Queen of Outer Space (1958)

American astronauts are drawn by a mysterious force to the planet Venus, which they find to be inhabited only by beautiful women and their despotic queen.

Director:

Edward Bernds

Writers:

Charles Beaumont (screenplay), Ben Hecht (story "Queen of the Universe")

Stars:

Zsa Zsa Gabor, Eric Fleming, Dave Willock

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Zsa Zsa Gabor	...	Talleah
Eric Fleming	...	Capt. Neal Patterson
Dave Willock	...	Lt. Mike Cruze
Laurie Mitchell	...	Queen Yllana
Lisa Davis	...	Motiya
Paul Birch	...	Prof. Konrad
Patrick Waltz	...	Lt. Larry Turner
Barbara Darrow	...	Kaeel
Marilyn Buferd	...	Odeena
Mary Ford	...	Venusian Girl
Marya Stevens	...	Venusian Girl
Laura Mason	...	Venusian Girl
Lynn Cartwright	...	Venusian Girl
Kathy Marlowe	...	Venusian Girl
Coleen Drake	...	Venusian Girl

Storyline

En route to Earth's orbiting space station, a spaceship with four men aboard is attacked and they awaken after their spaceship crash lands. One of them, Professor Konrad, determines they have landed on Venus, a planet scientists had believed to be uninhabitable. They are taken prisoner by the inhabitants, all beautiful women, who imprisoned the men and took control of the planet. Their masked Queen, Yllana, has plans to destroy the Earth with their beta disintegrator but there is dissent among them led by the beautiful Talleah.

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Plot Keywords:

psychotronic film | low budget sci fi movie | space station | space station explosion | matriarchy | 

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Taglines:

Mankind's first fantastic flight to Venus - the female planet!

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Genres:

Adventure | Fantasy | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

Unrated

Did You Know?

Trivia

The project was originally announced as "Queen of the Universe" by Allied Artists in 1951 and was to have been produced by Walter Wanger.

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Goofs

The "bed" that Professor Konrad gets strapped into has two safety belts. When they are being attacked he jumps into it and only straps the one going over his torso, which would keep him from sitting up. In following shots he still has the one over his legs unstrapped. But then when the ship is hit, the one over his legs is strapped tight.

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Quotes

Capt. Neal Patterson: You don't just accidentally land on a planet 36,000.000 miles away!
Prof. Konrad: It would appear that all things are possible in space.

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Crazy Credits

The title and opening credits do not appear until fifteen minutes into the film.

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Connections

Featured in Monsters, Madmen & Machines: 80 Years of Science Fiction (1984)

User Reviews

Fans Have Debated for Years Whether This Film Was Intended As A Parody or Not.

"Queen of Outer Space" has been unkindly described as a deliberate parody of sci-fi cliches, but the director wasn't in on the joke.

Fans have been debating for years just what the intentions of Ben Hecht and Charles Beaumont were in penning this much-reviled space adventure. Surely both writers were capable of much better work. Surely Zsa Zsa Gabor as a Venusian space maiden was a piece of casting nobody expected to be taken seriously. Surely director Edward Bernds must have known the score. This is the man who directed the Three Stooges. He knows a joke when he sees it! Yet, in interviews, Bernds insists that the film was intended to be taken straight.

Even a casual examination of the finished product makes this hard to believe. The first half of the film seems to be skewering the stereotypical male/female relationships found in pulp sci-fi cinema of the day. But after the captain rebuffs the evil queen's advances and the plot turns to action, the film starts taking itself seriously and its sense of goofy fun dissipates quickly.

But, in fairness to Bernds: if he wasn't in on the joke, neither were any of his cast, who perform with earnest sincerity throughout.

Although the film was made by Allied Artists (Monogram after their name change), some expense seems to have been spent on it: it's in color & Cinemascope and the sets, although gaudily and colorfully fake, are extensive. Perhaps most tellingly, AA released it as a single feature, clearly a sign of confidence (or misplaced optimism) in those days where double-features were standard for B-films.

In hindsight, the question of deliberate parody may never be answered. Because of the film's reputation, those involved in the production were undoubtedly anxious to rewrite history to salvage their professional reputations.

Favorite scene: Zsa Zsa's attempt to impersonate the queen by donning her mask and issuing orders in her imperious and distinctive Hungarian accent, then being shocked when the ruse fails.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

7 September 1958 (USA)

Also Known As:

Women Without Men

Company Credits

Production Co:

Allied Artists Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

80 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1