Forbidden Planet (1956)

User Rating:

7.8/10   

Director:

Fred M. Wilcox

Writers:

Cyril Hume (screenplay)
Irving Block (story) ...

Release Date:

15 March 1956 (USA)

Genre:

Romance | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

IT'S OUT OF THIS WORLD! (original print ad - all caps)

Plot:

A starship crew goes to investigate the silence of a planet's colony only to find two survivors and a deadly secret that one of them has.

Plot Keywords:

Planet | Monster | Robot | Widower | Subconscious

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 1 nomination

Cast

Walter Pidgeon	...	Dr. Edward Morbius
Anne Francis	...	Altaira 'Alta' Morbius
Leslie Nielsen	...	Commander J. J. Adams
Warren Stevens	...	Lt. 'Doc' Ostrow M.D.
Jack Kelly	...	Lt. Jerry Farman
Richard Anderson	...	Chief Quinn
Earl Holliman	...	Cook
Robby the Robot	...	Himself
George Wallace	...	Bosun
Robert Dix	...	Crewman Grey (as Bob Dix)
Jimmy Thompson	...	Crewman Youngerford
James Drury	...	Crewman Strong
Harry Harvey Jr.	...	Crewman Randall
Roger McGee	...	Crewman Lindstrom
Peter Miller	...	Crewman Moran

Runtime:

98 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor) (as Eastman Color)

Aspect Ratio:

2.55 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Perspecta Sound encoding) (Western Electric Sound System)

Certification:

Iceland:L | USA:Approved (certificate #17605) | USA:G (re-rating) (1972) | Canada:PG (Manitoba/Nova Scotia/Ontario) | Sweden:15 | Australia:PG | Finland:K-12 | UK:U | Argentina:Atp | West Germany:12

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Trivia:

MGM had had a full animation department at one time but by 1956 it was largely dismantled. Critical animation effects (landing beam, weapons, Robby overloading, the Id Monster) were provided by Joshua Meador on loan to MGM from Disney. Meador's recognizable style can be readily discerned from that of the other three effects animators working on Alice in Wonderland (1951) and in other Disney releases.

Goofs:

Continuity: The steps were crushed when the Id entered the spaceship, but in a later scene you can see none of them are damaged.

Quotes:

Doc Ostrow: Morbius was too close to the problem. The Krell had completed their project. Big machine. No instrumentalities. True creation.
Commander John J. Adams: Come on, Doc, let's have it.
Doc Ostrow: But the Krell forgot one thing.
Commander John J. Adams: Yes, what?
Doc Ostrow: Monsters, John. Monsters from the Id.
Commander John J. Adams: The Id? What's that? Talk, Doc!
[Doc slumps and dies]
Commander John J. Adams: Doc?
Commander John J. Adams: [sadly] Oh, Doc. Doc.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Mork & Mindy: Dr. Morkenstein (#2.5)" (1979)

Brilliant: Undiluted Pulp Science Fiction on the big screen

This is the Roman Empire of Science Fiction films. All films before lead into it, and all films since flow out of it. It captures the romance, the spirit, and the nifty look of 1950's pulp science fiction. This is one science fiction movie with a theme, not just eye candy. No matter how high humanity climbs on the evolutionary scale, no matter how advanced our technology becomes, we must never forget the primal instincts of our darker nature.

This film is a masterpiece.