Forbidden Planet (1956)

Directed by Fred M. Wilcox. Starring Leslie Nielsen, Walter Pidgeon, Anne Francis, Jack Kelly, Warren Stevens, Richard Anderson, Earl Holliman, Robert Dix, George Wallace, (voice) Marvin Miller. [G]

Classic 50s science fiction film set a few trends while borrowing from the Bard (The Tempest, specifically). Three centuries into the future, a starship arrives at a distant planet to learn what became of an expedition to the same world a couple decades earlier. There, the captain (Nielsen) and crew discover that the only survivors are scientist Pidgeon and leggy daughter Francis (plus, the venerable Robby the Robot); the rest of the expedition had been destroyed by an unexplainable force, one that may also be wreaking havoc on the newly-arrived relief party. Replete with dated sexual attitudes, corny comic relief, and a few wooden performances, yet the film is also intelligent and absorbing and suspenseful, a real treat for anyone who can appreciate its deliberately-paced discoveries. In addition to the writing being a significant step up from the average sci-fi potboiler of the Atomic Age, the special effects and art direction have a nifty retro charm to them, and Bebe & Louis Barron’s unearthly electronic score is first-rate. Les Tremayne provides the narration.

79/100