Superman battles a criminal mastermind and his robot army.
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Title: The Mechanical Monsters (1941)
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Cast
| Uncredited cast: | |||
| Joan Alexander | ... | Lois Lane (voice) (uncredited) | |
 |
Jackson Beck | ... | Narrator (voice) (uncredited) |
| Bud Collyer | ... | Clark Kent / Superman / Scientist (voice) (uncredited) | |
Learn more
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Plot Summary
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Add Synopsis
Storyline
As the headline on the Daily Planet tells the public: "Mechanical Monster loots bank!" In fact, a scientist has an army of these flying robots able to steal anything in sight. Police are set up everywhere to guard an exhibition of rare jewels, but it's no use. When a robot crashes into the building, it steals all the precious stones in sight, while the policemen's bullets harm it no more than flies. Clark and Lois are at the exhibit. While Clark phones in the story from a booth, Lois stows away in the robot's compartment. Clark sees that Lois has gone missing and decides to change into Superman there in the phone booth. Superman follows the monster, while his X-ray vision allows him to spot Lois inside. His attempt to get Lois out fails. The robot knocks him onto some power lines, losing the jewelry and (nearly) Lois in the process. The robot returns to the scientist's hideout with Lois, but no jewelry. She refuses to tell the scientist where it is. He retaliates by tying her up and ... Written by J. Spurlin
Parents Guide:
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Voices: Up in the sky, look! It's a bird. It's a plane. It's Superman!
Narrator: Faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive, able to leap tall buildings in a single bound, this amazing stranger from the planet Krypton, The Man of Steel: Superman! Empowered with X-ray vision, possessing remarkable physical strength, Superman fights a never-ending battle for truth and justice, disguised as a mild-mannered newspaper reporter, Clark Kent.
See more »
Did You Know?
Trivia
This cartoon is the first Superman story in which Clark Kent changes into his Superman costume inside a phone booth. See more »Goofs
When all the robots attack Superman, we see two of them labeled with a "3". See more »Quotes
[first lines]Voices: Up in the sky, look! It's a bird. It's a plane. It's Superman!
Narrator: Faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive, able to leap tall buildings in a single bound, this amazing stranger from the planet Krypton, The Man of Steel: Superman! Empowered with X-ray vision, possessing remarkable physical strength, Superman fights a never-ending battle for truth and justice, disguised as a mild-mannered newspaper reporter, Clark Kent.
See more »
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See full technical specs »
Details
Country:
USALanguage:
EnglishRelease Date:
21 November 1941 (USA) See more »Also Known As:
Los monstruos mecánicos See more »Company Credits
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IMDbPro »
Technical Specs
Runtime:
Sound Mix:
Mono (Western Electric Noiseless Recording)Color:
Color (Technicolor)Aspect Ratio:
1.37 : 1Looking for something to watch? Check out IMDb's "What to Watch" series to find out what's really worth watching.
The Mechanical Monsters has been remixed and retold dozens of times since its 1941 release: Hayao Miyazaki got inspired to use elements for the Lupin the Third Part II t.v. series, and his 1986 feature film Laputa: Castle in the Sky. The Iron Giant pays homage to this short in its title character AND through Superman's influence on that film's title character; suffice to say The Mechanical Monsters has become immortalized in popular culture just like The Man of Steel himself.
77 years on and does this film still hold? Yes; absolutely. I have no doubt in my mind this one still holds up. And besides, I've always loved Superman just as much as I do these shorts.