This movie probably comes in just behind 2001: A Space Odyssey, and light years ahead of Star Wars. (Just out of interest, compare the similarity in the scene where the Id Monster is burning the metal door down to the scene where the Liam Neeson's character is using his light sword to burn through the blast door at the beginning of the Phantom Menace. Perhaps the Id Monster was a Jedi).
The "Freudian" overtones in this storyline, more implicit than explicit, give an added, hidden depth which might disturb some viewers without knowing why. (Like the subliminal "face" frame in The Exorcist, making me jump for no known reason - until I watched it on video, after having been told about it.)
But the most frightening monster of course is the one we never see. There's always "something" under the bed, even if you can't see it, it's still there.
When watching this movie in 1958 as an 8 year old, as the Id Monster attacked the grounded space ship and was eventually revealed in all its horror, I was down behind the seat not watching. So I never actually SAW the monster at any time on the screen. In 1991, I bought my first video player, and was given a recording of a commercial TV transmission of the movie "modified for TV" - ie all visual reference to the Monster were deleted (except for the footprints - and to this day I cannot look at footprints in sand without hearing the eerie tonalities of the movie). It wasn't until Forbidden Planet was released on VHS that I actually obtained a complete version. By this time I was in my early 50s. I noticed two things. Firstly, the very unrealistic colour tinting of the original had been "paled", which for me destroyed one of the beauties of that era of film making (probably something to do with the filmstock used, but I'm happy to defer to someone with more knowledge) and secondly, as used as I was to the "modified" version I had watched over the previous decade or so, I was caught completely by surprise by the appearance, in flaming red outline, of the Id Monster. When my heart rate settled down, I thought, wow, THAT was really terrifying. No wonder it was "modified".
So after 4 decades, I finally faced the nightmare I had hidden from, and my estimation of the worth of this marvellous movie went up even further.
Thanks to all concerned for making this classical piece of cinema.
The "Freudian" overtones in this storyline, more implicit than explicit, give an added, hidden depth which might disturb some viewers without knowing why. (Like the subliminal "face" frame in The Exorcist, making me jump for no known reason - until I watched it on video, after having been told about it.)
But the most frightening monster of course is the one we never see. There's always "something" under the bed, even if you can't see it, it's still there.
When watching this movie in 1958 as an 8 year old, as the Id Monster attacked the grounded space ship and was eventually revealed in all its horror, I was down behind the seat not watching. So I never actually SAW the monster at any time on the screen. In 1991, I bought my first video player, and was given a recording of a commercial TV transmission of the movie "modified for TV" - ie all visual reference to the Monster were deleted (except for the footprints - and to this day I cannot look at footprints in sand without hearing the eerie tonalities of the movie). It wasn't until Forbidden Planet was released on VHS that I actually obtained a complete version. By this time I was in my early 50s. I noticed two things. Firstly, the very unrealistic colour tinting of the original had been "paled", which for me destroyed one of the beauties of that era of film making (probably something to do with the filmstock used, but I'm happy to defer to someone with more knowledge) and secondly, as used as I was to the "modified" version I had watched over the previous decade or so, I was caught completely by surprise by the appearance, in flaming red outline, of the Id Monster. When my heart rate settled down, I thought, wow, THAT was really terrifying. No wonder it was "modified".
So after 4 decades, I finally faced the nightmare I had hidden from, and my estimation of the worth of this marvellous movie went up even further.
Thanks to all concerned for making this classical piece of cinema.