The Day the Earth Stood Still is a 1951 black-and-white science fiction film that tells the story of a humanoid alien visitor who comes to Earth with a warning. The film stars Michael Rennie, Patricia Neal, Sam Jaffe, and Hugh Marlowe, under the direction of Robert Wise. Screenwriter Edmund H. North based the screenplay on the 1940 Harry Bates' short story "Farewell to the Master." The score was composed by Bernard Herrmann and used two theremin electronic instruments. The film is often considered by movie historians to be one of the classics of the science-fiction genre.
A 2008 remake starred Keanu Reeves.
Plot
At the beginning of the film, a flying saucer lands on the Ellipse in President's Park, Washington, D.C. Its pilot Klaatu (Michael Rennie) emerges and declares he has come on a mission of goodwill. When he opens a small, menacing-looking device, he is shot and wounded by a nervous soldier. In response, a large humanoid robot called Gort (Lock Martin) steps out of the ship and disintegrates all weapons present without harming the soldiers. Klaatu orders him to stop and remarks that the device he carried was in fact a gift to the President that could have been used to study life on other planets. Klaatu is taken to an army hospital, where he recovers. The military attempts to enter Klaatu's ship, but finds it impregnable, while Gort stands motionless outside.
Klaatu meets the President's secretary, Mr. Harley (Frank Conroy), and reveals he has a message he wants the whole world to hear, to which Harley replies that the divided world leaders would not even be able to agree on a meeting place. When Klaatu suggests he live among ordinary people to get to know them better, Harley informs him that he is in protective custody. Klaatu escapes to a boarding house, assuming the alias "Mr. Carpenter," the name on the laundry label of a suit he has taken. Among the residents are Helen Benson (Patricia Neal), a widow whose husband was killed in World War II, and her son Bobby (Billy Gray). The next morning, Klaatu listens to a paranoid radio commentator and to the boarders' speculations on the subject of his flying saucer over the breakfast table; one (Frances Bavier) suggests that it might be the work of the Soviets.
When Helen's boyfriend, Tom Stephens (Hugh Marlowe), plans a day trip for the two of them, Klaatu offers to babysit Bobby. Bobby takes Klaatu on a tour of the city, including a visit to his father's grave in Arlington National Cemetery, where Klaatu is dismayed to learn that most of those buried there were killed in wars. The two then visit the Lincoln Memorial and the heavily-guarded spaceship. Klaatu, impressed by the inscription of Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address, is hopeful that Earth may harbor people wise enough to understand his message. When he asks Bobby to name the greatest person living in the world, Bobby suggests a leading American scientist, Professor Jacob Barnhardt (Sam Jaffe), who lives nearby. Bobby takes Klaatu to Barnhardt's home. The professor is absent, but Klaatu helps solve an advanced mathematical n-body problem written on a blackboard in the study as a means of introducing himself and leaves his address with the housekeeper.
Later, government agents escort Klaatu to see Barnhardt, who has seen the correction to his work as a calling card which could not have been faked. Klaatu warns the professor that the people of the other planets are concerned for their own safety because human beings have developed atomic power. Barnhardt offers Klaatu the opportunity to speak at an upcoming meeting of scientists he is organizing; Klaatu accepts. Barnhardt is stunned when Klaatu declares that, if his message is rejected, "Planet Earth will be eliminated." The professor pleads for Klaatu to first provide a small demonstration of his power as a warning. Klaatu returns to his spaceship the next evening to implement the professor's suggestion, unaware that Bobby has followed him.
Bobby tells Helen and Tom what he has seen when they return. At first, they do not believe him. When Bobby persists in his claims, Tom tries to find Klaatu to confirm it was just a dream; in Klaatu's room, Tom finds a diamond on the floor. Bobby casually remarks that Klaatu had given him two others for $2. The following day, Tom shows the gem to a jeweler, who declares it unique.
Klaatu goes to Helen's workplace and asks to speak to her. She leads him to an unoccupied elevator which stops suddenly. Klaatu admits he is responsible, tells Helen his true identity, and asks for her help. A montage sequence shows that Klaatu has neutralized electric power everywhere for half an hour (with the exception of critical systems such as hospitals and planes in flight), bringing the world to a standstill and thereby providing the demonstration Barnardt had suggested.
Klaatu speaks to the scientists, while Gort looms in the background.
After the blackout ends, the manhunt for Klaatu intensifies and Tom tells the authorities of his suspicions. Helen and Klaatu take a taxi to Barnhardt's home; en route, Klaatu tells Helen that if anything should happen to him, she must go to Gort and say, "Klaatu barada nikto." When they are spotted, Klaatu tries to flee, but is shot dead.
Helen goes to the spaceship and approaches Gort, who awakens and kills two guards before Helen can give him Klaatu's message. Gort gently carries her into the spaceship, retrieves Klaatu's corpse, and revives him.
Klaatu steps out of the spaceship and addresses the assembled scientists, explaining that humanity's penchant for violence and first steps into space have caused concern among the other spacefaring worlds, who have created a race of robot enforcers including Gort and given them absolute power to stifle any aggression. He warns that if the people of Earth threaten to extend their violence into space, then the robots will destroy Earth, adding that "The decision rests with you." He then enters the spaceship and departs.
Cast
H. V. Kaltenborn, Elmer Davis, Drew Pearson and Gabriel Heatter, well-known broadcast journalists of that time, appeared as themselves.
Production
Producer Julian Blaustein set out to make a film that illustrated the fear and suspicion that characterized the early Cold War and Atomic Age. He reviewed over 200 science fiction short stories and novels in search of a storyline that could be used, as the genre was well suited for a metaphorical discussion of such grave issues. Studio head Darryl F. Zanuck green-lighted the project, and Blaustein contracted Edmund North to draft a screenplay based on elements from the Bates story.[3]
Principal outdoor photography for The Day the Earth Stood Still was shot on 20th Century Fox sound stages and its studio back lot (now Century City), with a second unit shooting background plates and other scenes in Washington, D.C. The film's stars never traveled to Washington for the making of the film.[3]
In a DVD commentary track, interviewed by fellow director Nicholas Meyer, director Robert Wise stated that he wanted the film to appear as realistic and believable as possible, in order to drive home the work's core message against armed conflict in the real world. Also mentioned in the DVD's documentary interview was the original title for the movie, "The Day the World Stops."
Wise and Blaustein were both liberal, and Blaustein said his aim with the film was to promote a "strong United Nations."[4]
Set design
The set was designed by Thomas Little and Claude Carpenter. They collaborated with the noted architect Frank Lloyd Wright for the design of the spacecraft. Paul Laffoley has suggested that the futuristic interior was inspired by Wright's Johnson Wax Headquarters, completed in 1936. Laffoley quotes Wright and his attempt in designing the exterior: "... to imitate an experimental substance that I have heard about which acts like living tissue. If cut, the rift would appear to heal like a wound, leaving a continuous surface with no scar."[5] For all that, the spacecraft itself looks more like a automotive intake valve with a rounded top where the valve shaft would ordinarily appear.
Themes
In a 1995 interview,[3] producer Julian Blaustein explained that Joseph I. Breen, the film censor installed by the Motion Picture Association of America at the Twentieth Century Fox studios, balked at the portrayal of Klaatu's resurrection and limitless power. At the behest of the MPPDA, a line was inserted into the film; when Helen asks Klaatu whether Gort has unlimited power over life and death, Klaatu explains that he has only been revived temporarily and that the power of resurrection is "reserved to the Almighty Spirit."[3][6] Of the elements that he added to Klaatu's character, screenwriter Edmund North said, "It was my private little joke. I never discussed this angle with Blaustein or Wise because I didn't want it expressed. I had originally hoped that the Christ comparison would be subliminal."[7] The fact that the question even came up in an interview is proof enough that such comparisons did not remain subliminal, but they are subtle enough that it is not immediately obvious to all viewers which elements were intended to compare Klaatu to Christ.[8][9] For example, when Klaatu escapes from the hospital, he steals the clothing of a "Lt. Carpenter".
Reception
The film was moderately successful when released, grossing $1.85 million. Variety praised the film's documentary style and the Los Angeles Times praised its seriousness, though it also found "certain subversive elements."[4] Bosley Crowther of The New York Times called it "tepid entertainment."[10] The Daily Worker's reviewer was unimpressed and felt it was not inspirational. The film earned more plaudits overseas: the Hollywood Foreign Press Association gave the filmmakers a special Golden Globe Award for "promoting international understanding." The French magazine Cahiers du cinéma was also impressed, with Pierre Kast calling it "almost literally stunning" and praising its "moral relativism."[4]
The film was attacked from some quarters, due to actor Sam Jaffe's politics.[3] Jaffe, a liberal, was listed on the Red Channels pamphlet, a self-described listing of performers sympathetic to communism. The film's explicit message of peace, in combination with its dark outlook regarding human society, struck a chord with audiences, earning it lasting acclaim. The movie is ranked seventh in Arthur C. Clarke's List of the best Science-Fiction films of all time, just above Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey, for which Clarke himself wrote the screenplay. In 1995, The Day the Earth Stood Still was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry as "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant." In 2008, it was voted as the fifth best science-fiction film ever made as part of the AFI's 10 Top 10.[11]
Lou Cannon and Colin Powell believed the film inspired Ronald Reagan to discuss uniting against an alien invasion when meeting Mikhail Gorbachev in 1985. Two years later, Reagan told the United Nations "I occasionally think how quickly our differences worldwide would vanish if we were facing an alien threat from outside this world."[4]
Cultural influence
Since the release of the movie, the phrase Klaatu barada nikto has appeared repeatedly in fiction and in popular culture.
No translation of the phrase was stated in the film. Philosophy professor Aeon J. Skoble speculates the famous phrase is a "safe-word" that is part of a fail-safe feature used during the diplomatic missions such as the one Klaatu and Gort make to Earth. With the use of the safe-word, Gort's deadly force can be deactivated in the event the robot is mistakenly triggered into a defensive posture. Skoble observes that the theme has evolved into a "staple of science fiction that the machines charged with protecting us from ourselves will misuse or abuse their power."[12] In this interpretation, the phrase apparently tells Gort that Klaatu considers escalation unnecessary.
The Robot Hall of Fame describes the phrase as "one of the most famous commands in science fiction"[13] and Frederick S. Clarke of Cinefantastique called it "the most famous phrase ever spoken by an extraterrestrial."[14]
Both star Michael Rennie and the film itself are referenced in the first line of the theme song to The Rocky Horror Picture Show, "Science Fiction Double Feature". The line is "Michael Rennie was ill the day the earth stood still, but he told us where we stand..."
Soundtrack
The soundtrack was composed in August 1951 and was Bernard Herrmann's first soundtrack after he moved to Hollywood. Herrmann chose unusual instrumentation for the film including violin, cello, and bass (all three electric), two theremin electronic instruments (played by Dr. Samuel Hoffman and Paul Shure), two Hammond organs, a large studio electric organ, three vibraphones, two glockenspiels, two pianos, two harps, three trumpets, three trombones, and four tubas.[15] Unusual overdubbing and tape-reversal techniques were used, as well. 20th Century Fox later reused the Herrmann title theme in the original pilot episode for Irwin Allen's 1965 TV series Lost in Space. Danny Elfman noted The Day the Earth Stood Still's score inspired his interest in film composing, and made him a fan of Herrmann.[16]
- "Twentieth Century Fox Fanfare" – 0:12
- "Prelude/Outer Space/Radar" – 3:45
- "Danger" – 0:24
- "Klaatu" – 2:15
- "Gort/The Visor/The Telescope" – 2:23
- "Escape" – 0:55
- "Solar Diamonds" – 1:04
- "Arlington" – 1:08
- "Lincoln Memorial" – 1:27
- "Nocturne/The Flashlight/The Robot/Space Control" – 5:58
- "The Elevator/Magnetic Pull/The Study/The Conference/The Jewelry Store" – 4:32
- "Panic" – 0:42
- "The Glowing/Alone/Gort's Rage/Nikto/The Captive/Terror" – 5:11
- "The Prison" – 1:42
- "Rebirth" – 1:38
- "Departure" – 0:52
- "Farewell" – 0:32
- "Finale" – 0:30
References
- ^ "Aliens Among Us, Then and Now". Entertainment Weekly. 2008-10-31. http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20237155,00.html. Retrieved on 2008-11-17.
- ^ "Cult Movies Showcase The Day the Earth Stood Still". Turner Classic Movies. http://www.tcm.com/thismonth/article.jsp?cid=145423&mainArticleId=145416.
- ^ a b c d e Julian Blaustein, Robert Wise, Patricia Neal, Billy Gray. (1995). Making the Earth Stand Still. [LaserDisc; DVD]. Fox Video; 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0345616/. Retrieved on 2007-07-22.
- ^ a b c d J. Hoberman (2008-10-31). "The Cold War Sci-Fi Parable That Fell to Earth". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/02/movies/moviesspecial/02hobe.html. Retrieved on 2008-11-01.
- ^ Paul Laffoley, "Disco Volante (the Flying Saucer)", 1998 essay (web site)
- ^ Shermer, Michael (2001). The Borderlands of Science: Where Sense Meets Nonsense. Oxford University Press. pp. 74–75. ISBN 0195143264.
- ^ Matthews, Melvin E. (2007). Hostile Aliens, Hollywood and Today's News: 1950s Science Fiction Films and 9/11. Algora Publishing. pp. 54. ISBN 087586497X.
- ^ Holloway, David; John Beck (2005). American Visual Cultures. Continuum International Publishing Group. pp. 135. ISBN 0826464858.
- ^ Gianos, Phillip L. (1998). Politics and Politicians in American Film. Greenwood Publishing Group. ISBN 0275960714.
- ^ Crowther, Bosley (1951-09-19). "THE SCREEN IN REVIEW; Emissary From Planet Visits Mayfair Theatre in 'Day the Earth Stood Still'". The New York Times. http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/review?_r=1&res=9A07EED61031E23BBC4152DFBF66838A649EDE&partner=Rotten%20Tomatoes. Retrieved on 2008-12-11.
- ^ American Film Institute (2008-06-17). "AFI Crowns Top 10 Films in 10 Classic Genres". ComingSoon.net. http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=46072. Retrieved on 2008-06-18.
- ^ Skoble, Aeon J. (2007). "Technology and Ethics in The Day the Earth Stood Still". in Steven M. Sanders. The Philosophy of Science Fiction Film. University Press of Kentucky. ISBN 0813124727.
- ^ "The Robot Hall of Fame: Gort". 2006 Inductees: Gort. Carnegie Mellon University. 2006. http://www.robothalloffame.org/06inductees/gort.html. Retrieved on 2008-04-18.
- ^ Clarke, Frederick S. (1970). Cinefantastique: 2.
- ^ Score analysis by Bill Wrobel, on www.filmscorerundowns.net
- ^ "Oscar Roundtable: The composers". The Hollywood Reporter. 2008-12-15. http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/news/e3i728e28adf80ba3aae5c37a6bd621de8e. Retrieved on 2008-12-23.
Further reading
External links
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A Storm in Summer (2000)
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