Today's Mini-Review: The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)

 

Rating: ****/*****, or 8/10

Starring: Michael Rennie, Patricia Neal, Hugh Marlowe

Directed by Robert Wise

USA: 20^th Century-Fox, 1951

Arguably considered one of the greatest classics in the science fiction genre (and therefore already marred by one lousy, needless remake), this movie was an early entry into the canon of Fifties' Sci-Fi flicks (the decade in which this genre finally came into its own, thanks to the contribution of numerous social factors, including the space race, the birth of the Atomic Age and the UFO craze), but remains one of the most wonderfully constructed and emotionally compelling examples of the bunch. It first and foremost serves as a warning against mass anxiety (e.g., the Red Scare), baseless fear of the unknown and prejudice against those that don't conform to the limited dominant social norms, but does so without ever getting overly preachy, despite its fair share of religious overtones, some subtle, others less so (an alien under the guise of a 'Mr. Carpenter' who sacrifices himself for our sins? Right...). A gripping narrative guides the modern viewer through this fabulous tale of Fifties' 'Zeitgeist' notions, delivered in the form of true spaceman suspense.

When a flying saucer lands in the middle of Washington D.C., the population of Earth swiftly shudders to think of the ramifications. Is it foreboding an alien invasion? Does it carry unspeakable weapons to eradicate mankind? Is it a Russian ruse? It soon appears none of these, but simply a benign gesture of goodwill from the interstellar community, as heralded by the sole occupant of the spacecraft, an apparently humanoid figure named Klaatu (a formidable Michael Rennie). Despite his good intentions, he's accidentally gunned down and rushed to a hospital for both his recovery and medical study paired with the expected military scrutiny. Nevertheless, not before he shows a taste of the superhuman strength his technology has achieved, in the form of a hugely intimidating, unfathomable giant robot called Gort, who efficiently deals with the human weaponry and afterwards guards his vessel in his absence (and has death rays coming out of his eyes!), seemingly controlled by simple unintelligible words like 'Klaatu Barada Nikto'. Klaatu, soon fed up with the endless questioning, escapes his captors and soon settles quietly in a boarding house to explore the human society, its hopes and dreams, its fears and folly. Though he enjoys the company of a free-spirited woman and her son, he generally does not like what he finds, as us humans prove mischievous and suspicious, a danger to our own and possibly other worlds as well. The only voice of reason comes from the expansive and accepting mind of the scientific community, but will it be enough to allow mankind to exist further? Or does he need Gort to wreak havoc on this backward little planet driven by petty bickering? As he finds himself increasingly hunted by government agents, it seems only a demonstration of extraterrestrial power will suffice to get humanity in line. And thus he moves to the act of making the Earth stand still (just not as literally as many people would have it from the title), a show of force that will cost him everything.

The Day the Earth Stood Still tells the classic tale of the outsider looking in on ourselves, to investigate the human condition (if there ever was a time to do so, it was the Fifties!). Thanks to his charming British gentleman persona, Rennie proves the perfect choice for portraying the sympathetic alien being who feels both joyful surprise and disgust at the hands of human behavior. Despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary, Klaatu wants to believe in the good nature of mankind, as he is ultimately willing to make that greatest of sacrifices to both protect it and remind it there are greater powers than its own out there, thus completing the connotations to the typical Christ figure this movie is laced with, without ever going so far as to alienate spectators beholden to other religious beliefs (or none at all). Rennie is joined by a solid supporting cast to play off against, including Patricia Neal as a caring and understanding young woman who accepts, and even embraces, the unknown for the wonders it brings, as well as Sam Jaffe as the old scientist who shows humanity's capacity to listen to reason instead of only responding to fear and terror. Excellent writing and performances are joined by a fantastic score (courtesy of the legendary Bernard Herrmann) and wonderful production design that nowadays could only be described as thoroughly retro to the ears and eyes of the contemporary viewer, thanks to this movie's own part in setting the trend of sleek flying saucers and shiny robots, accompanied by the spooky, otherworldly humming of theremins, for decades to come. Some question marks can be placed around Klaatu's own government, an interplanetary community guarded by powerful robots like Gort as its inexorable law enforcers, not motivated by personal gain or spoiled by the flaws of emotion. It's ironic that The Day the Earth Stood Still provides this notion as a possible answer to all our problems, while many Sci-Fi classics to follow – the likes of Colossus: The Forbin Project and I, Robot – instead warned us against the cold, relentless rule by technology, in favor of letting our emotions guide us for the greater good. Apparently in this dark decade, every method of dissuading mankind to have at itself with atomic bombs was worth exploring.

The Day the Earth Stood Still still stands strong as one of the finest science fiction films of all time, and inspired many directors to follow to craft equally thoughtful and engaged movies in the same genre. Not to mention many a nerd in naming a blog after the film's ingenious title. 'Klaatu Barada Nikto', the exact meaning of the phrase ever a mystery, naturally became a popular mantra among Sci-Fi aficionados.