The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)

Starring: Michael Rennie, Patricia Neal, Sam Jaffe, and Hugh Marlowe
Grade: A

“What is the alternative?”

“There is none.”

Summary

A flying saucer enters Earth’s atmosphere, and the entire world is notified through radio and television newscasts. The U.F.O. ends up landing in Washington, D.C. on some baseball field. Soon after, the authorities are alerted. Journalist Drew Pearson insists to his audience that rumors of invading armies and mass destruction are false. As he says this, we see the United States Army stationing around the U.F.O. and a group of concerned onlookers observe around them. Shortly after, the saucer opens, and a ramp comes out. A man in a space suit, who we will later find out is named Klaatu (Rennie), walks down the ramp. He announces he is here for peace and goodwill, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a tool of sorts. Immediately after he pulls out this tool, he’s shot by some trigger-happy solider. Following this, a giant indestructible robot named Gort walks out of the ship to defend Klaatu. As all the onlookers run away, Gort starts eliminating all the weapons around him from the U.S. Army, from guns to tanks, by use of the laser coming from his single-eye visor. Following Klaatu ordering Gort to stop, he approaches one of the soldiers and gives him the tool he pulled out, saying it was a gift for the President, enabling him to study life on other planets.

Well, I bet they feel stupid now.

Klaatu is taken to the Walter Reed Army Hospital and secretary to the President Mr. Harley (Frank Conroy) greets him in his room. He apologizes on behalf of the President. Klaatu tell Harley he is from a neighboring planet 250 million miles away, and he has very important news concerning everyone on the planet. To further this point, he says he wants to meet with representatives from all the nations of Earth. Harley admits this is an impossibility because of tensions between other countries, so Klaatu asks about the United Nations. His planet is aware of it because they’ve been monitoring the Earth’s radio broadcasts. In addition, this is how they learned the languages of Earthlings. Harley doesn’t budge though, again talking about the issues they have with other countries. Klaatu doesn’t budge either, saying his message, which he will not tell unless the world’s leaders will hear him say it all at once because it “concerns the existence of every last creature on Earth”. The future of the planet is at stake and though Harley isn’t very positive about gathering all of these people for Klaatu’s message, he agrees to relay this favor to the president. At 2AM, the government is still hard at work examining Klaatu’s stuff. Gort is still standing there in the middle of the field, and no one can figure out what he’s made out of. They also have people examining the ship, but they can’t even figure out how the ramp came out. The next day, doctors examine Klaatu’s x-rays, and his insides seem very human. It looks as if the atmosphere from Klaatu’s planet is very similar to Earth’s. He’s also 78 technically, even though he looks like he’s in his mid 30s. Another doctor leaves Klaatu’s room to tell the others that Klaatu’s bullet wound from yesterday has completely healed. He put some “salve” on it, a substance he already had on him.

Harley comes in and goes straight to Klaatu’s room to tell him the bad news. The President relayed the message to the world’s leaders, but some countries refused on account of where the meeting would take place. Harley suggests Klaatu just tell the President his message, but he refuses because it needs to be heard by everyone. Looking out the window at the public as he grows frustrated over humanity’s pettiness, Klaatu thinks of a solution. He offers to go out among the public to become familiar with the basis of humanity’s “unreasoning attitudes” to understand them more. On account of the military’s insistence, Harley tells him this is also an impossibility. After Harley leaves, a solider locks the door from the outside and Klaatu just smiles. Later that night, the same solider goes to open the door for the nurse bringing in food, and he finds out Klaatu has escaped.

A manhunt begins…

Klaatu wanders the street with a briefcase and a suit stolen from the dry cleaners. He enters a boarding house and all the people there are watching a television news report where the newscaster argues this escaped person may not be their enemy but their friend. The people are startled by his entrance into the house. However, after introducing himself as “Carpenter” (the name on the dry cleaner’s receipt), he asks for a room and is greeted by a welcoming Mrs. Crockett (Edith Evanson). Immediately, a young boy named Bobby (Billy Gray) asks if he works for the FBI and if he’s looking for the “spaceman”. Mrs. Crockett then introduces Klaatu to Bobby, his mother Helen (Neal), and everyone else. To close the night, he’s shown to his room. The next morning, all the adults of the boarding house eat breakfast together and as the person on the radio talks about the terrors the spaceman brings, Klaatu sees on a newspaper that a Professor Barnhardt (Jaffe) has called for a meeting of the world leaders in science to come and study Klaatu’s spaceship. After they shut off the radio, they all discuss the spaceman and the government’s failures on how to stop him. There’s only one person that doesn’t think he’s a menace and that’s Helen.

Klaatu’s observations of the human race have only just begun. Though there are some bright spots, it’s only a matter of time before he’s exposed as the escaped alien everyone is looking for. Because of this, the window to deliver his statement to the world’s leaders shortens by the minute, with the government more worried about him rather than his message.

My Thoughts:

When speaking of films from the past, how many times do we hear the statement of, “Just as relevant today as it was back then”? Well, 1951’s The Day the Earth Stood Still is a prime example of this exact statement. True, it’s a great science fiction story, but its focus and why it’s remembered so fondly, is because of its message rather than its alien intrigue. In doing so, and because of how well it’s done, The Day the Earth Stood Still is indeed one of those movies that stands the test of the time. Sure, there are scenes that date the movie like when two doctors talk about the life expectancy of Klaatu’s people being 130 because their medicine is more advanced and they both smoke a cigarette while wondering how this is possible, or Tom and Helen being totally okay with Klaatu babysitting Bobby after only knowing him for a day (in Tom’s case, thirty seconds). Nevertheless, many quotes, moments, and the general message of the film is still applicable in comparison to the present day. In some cases, the specific parallels to real-life issues are scarily accurate.

Unsurprisingly, the stubbornness of countries at odds with each other, refusing to look past their differences for the bigger picture, is very much on the nose when you consider world politics. Though I agree with the remake’s notion that in the case of extreme disaster, humans can change, I’m okay with the potential accuracy of this Cold War era film’s message to prove their point.

I did like that this film and its 2008 remake pokes fun at the ego of people in the United States. I can’t say it isn’t accurate. This may be a harsh generalization, but a lot of people think they’re smarter than everyone else and will go to great lengths to disprove others to prove themselves right. We see the examples early on with Harley refusing to accept Klaatu’s need to meet with all the world’s leaders because he “doesn’t understand” how Earth works, arguing they can’t invite everyone in for a meeting because they have to travel “enormous distances”. Klaatu reminds him he’s traveled 250 million miles and like a true American politician, Harley changes the subject with another excuse. I’m by no means a political man, but I couldn’t help but love every second of Klaatu’s takedown of Harley’s excuses of world politics, telling him he’s not here “to solve your petty squabbles”, growing more and more impatient with what he calls the “stupidity” of these unimportant problems in the grand scheme of things.

Again, it’s all about the bigger picture. This is the film’s message, and it translates to issues in the real world.

The real frustration comes from Klaatu insisting his statement concerns the very “existence of every last creature on Earth” and Harley responding indifferently and having his own personal pessimism replacing what should be a realized sense of urgency, becoming a fork in the road for Klaatu and because of this, the rest of the human race. Next, there’s the idea of the foreign invader and having the very American attitude of needing to defeat it without knowing why they need to. It’s very well known that not a single person from the outside public knows anything about the “alien” and his purpose, but as Klaatu observes firsthand, most opinions from other humans suggest killing or stopping him in his tracks without needing a second thought. This immediately attracts us to Helen. She’s the only person who comes up with a rational thought: Maybe he’s not here to kill us all. She even defends him, arguing that (in a comically underrated line) he may be afraid because “After all, he was shot the minute he got here”. Think about this event of an alien invader landing on Earth’s soil. How accurate is the scene in which even after Klaatu announces he comes in peace and pulls out an unknown tool, a soldier immediately shoots him because he thought it was a weapon. This seems strangely familiar, doesn’t it? What about when Professor Barnhardt, a man who Klaatu respects right off the bat because of his intellect and immediate faith in him, admits to Klaatu, “We scientists are too often ignored or misunderstood”.

Regardless of where you stand politically in real life, the commentary seen in this film cannot be ignored. It is eerily similar to arguments we are still having today.

What about when Klaatu is explaining the fact that atomic power is used to make Gort work, and Bobby is confused because he wasn’t aware atomic power could be used for something other than bombs, showing us front and center how war-obsessed our society is to the point where it’s influencing the younger generations without them even realizing. Even after he rattles off these facts to the young child, a few citizens jokingly pass Klaatu off as a liar because they don’t believe him. If this isn’t social commentary on the general public, I don’t know what is. The depictions of the media are put front and center too. Not only do we show the media feeding off hysteria, sensationalism, and fearmongering, with one journalist cutting Klaatu’s interview short when he tries to give a rational explanation instead of just saying he’s scared, but we also hear it from the radio. When they sit at the breakfast table at the boarding house, we hear the one host yell it in his huge monologue, saying “…this menace from another world? Destroy it of course!”. As you might expect, like a typical human being he offers no suggestion on how to find him or go about such a manner. He just goes straight to the endgame of killing this thing and being done with it. Essentially, the thought process comes to “We know almost nothing about this thing, but let’s assume it’s bad”.

Going along with this, despite Klaatu’s good nature and showing no signs of bad intentions whatsoever, Tom grows jealous of the attention he receives in the 2-3 days he’s with these people and starts to hate him. After searching his room and finding diamonds, he automatically thinks he’s a criminal. Tom is a whole different asshole though. He’s exactly what’s wrong with today’s generation of media obsessed people, easily comparable to the constant issue of celebrity culture’s importance in society, with everyone wanting and craving their coveted fifteen minutes of fame. After Helen is told part of the mission and is sympathetic to Klaatu’s cause, she tries to convince Tom not to go through with giving up his position. Tom refuses, saying that in going through with it, he’d “be the biggest man in the country”. When she counters with the fact that this issue concerns the rest of the world, he retorts unflinchingly, “I don’t care about the rest of the world”. Once he offends her with a few more ego-driven statements, she storms out on him. In this moment, he has two options. He can chase after her and realize he’s being a dick or continue on with his phone call to snitch on Klaatu. In this moment, he can reveal his true character. Guess what he decides to do? Who cares if the human race is at stake when he can be a star, right? What a fucking clown! Sadly, even now we see from the masses how important an ounce of TV time, or even social media recognition, can be. This is what our culture has turned into, and they were talking about it back in 1951!

Then, there’s Helen and Tom not believing a word Bobby says on what he saw with Klaatu and the spaceship, mirroring people knowing the subjects they speak on but being passed off as liars because it seems too scary or fantastical (see the Professor Barnhardt quote from earlier).

People, this is ridiculously accurate. It may be a pessimistic view on how people act, but we’ve seen how humanity reacts to things foreign to them. It’s not pretty.

Besides this, there’s Klaatu’s warning to the people, neutralizing electricity worldwide to show the power he possesses. In today’s day and age, could a half-hour period where we don’t have electricity truly be a day where the Earth stands still? Considering how much we rely on this shit now compared to back then, I guarantee it would send a message.

The sci-fi bits may not be as important in the long run because the film is more about the message but even so, I thought it was pretty exciting for the time period. Klaatu’s spaceship design is simple but very cool. When I think of an old science fiction movie and the alien spaceship involved, this design is exactly what I imagine. The inside of it had just enough detail to make things interesting too. The inside of the Nostromo spaceship from Alien had to have been inspired by that hallway. The effects were particularly impressive as well. You’d think it would look a lot worse for 1951, but it’s surprisingly good, as is the event in which the saucer lands. When everyone watches the ship settle in, it feels like a major historic event, as it should. The decision to give Klaatu his human presentation was also exactly what it needed to be taken seriously. Being that this is a sci-fi film from so many years ago, it’s hard not to be considered campy, so a decision like this saved them in the long run. Also, Gort is one of the most memorable robot characters in cinema history. With a smooth and simple build design, and a stilted Frankenstein‘s monster-like walk, the giant robot comes off as the indestructible and silent protector it’s portrayed to be. Modern audiences may disagree with me, but I thought its silence and slow-burn in its actions made Gort fairly chilling in context, as we wait and wonder in anticipation for what its next move may be.

The main character of Klaatu represents all that is good. He represents what is possible. Much like Gort, he doesn’t act out, he only responds to how others react to him, constantly observing people and waiting to learn their true character and responding in kind. If he does go out of his way to act, he does so with good intentions. Already walking into Professor Barnhardt’s place of work with an expectation of hope, he sees his equation on celestial mechanics on the chalkboard and adds to it saying, “he just needs a little help”. He wants to work with humans and make things right, waiting to see if anyone, specifically Barnhardt, will respond positively to his help because up until this point, the humans he’s dealt with (mostly people in government) have been uncooperative, despite the imperativeness of his statements. Adding to the negativity, Barnhardt’s housekeeper sees him write on the chalkboard and chastises him for it, acting like its fucking graffiti. She even intends on erasing it until Klaatu stops her, showing the ego and hardheadedness humans can display when challenged. When the “genius” that actually wrote it accepts Klaatu’s alterations, we see the very little glimpse of hope Earth has for survival. Not only does this put the viewer at ease, and gives us a little bit of credit, but it also shows Klaatu a good example that maybe we aren’t all a bunch of assholes who think we’re better than everyone.

Adding to this point is the wonderfully understated Lincoln Memorial scene with even Klaatu acknowledging, “He must’ve been a great man. That’s the kind of man I’d like to talk to”. It’s a powerful scene, reminding us of the good things our world’s leaders can accomplish if they realize the bigger picture, coupled with triumphant music to boot.

Speaking of all that is good, once you hear of the comparisons of Klaatu to Jesus Christ, it’s hard not to notice it. From being a generally good person, to possessing a message of peace and harmony, to being misunderstood, to being killed, and to being resurrected, the parallels are obvious. It does work for the story too. Faith, whether it be in others or whatever else, plays a major part in the narrative. When considering this, how would a modern civilization react to a Christ-like figure preaching a message to end war? With the way this story plays out, it’s not hard to imagine the process patterning itself very similar to what happened here. The only difference seems to be Klaatu sending the message with the electricity thing. However, it’s hard to say if it does the job because he doesn’t take responsibility for it during his climactic speech. How would the public know what he’s capable of if he didn’t tell them?

Then again, maybe I’m overthinking things, but it’s worth the mention.

Though the message of “Become peaceful or we’ll fucking blow this planet up” seems like a backwards point, it still works in Klaatu’s argument that we as humans seem to respond to violent action more than anything else. “Obliteration” as he puts it, would wake up any world’s leader. I’d rather be threatened with annihilation rather than be policed by a race of robots though. He kind of lost me there. Even so, Klaatu doesn’t claim to have the perfect solution and doesn’t even press his belief in his race’s robot creations. He just wants peace. Is that too hard to ask?

The Day the Earth Stood Still is timeless in every sense of the word and if it’s any consolation, it’s without a doubt one of the best movies of 1951.

As we part, just make sure you remember these words: “Klaatu barada nikto“.

Fun Fact: Spencer Tracy and Claude Rains were originally considered for Klaatu.