Vashirdfel Simply A Masterpiece

Dotsthavesp I wanted to but couldn't!

HeadlinesExotic Boring

Jonah Abbott There's no way I can possibly love it entirely but I just think its ridiculously bad, but enjoyable at the same time.

hte-trasme As others have pointed out, there is a strong strain of Cold War space race ideology underlying this Soviet science fiction film but if it's propaganda, it's not thoughtless propaganda (with the possible exception of the trite and extraneous song), and it doesn't interfere. We have, in fact, a story of heroic space explorers on Venus who only barely find out about their humanoid parallels and never get to meet them, which is somewhat refreshing in itself. And the Soviet version of the solution to the Cold War usually seemed to end with the US conquered ideologically and happy to join the USSR in international brotherhood, which is somewhat more pleasant than US versions which usually had the USSR crushed mightily underfoot. Thus the American on this future expedition. It's also based on a novel that I haven't had the chance to read by a Soviet science fiction writer who was also well-known as a UFO expert, and he makes sure to include the characters spouting some didactic obscurantism about ancient astronauts to each other, which is a strange diversion. And it's done with a sense of humor, which is important. The robot John provides some laughs maybe not as might be expected but rather by doing things like playing big band music on Venus for the astronauts and quibbling over whether he has "masters," and the spirit of wit and fun that this film is made with are a big advantage. It's the absorbing atmosphere that really makes it interesting, though - - there is a great buildup of tension combined with a kind of dry inventive surrealism to the strange things that the explorers run into on Venus which makes it very easy to keep watching. Creating suspense from the precariousness of humans just trying to survive in outer space is a wiser move than the common trap of trying to shock with outlandish aliens. There's are some very good character moments too, especially in the scene around Masha's indecision about whether to go look for the party (and the actress who plays her is great to watch). Not a perfect piece by any means, but very interesting and entertaining, and it has many of the hallmarks of excellent science fiction.

a666333 Not bad, not incredible like "Forbidden Planet" and not as colourful and tragic as "This Island Earth" and it is certainly not "Solaris". But we must give 60s Eastern bloc science fiction its due. None of it is bad. All of it respects the intelligence of the viewers and each manages to create effective atmospheres. The music and background sound were good. The robot and the "supercar" are dated but very good for the time. Naming the robot "John" is a bit of a dig at the West (one could just as easily see Westerners naming a robot Ivan or Igor). The robot is given a Western name while the crew are all self actualized socialist men except for the woman cosmonaut who is given the traditional role of minding the mothership and lamenting over the fate of the men who are off exploring the planet. If that and the song are the social commentary then it could have been much worse.

timayres I saw this in my childhood and took years to track it down again since I saw it under one of its two confusing Roger Corman english-language re-edits [Voyage to the Prehistoric Planet with Basil Rathbone added, and Voyage to the Planet of Prehistoric Women, with mermaids scenes directed by Peter Bogdonavich.] Finally able to track down the original Russian version recently, I was able to fully appreciate the ambitious scope and production values. The forest is truly primeval in its detailed beauty, Robot John both heroic and sad in his dedication, and the ending poetic and lyrical. Non-U.S. science fiction films are doubly exotic, and this one is classic fare.

dtomek This is the first real Russian science fiction movie. I appreciated that it includes almost no ideological trash from the cold war, despite the time of its creation. The crew even includes one English speaking person, Mr. Kern. Mr. Kern is not as perfect as other members of the crew, but he is still a positive figure. What I liked was that this is real SF, and no mainstream movie with "magic" elements: there is space flight, there is an intelligent robot, there are fights with (quite funny) dinosaurs and pterodactyles, there are Venusians aliens and there is speculation about one solar race living on various planets but with common roots. It has all a SF fan can wish. (Except for time travelling and cyberpunk).