An alien lands in Washington, D.C. and tells the people of Earth that they must live peacefully or be destroyed as a danger to other planets.An alien lands in Washington, D.C. and tells the people of Earth that they must live peacefully or be destroyed as a danger to other planets.An alien lands in Washington, D.C. and tells the people of Earth that they must live peacefully or be destroyed as a danger to other planets.
- Awards
- 3 wins & 1 nomination
Patrick Aherne
- General at Pentagon
- (uncredited)
Larry Arnold
- Scientific Delegate
- (uncredited)
Walter Bacon
- Sightseer at Spaceship
- (uncredited)
Rama Bai
- Scientific Delegate
- (uncredited)
Oscar Blank
- Peddler
- (uncredited)
Marshall Bradford
- Chief of Staff
- (uncredited)
Chet Brandenburg
- Farmer
- (uncredited)
John Brown
- George Barley
- (uncredited)
John Burton
- British Radio Announcer
- (uncredited)
Wheaton Chambers
- Mr. Bleeker
- (uncredited)
Spencer Chan
- Scientific Delegate
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaLock Martin, the doorman at Grauman's Chinese Theater, was cast because of his nearly seven-foot height; however, he was not a physically strong man and could not actually carry Patricia Neal, so he had to be aided by wires (in shots from the back where he's carrying her (actually a lightweight dummy in his arms). He also had difficulty with the heavy Gort suit and could only stay in it for about a half hour at a time.
- GoofsKlaatu arranges to have the electromagnetic fields neutralized from 12.00 pm to 12:30 pm EST, yet it is clearly broad daylight in every country in which people are struggling with inoperative devices. In Asia and the Middle East, it should've been nightfall during this time frame.
- Crazy creditsElmer Davis, H.V. Kaltenborn, and Drew Pearson identify themselves when they appear on screen. Radio personality Gabriel Heatter is identified by an announcer.
- ConnectionsEdited into The Giant Claw (1957)
Featured review
"Klaatu barada nikto!"
When it comes to the Sci-Fi sub-genre of "Alien Visitation" flicks, I honestly don't think that they get much more intelligent and thought-provoking as this sparkling gem from 1951.
If there are other such "Alien Visitation" flicks out there that do promote this satisfying level of genuine intelligence in their stories, then I would sure like to hear about them. (Please feel free to message me with their titles)
Impressively directed by Robert Wise, The Day The Earth Stood Still (TDTESS) actually did manage to deliver quite a seamless and evocative blend of the ordinary melded very nicely with the fantastic.
This is the sort of motion picture that really gives the viewer the pleasant opportunity of actually getting to know (and, maybe, even like) its characters.
Even the 10 year-old kid, Bobby Benson, was a likable sort. And, believe me, I usually loathe kids in movies. They almost never fail to be totally irksome and nothing but spoiled, little, snot-nosed brats.
Yet, here in TDTESS, the young Billy Gray's portrayal of Bobby was very much like a literal breath of fresh air. This youthful, wide-eyed actor really seemed to understand his character and make him interesting.
Anyways - Traveling at warp-speed (that's 4000 mph.) and taking a 5-month, 250 million mile journey to get here, TDTESS's story has Klaatu, the very distinguished and cool-headed alien, arriving in Washington, DC in order to deliver his dire, top-priority message to all of us naughty-naughty Earthlings.
After being observed for many years by other outer-planetary civilizations, it has been determined that (through the discovery of atomic power) we Earthlings, with our unbridled destructiveness, have become a very-very serious threat to the overall peace and security of the other planets which exist in this endlessly vast universe.
Klaatu must now address all nations of the Earth and somehow convince one and all to cease with these violent ways, or else face some mighty devastating consequences.
You can bet that if Klaatu's firm words of warning can't induce us Earthlings to reconsider our ways, then, believe me, Gort, the all-powerful robot, definitely has his own special brand of persuasion that doesn't take "No" for an answer.
Trust me - In spite of its flaws, TDTESS is, without question, a classic Sci-Fi/Thriller that's really worth its weight in gold.
And "Klaatu barada nikto!" to you, too!
P.S. - This film's 2008 remake was an absolutely despicable desecration of the highest order.
When it comes to the Sci-Fi sub-genre of "Alien Visitation" flicks, I honestly don't think that they get much more intelligent and thought-provoking as this sparkling gem from 1951.
If there are other such "Alien Visitation" flicks out there that do promote this satisfying level of genuine intelligence in their stories, then I would sure like to hear about them. (Please feel free to message me with their titles)
Impressively directed by Robert Wise, The Day The Earth Stood Still (TDTESS) actually did manage to deliver quite a seamless and evocative blend of the ordinary melded very nicely with the fantastic.
This is the sort of motion picture that really gives the viewer the pleasant opportunity of actually getting to know (and, maybe, even like) its characters.
Even the 10 year-old kid, Bobby Benson, was a likable sort. And, believe me, I usually loathe kids in movies. They almost never fail to be totally irksome and nothing but spoiled, little, snot-nosed brats.
Yet, here in TDTESS, the young Billy Gray's portrayal of Bobby was very much like a literal breath of fresh air. This youthful, wide-eyed actor really seemed to understand his character and make him interesting.
Anyways - Traveling at warp-speed (that's 4000 mph.) and taking a 5-month, 250 million mile journey to get here, TDTESS's story has Klaatu, the very distinguished and cool-headed alien, arriving in Washington, DC in order to deliver his dire, top-priority message to all of us naughty-naughty Earthlings.
After being observed for many years by other outer-planetary civilizations, it has been determined that (through the discovery of atomic power) we Earthlings, with our unbridled destructiveness, have become a very-very serious threat to the overall peace and security of the other planets which exist in this endlessly vast universe.
Klaatu must now address all nations of the Earth and somehow convince one and all to cease with these violent ways, or else face some mighty devastating consequences.
You can bet that if Klaatu's firm words of warning can't induce us Earthlings to reconsider our ways, then, believe me, Gort, the all-powerful robot, definitely has his own special brand of persuasion that doesn't take "No" for an answer.
Trust me - In spite of its flaws, TDTESS is, without question, a classic Sci-Fi/Thriller that's really worth its weight in gold.
And "Klaatu barada nikto!" to you, too!
P.S. - This film's 2008 remake was an absolutely despicable desecration of the highest order.
- strong-122-478885
- Jul 11, 2013
- Permalink
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Languages
- Also known as
- El día que paralizaron la Tierra
- Filming locations
- The Ellipse, National Mall, Washington, District of Columbia, USA(landing of the flying suacer on the oval)
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $1,200,000 (estimated)
- Gross worldwide
- $651
- Runtime1 hour 32 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1
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