Flight to Mars (1951)

User Rating:

4.8/10   

Director:

Lesley Selander

Writer:

Arthur Strawn (writer)

Release Date:

11 November 1951 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

Fifty Years Into The Future!

Plot:

Five astronauts successfully fly to Mars where they encounter seemingly friendly and advanced inhabitants who harbor covert plans to use their ship to invade Earth.

Plot Keywords:

Mars | Martian | Scientist | Astronaut | Reporter

Cast

Marguerite Chapman	...	Alita
Cameron Mitchell	...	Steve Abbott
Arthur Franz	...	Dr. Jim Barker
Virginia Huston	...	Carol Stafford
John Litel	...	Dr. Lane
Morris Ankrum	...	Ikron
Richard Gaines	...	Prof. Jackson
Lucille Barkley	...	Terris
Robert Barrat	...	Tillamar (as Robert H. Barratt)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Wilbur Back	...	Councilman
William Bailey	...	Councilman
Trevor Bardette	...	Alzar
Stanley Blystone	...	Councilman
David Bond	...	Ramay
Raymond Bond	...	Astronomer #2
Tristram Coffin	...	Commentator
Russ Conway	...	Astronomer #1
Edward Earle	...	Justin
William Forrest	...	Gen. Archer
Everett Glass	...	Montar
Perc Launders	...	Workman
Anthony Marsh	...	Attendant
Bill Neff	...	Sergeant
Frank O'Connor	...	Councilman
Bob Peoples	...	Soldier

Runtime:

72 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour (Supercinecolor)

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Certification:

USA:Approved | Finland:S

Company:

Monogram Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

The suits that the Martians wear were leftovers from Destination Moon (1950).

Quotes:

Steve Abbott: Dr. Lane, I once heard of a man who climbed a higher mountain than anyone else alive, but he was never able to get down again. What's left of him is still up there.
Dr. Lane: The point is, Steve, he made it.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Queen of Outer Space (1958)

Pedestrian 50s sci-fi soap opera

There's nothing particularly unique or interesting about this run of the mill low budget sci-fi flick. Regardless of its pedigreed origin (the film is loosely based on a novel by Leo Tolstoy), the plot and overall themes of this film are in no way remarkable or original, the science is weak at best, and unfortunately, the film fails to even involve compelling action sequences.

The plot begins with a manned space flight to Mars, and though the main plot doesn't really get rolling until the ship lands, most of the most interesting scenes occur en route. Unfortunately, as soon as our interplanetary travelers touch-down, their previously interesting interpersonal relationships, speculations about cosmology and the meaning of life, and everything interesting about the film all give way to an only remotely coherent plot concerning Martian revolutionaries, environmental problems and not very convincing webs of deceit.

There is nothing very remarkable about the production quality of the film either. It's passable. And most of the acting is, though slow, OK. Cameron Mitchell is actually pretty good and plays a likable character. I guess the best quality of this film, from my perspective, is its fashion sense. The martians have very nice outfits! If this film had a point, it might have been much more interesting. Oh well.