SPACEWAYS (1953)

SPACEWAYS (1953)

Tagline: Space is a cold place to die!

(Sci-Fi, Space Opera, Dysfunctional Scientists) [G]

Note: This movie wasn’t given an MPAA rating, but I would say it falls into the category of G.

In this one, a group of scientists sends a rocket into space that fails to meet its goals due to some fuel issue. As it turns out the main scientist Dr. Stephen Mitchell‘s wife Vanessa is thought to be on the rocket with another scientist named Dr. Phillip Crenshaw. It is suspected that Dr. Mitchell set the whole thing up to punish his wife who some people think was disloyal to him. To prove his innocence Dr. Mitchell wants to take another rocket into space to rescue his wife, but also just wants to prove the project he’s been working on in secret for years can send men into space. In the meantime, Dr. Mitchell also confesses he doesn’t love his wife and that she only married him to suck up to popular social circles. Turns out he’s also in love with a co-scientist Dr. Lisa Frank. What will happen next in this twisted sci-fi soap opera...and may God help us all. 

First off, when this movie came out it was widely panned by critics and if anything, I can see why. Even in today’s society, you don’t get married and then fall in love with someone else if you have any semblance of character at all. This movie is essentially asking us to root for the main character and his girlfriend which was even a taller order then than it is today. While there are some excellent people involved in this movie like Dr. Toby Andrews and… nope…I think that’s it. As I have stated in past reviews, if there is no one in the movie I care about, then that movie is never going to get a great score from me. There is a second reason I can see why critics might have been hard on this film, but I will get to that later. 

Acting-wise this movie is actually pretty good. Eva Bartok plays Dr. Lisa Frank and does a solid job. This wasn’t that shocking, she also killed it in THE GAMMA PEOPLE. Howard Duff plays Dr. Stephen Mitchell and is good as well even though I couldn’t stand his character. Duff ended up being in over 135 different projects in his career. We also have a Philip Leaver sighting in this one. He plays Professor Koepler in this but might be more famous for his role in THE GAMMA PEOPLE. Cecile Chevreau plays Vanessa Mitchell and if they were telling her to play the character as the grumpiest lady ever, then she perfected that. 

We do get a few rocket scenes in here and the rocket design is okay, but I understand that the rocket that actually takes off in the movie is from ROCKETSHIP X-M. Outside of that though we don’t really have any sci-fi elements, no aliens, no monsters, no pending end of the world disaster. However, I found the actual storyline very interesting. The drama all works and almost feels like it could have led to a series of films. 

I found the ending pretty satisfying and the pace is pretty good. There is not a ton of dull explosion and the mystery part of the storyline is pretty decent. Having said that the movie doesn’t in any way deliver on its title or even its poster claim that seems to promise “space islands” and other things that we never really get. 

For me, this is a 3 out of 7. It’s a decent afternoon film, but there are lots of other better sci-fi films out there from the 1950s.

GRAPHICS ARE THE PROPERTY OF HAMMER FILMS AND ARE USED FOR REVIEW PURPOSES ONLY. 

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