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Barry & Regina's Movies old favorites The Good, the Great, and the Gump Copyright ©  2003 by Barry B. Longyear

MOVIE QUICK SHOTS OLD FAVORITES  ENEMY MINE THE POUND EMAILING

 

The Day The Earth Stood Still: (Fox, B&W, 1951) Michael Rennie, Patricia Neal, Hugh Marlowe, Sam Jaffe, Billy Gray. Directed by Robert Wise, screen play by Edmund H. North, and based on a story by Harry Bates. In 2001 at Windycon there was a panel of SF and fantasy authors and fans who got together to pick the number one SF film of all time. This is the film that got the most points. Regina and I both got a vote. I was 59 when I voted and I was 9 when I first saw this film (and with all the other kids of my generation, memorized those famous words, "Klatu barada nikto," just in case.) Gort the robot was cool, the ship was cool, showing a big-time professor how to do his math was cool, the Bernard Herrmann score was super-cool, and the message is just as relevant today as it was right after WWII and well into Korea. A single mom story, as well. The story, acting, and special effects hold up. The thrill wasn't all in the message. It was talking to that space man, seeing that ship, having the robot take you into that ship (shut down everything on earth, bust Klatu's body out of jail, and, for his next trick, bring Klatu back to life), and that haunting, beautiful score. According to the late artist and editor Jack Gaughan, Herrmann's score for this film was the first genuine SF music. All I have to do is hear that opening sound coming from my TV, and I'm drawn like the proverbial moth. This is Regina's all-time favorite film, it is one of my favorites, and is a must for any SF collector (see below).

Regina A+ Barry A