jphuber1959 Reviews

Rocketship X-M (1950)

A darker "Flight to Mars"

[23 September 2004]

Rocketship X-M is a solid film, and is a darker, less optimistic effort than 1951's "Flight to Mars". The 50th anniversary DVD edition is amazing, and the "Sepiacolor" scenes on the martian surface are quite effective.

Buffs will notice that the very brief (5 second) image of the ship on the surface is a different image than in the original. The use of Death Valley for the Martian surface (at dusk) is much more effective that in scenes from Flight to Mars, which were probably all shot in a studio. Lloyd Bridges is in love with himself even more than he is with the German girl scientist on board - which is kind of nauseating - but overall, the film is a favorite.

Classical music lovers will take note of the music score by Ferde Grofe, better know for his Grand Canyon Suite and other orchestral works.

Flight to Mars (1951)

An old favorite

[18 September 2004]

First saw this film when I rented it on VHS in 1985. Many years later, I purchased it and enjoy watching this film from time to time. It is typical of its era, although this was a honest attempt at a sensible depiction of what 1950 realities would have envisioned such a venture. Its a more positive vision than "Rocketship X-M", although the martian surface scenes are quite limited - and no where near as effective as the Death Valley shots in X-M.

I recommend it, if you appreciate these films for their time capsule value to 50+ years ago.

Journey to the Far Side of the Sun (1969)

A favorite of mine from my teenage years

[8 December 2001]

I never claimed this film to be a masterwork. But, when I was a teenage boy, growing up during the Apollo project and the original Star Trek years, I found this film to be imaginative and thought provoking. The music score was especially to my liking - I didn't realize why at the time, but later in my career I came to understand what a fine composer Barry Gray was (I'm a school band director). The criticism offered in many reviews is unjustified. I recently purchased the DVD edition to add to my collection of 1950-77 sci-fi films (the "pre Star Wars" era). I always have held the film as one of the best of the era, largely because of its appeal to the emotions of "awe" and the film's visual and musical effects. Well worth owning, and far better than most of the junk produced during this era (with exceptions such as George Pal films, and of course, the entire Star Trek franchise).

Robinson Crusoe on Mars (1964)

Growing appreciation

[8 December 2001]

Sure, it's a real stretch (like REAL) on the climate on Mars. But, its a brilliant study on isolation, faith, courage, and human nature. The restored version recently shown on AMC-TV has great color and much cleaner sound. I believe this film will become one of the better films of the genre. A remake might be an interesting project for a future director ?