Top Ten 60s Sci-fi (?)

It was an interesting coincidence that this film journey was wrapping the 1960s, right around NewYears. Since it is customary to do "retrospectives" at year-end, this seemed like a good time to look back over the sci-fi films of the 1960s and pick some famous and favorites.

Which ten sci-fi movies of the 1960s deserve a Golden Rocket Award? Depends on who you ask, I suppose.

There were roughly 120-plus sci-fi films released in the 60s. Some would become famous standouts. Lots of weird ultra-cheapies.  I made up my list of films that I'd bestow a Golden Rocket to, but I had a hard time deciding which to put in the 10th slot.

1 2001: A Space Odyssey '68. THE big sci-fi film of the 60s. Kubrik set a new, high benchmark for the look and feel of sci-fi movies, even if his plot was a bit obtuse for most viewers.

2 Planet of the Apes '68. A close second. The start of a franchise that would recur several times in the 70s and still had "legs" enough for the 21st century.

3 First Men on the Moon '64. H.G. Wells' story in lavish color and steam-punk sets. Animated Selenites by Ray Harryhausen.

4 Time Machine '60. George Pal's version of H.G. Wells' novel and a bleak future for mankind. Atomic doom, Eloi and Morlocks!

5 Planeta Bur '62. A Soviet sci-fi which was epic enough in its own right, but also served primary source material for two American B movies -- and still looked good!

6 Fantastic Voyage '66. A visual feast of special effects and an unusual twist on the "inner space" plot, and a good application of the not-so-new miniature people effect.

7 Robinson Crusoe on Mars '64. William Defoe's classic tale of a castaway surviving in the wild, but recast for the space age.

8 Marooned '69. Serious science fiction set in the Apollo program. Interesting for how its story line played out for real in Apollo 13, just a few months after release.

9 Day of the Triffids '63. A bit campy, and quirky, but so memorable among the common invasion films.

10  ?

What to pick for number 10?  So many movies seemed deserving. They might not be epic greats, but were worth mentioning. Which 60s sci-fi would you give a Golden Rocket to?


Oh, and Happy New Year!

Santa Claus Conquers the Martians

Okay. I have to admit that I have been avoiding this film. Released in 1964, Santa Claus Conquers the Martians (SCCM) was beyond "bad." SCCM often ranks high on "worst film ever" listings. However, Christmas was coming just as the films of 1969 were wrapping up. And, starting the new series, "FrankenFEST" on Christmas, just didn't seem right. At least SCCM would be date-appropriate, so in the forgiving spirit of Christmas, I give you, Santa Claus Conquers the Martians.  Merrrrry Christmas! Ho Ho Ho.

Quick Plot Synopsis
Two martian children are watching Earth television programming about Santa making toys at his workshop. Their father,Kimar (King Martian), and mother Momar (Mom Martian) worry that their kids don't eat much and just watch TV all the time. Apparently this is the same all over Mars. Kids are as dull as adults. Kimar summons the council and consults Mars' oldest citizen, Chochem, for advice. Chochem says the kids don't have a childhood. All education and responsibility. Need to learn to laugh and play. How? Mars needs a Santa. So, Kimar plans to fly to earth and steal Santa Claus. When he and the others arrive, they are fooled by so many street corner santas. They kidnap Billy and Betty to make them reveal which is the real Santa. They then all travel to the North Pole. They kidnap Santa too, but decide to take Billy and Betty, lest they alert the authorities. En route, Voldar is all upset at bringing toys and laughter to Mars -- the "warrior" planet. Sneakily, he tries to jettison Santa and the kids out the airlock. He fails. On Mars, Santa eventually gets the morose mars-kids: Bomar (Boy Martian) and Girmar (Girl Martian) to laugh. Kimar thinks this is great, so builds a toy making factory. Santa doesn't make toys, he pushes buttons on toy machine. Voldar and his henchmen, lurking as outcasts in a cave, attempt to kidnap Santa for themselves, to use him as a hostage to force Kimar to stop the happy-ization of Mars. Trouble is, they kidnap the comic sidekick, Dropo, who was dressing up as Santa, just for fun. More hi-jinx ensue when Voldar thinks he's got the upper hand, but Santa (the real one) is obviously not his hostage. Voldar is attacked by the children with toys in a comic melee. Kimar has him arrested. All is well. Billy and Betty are homesick. Santa, having charmed (conquered, I suppose) all the martians (except Voldar) into smiles, wants to get back for Christmas. Dropo will be the Martian Santa, operate the toy factory and bring toys and peace and good will to all of Mars. Everyone says goodbye. The rocket flies back to earth. The End.

Why is this movie fun?
It is designed to appeal to young children, so it is intended to be a sappy sort of "fun." At an adult level, there is some amusement at the parody of classic science fiction films: martians, cheap "alien" sets and ray guns, etc.

Cold War Angle
SCCM has no Cold War elements. It is self-deprecating slap stick with no deeper message than adults-are-stupid and kids-rule.

Notes
Kid TV Context -- Before judging SCCM too severely, it should be kept in mind that it was aimed at young kids. It was not intended to be a cerebral adult sci-fi. Instead, think of SCCM in the context of children's TV of the early 60s. Look at it as a cross between Captain Kangaroo and Major Astro. The later was an after school kids' show (in Kansas) with a host in a space suit and on a simple "moon base" set. SCCM is more in the spirit of "Captain Kangaroo On Mars" than  Robinson Crusoe on Mars (also 1964).

Kids' POV -- Note how many plot elements are The World, from a kid's point of view. Parents worry that they watch too much TV. Santa is unquestionably real. Martians are real too, are green and have antennae. Many adults are inept bumblers. And, in a bit of pandering, kids can subdue adults with toys. Of course, adult viewers (of serious sci-fi) balk and choke at the silliness, but from the POV of an eight year old in 1964, it all seemed plausible enough.

Gandhi Claus -- On a somewhat more adult level, the message is that kids really can be harmed by too much (inane) TV. Note the subtle pacifist persona of Santa in SCCM. He wins people over to the "Light" side with contagious laughter and jokes. Even though he knows full well that Voldar was trying to kill him, Santa couches it carefully as an "accident." The only "action" Santa condones was the toy attack on Voldar -- symbolic of how "fun" can subdue evil. In the end, Gandhi Claus has everyone convinced to live peaceably, with the biblical phrasing of '"Peace on Earth" (and Mars) and "Goodwill to all men."

Serial Flashback -- For adult viewers in 1964, who may have been eight years old in the late 40s or early 50s, the robot Torg was a bit of nostalgia. Yes, he was crudely constructed compared to Robby or Planeta Bur's John. Torg, however, was all a kid needed for a robot. In fact, Torg seemed very reminiscent to the robot of Republic's early serials or the tin men of Captain Video. One might suspect that Torg was a tragic bit of underachievement, but quite intentional.

Nearly Farr -- Viewers familiar with the TV series M*A*S*H could be mistaken for thinking they see actor Jamie Farr playing the role of Stolo, one of Voldar's inept comic minions. The resemblance is strong, but Stolo is actually played by Al Nesor. Uncredited is Pia Zadora (later more famous for singing than acting) in her first movie role as Girmar.

Bottom line? Complains that SCCM is a terrible adult movie, is akin to blasting SpongeBob for not being deep enough, or The Muppets as a poor production. SCCM should be viewed as an extended after-school television special, designed for an innocent eight year old (or younger). Yes, it's silly, shallow and cheaply done. Get over it. It's a kids' show on Christmas. Enjoy it as an innocent eight year old.

If you're not too adult to handle it, you can watch it on YouTube, just for fun.

Santa Claus Conquers the Martians - YouTube

Atomic Angst Films

A great many classic science fiction films had Cold War themes at their roots. There were also many non-sci-fi films in the same era that sprang from the same roots. Listed below is a collection of those films that voiced Atomic Angst in a more direct, less allegorical, way. Devotees of old sci-fi will be able to recognize similar plot themes and tropes.

 Below is a list of AtomicAngst films in chronological order:

 Golden Age Motivation -- Introduction to this Atomic Angst collection.

The Red Menace -- A down-on-his-luck ex-G.I. becomes entangled in a cell of ruthless communists.

Seven Days to Noon -- An upset nuclear scientist steals an atomic bomb and threatens to blow up London if the UK doesn't abandon nukes.

The Whip Hand -- A reporter checks out a mysterious dead lake and stumbles upon a nest of communist agents.

High Treason -- British agents uncover a plot of home-grown communists to sabotage London's power grid.

Five -- A very early post-apocalypse tale of five people who survive the global nuclear war.

The Atomic City -- Communist agents kidnap the son of a nuclear scientist. The ransom is the secrets to the H-bomb.

Duck and Cover -- Civil Defense public service film to teach school children how to survive an atomic attack.

Split Second -- Escaped convicts take some hostages to aid their escape, but choose to hide out in a nuclear test area.

Hell and High Water -- A former WWII sub captain is recruited to discover a secret communist plot to drop an atom bomb.

Atomic Attack -- Television drama about a suburban family's life after New York City is bombed.

Rocket Attack U.S.A. -- Via collective hypnotism, several people in a bar experience what a communist attack and invasion would be like.

On The Beach -- Landmark movie about the last survivors of global nuclear war and how they each face their inevitable doom.

The World, The Flesh and The Devil -- Two men and one woman, sole survivors of a nuclear war. New hope clashes with old thinking.

The Last Woman on Earth -- Something kills all animal life on earth except a husband, wife and business friend who were scuba diving.

The Flight That Disappeared -- A nuclear physicist, mathematician and rocket designer are hijacked by the "unborn" of the future and put on trial.

The Beast of Yucca Flats -- Odd film about a Russian defector exposed to a nuclear test and becomes a deranged killer.

This is Not a Test -- A highway patrol deputy stops people at a roadblock before a nuclear attack. Tensions flare.

Panic in the Year Zero -- Atom bombs fall while a family vacation in the hills. They fight to survive amid privation and armed thugs.

Dr. Strangelove -- A dark comedy satire of errors that lead to the dropping of atomic bombs.

Fail Safe -- A serious drama about a chain of errors that lead to the dropping of atomic bombs.

The Bedford Incident -- A US Navy destroyer hunts a Soviet sub. Tensions run high and mistakes are made. The ship and sub exchange nuclear weapons.

The War Game -- A banned BBC film about how government and society break down after a nuclear attack on Britain.

The Last War -- 1961 Japanese film about a family caught in a world where a chain of errors unleash total nuclear doom.

Panic in the City -- A rogue communist agent builds a nuclear bomb in L.A. Agents have only a little time to discover where it is before it blows up.
---

1969

The dreams of Jules Verne, H.G. Wells and countless sci-fi writers, was realized in July, 1969. The wide-eyed fascination of Destination Moon ('50) became reality. 1969 was not, however, an outstanding year for sci-fi. For the most part, it was populated with old-formula, remakes and foreign imports. The notable exception being Marooned: a bigger budget production about an Apollo mission.

The Illustrated Man -- Based on Ray Bradbury stories, about a man tattooed by a woman of the future, whose tattoos foretell the future.

Blood beast terror -- A rogue scientist has created a were-moth: beautiful woman by day, giant vampire moth by night.

The Green Slime -- An alien life form infests an orbiting space station. They feed on energy and seek to attack earth next.

Body Stealers -- Aliens steal skydivers to help them rebuild their dying civilization, until the leader alien falls in love with an earthling.

The Valley of Gwangi -- Remake of Beast of Hollow Mountain. Dinosaurs in hidden valley ranchers in the old west.

The Bed Sitting Room -- British comedy about post-apocalyptic England. Amid other absurdities, radiation mutates some people into inanimate objects.

The Monitors -- An odd comedy about a bungling resistance movement against aliens who have taken over and manage Earth for the betterment of mankind.

Journey to the Far Side of the Sun -- A space mission discovers that Earth has an exact duplicate in an exact opposite orbit, so never seen.

Marooned -- An Apollo mission is trapped in orbit with no way down. Can an experimental rocket shuttle get to them before their oxygen runs out?

Latitude Zero -- A Toho take on Captain Nemo. An arch villain seeks to destroy the idyllic undersea city of Latitude Zero.

Genocide -- A deranged biologist, sponsored by communists, breeds killer bugs, but a lost H-bomb exposes the scheme.

Hibernatus -- French comedy about a man found alive after frozen in arctic ice for 65 years. To avoid fatal shock, everyone pretends it is still 1905. The charade unravels riotously.

It's Alive -- Low-budget horror hybrid based on Matheson story. A roadside attraction owner keeps a prehistoric creature and feeds it tourists.

Hibernatus

This French film of late 1969 was released in other European countries, but never in english. Hibernatus is listed as a comedy sci-fi. It is a light comedy in the Rip Van Winkle motif, mostly built around comedy star Louis de Funès. It is "lite" as far as science fiction goes, involving only a touch of cryogenics talk and a couple mentions of hibernating astronauts. Being scant on science has not been too unusual in the ranks of sci-fi films. As a strictly foreign film, that would normally put Hibernatus outside of this study, but it does make a nicer note to end this tour of 1969 than on, than the everybody-dies film Genocide.

Quick Plot Synopsis
A team of arctic explorers conduct some blasts on the polar ice. In the crater are two shoes sticking out of the solid ice. Men cut out the block of ice with the man in it and ship it back to France. Also found nearby in the ice is wreckage of the ship La Galand, lost in 1905. Scientists are amazed that, as he thaws, the ice man is still alive. News of this thrills France, and almost upstages a dinner party held by Hubert Tartas, CEO of a factory. He announces the engagement of his son, Didier to Evelyn, daughter of another CEO. During the party, Tartas becomes obsessed with everyone else at the party wearing lapel pins of the Legion of Honor. A telegram arrives from the Secretary of Internal Affairs. Tartas is certain this means he will be awarded the medal too. At the Secretary's office, however, the news is that the ice man turns out to be Tartas' wife's grandfather. Preposterous! No. Paul fell into a vat of glycerine, which the La Galand was carrying when it hit the ice. The glycerine protected Paul's cells so he lived in hibernation. Once shaven, Edmee does recognize him as her grandfather. The scientists worry that Paul's health is very fragile. Any shock could kill him. Since outer space is key to national prestige (and hibernated astronauts the key to outer space), the government finance restoring Tartas' hotel back to how it looked in 1905. Only vintage attire and automobiles are allowed in the area. Paul wakes up, but thinks Edmee is his mother. Everyone plays along. Tartas is dressed up to look like Paul's father, but Paul chases him off in a rage. (they were divorced over an affair with an actress). This allows Tartas to appear as himself (in costume) as a suitor for Edmee. Many hi-jinx ensue. It turns out that Paul is keen on Evelyne. She and Didier didn't love each other anyway. Didier likes Sophie, the pretty maid. When Tartas sees his arranged marriage collapsing, he loses his cool and tells Paul all about modern life in 1970, figuring that if the shock killed Paul, his dream of corporate empire via marriage might be salvaged. Paul doesn't die of shock. Instead, he is intrigued. He watches a TV program about jets and the Concorde. It's true. Paul and Evelyn are in love, so get married. Tartas, at wits end, decides to have himself cryogenically frozen so he can wake up in 50 years live happily ever after. The End.

Why is this movie fun?
It's a comedy. It's supposed to be fun. There are, no doubt, subtle bits of humor that only the French might pick up on. But, there is much about Funès' frantic and physical style of humor that transcend language.

Cold War Angle
There is some reference to the space race, but no reference to Cold War or communists. Hibernatus is lite fare, not heavy commentary.

Notes
Funny Funès -- Louis de Funès was a leading comedy actor in France in the 60s and 70s. He excelled at physical humor -- high-strung and accident-prone characters. His style seems like a cross between the Three Stooges and Jerry Lewis or John Cleese. Funès' style is 90% of the film.

Gags of Note -- Some of the set-piece gags which transcend language are:
The Waiter Gag, in which waiter George keeps walking in front of Tartas as he's trying to announce the engagement of his son.
Legion Lust, in which Tartas notices that everyone -- even his butler Geroge -- is wearing the little red rosette of the Legion of Honor. Obsessed, Tartas keeps trying to steal the pin off his lawyer's lapel.
Hidden Husband, has Tartas hiding under Edmee's bed when Paul rushes in to read his love poem to Evelyne. Tartas keeps bumping up the bed to show his disapproval. Edmee repeatedly pretends nothing happened.
Climactic Frenzy, comes when Tartas tries to shock Paul with news of 1970. Here, Funès is at his animated best as the crazed middle-aged man.

Costume Ball -- Of some visual interest is the total shift from 1969 fashion and technology (such as the slick "moderne" hospital) to the late victorian era costumes, carriages, cars and decor. There is a subtle amusement at seeing people in old (stuffy) fashioned clothes acting silly.

Bottom line? Hibernatus will not be easy to find. Nor is it necessarily worth great pursuit. As a comedy, it's amusing. As a sci-fi, it's almost too thin to merit the label. Fans of Funès get a generous dose. Those unaware of Funès get a good introduction.

Genocide

Closing out the sci-fi films of 1969, is an obscure Japanese-western production in vogue in the late 60s. Originally released in Japan in late 1968 as "Konchu Daisenso" (Insect War), the film was dubbed into english and released in America in late 1969, as either War of the Insects (hence the poster) or as Genocide. It's dark and complicated plot hinges on a mad scientist breeding killer insects, or being used by the insects.

Quick Plot Synopsis

The film opens with stock footage of a Nevada nuclear test. From this cataclysmic ending, the story is told as flashback. On a small Japanese island, Geroge (Jozi, in the original), is sunbathing with his mistress, Annabelle. Overhead, a B-52 files through a swarm of insects that clog the engines. The plane catches fire and explodes. All three crewmen bail out. The forth parachute is the H-bomb they carried. The three crewmen shelter in a cave, but they're attacked by swarms of bugs. The black cewman named Charlie escapes, but falls, and gets amnesia. The American military find the two dead crewman and comatose Charlie. George is arrested for murder because he has an Air Force watch. He telegraphs Dr. Nagumo in Tokyo -- whom he has been collecting rare insects for. Nagumo travels to the island to try and prove George is innocent. Several threads slowly reveal themselves. George's wife Yukari finds out he's unfaithful. She is pregnant with George's baby. The hotel manager, Tsuneo, is a sexual predator and employed by the communists. He and his thugs want the H-bomb for their Russian sponsors, so kidnap Charlie and torture him with stings from Annabelle's bugs to tell where the bomb is. Annabelle is also sponsored by the soviets to produce the deadly poisonous bugs as germ warfare. She, however, is mentally unhinged at past persecution in a Nazi prison camp, so really wants the whole world to die. The thugs release deranged Charlie who then tries to rape Junko. Gordon shoots him. Before he dies, Charlie repeats. "Genocide…genocide…" Nagumo, thinking this significant, lets one of Annabelle's bees bite him, since his assistant Junko has an antidote handy. In the toxin-induced delirium, he "understands" that the insects of the world have decided that humans must be destroyed (hence the title Genocide) since human nuclear meddling threatens to destroy insects too. Annabelle wants to kill Nagumo, but he pushes her down her basement where her own bugs kill her. Tsuneo's thugs force George and Yukari to a smaller island where George saw the H-bomb. It gets found, but George and Yukari escape the thugs and hide in an abandoned hut. The bugs surround the hut, eventually breaking in. George digs a hole in the floor, puts Yukari in the hole and covers it with his body. His last words are for her to live, for the baby's sake and flee the islands. Nagumo and Junko find Yukari in her hole and go back to the bigger island. Yukari flees in a small boat. Colonel Gordon forces Nagumo to come with him. They fly over the islands. Gordon wants to detonate the H-bomb remotely to, (a) cover up this loss, (b) keep the H-technology out of communist hands and (c ) kill all the nasty insects. There is a struggle on the plane as Nagumo and a crewman think Gordon is daft. The bomb blows up anyhow. A swarm of bugs attack the plane and it goes down in flames too. The final scene is teary-eyed Yukari alone in a small boat, watching a mushroom cloud rise over the island. Everyone is dead but her. The End.

Why is this movie fun?

"Fun" isn't quite applicable. Genocide is a grim film with few likable characters, all but one of whom die in the end. Yet, it is also an intriguing film. It is as if the writer had many different movie stories in his head, and didn't want to leave any of them out. The dubbing is a source of mild amusement, for those with a soft spot for dubbed Japanese movies. And, in the Japanese sci-fi tradition, there are models (planes, buildings and landscapes).

Cold War Angle

Even though, by the late 60s, the Cold War was becoming less popular as a topic, there were still a few being produced. Genocide is a preachy (if not a bit self-righteous in its anti-nuke and anti-war sentiments. At one point, when Colonel Gordon lightly accuses Nagumo of being an agent for the East (since Nagumo was not obsessed with locating the missing H-bomb), Nagumo snips, "Both the east and west are wrong. Always trying to outdo each other in a show of force. Both sides are crazy."

Notes

Crowded Plots -- Writer Susumu Takaku would be later famous for many anime stories. In the early 60s, he was writing lighter fare, but in the late 60s, he seemed to have been in a gloomy mood. His script for Genocide is a noir-ish collection of many nihilistic sub-stories -- each of which could have been developed into their own movie.

-- Insects who develop a collective intelligence and decide that they must wipe out mankind in order to save themselves.

-- An insect conquest of the earth, by killing foreigners and laying eggs in their bodies -- knowing that the bodies would be shipped home, thereby spreading the invasion. -- A mad scientist working on a weapon of mass destruction, ostensibly for evil sponsors so they can rule the world, but the mad scientist is really planning to destroy the world for personal revenge.

-- An H-bomb lost by accident, the object of good-guy and bad-guy searches and conflict and double-crossings.

-- A poor foreigner wrongly accused of murdering American pilots as a cover-up for a military mistake, and the loyal friend's investigation to prove his innocence.

Any of these would have made a whole movie in themselves. But, Takaku jammed them all together (and a few more sub-plots) to make an overly complex story which could not do justice to any of the above. He wrote similarly dark tale, Goke, Body Snatcher From Hell, also in 1968, but it would not come to American markets (dubbed) until 1979.

Shadow of Frankenstein -- Apropos of the upcoming study of Frankenstein films, viewers will note the trope alive and well, even in obscure Japanese films. Annabelle is the mad scientist, intent on messing around with nature. She creates a "monster" (the super-poison insects). She is killed by her own creation. But, casting Kathy Horan as the mad scientist was strange. Horan was a young, shapely, budget-version of Ann Margaret. Her babe-ness made it much harder to fit her into the Frankenstein role.

Grim Reality -- Takaku seemed to have been in a misanthropic mood when he wrote Genocide. He punctuated his larger story with abundant violence. Tsuedo tries to rape Yukari early on. Deranged Charlie tries to rape Yukari too, then goes after Junko, ripping off her blouse and jumping on her. Then there is Annabelle's odd pleasure in seeing Charlie tortured with the insects' poison. Thug 1 and Thug 2 are quick to slap people to encourage cooperation. Finally, everyone is killed by the nuclear blast. It's almost as if, when Annabelle talks about the world being full of only hate (herself no exception), her lines are voicing the writer's sentiment.

Bottom line? Genocide is not an easy film to watch. It's complex plot makes it easy to get lost. Takaku filled his story with odd factoids that weren't really needed (so tended to be distracting), as well as typically led nowhere. The dubbing is towards the atrocious end of the scale. It is not a film one would ever say they enjoyed. Still, some of the ideas in the movie are intriguing.