The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)–Review In Advance of Remake

The Day The Earth Stood Still (1951) Review

This 1951 film is an eloquent plea for understanding and logic and most of all peace.

Klaatu, an alien in humanoid form, arrives to Earth.

He says as he exits his spaceship in front of an army something to the effect of, ‘We come in peace..and with goodwill’. He is promptly shot for offering a gift to a soldier (they are afraid it’s a weapon).

Soon enough Klaatu is locked up, being informed by the secretary of state that a meeting of the world’s leaders is impossible. Frustrated by the petty human squabbles, which his race has already evolved past, Klaatu seeks academic minds to hear his message.

He also manages to find seemingly the one normal person with an evolved sensibility, a mother whose son makes fast friends with Klaatu.

He hangs out with the kid all day, and even takes him to visit his spaceship. A reporter tries to interview him there, and Klaatu begins by saying how he is afraid that fear has replaced reason, at which point the reporter cuts him off and moves on.

It all builds to a finale that will have you so mad at the ignorance and stupidity of humanity, you might be wishing they’d just blow up the planet.

The film makes a strong statement about our responsibility for peace, and ends without a clear conclusion, leaving the responsibility of making one up to Earth, and really up to all the viewers.

Whose great in it

Michael Rennie plays Klaatu with an eloquence and dignity that makes you really believe he is an evolved being.

How you know what the movie thinks of the average joe

-The most sensitive and understanding people are a little kid, academics, and a mother

Reasons to be very afraid the remake will be terrible

-The original film is small in scale, and spends a lot of time with conversation and mellow interactions between Klaatu and the kid whereas the remake looks big and expensive from the ads

-The ads for the remake makes Klaatu (Keanu Reeves) seem threatening, which is really totally contrary not only to the original film’s point, but also to the character’s characterization in the original film

-There are shots of Earth being destroyed in the remake ads

-The spaceship has been beefed up to ridiculous size in the remake ads

I’m seeing the remake on Tuesday–catch my review at www.diamondbackonline.com thursday or friday and in blog version around the same time