Chariots of the Gods (1970)

Documentary based on the book by Erich Von Daniken concerning the ancient mysteries of the world, such as the pyramids of Egypt and Mexico, ancient cave drawings, the monuments of Easter ... See full summary »

Director:

Harald Reinl (as Dr. Harald Reinl)

Writers:

Harald Reinl, Utz Utermann (commentary) (as Wilhelm Roggersdorf)

Stars:

Heinz-Detlev Bock, Klaus Kindler, Christian Marschall

Nominated for 1 Oscar.

Cast

Credited cast:
Heinz-Detlev Bock	...	Narrator (voice)
Klaus Kindler	...	Narrator (voice)
Christian Marschall	...	Narrator (voice)
Aleksandr Kazantsev	...	Himself - Moscow Academy of Natural Science
Wiatscheslav Saitsew	...	Himself - Academy of Science, Minsk
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Hans Domnick	...	Participation
Jean Fontaine	...	Narrator (English version)
Thor Heyerdahl	...	Participation
Bruce Johansen	...	Narrator (English version)
Hermann Oberth	...	Participation
Lee Pajan	...	Narrator (English version)
Henning Skaarup	...	(Danish narrator)
Erich von Däniken	...	Himself

Storyline

Documentary based on the book by Erich Von Daniken concerning the ancient mysteries of the world, such as the pyramids of Egypt and Mexico, ancient cave drawings, the monuments of Easter Island, etc. and the fact that these things and modern civilization could have been influenced by extra-terrestrial visitations hundreds(or perhaps thousands) of years ago.

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Plot Keywords:

easter island | extra terrestrial | controversy | spaceship | easter island head | 

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Taglines:

Was God An Astronaut? The Amazing Story Of Earth's Unsolved Mysteries.

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Genres:

Documentary

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Certificate:

G

Details

Country:

West Germany

Language:

German

Release Date:

26 April 1970 (West Germany)

Also Known As:

Chariots of the Gods

Filming Locations:

Israel

Box Office

Gross USA:

$25,948,300

Company Credits

Production Co:

Terra-Filmkunst

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Released at 54 minutes in the UK, so that it would fit on a double bill as the supporting film to The Railway Children (1970) in 1971.

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Goofs

Amongst this film's claims, was that the Nazca Lines were some kind of landing strip or runway system. In actual fact, the ground in the area would be too soft to be a landing strip for any large craft.

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Quotes

Narrator: [On a 40,000 year old bison skull] The beast was alive when killed.

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Alternate Versions

Cut to 54 minutes for its UK theatrical release by EMI in 1971.

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Connections

Referenced in Alien (1979)

User Reviews

Wow!

I still recall what a stunning impact this "documentary" had on my family -- including my father, a professor -- when we saw it on television in the early '70's.

Of course, all of von Däniken's assertions have been thoroughly and utterly debunked in the meantime, and von Däniken turned out to be a complete fraud, but still, this was the first time I had ever heard of the Plains of Nazca, so I have to thank Erich for that.

I much prefer the German title to the English: "Erinnerungen an die Zukunft" or "Memories of the Future".