Doomsday Machine (1972)

Spies discover that the Red Chinese have built a "doomsday machine" capable of destroying the surface of the Earth, and that they plan to use it within a matter of days. Meanwhile, Project ... See full summary »

Directors:

Harry Hope, Lee Sholem

Writer:

Stuart J. Byrne (original story and screenplay)

Stars:

Bobby Van, Ruta Lee, Mala Powers

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Bobby Van	...	Danny
Ruta Lee	...	Dr. Marion Turner
Mala Powers	...	Maj. Georgianna Bronski
James Craig	...	Dr. Haines
Grant Williams	...	Maj. Kurt Mason
Henry Wilcoxon	...	Dr. Christopher Perry
Chia Essie Lin	...	Girl Spy (as Essie Lin Chia)
Casey Kasem	...	Mission Control Officer
Lorri Scott	...	Lt. Katie Carlson
Denny Miller	...	Col. Don Price (as Scott Miller)
Mike Farrell	...	1st Reporter
John Cestare
Raymond Mayo
Frank Gambina
Mark Bailey	...	Major / Astronaut

Storyline

Spies discover that the Red Chinese have built a "doomsday machine" capable of destroying the surface of the Earth, and that they plan to use it within a matter of days. Meanwhile, Project Astra, a manned U.S. space mission to Venus, is in its final hours before launch when it is taken over by the military and nearly half of its all-male crew is replaced by women. The reason for this becomes apparent when, shortly after Astra leaves orbit, the Earth is completely destroyed in a global cataclysm! Is the human race doomed? What dangers and wonders await the crew of the Astra on their journey to Venus?

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Plot Keywords:

astronaut | space travel | end of the world | woman wearing a towel | bleeding eyes | 

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Taglines:

See! The Earth Destroyed In A Nuclear Holocaust!

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Genres:

Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

1972 (USA)

Also Known As:

Escape from Planet Earth

Company Credits

Production Co:

First Leisure

Technical Specs

Runtime:

83 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The cutting tool that Danny (Bobby Van) carries with him in his final scene is a Zero-M Sonic Blaster, a spy toy made by Mattel in 1966.

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Goofs

A great deal of time is spent firing off stages of the rocket, although exterior shots (usually) show a one-stage rocket.

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Quotes

Danny: Those chopstick jockeys couldn't come up with a planet buster, could they?

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Connections

Featured in Nostalgia Critic: Doomsday Machine (2012)

User Reviews

SO bad, it's really funny!

I bought the video because the plot sounded like an adaptation of a great mid-1960s comic book I own, one of my prized possessions. Alas, I was wrong. This movie is SO bad, it's quite funny!

Where can I start? The movie begins with an Oriental cold-war/espionage plot, followed by a military end-of-the-world scenario (with Casey Kasem as a Mission Control Capcom!), then becomes a battle-of-the-sexes-in-outer-space flick, finally ending with a bizarre philosophical encounter with a superior alien intelligence.

The special effects are laughable--Barcaloungers or La-Z-Boys are used for crew couches in the spaceship; two entirely different craft (a V-2 -like rocket and a circular space station) are supposed to be exterior views of the SAME spaceship; and the Apollo CSM serves as a Russian interplanetary craft with a quite-spacious interior.

Character development is not much better. One of the main male leads, supposedly one of the astronaut corps' finest, becomes a sex maniac the minute he leaves Earth orbit.

Highly recommended for all who love bad movies!