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DVD When Worlds Collide
Winner of the 1951 Academy Award for Best Special Effects, this science fiction extravaganza set a new standard for the realistic depiction of cinematic disasters. Of course, it's a quaint curiosity by today's technological standards, but as produced by visual effects pioneer George Pal, this story of Earth's collision with a runaway star is still a dazzling example of screen sci-fi from the '50s, when special effects were entering a new stage of advancement. Despite scientists' warnings about the star's destructive potential, government officials refuse to take action that could cause international panic, but a consortium of private industrialists prepare for the worst by building a gigantic spaceship--an ark for humanity to begin life anew on a distant planet. Who will be chosen to go, and who left behind? As earthquakes roar and massive tidal waves devastate entire cities, the huge rocket prepares for take-off from its miles-long launching ramp--ready to abandon the shattered Earth! Although it's more enjoyable now as a cinematic museum piece, When Worlds Collide remains a milestone of its kind, leading the way for many more screen disasters that followed this movie's still-worthy example. --Jeff Shannon
Let's face it: with very few exceptions, science fiction movies don't age well in terms of the "science" part (in fact, the only exception I can think of offhand is 2001; even the original Star Wars trilogy seems a bit campy to me when I watch it now). Then again, it's never been the special effects or the scientific accuracy that made a film enjoyable to me, even though those are admirable traits. It's the characters and the story that I care about, and this movie handles both extremely well.
Just Good Fun... for a disaster movie.
Truth be told, if you listened to the negative reviews of this film, you would be cheating yourself out of a fun adventure. Yes, it's dated. Yes, the story is tawdry. But the point of this kind of film is about expressing the spirit of science fiction, the flat out incredible nature of the crisis and how people respond. No, it's not at all realistic, but who cares? It's a great little film even with all it's supposed flaws.
I've read the books and thoroughly enjoyed them. I still like the film even after reading them. The whole idea of science fiction in that day, just as with 1950's "Destination Moon", an equally ridiculous film if you listen to the detractors, was to entertain people with the "idea" of "what if" supposition.
Critics of these kinds tend to be exactly the opposite with more modern fare, thinking films like "Red Planet" and "The Astronaut's Wife" are great art because they have a more realistic depiction of space and space ships and alien terrains, but lack the essentials of good story telling.
I find the incredible lack of imagination that goes into modern science fiction films to be disturbing to say the least. Films like "When Worlds Collide" stimulate the imagination to think beyond the possible and to embrace the impossible.
Who didn't like "Armaggedon"? It was completely ridiculous. But I loved it because it didn't take itself too seriously and the pile of improbable events and "They would never do that" moments could make the film unwatchable to the critical eye.
So a film like this to be compared with "When Worlds Collide" is valid because both films not only dealt with impending doom of humankind, but also used, in practical terms, improbable solutions to save humanity. Hurrah for the imagination.
And hurrah for "When Worlds Collide". It's as much fun today as when I first saw it over thirty years ago. If you like good story telling, you will like this film.
A Quintessential 1950's Sci-Fi Film
Based upon the 1933 novel by Edwin Balmer (1883-1959) and Philip Wylie (1902-1971), "When Worlds Collide" was adapted to film in 1951 under the direction of Rudolph Maté (1898-1964) and with a budget of approximately $936,000. (By comparison in the same year, this was only slightly less than the budget used for "The Day the Earth Stood Still", but a small fraction of the $7,000,000 budget spent for "Quo Vadis"). The story begins at a remote observatory where the eminent astronomer, Dr. Emery Bronson (Hayden Rorke, 1910-1987) discovers that a rogue star with its orbiting planet (that he names Bellus and Zyra respectively) may be on a collision course with Earth. In absolute secrecy, Dr. Bronson sends his horrific data to his colleague Dr. Cole Hendron (Larry Keating, 1896-1963) in New York via the leather-jacketed, ace pilot & courier Dave Randall (Richard Derr, 1918-1992). With the assistance of his daughter Joyce Hendron (Barbara Rush), Dr. Hendron analyzes Dr. Bronson's data on the "Differential Analyzer" (an old-fashioned analog computer) and confirms the trajectories of Bellus and Zyra. Dr. Hendron confers with other scientists and world leaders to ask them to build rockets to ferry as many people, animals and plants as possible away from the doomed Earth and to a new home on Zyra. (The similarity to the Judeo-Christian myth of Noah's ark is obvious.) However, the findings fall on deaf ears, except for the aging, wheelchair-bound millionaire Sydney Stanton (John Hoyt, 1905-1991), who agrees to fund the building of a single rocket that can take just over 40 passengers as long as he has a seat. The film follows the construction of the rocket, the devastating effects that the gravity of Zyra and Bellus have upon Earth as they approach, and the impact that the impending doom has upon the social structure.
For a film that was made long before computer-generated special effects existed, the special effects used in "When Worlds Collide" are effective and entertaining. It's especially fun to see how people in the early 1950's envisioned the types of technology that could be used to travel into space years before any nation had created an actual space program or trained any astronauts. Though the science used in the film was flawed and film's meager budget prevented a more realistic vision of a Zyran landscape, neither seriously adversely affects the film-watching experience. Overall, I rate the 1951 "When Worlds Collide" with 4 out of 5 stars and highly recommend it to any sci-fi aficionado.
This 1956 pop adaptation of Shakespeare's The Tempest is one of the best, most influential science fiction movies ever made. Its space explorers are the models for the crew of Star Trek's Enterprise, and the film's robot is clearly the prototype for Robby in Lost in Space. Walter Pidgeon is the Prospero figure, presiding over a paradisiacal world with his lovely young daughter and their servile droid. When the crew of a spaceship lands on the planet, they become aware of a sinister invisible force that threatens to destroy them. Great special effects and a bizarre electronic score help make this movie as fresh, imaginative, and fun as it was when first released. More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Walter Pidgeon Director(s): Fred M. Wilcox DVD Release Date: Released the 18 April 2000 Usually ships in 5 to 7 days
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After the success of 1950's Destination Moon and 1951's When Worlds Collide, visionary producer George Pal brought the classic H.G. Wells story of a Martian invasion to the big screen, and it instantly became a science fiction classic and winner of the 1953 Academy Award for Best Special Effects. It's a work of frightening imagination, with its manta-ray spaceships armed with cobra-like probes that shoot a white-hot disintegration ray. As formations of alien ships continue to wreak destruction around the globe, the military is helpless to stop this enemy while scientists race to find an effective weapon. Gene Barry and Ann Robinson play the hero and heroine roles that were de rigueur for movies like this in the '50s, and their encounter with one of the Martians is as creepy... More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Gene Barry - Ann Robinson - Les Tremayne Director(s): Byron Haskin DVD Release Date: Released the 01 November 2005 Usually ships in 24 hours
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A hallmark of the science fiction genre as well as a wry commentary on the political climate of the 1950s, The Day the Earth Stood Still is a sci-fi movie less concerned with special effects than with a social parable. A spacecraft lands in Washington, D.C., carrying a humanoid messenger from another world (Michael Rennie) imparting a warning to the people of Earth to cease their violent behavior. But panic ensues as the messenger lands and is shot by a nervous soldier. His large robot companion destroys the Capitol as the messenger escapes the confines of the hospital. He moves in with a family as a boarder and blends into society to observe the full range of the human experience. Director Robert Wise (West Side Story) not only provides one of the most recognizable icons of... More Info about this DVD DVD Release Date: Released the 04 March 2003 Usually ships in 24 hours
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A textbook example of '50s-era science fiction, Earth vs. the Flying Saucers boasts not only a solid script and competent performances, but some genuinely impressive stop-motion effects courtesy of one of the industry's uncontested masters, Ray Harryhausen. Scientist Hugh Marlowe (who faced a more benevolent invader from space five years earlier in The Day the Earth Stood Still) discovers that UFOs are responsible for the destruction of a series of exploratory space rockets launched by his space exploration project. The saucers' helmeted pilots land on Earth and deliver an ultimatum to humanity via Marlowe: fealty or complete annihilation.
Harryhausen's painstakingly intricate saucers and the destruction they wreak (particularly during an assault on Washington, D.C.) are... More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Hugh Marlowe - Joan Taylor Director(s): Fred F. Sears DVD Release Date: Released the 17 September 2002 Usually ships in 24 hours
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