Dr. Who and the Daleks (1965)

An eccentric inventor and his companions travel in his TARDIS to the Planet Skaro and battle the evil menace of the Daleks.

Director:

Gordon Flemyng

Writers:

Terry Nation (based on the BBC television serial), Milton Subotsky (screenplay)

Stars:

Peter Cushing, Roy Castle, Jennie Linden

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Peter Cushing	...	Dr. Who
Roy Castle	...	Ian
Jennie Linden	...	Barbara
Roberta Tovey	...	Susan
Barrie Ingham	...	Alydon
Geoffrey Toone	...	Temmosus
Michael Coles	...	Ganatus
John Bown	...	Antodus
Yvonne Antrobus	...	Dyoni
Mark Petersen	...	Elyon
Ken Garady	...	Thal
Nicholas Head	...	Thal
Mike Lennox	...	Thal (as Michael Lennox)
Jack Waters	...	Thal
Virginia Tyler	...	Thal

Storyline

Based on a story from the BBC TV serial "Doctor Who". Scientist Dr. Who accidentally activates his new invention, the Tardis, a time machine disguised as a police telephone box. Dr. Who, his two grand-daughters, and Barbara's boyfriend Ian are transported through time and space to the planet Skaro, where a peaceful race of Thals are under threat of nuclear attack from the planet's other inhabitants: the robotic mutant Daleks.

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Plot Keywords:

time machine | mutant | doctor who | telephone | scientist | 

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Taglines:

The Wildest Space Adventure on... or off the Earth!

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Genres:

Adventure | Sci-Fi

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Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

July 1966 (USA)

Also Known As:

Doctor Who and the Daleks

Filming Locations:

Shepperton Studios, Shepperton, Surrey, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

£180,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

AARU Productions, Amicus Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

82 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

To stir up publicity for the film, Tuesday 25th May 1965 saw a squad of Daleks descend on the Cannes Film Festival. Amongst the startled attendees to encounter them was John Lennon.

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Goofs

When Susan is escorted to the entrance of the city by two Daleks, the top half of one is very clearly seen to tip backwards for an instant.

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Connections

Referenced in The Kidnappers (1999)

User Reviews

An exercise in nostalgia

I have fond memories of seeing this at the cinema (a treat on a friend's birthday) when it first came out. I was a big Dr Who fan anyway as a 12 year old, and this big screen colour adaptation of the 2nd Dr Who serial and first Dalek story was just what the Doctor ordered.

It never occurred to me, as a 12 year old in 1965, that the Doctor was a mere human and not a Time Lord from Gallifrey, and that was because, at the time, he was a mere human and not a Time Lord from Gallifrey on TV, too. That particular wrinkle wasn't introduced until long after the first couple of Dalek TV series and the two movies.

That said, while the film brings back fond memories, and is particularly good to see in widescreen, it is very much a product of its time, and specifically targetted at its market - youngsters who were mad keen on Daleks. That market is not there any more. The movie shows its age, and doesn't stand up that well to today's demands. For all that, there's still a genuine sense of jeopardy involved, the principals play well, the production values are (for the time and the UK cinema industry) very high, and it remains good, colourful innocent fun.