The Wizard of Mars (1965)

In 1974, four astronauts, silver shoe-clad Dorothy, overweight Doc, goofy Charlie, and wooden Steve, crash land on Mars when taking readings, with only four days of supplies. They must try ... See full summary »

Director:

David L. Hewitt

Writers:

Armando Busick (story), David L. Hewitt (screenplay),

Stars:

John Carradine, Roger Gentry, Vic McGee

Cast

Complete credited cast:
John Carradine	...	The Wizard of Mars
Roger Gentry	...	Steve
Vic McGee	...	Doc
Jerry Rannow	...	Charlie
Eve Bernhardt	...	Dorothy

Storyline

In 1974, four astronauts, silver shoe-clad Dorothy, overweight Doc, goofy Charlie, and wooden Steve, crash land on Mars when taking readings, with only four days of supplies. They must try to survive on the surface, which is barren except for some canals with huge maggots with fins. After embarking through a golden igneous cavern, braving a storm and finding an unmanned Earth vessel, they discover a golden road which leads them to the unchanging ruins of what was once a beautiful Martian city. The Martians are modeled on the Flatheads of Oz, and their collective consciousness, the "Wizard," forbids them to leave until they perform a very small task...

---

Plot Keywords:

martian | wizard | rocket ship | new year's eve | alien | 

---

Taglines:

WE DOUBLE DARE YOU To Remain in the Theatre as a Titanic Martian Electrical Storm Crashes Out Into the Audience!

---

Genres:

Fantasy | Horror | Sci-Fi

---

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Also Known As:

Alien Massacre

Filming Locations:

Fallon, Nevada, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$33,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

American General Pictures, David L. Hewitt and Associates, Karston-Hewitt Organization

Technical Specs

Runtime:

78 min 85 min (as Horrors of the Red Planet)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

Lon Chaney Jr. does not appear in this film, despite his name credited on the video box for "Alien Massacre." His only feature for director David L. Hewitt was Gallery of Horror (which did co-star John Carradine).

---

Connections

Referenced in Space Probe Taurus (1965)

User Reviews

Strange, beautiful film - deliberate or inadvertent art?

WIZARD OF MARS is very slow, as some of the preceding comments would indicate, but it is also extremely beautiful, and the slow pacing adds to the hypnotic effect. The film is literally like a half-remembered dream, but it's difficult to decide if this is due to deliberate artistic choice or the demands of the "road show" live performance/film feature combination that this film was originally meant for. One should note that certain themes seen in this film (time loops, nature of time) reoccur in other of Hewitt's films - THE TIME TRAVELLERS most notably. This is *not* an Ed Wood-style "bad film" to be laughed at - either you are prepared to make allowances for it and enter it's half-remembered, dream-like Martian landscape, or you just shouldn't bother to watch it at all. Do not expect convential narrative or action - not for fratboy parties or Mystery Science Theatre-oids.