia. She has occasional outbursts that seem unreal at times and you wonder how a scientist could have ever married her!

Eventually the military and security establishment, as usual wants to control the release of these messages from the more "highly advanced" Martians...

The message isn't totally Christian either as the American President eventually makes clear that the religious values are shared by Christians, Moslems and Buddhists!

I thought a lot of the above themes...even, contact via hydrogen tube radio showed a lot of foresight and you can really see how they are played out in the recent film "Contact". I'd recommend watching "Red Planet Mars" first and then view "Contact" to see what I mean!

This is a toughie to review, as the only way to review it is practically tell the story.

So lets suffice to say that the movie was made in a time when everyone was into the red scare. A nuclear family has the means and knowledge to build a device (from public domain information) to transmit to a 1952 version of Mars.

Messages appear to return. The content disrupts economics and supports the concept of theocracies over democracies (Iran is a theocracy). However it is not so much the messages that catch your eye, as the 1950's stereotypes. The nuclear family is just missing the family dog. The wife even thought standing beside her husband is more behind him and is scared of her own shadow. The commies are ruthless and dumb. The president (this is before we started to degrade presidents) is fair and benign. I can go on but you get the idea. Now it is amusing to watch in retrospect. But if any of these people existed today it would be scary.

Peter Graves gets to play the good guy "look to the future" father.

Marvin Miller (Arjenian) the confused bad guy (typical 50's commie) can bee seen again as Michael Anthony in the 1955 TV series "Millionaire, The"

In these early days of the 21st Century, Christianity is of dubious cache among the semi-educated literati of America. Phoo on them all!

"Red Planet Mars" is an inspiring SF vision of the Christian ethic, from a time when atheistic Communism was known for what it was--60 million dead at Stalin's hand, liars and traitors in the US (The Hollywood 10, Julius & Ethel Rosenberg, Alger Hiss, "Col." House and more), and there really was a secret plot to overthrow the United States!

This movie, born in that time or confusion and fear, shows that Christ's simple lessons work even in a nuclear world. To those bigots out there who despise Christianity, or those ostrich-like intellectuals who still believe in the innate goodness of Communism, GET A LIFE! The rest of the world ought to see this great film.

'Howards End' + 'Sense and Sensibility' = 'Red Planet Mars'

Expect a real treat from one of the most intelligent sci-fi films of the 1950s -- although it gets little credit (largely because some people are uncomfortable with the overt Christian message). But first a word of warning: in this movie, nobody goes to Mars and no Martians invade the Earth. It's a moody and intense story about a research project at a mountain-top laboratory where husband and wife scientists (Peter Graves and Andrea King) succeed in making contact with intelligent beings on Mars . Neither the scientists nor the audience actually get to see the Martians. The messages exchanged by Earth and Mars are sent in the form of a complex code, displayed as flickering lines on a video monitor. Graves' transmitter was originally invented by an ex-Nazi scientist -- and unbeknownst to Graves, this same ex-Nazi scientist now occupies a secret Russian lab, located in the Andes mountains. The Russians want him to listen in on the Earth/Mars conversation, hoping to gain advanced scientific knowledge from the Martians.

Oddly enough, the weird manner in which the messages are received is the film's chief strength. The eerie mood created by the blinking monitors enhances the alien nature of the unseen Martians. The scene in which the Martians send their first decoded message is electrifying. After a common language has been established, the Martians describe their highly advanced agricultural methods and energy-producing techniques. As a result, Earth's economy begins to collapse because people think the Martian super-science is going to make their jobs obsolete!

More importantly, the film's Christian message is presented boldly and clearly, through direct references to God and Christ. When the Martians send a message that suggests they are ruled directly by God, the news causes a world-wide religious upheaval. The atheistic government in Russia is overthrown and the Soviet satellite countries are released from communist rule. Several reviewers in past years have criticized the film as being naive for suggesting such possibilities. But the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1992 and the slow but steady revival of Christianity in Russia has vindicated RED PLANET MARS to some degree. Reviewers have also been confused by plot twists which lead them to believe the ex-Nazi scientist actually sent the `Martian' messages to trick the Americans. You'll have to pay careful attention to the plot to figure out who actually sent what.

The laboratory set is extremely well designed, filled with intriguing gizmos reminiscent of the Krell lab in `Forbidden Planet'. The scientific terms and concepts used in the story are admirably accurate. The story is set in the `near future', so watch for technological innovations like flat screen TV's and remote controls, years ahead of their time in 1952. The climax is both unexpected and uplifting -- a triumph of good over evil. Give this one a fair chance and it will amaze and inspire you. Graves and King give dynamic performances. Herbert Berghof as the ex-Nazi scientist is excellent. Marvin Miller (voice of Robby the Robot) is a treat as the Russian KGB agent. Morris Ankrum's presence is both mandatory and welcome in any 1950s sci-fi film. Directory Harry Horner was born in Soviet Czechoslovakia, so he knows about communist suppression first hand. The prerecorded tape, available from Amazon.com is of excellent quality. If you like this film, check out `The Space Children" from director Jack Arnold.

What a strange, strange film this is. One could almost consider this a low-budget, early companion piece to CONTACT...both are first-contact stories, and both have their own political agenda (different though they are). I can't effectively review this without giving away plot elements, so this will have to suffice:

A scientist receives a message perceived to have come from Mars. As if that's not enough to throw the whole world into controlled chaos, the messages later purport to come from the supreme being itself, touching off unprecedented religious fervor among Earth's inhabitants.

A film of reactions and reactionaries, of religion and politics and studies on mob mentality, all rolled into one slightly cheesy fifties sci-fi thriller. It may not be *good*, but it's FASCINATING. For what ultimately is a fairly simple plot, the storyline has enough twists and turns to be a river in Colorado. Its sheer audacity at times is jaw-dropping...slot this one in with a few other B movies and it stands out as being far more ambitious than most. I recommend a viewing.

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DESPITE THE CRAZY EFFECTS, THIS HAS SOME GOOD ACTING. SINCE IT'S A CULT CLASSIC IT HAS SOME GOOD ACTORS ESPECIALLY PETER GRAVES

DESPITE THE CRAZY EFFECTS, THIS HAS SOME GOOD ACTING. SINCE IT'S A CULT CLASSIC IT HAS SOME GOOD ACTORS ESPECIALLY PETER GRAVES