On Re-Viewing The Day The Earth Stood Still

Movie Poster. Fair Use.

 I have just finished re-viewing the Robert Wise film, The Day The Earth Stood Still, with Michael Rennie and Patricia Neal.  It’s an old favourite of mine, comfort viewing from many years ago. I do have the ebook of Farewell To The Master, on which it’s based, but haven’t got around to reading yet. 

It came out in the early 1950s, a time when most SF movies were about alien invasions, with scary beings from other worlds. This one showed sympathy to the alien and made a good point about the people of our world not necessarily being the good guys. 

In case you aren’t familiar with it, Klaatu, the hero, has been sent to Earth with a message. Basically, it’s like neighbours complaining about the noise from next door. He comes from a group of planets which live in complete peace because they have to. Their police force is made up of robots which can wipe out entire worlds that misbehave! He brings one with him, Gort.

 Klaatu finally addresses  a meeting of scientists called because the UN members won’t get together except under their conditions and the Americans want him to talk to their President. He lets them know that the neighbours are worried because space flight is in its way and they really can’t be having with that violence coming their way, so fix it or risk being wiped out.

This is after he has been shot at twice, the second time actually killed, but resurrected by Gort.  

It has religious themes - Klaatu escapes from the hospital where he is being kept, and gets a room under the name of Carpenter. He performs a miracle, stopping all electricity world-wide except for hospitals and planes to show his power. He dies and is resurrected. He even refers to “the almighty being”, the only one who knows when he will die again.

There were things other than the story which I appreciated this time around. There is, of course, the amazing music of Bernard Herrmann - especially that theremin in the main theme. 

I also loved what the director did with it. Apart from the main characters, such as Klaatu, young widow Helen Benson and her son Bobby, there were characters who never spoke at all, but who had their own stories to tell. 

There were individual soldiers, gathered behind officers who did have lines. There was a group of French peasants gathered at an outdoor cafe in their village, listening to the radio announcement of the visiting flying saucer. A woman in a taxi smoked as she listened to the cab’s radio. 

These people all had stories of their own - where was that woman going? What did she and the driver discuss afterwards?

  What about the French group? What did they talk about after the radio announcement? Was it just a relaxed cafe visit that turned into more? 

How about that soldier who shot at Klaatu after he foolishly got out a gift for the US President while surrounded by tanks and guns?  He seemed nervous. Maybe he wondered if he should have waited for orders? Or shot to kill?

Even people in the streets seemed to know where they were going and have emotions about what was happening. 

It says something that we do wonder about people who, in any other film, would have just been extras.

Strange, really, isn’t it? I guess it’s something I have noticed and appreciated more after many viewings.

Do you have a favourite classic movie?