The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)
Average Rating: 8.1/10
Reviews Counted: 53
Fresh: 50 | Rotten: 3
Socially minded yet entertaining, The Day the Earth Stood Still imparts its moral of peace and understanding without didacticism.
Average Rating: 7.1/10
Critic Reviews: 6
Fresh: 5 | Rotten: 1
Socially minded yet entertaining, The Day the Earth Stood Still imparts its moral of peace and understanding without didacticism.
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Average Rating: 3.9/5
User Ratings: 32,417
My Rating
Movie Info
All of Washington, D.C., is thrown into a panic when an extraterrestrial spacecraft lands near the White House. Out steps Klaatu (Michael Rennie, in a role intended for Claude Rains), a handsome and soft-spoken interplanetary traveler, whose "bodyguard" is Gort (Lock Martin), a huge robot who spews forth laser-like death rays when danger threatens. After being wounded by an overzealous soldier, Klaatu announces that he has a message of the gravest importance for all humankind, which he will
Jan 1, 1951 Wide
Mar 4, 2003
20th Century Fox
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Cast
-
Michael Rennie
Klaatu -
Patricia Neal
Helen Benson -
Hugh Marlowe
Tom Stevens -
Sam Jaffe
Dr. Barnhardt -
Billy Gray
Bobby Benson -
Frances Bavier
Mrs. Barley -
Lock Martin
Gort -
Drew Pearson
Himself -
H.V. Kaltenborn
Himself -
Marshall Bradford
Newscaster -
John Burton
British Radio MC -
Wheaton Chambers
Jeweler -
James Craven
Businessman -
Marjorie Crossland
Hilda -
Edith Evanson
Mrs. Crockett -
-
Harry Harvey
Taxi Driver -
Gil Herman
Government Agent -
Harry Lauter
Platoon Leader -
Freeman Lusk
Gen. Cutler -
George Lynn
Col. Ryder -
Tyler McVey
Brady -
Dorothy Neumann
Barnhardt's Secretary -
Robert Osterloh
Major White -
House Peters Jr.
MP Captain -
Fay Roope
Major General -
James Seay
Government Man -
Olan Soule
Mr. Krull -
-
Rush Williams
MP Sergeant -
Carleton Young
Colonel -
John Brown
Mr. Bradley -
Frank Conroy
Harley
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All Critics (53) | Top Critics (6) | Fresh (62) | Rotten (3) | DVD (35)
The Day the Earth Stood Still may at first look like goofy, outdated science fiction, but its timeless warnings about violence, nuclear confrontation and the difficulties of policing the planet have made it an enduring cultural classic.
Like most of Robert Wise's work, this slickly constructed 1951 science fiction film settles squarely in the middle of its genre, better than some and worse than others.
Cast, although secondary to the story, works well.
Top CriticEdmund H North's intelligent script and Wise's smooth direction are serious without being solemn, while Bernard Herrmann's effectively alien-sounding score reinforces the atmosphere of strangeness and potential menace.
Top CriticToday, wistful viewers might ask: Where are Klaatu and Gort when we need them most?
It is comforting, of course, to have it made plain that our planetary neighbors are much wiser and more peaceful than are we, but this makes for a tepid entertainment in what is anamolously labeled the science-fiction field.
Yes kids, media was idiotic and hysterical long before the likes of Glenn Beck were around.
A sci-fi classic that still resonates.
Robert Wise looks at the Atomic Age and wonders: 'What would Jesus do?'
Embora soe ingênuo e mesmo datado para os dias de hoje, permanece interessante graças à figura enigmática e superior de Rennie e à ameaça representada pelo impassível Gort.
An enduring film property with an unforgettable catch phrase ('Klaatu barada nikto')...[and] socially conscious themes. [Blu-ray]
...remains a cut above the majority of its campy '50s brethren...
Made at the time as a plead for international peace, its message should still ring true today where the world picture is more complex and, in many ways, more splintered and dangerous.
More thoughtful and restrained than most sci-fi of the period, The Day the Earth Stood Still has aged better than almost all of its peers.
...dispels any notion you might have about shlocky science fiction.
Supplying even screenwriter North's translation of "Klaatu barada nikto," this classic's new package has all a fan needs save for a model ship.
Iconic from the get-go.
It's a film light years ahead of its time that, strangely enough, couldn't have been realised at a more perfect time.
Superb performances by all involved, restrained direction by Wise, and a magnificent and innovative score by Bernard Herrmann help keep this 35-year-old film just as relevant today as it was the day it was released.
Audience Reviews for The Day the Earth Stood Still
Super Reviewer
Super Reviewer
-
- Klaatu: I am fearful when I see people substituting fear for reason.
-
- Helen Benson: Gort! Klaatu barada nikto!
Discussion Forum
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Latest News on The Day the Earth Stood Still
March 24, 2008:
Kim Newman on... The Invisible BoyRT Obscura, the exclusive column by renowned critic Kim Newman, sees the writer plumbing the depths...
November 6, 2007:
Jennifer Connelly Joins The Day the Earth Stood StillVariety reports that Jennifer Connelly has signed on to star in 20th Century Fox's Scott...
August 27, 2007:
Keanu Making New Earth Stood StillTime to set the "Days Without a Remake Announcement" counter back to zero, folks -- and this time...
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Foreign Titles
- The Day the earth stood still (DE)
- The Day the Earth Stoood Still (UK)
