Movie Review – The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)
The year is 1951.
The Second World War ended six years ago, but tension is growing around the world as the forces of Communism are growing stronger by the day. A new war, a Cold War, has begun, and there are fears that this could easily escalate into a full blown nuclear war, a war that can kill every single person on the planet.
And then one day a flying saucer lands in Washington, D.C. The spacecraft’s humanoid occupant brings peace but insists on meeting all of the world’s leaders. If such an assembly can happen, then the alien visitor will deliver his message, a message that concerns the future existence of the planet Earth.
Directed by Robert Wise, The Day the Earth Stood Still is based on Harry Bates‘ short science-fiction story, Farewell to the Master. The 1950s sci-fi film stars Michael Rennie in the role of Klaatu, an alien who visits planet Earth. Patricia Neal plays the role of Helen Benson, a woman who encounters Klaatu and eventually learns his secret. Billy Gray plays Bobby Benson, a young boy who becomes friends with Klaatu while he’s in disguise as Mr. Carpenter.
Supporting them are Hugh Marlowe as Tom Stevens, Helen’s boyfriend who later helps expose Klaatu to the government. Sam Jaffe is Professor Barnhardt, one of the smartest men in the world. Lock Martin plays the role of Gort, the metallic robot who guards Klaatu and his flying saucer.
The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951) – (c) 20th Century Fox
The Day the Earth Stood Still begins on what seems to be an ordinary day. That is, until radar stations around the world begin tracking some sort of aircraft travelling much higher and faster than previously known possible. News stations break the story as the object eventually descends and makes a landing in Washington, D.C.
The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951) – (c) 20th Century Fox
The police and military quickly surround the flying saucer and are prepared to attack it if necessary. Joining them is a large crowd of civilians. Everybody holds their breath and watches as the flying saucer opens and a tall alien wearing a space suit walks out of the craft and slowly approaches the crowd. The alien pulls out a strange object, but he’s accidentally shot by a spooked soldier.
After the alien is injured by the stray bullet, another alien walks out of the flying saucer. This one, a metallic robot, is even taller than the original alien. His visor opens and the robot, named Gort (Lock Martin), fires an advanced laser weapon at some soldiers’ rifles. The rifles instantly disintegrate. Gort then fires his laser at a tank and some artillery, destroying them as well. This rampage ends when the alien rises to his feet and commands Gort to stop.
The alien, a humanoid named Klaatu (Michael Rennie), explains that the object that he carried was actually a gift for the president of the United States. The object would have allowed him to view life on other planets, but it’s destroyed now. A colonel arrives on scene and orders Klaatu to be taken to a hospital immediately.
The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951) – (c) 20th Century Fox
In the hospital, Harley (Frank Conroy), the president’s secretary, meets in a private room with Klaatu. Harley is curious with Klaatu’s arrival on this planet and asks him some basic questions. We learn the Klaatu’s voyage here took about five months, and his home world is about 250 million miles away. Klaatu informs Harley that he’s here on a diplomatic mission and he needs to meet with the leaders of all the nations. All of the nations. Harley knows that such a task isn’t going to be possible with the Cold War and all. Still, Klaatu urges Harley to transmit a message asking for their rivals to join the other nations and come together to listen to Klaatu’s message.
Meanwhile, doctors at the hospital are impressed with Klaatu. For all intensive purposes he is identical in physiology to the other humans on Earth. The only differences are that he heals a lot faster and the life expectancy on his planet is 130. Klaatu’s bullet wound has healed itself overnight.
Harley returns that day and informs Klaatu that the Soviet leaders are not going to be present for the meeting involve leaders from all nations of the world. The Soviets will only take part if the meeting is held in Moscow, a move that the U.S. president will not tolerate. Klaatu decides that he needs to leave the hospital and get to know the Earthlings on a personal basis, but Harley warns him that the military is restricting him to the building.
The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951) – (c) 20th Century Fox
Klaatu escapes from the hospital and “borrows” an officer’s suit and briefcase. He looks at the identification tag and decides to use the identity “Mr. Carpenter” for himself. Knowing that the police and military are now hunting and consider him to be dangerous, Klaatu visits a boarding house and rents a room. The residents of the house are on edge after listening to the news reports, but they seem to be relieved when they think that he’s from the government. Two of the residents are Helen Benson (Patricia Neal), a World War II widow and her son, Bobby (Billy Gray). Bobby is eager to help the government man catch the escaped alien.
The next morning at breakfast, the residents continue listening to the news reports on the radio and then discuss why the alien has yet to be captured. Tom Stevens (Hugh Marlowe), Helen’s boyfriend, arrives to take Helen out for the day, and she agrees to let Mr. Carpenter watch over Bobby.
The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951) – (c) 20th Century Fox
Mr. Carpenter and Bobby spend the day together. After visiting the grave of Bobby’s father in Arlington National Cemetery, they decide to go to the movies. The only problem is that Klaatu doesn’t have any U.S. currency. He exchanges a couple of diamonds with Bobby, selling them to the boy for only a couple of dollars. They then visit the Lincoln Memorial and then the site of Klaatu’s spaceship. Crowds of people are still gathered around the flying saucer, watching for any signs of movement.
The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951) – (c) 20th Century Fox
After talking a little bit about physics and space travel, Mr. Carpenter tells Bobby that he wishes to talk to the smartest person in the world. Bobby refers him to Professor Barnhardt. They head to his house to pay him a visit, but the professor isn’t home. Mr. Carpenter breaks into the professor’s house and helps the scientist with a formula that he’s been spending weeks trying to solve. Barnhardt’s housekeeper arrives and tells the two of them to leave. She starts to erase Mr. Carpenter’s work on the blackboard, but he stops her. He then writes down his address and asks for the housekeeper to pass it along to the professor.
The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951) – (c) 20th Century Fox
That evening at the boarding house, a government agent arrives and escorts Mr. Carpenter to meet with Professor Barnhardt (Sam Jaffe). The professor is elated to meet with the man who could solve the seemingly impossible puzzle. When Barnhardt asks Mr. Carpenter if he’s sure about the knowledge surrounding the puzzle, the man reveals that he’s Klaatu, the space alien being sought by the government.
Klaatu reveals that his people know that the Earthlings have advanced to atomic energy. He’s concerned that one day a nation will use atomic energy for space travel and those atomic weapons will pose a serious threat to other worlds. That will not be tolerated. If the people of Earth reach such a stage, then the Earth will have to be destroyed. Barnhardt understands this philosophy, and he proposes that the top scientists in the world meet with Klaatu and listen to his message. Those scientists can then return home and spread the message to their leaders. Klaatu accepts this proposal and allows Professor Barnhardt to arrange the meeting.
The professor advises Klaatu to use his powers and technology in a way that would really capture the world’s attention. Something in a non-lethal manner.
After Klaatu returns to the boarding house he asks to borrow a flashlight from Bobby. He claims that the lights are out in his room. But when Bobby looks in the hallway, he sees that the lights in Mr. Carpenter’s room are working fine. This arises the boy’s suspicion, and he sneaks out of the boarding house and follows Mr. Carpenter back to the flying saucer.
The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951) – (c) 20th Century Fox
Bobby watches as Mr. Carpenter uses the flashlight to command Gort to attack the soldiers guarding the spaceship. The robot does so and the two guards are knocked unconscious. Mr. Carpenter then boards the flying saucer and disappears from view.
The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951) – (c) 20th Century Fox
Bobby is awake when his mother and Tom return home that evening. His mother thinks that Bobby had a vivid dream about seeing Mr. Carpenter and the spaceship, but Tom is suspicious about the mysterious visitor. He enters Tom’s rented room and searches it, finding nothing unusual but a diamond. Tom shows the diamond to Helen, and Bobby reveals that he also has a couple of diamonds from their visitor. Seeing those, Tom is convinced that Mr. Carpenter is a diamond thief. He takes the diamonds and has them evaluated by jewelers the following day. When Bobby heads upstairs to bed, Helen notices that his shoes are wet. Her son was telling the truth about being outside that night.
The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951) – (c) 20th Century Fox
The next day Mr. Carpenter meets with Helen in her office building. The two of them are alone in an elevator when, at precisely 12 pm, the elevator suddenly stops as there’s a power outage. Mr. Carpenter explains that they’ll both be stuck in the elevator for the next thirty minutes as the power is out. Not only is it out in Washington, D.C., but all the way around the world.
We learn that not everything that requires power has been stopped. Critical systems such as hospitals and airplanes are not affected by the worldwide outage, showing Klaatu’s concern for innocent people. Professor Barnhardt recognizes the power outage as Klaatu showing his strength to the world.
While stuck in the elevator, Mr. Carpenter reveals his true identity to Helen. He explains the recent events to her and also asks for her help with what is about to happen next. By the time power is restored, Helen is convinced and ready to assist Klaatu.
Meanwhile, Tom Stevens visits with jewelers and has his diamond appraised. The reaction is the same no matter where he goes. None of the jewelers has seen such a perfect example of the mineral, and they all claim that it’s incredibly rare and priceless. Tom decides to hang on to the diamonds and use them as evidence that Mr. Carpenter really is a space alien like Bobby claims.
The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951) – (c) 20th Century Fox
Helen arrives at Tom’s office as he’s trying to call the military and report Klaatu’s location. She sees the greedy side of him as he’s planning on using this exposure to run for public office. Helen leaves and tells him that she’s not going to marry him. Tom continues with his phone call to the military and informs them of Klaatu’s location.
The military contains the area around the boarding house, and Klaatu and Helen are now on the run. They try to use a taxi cab to slip past the blockades and make it to Professor Barnhardt’s home. While riding in the cab, Klaatu warns Helen that if anything happens to him, she is to give Gort the command, “Klaatu barada nikto.”
The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951) – (c) 20th Century Fox
The taxi cab is stopped on a street and Klaatu tries to make a run for it. The military shoots and mortally wounds the space alien. Helen rushes to his side, but he insists that she go to Gort and deliver the message. She flees the scene as Klaatu dies from the gunshot wounds.
Back at the spaceship, Klaatu’s death triggers a response in Gort. The robot begins moving again and it kills two soldiers using its powerful laser. Helen arrives at the spaceship and tries to confront Gort, but she’s frightened of the robot’s incredibly power. She slowly retreats and falls to the ground. Gort approaches the woman and looks like it’s about to kill her. Helen states, “Gort! Klaatu barada nikto!” It works. The robot stops its attack.
The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951) – (c) 20th Century Fox
Gort then picks up Helen and carries the frightened woman inside of the spaceship. The robot leaves the woman locked inside of the flying saucer as it leaves to complete the next part of its mission.
Back in town, Klaatu’s body has been taken to a police station and secured in one of the cells. Gort uses his laser to make a hole in the cell’s wall from which he walks inside and retrieves Klaatu’s body. It then carries him back to the spaceship before anybody realizes that he’s missing.
The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951) – (c) 20th Century Fox
Gort places Klaatu’s body on a special medical station inside of the spaceship. Helen watches in amazement as Klaatu is brought back to life. Helen wants to know how it was possible for him to come back to life, and Klaatu explains that their technology can only temporarily extend a person’s life. True life and death is still in the hands of the Almighty Spirit.
The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951) – (c) 20th Century Fox
As Klaatu was being revived, a crowd of scientists and soldiers have gathered outside of the flying saucer. They watch in awe as the door to the spaceship opens once again and Gort steps out first. It’s followed by Helen and Klaatu, dressed in his spacesuit again. Helen joins the crowd as Klaatu addresses his audience.
Klaatu states that as the universe continues to grow stronger, the threat of aggression from any organization can not be tolerated. He insists that there must be security for everybody, or nobody will be secure. The only freedom that will be restrained is the freedom of aggression and acting irresponsibly. Klaatu says that they have an organization for the mutual protection of all planets and the complete elimination of aggression. To carry out the protection plan they created a race of ultra powerful robots (like Gort) that patrol the planets in spaceships and use their absolute power to destroy acts of aggression. They automatically act upon the aggressor at the first sign of violence. The result is that their planets are able to live in peace without a military as there is no threat of war.
Klaatu continues and says that there is no concern of theirs about how the Earthlings decide to run their own planet. But if the people of Earth extend their acts of violence into space, then the Earth itself will be destroyed. The choice is ours to make. We can either join Klaatu’s organization of planets and live in peace, or we can continue our ways and ultimately face obliteration.
The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951) – (c) 20th Century Fox
The Day the Earth Stood Still ends with Klaatu and Gort returning to their spaceship and then flying away, presumably back to Klaatu’s home planet.
So is The Day the Earth Stood Still (TDTESS) a good movie?
For many people, TDTESS is considered to be one of the finest science-fiction films ever created. While the film itself is fairly simple, the message that it delivers leaves a powerful impact. This is especially true for 1951 and the early days of the Cold War and threat of nuclear holocaust.
Klaatu is a peaceful man from another world. He’s a very intelligent person who speaks his knowledge from years of experience. His planet’s ability to listen to Earth’s broadcasts have allowed him to learn English as well as many of our customs. His companion, Gort, is an incredibly strong and powerful robot. It’s capable of destroying anything that it perceives as a threat. Together, Klaatu and Gort represent an all-knowing and unstoppable force from another world.
TDTESS has the appearance of an anti-war film. Bobby lost his father in World War 2, and he’d like to live in a world without wars. Klaatu warns against the continued usage of atomic weapons and the consequences they will cause in space. He also speaks against fear and stupidity that leads to war.
Klaatu’s message at the end of the film talks about an unstoppable police force of robots that eliminate aggressors, thus eliminating the concept of war or a military. Oddly enough, this is the same concept behind the Strategic Air Command (1944-1992) with the United States Air Force. The Strategic Air Command (SAC) was the command and control of the Air Force’s (originally the US Army Air Corps) strategic bombers and land-based intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs). SAC’s motto was “Peace is our profession.” In other words, if you’re going to cause trouble, then we’re going to blast you back to the stone age. It’s brutal but effective when used correctly. That’s part of the same message delivered by Klaatu at the end of The Day the Earth Stood Still.
For Klaatu’s organization of planets, the end result of this philosophy is an incredibly advanced race of alien species. Not only do they have incredibly long life spans and a great amount of knowledge, but they’ve also increased their technology to the levels of unstoppable robot warriors and space travel. Who wouldn’t want to join their organization and share those advancements?
The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951) – movie trailer
As a whole, The Day the Earth Stood Still is a rather simple but powerful film. It’s easy to follow the story and the messages delivered in it make a serious impact. This classic work of science-fiction can be enjoyed by not only sci-fi lovers, but those people who enjoy good films as well.
Klaatu – “We have come to visit you in peace and with goodwill.”
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Klaatu – “I’m worried about Gort. I’m afraid of what he might do if anything should happen to me.”
Helen – “Gort? But he’s a robot. Without you, what could he do?”
Klaatu – “There’s no limit to what he could do. He could destroy the Earth.”
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Helen – “Gort! Klaatu barada nikto!”