The conquest of space – Wikipedia

Posted on by
before-content-x4

The conquest of space ( Conquest of Space ) is a 1955 film directed by Byron Haskin. It is a science fiction film in Technicolor of the Paramount Pictures produced by George Pal, which describes the first trip to the planet Mars.

after-content-x4

The film is freely inspired by a 1949 popular book of the same name illustrated by Chesley Bonestell and written by Willy Ley. [first] The representation of the scientific and technological aspects in the film was highly sought after and realistic for the time. The tagline of the film was “See how this will happen during your life!” ( “See how it will happen in your lifetime!” ) [2]

In 1980 humanity reached the goal of the spatial flight with a crew and built “La Ruota”, a space station in orbit 1730 km above the earth; The station is commanded by its creator, Colonel Samuel T. Merritt. To his son Barney, a captain, would like to return to Earth after being blocked on board for a year without enjoying any permission.

The staff of the Space Station worked hard for months to build a huge spaceship in a nearby orbit. An inspector arrives with a shuttle from the earth with new orders: not only has Merritt was promoted to General, but has it also decided to send the advanced spaceship to the distant planet Mars under his command, not on the moon as originally expected. As General Merritt decides to be accompanied on Mars by a voluntary crew of three troop men with the addition of an officer. However, the general refuses to bring his old friend Sergeant Mahoney because of 20 years too old for the trip (actually Mahoney is three months younger than the general, but the rank has his privileges). After hearing the new destination of the ship, Captain Barney, son of Merritt, changes his mind on his return to Earth and volunteers as a second officer of the ship.

After the selected crew members attended a special television broadcast with their family and friends, the mission takes off for the red planet. From this moment, however, the health conditions of the general and the growing labors of the space begin to seriously compromise his judgment: reading his Bible often is causing serious religious doubts about the rightness of their mission to Mars. At the same time, at the same time Sergeant Mahoney is discovered while hiding in one of the space suits stored in the ship’s balance chamber. While traveling direct to Mars, a problem occurs with the piloting radar antenna, so two crew members must undertake a space walk to carry out the necessary repairs.

When they finally manage to make the antenna work again, the ship’s television monitors show an incandescent planetoid, 20 times larger than their ship, which heads for them as a stern. Because of the general they barely manage to avoid a collision, but the rapid movement weather surrounding the planetoid surrounding the spatial suit of the sergeant Fodor, killing him; After a religious funeral service held in space by the general, the astronaut’s body is abandoned to the drift.

Eight months later, when the spaceship finally approaches the red planet, the general is increasingly mentally unbalanced, considering the loss of the sergeant Fodor a judgment of God; Immediately before the landing on the Martian soil he tries to crash the spaceship, now convinced that their mission violates divine laws. Barney snatches the control from his father, making the big rocket land on the Marzian surface at the last moment safely. Later, while the crew takes the first steps to Mars, looking at the top they notice a flow of water that pours from the vertical rocket. Barney quickly discovers that the loss is caused by the father’s sabotage; General Merritt, out of mind, threatens the son with an automatic .45; The two struggle and from the gun, one blow starts, killing the general. Sergeant Mahoney, who attended only in the last stages of the struggle, would like to see Barney confined in the arrest accommodation, but prevail over the moment more weighted opinions: Barney is now the highest officer capable and becomes the commander of the mission.

The general’s body is buried in the Martian soil and the crew begins to study the planet in view of a possible colonization.
The crew discovers that Mars is quite inhospitable. With a limited water supply, it will be a hard struggle for them to survive during the year that is necessary for the earth to reach the exact orbital position necessary to undertake the return journey. Despite the absence of water on the planet, the Japanese member of the crew sergeant imoto plants a seed in the Martian soil.

after-content-x4

The team is sadly celebrating the first Christmas on Mars, when it mounts a sudden storm of snow, allowing you to reconstitute the supply of water on exhaustion. In debt time, when their launch window is now approaching, the seed planted by Imoto sprouts in a small flower. Their joy for its discovery is short -lived; The crew overlooks a witch rhombus, witnessing the fall of boulders, and warns the earth tremble, with the opening of large chasms on the Martian surface. The ground moves due to a violent Tuesday. The spaceship now hangs with a precarious corner, too dangerous to make an emergency take -off. The crew decides to make a risky and desperate attempt to straighten the setting of the ship, using the powerful push of the rocket engines to move the earth under the landing support supports. The attempt works, straightening the ship so that it can take off immediately; While the rocket climbs from the Martian surface, the ground where it stood lies entirely.

Once in space, Barney and Mahoney reconciles. Mahoney decides not to file a complaint with their return to Earth, having been hit by the heroism shown by Barney during their stay on Mars. A martial court session would probably question the general reputation and clouded what had previously been a stainless career. Better that “the man who conquered the space” died in fulfillment of duty, sacrificing himself to save his crew.

Produced in Technicolor for the Paramount Pictures by George Pal, it was a large production, with a budget of 1 million dollars. [3]

In the intentions of the producer George Pal, the film should have been a following of Men on the moon [4] produced by him in 1950 for the direction of Irving Pichel.

The film is based on The conquest of space ( The Conquest of Space ) [first] , a 1949 book illustrated by Chesley Bonestell and written by Willy Ley. BoneStell, an artist known for his photojournalist paintings showing visions from space, also worked on the painted backgrounds (matte painting) used in the film. The production also incorporated the material of the 1953 book Project Mars: A Technical Tale Di Wernher von Braun. [5] Both books have texts of direct scientific dissemination, without inventing characters or a plot. [2] If Pal had followed one or the other of these texts, he would have produced a future speculative documentary, very similar to the trio of episodes of 1955 set a Tomorrowland of the anthological television series Disneyland : Man in Space , Man and the Moon It is Mars and Beyond . The final script of James O’Hanlon, taken from an adaptation of Philip Yordan, Barré Lyndon and George World Yates, instead creates a completely imaginary story. [2]

The film is also known as Mars Project . [4]

The judgment on the quality of the special effects has changed over time, given that the modern public tends to note more the imperfections of the painted backgrounds. The critic Glenn Erickson wrote that “the ambitious special effects were among the first to collect whistles for their lack of realism.” [6]

The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction He writes that “the special effects are very ambitious but clumsyly performed, in particular the work on the backgrounds.” [7] Paul Corpu wrote that it is often “the overall image on the screen to incurate fear: the Martian landscape, the general hi-tech office and the vastness of the cosmos. The budget of the film has certainly gone to the screen for entertainment, but but It is only a show for the love of the show. [8] He too complains of the painted backgrounds but recognizes that “the composites are quite convincing for the era in which the film was made.” [9]

At the time of the release of the film the New York Times He praised the special effects, while denigrating the plot. [ten] The audience was less kind: Erickson defined the film “a fiasco that seriously hindered George Pal’s career as a producer.” [6] Corpu described him how the “first great flask in Pal’s career was a serious setback that saw him abandon the science fiction cinema for five years, including a scheduled sequel to When the worlds collide. ” [9] The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction reiterates: “really horrible movie, The Conquest of Space It is probably the worst production of George Pal, his last for the paramount. ” [7]

  1. ^ a b Willy Ley, The conquest of space , Milan, Bompiani, 1950.
  2. ^ a b c Bill Warren, Keep Watching The Skies , vol I: 1950 – 1957, McFarland, 1982, ISBN 0-89950-032-3.
  3. ^ ‘The Top Box-Office Hits of 1955’, Variety Weekly , January 25, 1956
  4. ^ a b Bruno Lattanzi and Fabio De Angelis (edited by), The conquest of space , in Fanta . URL consulted on January 22, 2014 .
  5. ^ 1 Edicione Tradotta in Inglese: University of Illinois Press, 1953. Wernher von Braun, Project MARS: A Technical Tale , 2006. ISBN 0-9738203-32, ISBN 978-0-9738-3
  6. ^ a b “the ambitious special effects were some of the first to garner jeers for their lack of realism.” Glenn Erickson, DVD Savant Review: Conquest of Space . are DVD Savant , 30 October 2004. URL consulted on February 3, 2013 .
  7. ^ a b “The special effects are quite ambitious but clumsily executed, in particular the matte work.” ( IN ) John cluts, David Langf and Peter nicholls (the care of), Conquest of Space, The , in The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction , IV online edition, 2021. . URL consulted on January 22, 2014.
  8. ^ “the overall image on screen that inspires awe: the Martian landscape, the general’s high-tech office and the vastness of the cosmos. The film’s budget is certainly up on screen for your entertainment, but it’s just spectacle for spectacle’s sake.”
  9. ^ a b “the composites are convincing enough for the time the film was made.” Paul corrupts, DVD Verdict Review – Conquest of Space . are DVD Verdict , November 26, 2004. URL consulted on February 3, 2013 (archived by URL Original December 4, 2004) .
  10. ^ O. A. G., Special Effects Show ‘Conquest of Space’ , in The New York Times , May 28, 1955. URL consulted on February 3, 2013 .
  • Chesley Bonestell e Willy Ley, The Conquest of Space , Viking: New York, 1949 ISBN not existing
  • Gail Morgan Hickman, The Films of George Pal , 1977. A. S. Barnes and Company: New York. ISBN 0-498-01960-8
  • “O. A. G.” review. “Special Effects Show Conquest of Space ” New York Times May 28, 1955 p. 7.
  • Philip Strick, Science Fiction Movies , 1976. Octopus Books Limited. ISBN 0-7064-0470-X.

after-content-x4