FORBIDDEN PLANET – Anne Francis, Walter Pidgeon
Forbidden Planet (1956)
Direction: Fred M. Wilcox
Screenplay: Cyril Hume, from a story by Irving Block and Allen Adler
Cast: Walter Pidgeon, Anne Francis, Leslie Nielsen, Warren Stevens, Earl Holliman, Richard Anderson, Jack Kelly, Robby the Robot, George Wallace, Robert Dix
By Dan Schneider of Cosmoetica:
When one thinks of 1950s science-fiction films, one thinks of the sort of schlocky black-and-white B movies that were parodied on the old Mystery Science Theater 3000 television show. Yet, while there were a whole lot of films like Plan 9 from Outer Space and Robot Monster, the 1950s did have some very good, if not great, sci-fi movies such as The Day the Earth Stood Still, The Incredible Shrinking Man, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, The War of the Worlds, and The Thing from Another World.
For its literacy and production values, the best of the bunch was undoubtedly MGM’s first big foray into A-level science fiction, Forbidden Planet, released in 1956. The 98-minute color film directed by Fred M. Wilcox features state-of-the-art special effects and is endowed with Cyril Hume’s solid screenplay from a screen treatment called "Fatal Planet" by Irving Block and Allen Adler, who adapted sections of William Shakespeare’s The Tempest.
Upon its release, Forbidden Planet drew raves for its Oscar-nominated special effects, its electronic music score by Louis and Bebe Barron (though credited as Electronic Tonalities, to avoid music guild fees), vivid matte paintings — inspired by Chesley Bonestell — and the famed Monster of the Id (MOTI), which was animated by Joshua Meador, on loan from the Walt Disney studios.
Even more famous was the appearance of Robby the Robot. Later, he would appear in The Invisible Boy — included in this DVD as a bonus — as well as in several 1960s sci-fi TV shows, including The Twilight Zone, Night Gallery, and Lost in Space (with whose robot Robby is often confused), plus a cameo appearance in Gremlins (1984).
As for its plot, Forbidden Planet offers a simple but elegantly constructed tale filled with humorous asides that leaven the forced ‘love story’ aspect in the film.
In the 23rd Century, the United Planets Cruiser C-57D — a flying saucer led by Commander J. J. Adams (Leslie Nielsen, long before his Police Squad days), is en route to the planet Altair IV to investigate what happened to the crew of the Bellerophon, sent to that planet twenty years earlier. After a year’s journey, they encounter the lone survivor of the party, Doctor Edward Morbius (Walter Pidgeon), a philologist and Prospero stand-in; his gorgeous blonde daughter Altaira (Anne Francis), or Alta, the Miranda character in a pre-1960s miniskirt; and Robby the Robot, the domestic servant who is the Calibanian counterpart.
Morbius warns the crew of a mysterious force that killed the Bellerophon party in their first year, even though he was immune to it. After a midnight attack that kills one of the ship’s men, Adams confronts Dr. Morbius, who explains that below his home is a machine — 7800 levels high, and powered by 9200 nuclear reactors — the only remnant of the extinct Krel race, which perished 200,000 years earlier in a single night after a million years of high culture.
The Krels were on the verge of non-material existence when the calamity struck. Dr. Morbius shows Adams a Krel nursery, with a plastic educator machine that killed the Bellerophon’s captain. Dr. Morbius survived, but had his intellect doubled. In the machine, Morbius can project a hologram of Alta — a scene that clearly inspired a similar moment in Star Wars. With this knowledge, he built Robby.
In the meantime, Adams and his number two, Lt. Farman (Jack Kelly), vie for Alta’s affections. Adams wins. MOTI, however, attacks again.
Forbidden Planet, as literate and well acted as it is, would not be such an iconic film without Robby the Robot, who can speak 188 languages, including dialects and sub-tongues. Robby steals every scene he’s in, whether telling Adams, who comments on the planet’s high oxygen content, that ‘I rarely use it myself, sir. It promotes rust,’ or zapping a little monkey who tries to steal fruit from a bowl.
There are also some interesting antinomies regarding technology. As an example, Forbidden Planet opens with the claim that mankind did not reach the moon till the end of the 20th century — when it was just thirteen years later that it happened in reality. Additionally, many of the ship’s devices run on clearly antiquated atomic energy, there are no wireless communicators, and many of the technologies are gobbledygook, such as the use of quanto-gravitetic drive to travel in hyperspace.
Even so, many of the other devices in the film seem plausible. Unlike the large industrial technology in later sci-fi films, the sleek, minimalist designs of many of the ship’s devices mirror technology getting smaller and better. The film also follows Isaac Asimov’s Three Laws of Robotics, a bonus for sci-fi fans as it has had an obvious influence on the Star Trek and Star Wars franchises.
The 50th Anniversary Edition DVD comes on two discs. Disc one has Forbidden Planet in a great new transfer. Included are seven science-fiction film trailers, an excerpt from the 1950s TV series "MGM Parade" with Walter Pigeon appearing with Robby, as well as Robby’s appearance in the "The Robot Client" episode of the Thin Man TV series (starring Peter Lawford and Phyllis Kirk) that originally aired on February 28, 1958. Unfortunately, there is no audio commentary for this terrific film — and that’s a major oversight.
Disc two has The Invisible Boy, a solid 1957 B movie that was Robby’s first post-Forbidden Planet appearance, and three documentaries:
- The hour-long Watch the Skies!: Science Fiction, the 1950s and Us, with appearances by current blockbuster sci-fi filmmakers George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, James Cameron, John Carpenter, and Ridley Scott. The fact that it was written and directed by Time magazine critic Richard Schickel explains many of its flaws and omissions, e.g., no mention of Invasion of the Body Snatchers.
- The making-of featurette, ‘Amazing! Exploring The Far Reaches of Forbidden Planet,’ with Leslie Nielsen, Anne Francis, Warren Stevens, Earl Holliman, and Richard Anderson providing reminiscences about the film. There are also special-effects experts, like Dennis Muren and Phil Tippett, who discuss the making of MOTI’s invisible footprints.
- ‘Robby The Robot: Engineering a Sci-Fi Icon,’ which documents the robot’s making and his life after Forbidden Planet.
The disc also offers deleted scenes and "lost" footage.
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Tags: Anne Francis, Classic Movies, DVDs, Film Reviews, Forbidden Planet, Fred M. Wilcox, Leslie Nielsen, Oscar 1956, Oscar Movies, Robby the Robot, Science Fiction Movies, Walter Pidgeon
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It’s obvious that Dan Schneider doesn’t understand the main principle of the ‘Monster From The Id’ when he states in his review:
“It’s worth pointing out that despite Forbidden Planet’s ‘happy ending,’ there is the possibility that the MOTI is still dormant inside Alta. After all, she is her father’s daughter…”
The MOTI is not the Id. The MOTI is the product of what the Krell Machine does WITH the Id.
According to the Freudian model, everyone has an Id.
Without the Krell Machine, these can be no MOTI.
Do your homework, Dan. Otherwise, good writing.