User reviews

Peter Graves plays a scientist in San Diego, California who receives messages from Mars on his radio transmitter (sneakily intercepted by the Russians); initially, the decoded Martian messages about prolonged life and their unnecessary need for industrial mechanics throw America's population into a tailspin. However, it turns out Mars is a Christian planet, and their next communication with us, a regular "sermon on the mount", begins to ease tensions and starts a religious revival worldwide. Talky think-piece, adapted from a play, amusingly full of clean-cut, incredibly polite Americans and savage-acting Russkies. Not likely to please science-fiction fans who are used to propulsive action, though the b&w cinematography by Joseph Biroc is excellent and there are some interesting ideas and a last-act plot-twist. Released at a time when communist hysteria was running rampant in the U.S., the movie is brave enough to attempt a humanitarian tact--and naive enough to believe in what it preaches. A livelier cast might have made it more memorable, but check out Peter's big-screen TV! ** from ****

I fondly remember the movie and particularly liked the conceit used to open communications with the aliens (the number sequence for pi). It was also thrilling to think that world peace could come about. On reseeing the movie over the years, and with the actual passing of the USSR and soviet communism, the movie doesn't really hold up. It's in the museum of propaganda films now. The closing screen was "The Beginning."

I recall seeing this as a youngster and being really disappointed! No Flash Gordon, no rockets, space guns, not even any Martians. After viewing it again recently, I realize, there was a REAL story here. More fantasy then sci-fi, views more like "The Next Voice You Hear", another movie that dealt in the spirtuality of modern times. A great cast performs admirably and the unexpected conclusion make this one well worth a second look.

I saw this as a teenager when Hurricane Donna was to strike Miami and the television stations put on round-the-clock programming. It's different from usual sci-fi, where "science" provides an incidental framework that increases the power of its spiritual undertone. The story is simple, but builds to a conclusion that implies that it is not "the end". The cast is great, and the film is easy to "get into". You are left with the feeling that what you have seen is more powerful than its easy progress led you to believe while you were viewing it. Personally, I put it among the best movies I've ever seen; certainly I never forgot it.

Completely Corny, Heavy Handed Attempt to Meld the Topical Communist Red Scare with Sci-Fi and an Over-the-Top Christian Religiosity.

Sombre, and seemingly Unaware of the Self-Conscious Sermon Like Dialog and Christian Witnessing that Permeates the Proceedings, Especially in the Second-Half.

It Starts with a Science-Fiction Template of a Communications Scientist Trying to Send and Receive Signals to and From the Red Planet.

The Interjection of a Russian Scientist Attempting the Same and the First-Half is Played rather Straight with the East-West Cold War.

Somewhere around the Middle the Movie Ratchets Up the Paranoia.

It goes way Out-There once Signals seem to be Received Regarding an Advance Knowledge of Futuristic Natural Resource Economy and the Ability to gain Abundance from very Little.

In the Third Act All Hell Breaks Loose Literally as Things become Ultra-Religious with Orthodox Imagery, Bible Verse, and a Satan Worshiper.

It's one of those that is Difficult to Describe and has to be Seen to be Believed.

Worth a Watch for just that Reason.

It is one that is so Out of Orbit from the Usual Stuff that it will Not be Forgotten.

After viewing photos of Mars from an observatory a scientist by the name of "Chris Cronyn" (Peter Graves) is convinced that there is intelligent life on it. To test his theory he sends radio messages using a special device called a "hydrogen valve" which was built by an evil Nazi scientist named "Dr. Franz Calder" (Herbert Berghof) who is now working for the Russians in a hidden laboratory somewhere in the Andes. However, when Chris is proved right and contact is indeed established the information he receives from the Martians ends up having a not too favorable impact upon the people of Earth. Now, as far as the overall movie is concerned I also had a not too favorable opinion of it as the attempt to combine science-fiction with religion didn't turn out too well. That's not to say that these two subjects cannot mutually coexist as some Christian movies are able to pull it off every now and then. But those types of movies are typically geared to a specific target audience which will appreciate the attempt. In this case the movie was intended for a general audience and the final product turned out to be a pretty bad movie. Definitely below average.

This one has its merits in building a fairly interesting sci-fi story, out of a small budget, but the cold war sub-tones are maniqueists and ultimately ridiculous, trashing what could have been a good sci-fi exercise.

Americans are the "God's elected people"(sic) and soviets are the devilish atheists ones, and the RED martians are ... Christian messengers from outer space!

No way, pal!

Another one for the garbage truck of history...

1 out of 10

I first saw this movie today on TCM. When I saw the title, I was misled into thinking that I was going to be treated to the typical alien-monster excitement that accompanies such films. Nothing could be further from the truth. This was a Red-Scare propaganda film masquerading with a science fiction title. It had all of the anti-communist rhetoric, along with the typical scare tactics of how bad and evil the commies were, contrasted by the western world's freedoms of religion and speech as was viewed by many during those turbulent times. And isn't it a coincidence that the powers-that-be weaved a story about the "Red" planet that featured the evils of the "Red" menace? Apparently "Red" was a popular color in this black and white production.

What was the cause of all this nonsense? Immediately after the conclusion of the second World War a distrust deveioped between the United States and the Soviet Union. Both sides, of course, had their reasons for such distrusts and cannot be elaborated here. However, a lot of anti-Soviet propaganda films were made by Hollywood between 1946 and 1963. One such film, an MGM short called "The Hucksters" (1951) reflects this paranoia with zeal. During an era when the House on Un-American Activities were busy with their "witch hunts" many great actors and actresses were victimized. The Red Planet Mars is a product of a worried Hollywood reacting to this persecution. Incidentally, President Truman, during the election campaign of 1948 called this witch hunt a "red herring". So, we have "red" menace, "red" planet and "red" herring.

There were many such films created during this time period. People were scared stiff of an atomic attack from the Soviet Union (the Soviets first tested an atomic bomb in 1949), so a movie like this capitalized on such fears.

And the movie moguls from this period took advantage of sci-fi films as another avenue to portray the evil Russians, albeit in an alien creature guise. Of course, this was all a sign of the times during this era. What could be worse? alien threat or Communist takeover? This was simply a reflection of the ignorance that dominated the minds of many about both subjects, and ignorance, if left unchecked, breeds fear.

As a science fiction film, this movie falls flat on it's face. However, it is recommended to anyone out there who likes the propaganda slant that this film has to offer.

Radio transmissions believed to be from Mars turn out to have quite different origins in this intriguing Cold War-era sci-fi film that seems to be polarizing today, if IMDb is anything to go by (and I wonder). Peter Graves does a good job but Herbert Berghof steals the show as a former Nazi now working for the Russians. Andrea King is pretty annoying as the hysterical wife of Graves' character. The rest of the cast is solid. I like this movie because it's interesting with a unique plot. It's talky, yes, but that's not inherently a bad thing. It's a thought-provoking movie with some historical interest, not just a special effects spectacle. Because it has political and religious elements, it will trigger Certain Types. If you are one of those, gird your loins before watching.

Red Planet Mars (1952) encourages us to think about what happens when a technologically superior civilization comes into contact with one that does not rely on such advanced technology.

It is unfortunate that the film's Christian message is laid on rather too thickly with its many references to God and Christ. This feature of the film results in it taking on a particularly naive, arrogant and blinkered view of the world and existence.

The eerie mood and atmosphere of the film is derived from the fact that neither the scientists nor we, the audience, actually see any Martians. We don't go to Mars and no Martians try to invade the Earth. Instead, messages are exchanged between Earth and Mars in the form of a code which is displayed as flickering lines on a video screen. The flickering lines, flashing lights and monitors and electric sounds add to the eerie and alien nature of the mysterious beings from another planet.

A great feature of Red Planet Mars, are the plot twists, particularly the one involving the ex-Nazi scientist, Franz Calder.

The two characters, Franz Calder and Arjenian are wonderful as the ex-Nazi scientist and Russian KGB agent respectively. They are both detestable in their own way, but you can't help liking them as they bounce off each other and try to seek advantage over one another. For Arjenian, the Soviets "demand an accounting" for their investment, to which Calder replies, "you won't harm me, you need me!"

The character Linda Cronyn's hysteria hits you like a sledge-hammer. Consider her reply to her husband's contention that science has advanced us and she spits out at him, "and you'll have done it!" and (off-screen and volume up high), "RIGHT INTO OBLIVION!" It is almost like Linda is a projection of the fear, hysteria and paranoia of the times. She frequently appeals to her husband, "don't send a message tonight" and she feels as though "the whole world is scared" and that "fear has become a natural state." Such sentiments are not surprising when you consider that the world of which speaks had not long before experienced the Great Depression, a truly global war and was then just coming to grips with the Korean war, a developing Cold War between the US and the Soviet Union and the internal insanity of the McCarthy anti-communist witch hunts.

Like so many other science fiction films of the 1950s, Red Planet Mars is definitely a product of its time. It provides us with a fascinating glimpse of a period in the USA's history where 'duck and cover' drills for kids, the 'red scare' and 'reds under the bed' menace and right wing paranoia were the order of the day. But what makes this film stand out from so many other films of this genre is that instead of relying on action and special effects, it does make you think and dare I say.....HOPE for something better!

This is a movie about a different planet.

That planet would be the Planet Earth of 1952. The Cold War was in full swing, and paranoia was at its height. Yes, it was "The End of History" (oh, really, again?) and everything was so important, and everyone was so self-important.

This pile of leavings disguised as a movie started off as a Very Serious Stage Play by A Very Serious Playwright. 60 years later, it is a joke to be laughed at and mocked. The worst of part of is not its religious orientation, its anti-communist propaganda, or its self-righteous attitude (although all those aspects of it are definitely awful).

The worst part of Red Planet Mars, from the perspective of a film viewer, is its insufferable self-seriousness and pomposity. That attitude sends this disaster flinging itself into almost Plan Nine From Outer Space territory. I'm sure the screenwriter thought his use of Jesus Christ references was subtle and restrained. If he was of such an opinion, he was way off. I'll spare the reader of this review any direct dialog quotes, since none of them were as funny as anything from Plan Nine From Outer Space, just overdone and ridiculous.

I'd like to also grouse about the plot point that these purported messages from Mars would destroy all industries almost immediately. Coal Miners would shut down profit making enterprises due to a few supposed technological advances that MIGHT be coming? The commodities markets would collapse due to food growing techniques on another planet that we on Earth could have no possible access to? I don't think so. As they say, follow the money. The Capitalists in charge would surely keep their businesses running until they had wrung out the last possible cent they could.

And if these industries were to collapse, I wouldn't have any problems seeing coal miners forced to do something else. It's a lousy job and it destroys the environment anyway. But I'm sure this was all to play into the paranoia of the contemporary audience, and I'm sure it was effective to some members of that audience.

Yes, this is a valuable piece of history as a blatantly Right Wing/Capitalist/Christian Science Fiction epic, which are admittedly rather thin on the ground. But this movie just proves why they are so few.

Right Wingers are very bad at comedy, but Right Wingers also produce some really overwrought and useless Science Fiction (also see: Heinlein, Robert; Rand, Ayn; Niven, Larry). Case in point here. Science Fiction is all about progress. Conservatism is about "returning to a better time" in the past, which never really existed. Therefore, science fiction and Conservatism/Right Wingism are NOT compatible. This movie proves that.

A sci fi 50's gem. Love this movie and the ending is shocking but extremely well done. This is a classic of epic proportions. Peter Graves and a great supporting cast played this out with heart and passion. Herbert Berghof also played a great part of the Russian scientist. Also, Walter Sande a staple in the golden age of TV did an admirable job. The cold war era was played out well as the Soviets were always making threats of burying the US. The pictures of Stalin in the background of the Russian scenes is a stark reminder of the evil we faced at that time. Extremely well done and worth watching.

A scientist receives signals from Mars that has enormous cultural and spiritual significance. The messages are believed to come from Jesus Christ on Mars. The movie features first rate acting and an excellent script. Peter Graves is terrific as always. It is, however, a little slow moving. There are no visual effects nor audio effects, the messages were like telegraph messages. The plot is fair but much more could have been done. An audio-visual message, for example, would have been stunning.

Pretty interesting idea, but poorly developed.

RPM is a rather well-made movie, acting is good. But, it is rather slow, too talky at times, and there are no Martian monsters in it (too bad!). It is not what one would expect from a movie with a title like that.

I really don't care about the propaganda and the portrayal of the soviets as the bad guys (they also were bad, after all!). But what bothers me is the heavily religious bias in this film... It gets to the point of being extremely annoying, it destroyed what could have been a good sci-fi film and transformed RPM in an exercise in evangelism.

Three stars for the effort and for what it could have been.