Rating: 
Summary: Gort! Klaatu barada nikto!
Review: In many respects THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL is a very dated film. Obviously a comment on Cold War paranoias, it has little in the way of special effects or high-class production values, Edmund H. North's script is surprisingly talky, and it captures the very clunky look of late-1940s/early-1950s America to an uncomfortable degree. Certainly few involved in the project took it very seriously--even leading lady Patricia Neal admitted that she and Michael Rennie had tremendous difficulty keeping straight faces while spouting "Gort! Klaatu barada nikto!" But strangely, against all the odds, the film continues to speak, capturing the imagination of each new generation that sees it.The film's enduring power seems to arise from its very simplicity, which lifts the story of a visitor from outer space from mere sci-fi pulp to the level of a parable. As frequently noted, the film contains significant religious symbolism. It is easy to read the visitor as Christ, the woman who befriends him as Mary Magdalene, the man who betrays him as Judas, and the message the visitor brings as both call to repentance and opportunity for redemption--and whatever one's actual religious beliefs, the film taps into these archetypes to create a very effective modern morality tale that works on several levels. At the same time, the film makes a surprisingly acid comment on American and international politics, small minded bigotry, and media hysteria that still rings true today. And the film has surprising visual power. Although the cinematography is very basic, and the design of both the spaceship and the robot Gort are very simple, they combine to create a number of startling images: the first moment that Gort is seen standing on the spaceship's ramp; the spacecraft interior; Gort as he menaces a screaming Patricia Neal--images so simple and yet so powerful that they have become part of our cultural landscape. The cast plays very unpretentiously and cleanly, and although Rennie and Neal may have snickered on the set none of it shows in their performances. Both are very memorable. Hugh Marlowe is appropriately smarmy as Neal's unpleasant boyfriend, and Sam Jaffe and Billy Gray are enjoyable in their supporting roles; film buffs will also enjoy seeing Frances Bavier (television's "Aunt Bea") in a rare film appearance. Robert Wise's direction is impressively unobtrusive, and any review that did not reference Bernard Herrman's brilliant score--which easily doubles the film's effectiveness--would be incredibly remiss. If you want computer generated special effects, evil aliens, and lots of blood-letting, you should look elsewhere... but if you want something to think about, and something that will hold up under repeated viewings, THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL is strongly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: A true classic science fiction film for all time!
Review: Without a doubt one of the greatest of all science-fiction films.
The film is full of unforgettable images, in spite of the fact that they did not have the hi-tech special effects which are available to film-makers today. Gort is undoubtedly the most menacing robot ever seen in an SF film. This film is a must-see for anyone who appreciates the art of the motion picture.
Rating:
Summary: Good movie!
Review: One of the better black and white scifi movies from the 50's. It may not have today's special effects, but compared to the scifi movies that were made back then, the day earth stood still is fine art.
Rating:
Summary: DVD coming in 2003!
Review: From the DVD website The Digital Bits, June 25, 2002 -- You fans of director Robert Wise will be pleased to know that a special edition of his classic The Day the Earth Stood Still is on tap for release in 2003. So don't worry, we're getting it! And I'll be lined up to get it, too!
Rating:
Summary: Bag "Star Wars" Episodes ad infinitum! This is a great film!
Review: I know most scifi fans love movies with fantastic special effects, but, personally, I've lost all interest in who can produce the most awesome lights and magic. "The Day the Earth Stood Still" is still far superior to any other scifi film I've seen (and I've seen plenty -- I minored in film history, took the history of the scifi film, and have seen many, many more since, including all of the classics). A man comes to earth in peace to tell us we are threatening all other intelligent beings in the universe with our weapons of mass destruction and is met with violence. He proves that he is not of this planet, demonstrates to the world the power that could obliterate Earth in a frightening and convincing (but humane) manner, and tells us our warlike behavior will not be allowed to continue. This is an intelligent, well written, well produced film with extremely talented actors, including Oscar winner Patricia Neal. I find it entertaining, enjoyable, and thought provoking even after numerous viewings. (The Christian allegory [Mr. Carpenter] could have been omitted, though.) Its special effects may be dated but the message is not. Did we listen? Of course not. Will we ever? We can only hope.
Rating:
Summary: Great classic
Review: This great classic of SF movie-making stands in stark contrast to most of the SF movies of the day in it's intelligent plot, good acting, excellent script, and even special effects. Gone are the bug-eyed aliens lusting after scantily-clad earth girls, or alien invaders bent on the conquest of earth (as in the War of the Worlds); instead, we have a futuristic political tale of what might happen if humanity is ever peaceably contacted by a more advanced alien civilization. Unfortunately for us humans, this civilization has achieved galactic peace and wants to keep it that way--at any cost--and they regard us as a violent and primitive culture that bears watching as a possible threat to the peace of the rest of the galaxy. Humans are given an ultimatum that they better behave--or else. We can even do what we want on this planet, but if we try to spread our violent culture to the stars, in the words of Klaatu, "The earth will be reduced to a cinder spinning in space." Altogether a great movie with a chilling message for us primitive and violent humans (and which is perhaps all the more timely at this juncture in our history, given the events of the past year).
Rating:
Summary: Since age 10, My favorite all-time movie
Review: When I saw this movie at a drive-in, with my parents, at age 10,
it was so awesome a movie, that I was not able to get it out of my mind for many months to come. No other movie, after that, quite measured up to the "impact" it had one me. It is just unthinkable, that this movie is not, at this time, available on the DVD format. A "stelar" performance from every single actor who had a part in this movie !! Its' message will forever be
untimely!!
Rating:
Summary: Greatest Sci-Fi never seen by most under 35
Review: An absolutely fantastic science fiction classic! I am related to Billy Gray, who plays Bobby, so as a child my parents huddled us around the TV to watch each time it was on. The sound of Bernard Herrman's theremin in the score's opening sends shivers down my spine to this day! (I was probably a little too young the first time I saw it). Although many will find the special effects primative, it is important to remember that much of what was accomplished was considered cutting edge FX for 1951 (watch for the shadow under the disk descending on Washington. No easy task pre-CGI). I am always surprised by how many friends younger than 35-40 have never seen this film. Watch it for the supurb acting and direction, as well as its interesting biblical parallels. The movie's message was way ahead of it's time, and light years apart from the typical 50's Sci-Fi film.
Rating:
Summary: Great!
Review: One of the most excellant sci-fi films ever made.
If you like old sci-fi then you will love this. It doesn't show any green men in it ,but it has a lot of alien stuff in it.
Rating:
Summary: The Day the Earth Stood Still
Review: The Day the Earth Stood Still is a brilliant movie. It's old and the special effects would be considered silly by current standards but the story is smart, compelling, and rational. This movie easily stands as a science fiction classic.
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