| View Larger Image | Flight to Mars | DVDStarring: Marguerite Chapman, Cameron Mitchell, Arthur Franz, Virginia Huston, John Litel
Directed By: Lesley Selander
Also With: Harry Neumann (Cinematographer), Richard V. Heermance (Editor), Richard V. Heermance (Producer), Walter Mirisch (Producer), Arthur Strawn (Writer)
| List Price: | $9.99 | | Price: | $9.49 | | You Save: | $0.50 (5%) | | | Available: | Usually ships in 24 hours |
| | Binding: | DVD | | Rating: |  | | Run Time: | 72 minutes | | Format: | Color, DVD, NTSC | | Studio: | Image Entertainment | | Number of Discs: | 1 | | Aspect Ratio: | 1.33:1 | | Release Date: | May 07, 2002 | | Sales Rank: | 32,682nd |
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EDITORIAL REVIEWS |
Description
Four men and a girl crash-land on the red planet Mars after suffering severe damage in a meteor storm enroute. Finding an advanced and seemingly benevolent civilization living in underground cities, help is given in the repair of the rocketship--however, a sinister plot is discovered that could mean the annihilation of Earth by an invading Martian army. Tense, terrifying action on a planet of forbidden dangers. Produced by Academy Award-winning producer Walter Mirisch in other-worldly hues of two-color Cinecolor, "Flight to Mars" is '50s nostalgia at its imaginative best and is a must for science fiction and adventure lovers. |
Amazon.com
In the far-off year 2000, newspaperman Cameron Mitchell packs up with a group of scientists and heads to Mars in a rocket that resembles a hood ornament from a '56 Oldsmobile. After the rather wobbly miniature takes off, our heroes (clad in khaki uniforms and WWII leather bomber jackets) encounter a storm of asteroids, but soon enough land on Mars. No one seems too surprised to encounter a race of humans on the planet, so the astronauts make themselves at home. The Martians are technically far more advanced than puny Earthlings (you can tell by the abundance of Herman Miller furniture and sexy Mars-girl outfits), but their hospitality masks a hidden agenda: conquest of Earth in order to establish additional lebensraum for their own dying race. Interestingly, this was director Lesley Selander's sole foray into sci-fi, having spent most of his career working on low-budget Westerns. Though the plot is thin, the bankroll skimpy, and the characterizations narrow, Flight to Mars prefigures the '50s sci-fi boom and is interesting for its set design, costumes, and rather washed-out Technicolor. Its 71-minute running time keeps things rolling quickly enough to stave off boredom. For '50s space-opera aficionados, this is better than an hour and 11 minutes spent mowing the lawn. --Jerry Renshaw |
CUSTOMER REVIEWS (Average Customer Rating: 3.5 based on 19 reviews)
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Fun movie, lousy transfer by Scott Dermont (Ames, Iowa USA)  3 Stars
October 20, 2009
Standard 1950's sci-fi fare has a rocket from Earth crash land on Mars. The very human-looking Martians appear to be very friendly and offer to help the humans repair their ship. But the very human Martians plot to keep the humans from leaving so that they can have the rocket to themselves - and invade Earth! I really enjoyed the movie, but be warned - the transfer used for this DVD is abysmal. It is difficult to watch in some spots because of bad scratches and what looks like a hole burned through the film!
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Great fun by S. Mayo  4 Stars
April 30, 2009
Rented from Amazon's video on demand. Decent popcorn muncher. A little too philosophical at points, but fun and entirely predictable in all the right ways. Special mention must go to Marguerite Chapmans's legs, which look unbelievably long in the outfit she was poured into. When she was walking, it didn't much matter what anyone was saying or doing.
The video quality was not great, and there were a couple of annoying skips and jerks in the playback.
The science was actually pretty good for the early 50's; this is not saying much, but at no point did I feel insulted. (We watched this right after Cat Women of the Moon, where the science was pathetic and the acting was worse.)
Highly recommended for a $3 rental. It's not Forbidden Planet, but no regrets, either.
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Getting Back Home by Mr. Richard D. Coreno (Berea, Ohio USA) 3 Stars
February 11, 2009
Oscar-winning producer Walter Mirisch stretches what is clearly a low budget as far as it can go, so the astronauts look like they were pulled off a set chronicling air power during World War II for this 1951 Sci-Fi adventure.
A spacecraft crashes onto Mars and the U.S. team is now going to regret things in a big way; the humanoids they meet may not all have universal peace in mind. There is a group of Martians who want to help get the craft repaired and send representatives to Earth to negotiate a relocation plan because their planet is dying. Another group wants to get the craft repaired and use it to invade Earth. Caught between this tug-of-war are the astronauts.
The twist to the typical angle where the aliens get stranded is interesting, but the script's flight plan does travel a familiar path for Sci-Fi films of this era. But the theme of getting back home - no matter the odds - is a timeless one.
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Flight To Mars by G. D. Williams (USA) 4 Stars
February 08, 2009
FLIGHT TO MARS 1951
In 1951 a number of science fiction films debuted in theatres across the postwar nation-
The Man from Planet X, Thing From Another World, When Worlds Collide, Day the Earth Stood Still and Superman and the Mole Men. When Worlds Collide would take the Oscar for best photographic effects. Superman and the Mole Men would lead to TV's Adventures of Superman.
FLIGHT TO MARS premièred November 11. It was in color which was rare treat for aficionados of this genre.
The US Air Force secretly builds a rocket ship without the knowledge of Congress or the American people. The name of the rocket ship is MARS. Its intended destination is the mysterious and alluring planet Mars. For you see, it is under the surface of Mars that its alluring nature will be revealed.
Consisting of a scientific crew of three men and one woman, Steve Abbott, a newspaper reporter, a former war correspondent, is added to the mix. He falls for Carol, the beautiful assistant to Jim Barker. Unfortunately, Carol is madly in love with her boss and mentor, Jim. Jim does not have any romantic interest in Carol, but Steve and Carol hatch a plot to make Jim jealous. Kissing below decks on a speeding rocket is as romantic as it gets in space. Of course, Steve does not mind this new assignment in helping Carol.
As fate would have it in the human cosmological history of things, their rocket crashes on Mars. Unfortunately, their atomic power heads are destroyed which makes a return to earth impossible. Fortunately, for them there is an entrance to a subterranean city within walking distance. With their B52 bomber gear and oxygen masks-sorry no space suits for these humans- they head for the entrance and are greeted by space suited Martians-funny, the Martians look like your typical humans next door except the women dress in skimpy miniskirts. The men dressed in old European fashion with the cape ever flowing.
The Council Members led by President Ikron welcomes the visitors and offer them logging, food and new clothes. When on Mars, do as the Martians do.
Unfortunately, even with the skimpy dress, Carol cannot divert the attention of Jim. He is too absorbed in his work of repairing the rocket for the return to earth. One begins to wonder if the man had any interest in the opposite sex. Of course, this is 1951 and true to form walks in Alita, a lovely Martian scientist who is there to help Jim anyway that she can. Jim is smitten, true love at first glance-the first interplanetary romance. Poor Carol, she is heartbroken and cries for one hour and seventeen minutes on her cot as Steve plays solitaire at the desk and attempts to offer her words of consolation.
President Ikron isn't as saccharine as he appears. He is malevolent in an altruistic sort of way. He wants to steal the secret of rocket making, build a fleet and attack earth. For you see Mars is dying. They need a new home-that's right, they want Earth.
Of course, Tillamar, a member of the Council and Alita's father are opposed to Ikron's genocidal plan for earth. They decide to help the earth people.
A good old fashioned fist fight ensues. No ray guns are ever seen. Guess they could not find the ones from the old Flash Gordon films. Of course, all is well in the end.
The plot is descent. The special effects are ok. The characters are well written. The acting is not so bad.
Overall, it is a descent film from 1951. For its age, picture quality is ok. Is it worth 71 minutes of your time? Only if you are a devotee to the genre or just want something to do.
Do I regret purchasing this DVD? Not for a moment! It was worth the price. It is a nice addition to my collection.
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A Focus On The Highlights by Richard S. (Northern Virginia USA) 4 Stars
October 02, 2008
Flight To Mars, released in 1951, while clearly a small budget production and now considerably dated, still manages to offer some entertaining moments. At least it did for this reviewer. And for those who have not had an opportunity to visit the film, please allow me to point in the general direction of some of them.
Marguerite Chapman and Cameron Mitchell are cast as the star actors in this film, yet I found Virginia Huston to be the most exciting personality present. She plays the part of the solitary female on the rocket propelled flight to Mars and becomes very attractive to the newspaper writer played by Cameron Mitchell. She, however, is amorously attracted to one of the top scientists on the journey, Dr. Jim Barker, played by Arthur Franz. Cameron Mitchell, though, quickly deciphers the clues dropped along the way and draws his own conclusions. Aboard the rocket in flight and with the close proximity imposed upon all, he begins to lay his cards on the table. He has a penchant for Solitaire, but before resigning himself to the waiting game finds himself alone for a few moments with Virginia Huston in a secluded chamber of the ship. The first stolen kiss, and especially the second, must have fallen upon the eyes of many a 1951 viewer with robust reward and lascivious delight. It is here that Virginia Huston demonstrates to me of what material she is made and I was not disappointed. Trim, very pretty, and decidedly feminine, she looked Cameron Mitchell in the eye and hid little from him. When she closed her eyes at the moment of the second kiss, we were vouchsafed a glimpse of her special nature. Lovely.
The crash landing on Mars, a scene in which the rocket ship hits the side of a mountain at an alarming velocity, should have been the last of our cast of intrepid travelers. Remarkably, the craft did not explode, nor were its occupants splattered all over the inside shell of the control cabin. No, with oxygen masks and suits that looked as though they were ripped from a mothballed B-17 Flying Fortress, they departed the crippled ship no worse for wear and trooped out to explore a group of "chimneys" that suggested the presence of intelligent life. Things move pretty quickly from this point. Possibly the milk money was running out. Amazing what you can do with a few extremely short skirts and a little imagination, however. My eyes found much to maintain their participation as avid spectators even if the dialogue began to dribble and droop droningly.
If this movie were based on a true story, then it might be concluded Martian fashion did make a statement and found its way to Earth during the 1960's, a little over a decade later. Could it be that Ikron, President of the Ruling Council of Mars, made his way here too? It would certainly explain a number of things about the current political climate on our planet and suggest his place of employment and present occupation.
As others have mentioned, the transfer of the film to DVD reveals a few problems. While much of the DVD imagery is good, there are a few places where brief sequences get skipped. There is a stutter. Some small distortions also appear in some sequences. I noticed none of these things watching the version on VHS tape that is also in my possession.
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