WAR OF THE SATELLITES (1958)
Tagline: No time for taglines, let’s just get this picture made already!
(Sci-Fi, Sci-Fi, Alien Cloning) [G]
Note – This movie did not originally have an MPAA rating, but I am pretty sure it would have been a G.
You can go to hell! I was born a human, and I'll die one before I'll join a race that kills innocent people for abstract ideas!
Okay, so in this one earth has sent up a satellite as part of Project Sigma, but they can’t seem to break a burier in space to go any further with it. Some unknown force is stopping them. After a life-changing speech from a top scientist, the United Nations is back at it despite warnings against it. What is out there?
First off, get this. This movie was made by sci-fi director Roger Corman who was well known for his creative stories, but also getting his movies made with a low budget in mind. This movie however actually has footage that was re-used by TV shows including 1965’s LOST IN SPACE and 1966’s THE TIME TUNNEL. You know you are really trying to cut costs when you are lifting footage from other low-budget movies, I mean come on.
Where this movie succeeds is in the storytelling. It’s actually a pretty cool concept and for the budget, they pulled off some pretty cool sets. I will say that the actual rocket launch in the second half of the movie comes across as goofy, but it still works. We also get some stand-out performances from Dick Miller (most famous for GREMLINS, THE ‘BURBS, and dozens of other flicks) as Dave Boyer. He basically carries this movie on his back alongside Richard Deven who plays Dr. Pol Van Ponder. I will say that Devon had the tougher role. He is probably most famous for PLANET OF THE APES (1974) but was also in the Roger Corman film THE SAGA OF THE VIKING WOMEN AND THEIR VOYAGE TO THE WATERS OF THE GREAT SEA SERPENT which also starred Susan Calbot who plays Sybil Carrington in this movie. Susan Calbot is most famous for playing Janice Starlin in THE WASP WOMAN. She is good in this but doesn’t get nearly the screen time as the two male leads.
Where this movie kind of falls off the cliff is in the resolution. If a lot of these movies are new to you like they are new to me, then I don’t want to give away any spoilers (no not even nearly 65 years after the movie came out). However, I was not crazy about the final scene in this (let’s just leave it at that), especially given some of the other things we know this “unknown force” can do.
Overall I really liked this one and would definitely watch it again. We don’t get a crazy alien costume or googly eyes on a hairdryer or any of that, but we did get a pretty cool script (which does make sense because Irving Block (who wrote this) also wrote or helped write FORBIDDEN PLANET and KRONOS), and great execution. I have to give this one a 5 out of 7.
For those interested, I do have a group out there on MeWe for 1950s and 1960s sci-fi fans. Here - https://mewe.com/join/1950s-60ssci-fimoviereviewsanddiscussion
Please check out the link below by clicking on the picture. Because no one should die buttonless.
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