Destination Moon (1950)

Regista:

Irving Pichel

Writers:

Robert A. Heinlein (novel)
Alford Van Ronkel (screenplay) ...

Data di uscita:

agosto 1950 (USA)

Genere:

Adventure | Drama | Sci-Fi

Slogan:

TWO YEARS IN THE MAKING!

Plot:

One of the first science fiction films to attempt a high level of accurate technical detail tells the story of the first trip to the moon.

Plot Keywords:

Zero Gravity | Space | Outer Space | USA | Nuclear Power

Premi:

Won Oscar. Another 2 wins & 2 nominations

Recensioni degli utenti:

A rare bit of 1950s science-fiction.

Cast

John Archer	...	Jim Barnes
Warner Anderson	...	Dr. Charles Cargraves
Tom Powers	...	General Thayer
Dick Wesson	...	Joe Sweeney
Erin O'Brien-Moore	...	Emily Cargraves
resto del cast in ordine alfabetico:
Grace Stafford	...	Woody Woodpecker (voice)

Alias:

Uomini sulla luna (Italy) [it]

Durata:

92 min

Nazionalità:

USA

Lingua:

Inglese

Colore:

Colore (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sonoro:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Divieti:

USA:Not Rated (DVD) | Canada:PG (Ontario) | Finland:S | Sweden:Btl | USA:Approved (certificate #14432)

Luoghi delle riprese:

General Service Studios - 1040 N. Las Palmas, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

George Pal Productions

Curiosità:

This marked the first time that Grace Stafford (cartoon producer Walter Lantz's wife) did the voice of Woody Woodpecker.

Errori:

Revealing mistakes: Although the characters mention that radio signals take 3 seconds to travel between the earth and the moon, earth replies arrive almost instantaneously during conversations with the men on the moon.

Citazioni:

[Why the government isn't involved if it's so important]
Jim Barnes: Here's the reason. The vast amount of brains, talents, special skills, and research facilities necessary for this project are not in the government, nor can they be mobilized by the government in peacetime without fatal delay. Only American industry can do this job. And American industry must get to work, now, just as we did in the last war!
Industrialist: Yes, but the government footed the bill!
Jim Barnes: And they'll foot this bill, too, if we're successful; you know that. If we fail, we'll take a colossal beating. So we can't fail! Not only is this the greatest adventure awaiting mankind, but it's the greatest challenge ever hurled at American industry. And General Thayer is going to tell you why.
[...]

Movie Connections:

Citato in Cinemania (2002)

A rare bit of 1950s science-fiction.

Most science-fiction films are actually raw fantasy, with a disregard for reality that commonly borders on pure contempt. This isn't always a bad thing, since I really like fantasy. But techno-babble and flashy gadgets are too often only gimmicks favored by dumb producers, ignorant directors, and lazy writers who get themselves into of a jam. "Destination Moon" is rare and different. An enormous amount of time and effort were expended to make it as technically accurate as was possible in 1950. Even Kubrick wasn't this consistent in "2001"; he often let gravity appear where it shouldn't be. They never made that mistake in "Destination Moon". So it's unfortunate they didn't spend as much effort on the story and the acting, but both cast and crew were so wrapped up in creating a real moon trip they skimped on these aspects of story telling. The result was surprisingly impressive visuals for the time, but characters who are shallow, trite, and dull, and crises that arise and are solved while leaving us indifferent.

But there is real drama here, the drama of people trying to imagine what was virtually unimaginable back then -- how to actually get people to the Moon and back -- using real physics and engineering. And if it doesn't measure up to the story of "Apollo 13", another technically accurate film about a REAL trip to the Moon, it still stands out as unique among 1950s films and remains almost as unique among all science-FICTION movies ever made.