The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)

Director:

Robert Wise

Writers:

Edmund H. North (screenplay)
Harry Bates (story)

Release Date:

28 September 1951 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

A robot and a man . . . hold the world spellbound with new and startling powers from another planet!

Plot:

An alien lands and tells the people of Earth that they must live peacefully or be destroyed as a danger to other planets.

Plot Keywords:

Alien | Robot | Spacecraft | Hospital | Flying Saucer

Awards:

Won Golden Globe. Another 1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

Michael Rennie	...	Klaatu
Patricia Neal	...	Helen Benson
Hugh Marlowe	...	Tom Stevens
Sam Jaffe	...	Professor Jacob Barnhardt
Billy Gray	...	Bobby Benson
Frances Bavier	...	Mrs. Barley
Lock Martin	...	Gort

Also Known As:

Der Tag, an dem die Erde stillstand (Austria) (West Germany) [de]
El día que paralizaron la Tierra (Argentina) (Spain) (original subtitled version) [es]
El día que paralizaron la tierra (Uruguay) (Venezuela) [es]
Le jour où la terre s'arrêta (Belgium: French title) (France) [fr]
A nap, mikor a Föld elhallgatott (Hungary) [hu]
De dag waarop de aarde stilstond (Belgium: Flemish title) [un]
Den dag, jorden stod stille (Denmark) [da]
Dzien w którym ziemia zamarla (Poland) [pl]
El día que la tierra se detuvo (Venezuela) [es]
Mannen från Mars (Sweden) [sv]
O Dia em Que a Terra Parou (Brazil) [pt]
O Dia em que a Terra Parou (Portugal) [pt]
Otan i Gi stamatisi... (Greece) [el]
Päivä jolloin maailma seisahtui (Finland) (TV title) [fi]
Uhkavaatimus Maalle (Finland) [fi]
Ultimátum a la Tierra (Spain) (première title) [es]
Ultimatum alla Terra (Italy) [it]

Runtime:

92 min | Germany:85 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | French | Hindi

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Certification:

Australia:PG (DVD rating) | Canada:G (Manitoba/Nova Scotia/Quebec) | Canada:PG (Ontario) | Portugal:M/12 | Italy:T | USA:Approved (PCA #15271) (original rating) | USA:G (re-rating) (1969) | Canada:G (video rating) | South Korea:12 (2004) | Brazil:Livre | Germany:12 (f) | Netherlands:12 | USA:TV-G (TV rating) | Ireland:G | Argentina:Atp | Australia:G | Finland:K-12 | Spain:T | Sweden:15 | UK:U

Filming Locations:

RKO Encino Ranch - Balboa Boulevard & Burbank Boulevard, Encino, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Trivia:

The scene of the large crowd fleeing the saucer area after Gort appears is all too obviously "speeded up" film, making the shot look unnatural. The reason for the sped up film effect was explained by director Robert Wise in an interview - it seems that, despite much pleading and cajoling from him, the crowd of inexperienced extras portraying the saucer onlookers simply wouldn't move away from the saucer quickly enough to look panicky and convincing. After several takes, Wise finally had to move on with filming and reluctantly allowed the scene to be "sped up" in post production, knowing that the end result would probably looked staged.

Goofs:

Continuity: At the beginning of the time electricity is out, we see a police car rolling to a stop. However, right behind him is a black car accelerating to catch him and pull up behind.

Quotes:

[first lines]
American Radar Operator: Holy Mackerel! Call headquarters. Get the lieutenant.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Doctor Who: Spearhead from Space: Episode 1 (#7.1)" (1970)

Classic Science Fiction, that stands the test of time.

The first time i saw this movie, i was 10 yrs old. That was in 1974,it was on t.v. that night, and my father, let me stay up to watch it. Because many years earlier, he saw it at the movie theater as a teenager. He told me that The Day the Earth Stood Still, was the reason he became a sci-fi fan. Well, so did i that night! To this day despite all the fancy, special effect, movies that are out there, this movie stands above them all. The humanity in this movie is so moving, that alone makes it a classic.But much more than that,it's message still rings true today,and should never be forgotten. A masterpiece! 9.5/10.