Rocketship X-M (1950)

User Rating:

4.8/10   

Director:

Kurt Neumann

Writers:

Orville H. Hampton (additional dialogue)
Kurt Neumann (writer)

Release Date:

2 June 1950 (USA)

Genre:

Sci-Fi

Tagline:

The Most Amazing Story Ever Filmed!

Plot:

Astronauts (Lloyd Bridges, Osa Massen, John Emery, Noah Beery, Jr., and Hugh O'Brien) blast off to explore the moon on...

Plot Keywords:

Mars | Caveman | Martian | Rocket Ship | Reverse Footage

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Lloyd Bridges	...	Col. Floyd Graham
Osa Massen	...	Dr. Lisa Van Horn
John Emery	...	Dr. Karl Eckstrom
Noah Beery Jr.	...	Maj. William Corrigan
Hugh O'Brian	...	Harry Chamberlain
Morris Ankrum	...	Dr. Ralph Fleming
Patrick Aherne	...	Reporter #1 (as Patrick Ahern)
Sherry Moreland	...	Martian girl
John Dutra	...	Physician
Kathy Marlowe	...	Reporter (as Katherine Marlowe)

Also Known As:

Expedition Moon
None Came Back (USA) (working title)
Rocket to the Moon (USA) (working title)
Rocketship Expedition Moon (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

77 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Certification:

Canada:PG (Ontario) | USA:Approved | West Germany:12 (f) | Finland:S | Sweden:Btl | UK:A (original rating) | UK:U (video rating) (1996)

Filming Locations:

Death Valley National Park, California, USA

Company:

Lippert Pictures

Trivia:

When George Pal announced production of his space epic Destination Moon (1950) this film was rushed into production to capitalize on it and beat Pal's film into theaters by several weeks.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When the rocket lands on Mars, we see a shot of German V2 rocket-in reverse. We even get a quick look at the rocket tower as the rocket goes down.

Quotes:

Dr. Karl Eckstrom: With that differential of six over N to the thirtieth power the halfway check result is two hundred and sixty-two thousand to three hundred and forty-one thousand both using tangent E, correct?
Dr. Lisa Van Horn: That isn't the result I have.
Dr. Karl Eckstrom: They must be the same. There is an error there.
Dr. Lisa Van Horn: [defensive] I have made no error, Doctor Eckstrom.
Dr. Karl Eckstrom: I have to say that you have made and error and to discard your figures. I'm sorry.
Dr. Lisa Van Horn: [sarcastic] Don't be.
Dr. Karl Eckstrom: Surely you are not going to let emotion enter into this?
Dr. Lisa Van Horn: [dejected] Certainly not.
Dr. Karl Eckstrom: We will continue computing using my results as a basis.
Dr. Lisa Van Horn: Yes, I... Except that I feel very strongly I should say we should try both.
[...]

Movie Connections:

Featured in Monsterama Sci-Fi Late Night Creature Feature Show Vol. 1 (1996) (V)

Saw this as a 13 year old - I was very impressed!

Got to remembering this old flick lately and decided to try to find a copy. Imagine my suprise when I found it in a dual pack which included "Destination Moon" (1950). Bought them both in a heartbeat! Although both are "primitively" produced I personally think they did a good job for what they had to work with. I would be a gas to see a remake of both using todays technology.