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| The Day the Earth Stood Still | 
 enlarge | Director: Robert Wise
Actors: Frances Bavier, Billy Gray, Hugh Marlowe, Lock Martin, Patricia Neal
Studio: 20th Century Fox
Category: DVD
List Price: $14.98
Buy New: $6.48
You Save: $8.50 (57%)
New (51) Used (37) Collectible (1) from $3.50
Avg. Customer Rating:  333 reviews
Sales Rank: 734
Format: Black & White, Closed-captioned, Dvd-video, Ntsc
Languages: English (Original Language), English (Subtitled), Spanish (Subtitled)
Rating: G (General Audience)
Number Of Items: 1
Running Time: 92
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 7.5 x 5 x 0.6
MPN: 024543050056
UPC: 024543050056
EAN: 0024543050056
ASIN: B00005JKFR
Theatrical Release Date: 1951
Release Date: March 4, 2003
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: BRAND NEW, Factory Sealed items direct from the Studios. 30 Day Satisfaction Guarantee. Quick International Airmail!
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Amazon.com essential video
A hallmark of the science fiction genre as well as a wry commentary on the political climate of the 1950s, The Day the Earth Stood Still is a sci-fi movie less concerned with special effects than with a social parable. A spacecraft lands in Washington, D.C., carrying a humanoid messenger from another world (Michael Rennie) imparting a warning to the people of Earth to cease their violent behavior. But panic ensues as the messenger lands and is shot by a nervous soldier. His large robot companion destroys the Capitol as the messenger escapes the confines of the hospital. He moves in with a family as a boarder and blends into society to observe the full range of the human experience. Director Robert Wise (West Side Story) not only provides one of the most recognizable icons of the science fiction world in his depiction of the massive robot loyal to his master, but he avoids the obvious camp elements of the story to create a quiet and observant story highlighting both the good and the bad in human nature. --Robert Lane
Product Description
Rennie stars as Klaatu, an advanced alien who comes to earth to put a stop to nuclear proliferation. With him comes his robot Gort. They are forced to use superpowers to get the attention of the scientists.
Genre: Science Fiction
Rating: G
Release Date: 2-MAR-2004
Media Type: DVD
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| Customer Reviews: Read 328 more reviews...
 Excellent Sci-Fi August 18, 2008
Some reviewers say this is dated but then again so is Star Wars. Here you get above average acting and an intelligent script. Now that is dated!
Still most of the credit should go to Robert Wise the director and the fantastic cinematography. What beautiful lighting design. This film is mostly for Sci-Fi film buffs. And " Gort! Klaatu barada nikto!" is a gem. I doubt I could have kept a straight face either.
Great movie! August 5, 2008
This is a well told story of what could happen. It is still relavent today. Something the whole family can watch.
It will make you think July 30, 2008
It's amazing how timely the message of this movie still is. As I watched it, I realized how much it is not science fiction at all. Its observations and conclusions about humanity are still very relevant, and I found myself thinking about them even more as we live in these troubled times. The characters are very relatable, and the bad guys are not who you would think they'd be.
I heartily recommend this movie for the following:
--Great acting--Michael Rennie's Klaatu may be human-looking, but he's anything but human
--Wonderful special effects, considering the year it was made--even my teenagers were impressed, and they usually abhor black and white films
--Christian overtones
--Inherent messages (see above)
--Plus, it's interesting from a period film viewpoint.
Although the movie deviates from the original story on which it was based ("Farewell to the Master," by Harry Bates), it retains the suspense, human terror, and technological/ethical questioning of the original tale.
It would be interesting to see this movie re-made with an environmental twist, with Klaatu landing and then saying, "If you don't take care of the Earth, it's going to be taken away from you."
Watch this movie; it will make you think.
Gort, Klaatu barada nikto July 21, 2008
I agree with almost all Amazon reviewers about this film. It was a great old movie that earns five stars in my book. I am sorry that I never got to see this film on the big screen, but the restored and enhanced DVD transfer was so good that it held up well on my large screen HDTV. Excellent documentaries were included with the DVD about the making of the film and the materials that film collectors have accumulated over the years from this great movie.
During her interview Patricia Neal commented that her biggest problem during filming was keeping a straight face when required to say her now fameous line: "Gort, Klaatu barada nikto". You would never have known this from the final cut.
I only have a couple of comments to make about seeing the film in a fine digitally enhanced DVD format (on a 52" LCD screen):
1) As Gort carried Patricia Neal towards the saucer I noticed for the first time a network of (not so fine) cables supporting her weight.
2) In the saucer the foam rubber Gort suit front laces were clearly visible (for a fraction of a second) as Gort moved from right to left on screen exiting the saucer.
Message for Today July 14, 2008
Still a timeless classic of sci fi movie making at its best. I dread the remake, out this December, and what modern view will be with. It is already miscast with Keenu Reeves as Klaatu. Ugh. David Bowie would have been a better choice. The message is simple but clear and still applies today. We are a stupid race of sentients destined for obliteration. We spend trillions on tanks and fighter jets and nukes while people starve. Gort should have a field day leveling the planet. Good riddance humanity.
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