Sonic Cinema

Sounds, Visions and Insights by Brian Skutle

The Day the Earth Stood Still

Grade : D Year : 2008 Director : Robert Wise Running Time : 1hr 32min Genre : ,
Movie review score
A+

One of the most disappointing attempts at “serious” science fiction of the past few years was Fox’s remake of their 1951 classic “The Day the Earth Stood Still.” In trying to supplant the story to modern day environmental concerns rather than the Cold War terrors of the day, the new film traded intellect for large-scale visual effects that just didn’t jibe with the literacy of the original film. It was a noble attempt nonetheless, but a major failure in the end.

Meanwhile, even after 60 years, Robert Wise’s original masterpiece continues to vibrate with suspense and uncertainty. It set the standard for the sci-fi films of the ’50s with its themes and production values and a score by Bernard Herrmann that remains a landmark for how it introduced electronic music to films. But how complex can a film be at 92 minutes long? The answer may be surprising– such is the current state of movies that go on much longer and say nothing of importance.

The film starts with a spaceship landing in Washington D.C. It doesn’t appear to be an invasion– it’s merely one ship –but the military comes out in force. Suddenly, the ship opens and out comes the alien pilot (Michael Rennie). True to form, he is immediately shot by a nervous military, which brings out a menacing robot that the alien refers to as Gort. Gort uses his laser to disintegrate the military’s guns. The soldiers then take the alien, whose name we learn is Klaatu, to Walter Reed hospital for medical care. The government then begins to question Klaatu on his reasons for being here; he responds by saying he has an urgent message for all the countries of Earth. He is told of the tensions between countries that make a meeting with all countries impossible. The next day, he has disappeared and will walk the city and integrate with its people in an attempt to learn more about these tensions, and at a boarding house he meets a young widow (Patricia Neal) and her son (Billy Gray). He forms a bond with her son, Bobby, as he tries to find a way of getting his message through to the world.

Based on a story by Harry Bates, the screenplay by Edmund H. North remains a model of intelligent science fiction: a fascinating central concept; a universal theme; and a respect for the audience’s ability to look beyond the surface and find a point of identification with the characters, and the story presented. Even though this film is now 60 years old, to see it now is to watch a story that resonates with a fear of the unknown and a message that the world can only survive with the cooperation of all of us who live in it. True, the film is preachy in how it presents that message, but it remains relevant because the focus is on the characters and that message rather than visual effects and excitement, which is not only what made the 2008 remake unsuccessful but also made later sci-fi films from the ’50s, which copied its formula and the theramin score by Herrmann but couldn’t duplicate this film’s artistry, pale in comparison. In that respect, one must credit director Robert Wise, who was as an editor for Orson Welles on his classics “Citizen Kane” and “The Magnificent Ambersons” before thriving in a directorial career that also includes classics like “The Sound of Music,” “West Side Story,” “The Haunting,” and “Star Trek: The Motion Picture.” That last credit is less notable for the film itself than for the joy I experienced while listening to the commentary Wise recorded for this film with director Nicholas Meyer, best known for his work on “Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan”; even now it remains one of the great audio commentaries I’ve heard.

In the end, Klaatu gets his message of peace out to the people of the world, but while the fate of humanity remains unknown at the end of “The Day the Earth Stood Still,” our world continued with its political unrest and uncertainty for almost 40 years, until the Cold War ended in the late ’80s/early ’90s. But the 21st Century has brought its own perils to life on Earth, from the destruction of the environment to a heightened awareness of the threat of terrorism to continued nuclear proliferation, which was the initial threat Wise’s film was warning us of in the first place. Taking such things into consideration, it’s easy to see why Fox felt the time was right to re-imagine this film, but such things are made difficult when the original continues to capture the worries of such universal problems. Few filmmakers can compete with such an accomplishment.

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