MovieChat Forums > Conquest of Space (1955) Discussion > Too Slow, Great Effects

Too Slow, Great Effects

posted 15 years ago by babettegillette
7 replies | jump to latest

George Pal made a realistic movie(except for the godawful father-son histrionics-unbearable and sank the movie, IMHO)which included the possibility of plant life on Mars surviving. The "flight to Mars" was well done, especially the funeral in space-great image! Pal had the courage to make a movie about landing on Mars that did not involve monsters.

However, all of this proceeded too slowly. Also, the commander's religious fanaticism apparently only became a reality once the mission to Mars began. That did not ring true to me. This commander of the UN's space station and first flight to Mars has a mental breakdown?

Give Pal credit for including a Chinese character with a big role(Mr. Fong was Hopsing on Bonanza). The unity of this WW2 generation in a 1955 movie(as in many others from that era) almost strikes me as an alien culture in a 2010 America which seems to be flying off into a million different directions. A truly weird feeling. Conquest Of Space is a mixed bag, but George Pal always demanded state of the art special effects, so this movie certainly deserves a look!

[–] Xcalat3 14 years ago

agreed

When there's no more room in hell, The dead will walk the earth...

[–] graham-167 13 years ago

I just watched this movie (you can find it on youtube now).

I thought the General's fanaticism was actually reasonably well done. If he'd simply cracked up it wouldn't work, but they do give us an earlier example of a guy who cracked up under the stress of being in space, along with the Doctor describing how this can happen to anybody, and manifest itself in many different ways. Then soon afterwards they showed the General obviously suffering signs of strain himself, before the Mars mission starts. So the movie does establish a context to what happens with the General.

Incidentally the viewpoint that space travel was blasphemous was indeed raised by some at the beginning of space travel. C.S. Lewis openly argued that travelling into space and going to other planets was against god's will. The view never got much traction with the public and faded into obscurity well before this film was made, but it certainly was a serious belief for some people.

As to the slow pace, yeah, agreed. But then if you are going to make a realistic movie about space travel then you are pretty much stuck with that. Flying to Mars would involve exactly what we see - some excitement at the start and finish, with a long period of nothing much in between. As it is they stuck a near collision in there to liven things up, something that is so unlikely that we will probably never see it happen in the next thousand years of real space travel.

[–] rp69 13 years ago

This movie has the best and most abundant effects and sets of any movie up until 2001-S.O.(excluding some Japanese stuff). Great space suit designs, ships, props and so on. Really a feast if you appreciate that kind of stuff. The story and acting are painful. Frank DeFazio's constant screaming made me want to mute the sound and just enjoy the picture.

[–] 13 years ago

[deleted]

[–] 13 years ago

[deleted]

[–] babettegillette 12 years ago

Graham-167

Have read all of Lewis,s sci-fi. His chief concern, corrected if I'm wrong, was that we would either enslave or exterminate intelligent life. A very common theme in sci-fi literature and movies.

[–] Kimo46 11 years ago

I think Bonanza's Hop Sing was played by Victor Sen Yung, not Benson Fong.