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Science Fiction

Red Planet Mars

- SEE! The first contact between Earth and Mars!

Husband-and-wife scientists pick up a pie-in-the-sky TV message supposedly from Mars.

Release Date : 1952-05-15

Language :English

Adult : false

Status : Released

Production Company : United ArtistsMelaby Pictures

Production Country : United States of America

Alternative Titles :

Cast

Peter Graves

Character Name : Chris Cronyn

Original Name : Peter Graves

Gender : Male

Andrea King

Character Name : Linda Cronyn

Original Name : Andrea King

Gender : Female

Herbert Berghof

Character Name : Franz Calder

Original Name : Herbert Berghof

Gender : Male

Marvin Miller

Character Name : Arjenian

Original Name : Marvin Miller

Gender : Male

Orley Lindgren

Character Name : Stewart Cronyn

Original Name : Orley Lindgren

Gender : Male

Walter Sande

Character Name : Admiral Bill Carey

Original Name : Walter Sande

Gender : Male

Willis Bouchey

Character Name : President

Original Name : Willis Bouchey

Gender : Male

Morris Ankrum

Character Name : Secretary of Defense Sparks

Original Name : Morris Ankrum

Gender : Male

George Blagoi

Character Name : Russian Official (uncredited)

Original Name : George Blagoi

Gender : Male

Bayard Veiller

Character Name : Roger Cronyn

Original Name : Bayard Veiller

Gender : Male

Tom Keene

Character Name : Maj. Gen. George Burdette

Original Name : Tom Keene

Gender : Male

Colin Kenny

Character Name : Mine Owner

Original Name : Colin Kenny

Gender : Male

House Peters Jr.

Character Name : Dr. Boulting - Mitchell's Assistant

Original Name : House Peters Jr.

Gender : Male

Reviews

C

CinemaSerf

@Geronimo1967

2024-07-06

I actually quite liked the underlying, and quite manipulative, concept of this film. "Cronyn" (Peter Graves) and his wife "Linda" (Andrea King) manage to make contact with Mars and low and behold, there's life there. Not only life, but a fairly benevolent one at that, that promises mankind salvation - quite literally - if they return to the teachings of the Bible and embrace God more fully. When this news reaches the ears of the wider public, mass indoctrination occurs across the world and an infrastructure of zealousness begins to prevail. Thing is, though, is this really a message from Mars at all - or is it a clever ploy by some Earth-bound entity to manoeuvre mankind into a form of pseudo-authoritarian society? The problem here is that the acting and writing are so nondescript that is rather leaves us to use our own imagination all too often. The philosophies offer clear allegory of "Red" = "Soviet" and the worse case scenario for humanity should an "enemy" ever prevail, but the film itself offers us little by way of action or dialogue to engage with or to entertain. Food for thought? Well at the height of the Cold War, then quite possibly - but what potency it had then has long since abandoned ship and we are now left with pace-less example of soundstage verbosity that again makes me wish that if ever aliens do attempt to contact mankind, maybe try those in Switzerland, India or somewhere less dogmatically militaristic.