Many people into movies grew up as I did in the fifties. This was the time that formed our life long love affair with film. Some young devotees of cinema may look at the flicks we enjoyed as kids and snicker. Sure there were some classic films made during this time but most of us wouldn’t get around to seeing them until we were much older. What I am referring to are those small flicks that we typically watched in the local movie house on a Saturday afternoon. Most where horror flicks or science fiction and they would set the stage for our collective appreciation of a much wider variety of genres. One movie that I saw back then was ‘Red Planet Mars’. It is a classic representation of the time and when you get into the details unique among its contemporaries. In order to properly appreciate films like this you have to understand the temporal context that surrounded its creation. The film was made in 1952. This was the height of the anti communist fervor in this country as demonstrated by the power that was given to the senate hearings lead by Joseph McCarthy. We were deep in the cold war with the Soviet Union. It was common place for school children to be part of air raid drills and learn how to duck under their desks to protect themselves from a Hydrogen bomb. In this climate science fiction did what it does best; reflect the fears of the culture cloaked in a tale of fantasy. You can basically take any threat from outer space in these flicks and apply them to communism. Sci-Fi of this era was all about the allegories that could be made to the growing ‘red menace’. In a lot of ways this is a major departure from the other films of this time and genre. It is heavy handed with religious themes and lacks the futuristic trappings that made for the typical matinee flick. It helps to recall that communism was seen not only as a threat against our political and economic way of life but our dominate religion, Christianity. The communists were godless and without mercy; at least that is the prevalent feeling at the time and some of that has been retained as a viewpoint to this very day. This is the kind of flick that many fans have taped off late night television. They have the commercial breaks and a lot of editing for time concerns of the network. Thankfully the DVD format has come along and many distributors have included little cult classics like this in their catalogs. One such distributor is Cheesy Films. Don’t let the name fool you; most of what they offer fits the name but that doesn’t preclude them from being great entertainment.

The original story was written as a play, ‘Red Planet’ written by John Balderston. This does allow for a simpler set design and less technology than most similar films of the era. Balderston was already well regarded as a playwright having previously penned the play that would become the basis for ‘Dracula’. He also wrote the scripts for a couple of other Universal Studio horror classics; ‘Frankenstein’ and ‘The Mummy’. Bringing this to the screen fell to Anthony Veiller who was a long standing screen writer for years before taking this on. I have no doubt that Carl Sagan watched this movie more than a few times in his lifetime. The theme of how religion would be affected if proof of extra terrestrial life was discovered was central to one of his best known works ‘Cosmos’. This is a much deeper subject that the usual anti-commie Sci-Fi and provides considerable food for thought. It still holds together today even in light of the many scientific discoveries that have been made in the half century since this movie’s release. Like many films based on stage plays this one was expanded to include shots from various locations but the main action takes place in almost claustrophobic sets. Unlike other Sci-Fi flicks this story was more about the themes than the effects. The story is engaging and if you can get beyond the expectations made by the title it is a film well worth knowing. The downside of the focus on the plot is the way the character development is sacrificed. In some ways the story is conducive to this treatment since the characters are steadfast in their beliefs and not subject to change. This is a vital point being made in the story; a clash of ideology.

Directing the movie was Harry Horner. This was the first work in that field in his career. He would go on to a good amount of quality television including ‘Gunsmoke’ and ‘Four Star Playhouse’. His style here is extremely straightforward. There is little difference between how Horner directed this and the way a stage play would be handled. At times the blocking and setups are stiff. This does give the feeling of a film that lacks action. This is more a psychological movie than action so he could get away with it. The climatic scene which involves lighting a fateful cigarette is corny and over done but you have to say it was effective. My wife and I remembered this from seeing the film as kids and this scene stuck with us all those years.

The announcer tells us that ‘this is a story not yet told’ occurring shortly in the future. On a mountaintop observatory in California a telescope searches the heavens. An elderly astronomer, Dr. Mitchell (Lewis Martin), meets a husband wife scientist team Chris (Peter Graves) and Linda (Andrea King) Cronyn. They are very interested in some of the discoveries the older scientist has made. Chris has recently made a breakthrough of his own and believes he has made radio contact with Mars. They examine some recent photographs of the surface of Mars and note that the polar mountains are greatly reduced and it seems that the canals that extend from north to south are larger. They assume that water is being melted at the poles and used to fill the canals; evidence of intelligent life on Mars. Meanwhile in a remote house in a snowy wasteland another man, Franz Calder (Herbert Berghof) is busy at work with his own radio gear; this will soon be very important. When the Cronyns establish contact with Mars and cryptographic experts decipher the messages it is learned that the Marians live to over 300 years. They have a peaceful society free from much of what plagues mankind. When word of this gets out the population is divided. Some see it as a space age Sermon on the Mount while others feel it is the end of our way of life. The stock market is affected and the world is plunged into confusion. The Soviet Union is strong with their atheistic stance and extreme in their military direction. There are more direct references to pro-religion sentiment than possible to count but overall this is a fun flick with a message.

There are no space ships or monsters in this outing but it is indicative of the time it was made. For those of us who used to huddle under our desks it is a memory of a time when the world seemed on the brink of nuclear war. Now it does seem dated but is important as a historical look at a trouble time in our history. The video is marred by some specks and the audio is passable but that only adds to the nostalgic feel of the film.