Might Makes Right in This Sci-Fi Classic

Now here's a movie that jumps right out of the time period in which it was made. The Day the Earth Stood Still is structured like a classic 50s paranoia sci-fi thriller, but it has a much deeper meaning than that. Director Robert Wise has cleverly disguised his film (right up to the frightening title) in order to make a statement about peace and against the build-up of atomic weapons. During the Cold War scare of the 1950's, this was no doubt a potent message. What's frightening about The Day the Earth Stood Still is that it remains politically relevant today.

At the beginning of the film, a flying saucer lands in Washington DC. Out of it steps an alien (Michael Rennie), who makes no sudden attack, but is shot by a nervous soldier. This causes his robot companion Gort to begin a path of destruction against the gathered military units. He quickly eliminates all the weapons present, but his rampage is stopped when the alien orders him to stand down. The alien is taken to a local hospital, but soon escapes so he can study he people of Earth. Taking on the name of Carpenter, he takes up residence as a boarder and learns about Earth from a young boy named Bobby (Billy Gray) and the brilliant scientist Professor Barnhart (Sam Jaffe).

The Day the Earth Stood Still pretends to be a genre film and it certainly starts out that way. The opening sequence is an absolute delight, showing us the eventual escalation of a peaceful situation into an alien attack. The film is careful to cover the genre bases. The flying saucer and the robot seem straight out of the cover of an old sci-fi short story publication. But after the opening, the film slows down a bit and we learn there is more going on underneath. After an attempted meeting with world leaders falls apart, Carpenter takes his message to the Professor, the first person who seems to understand the real importance. The message is simple: Earth must cease its violent ways or it will be destroyed.

It is impossible to ignore the hypocrisy of the situation. The aliens are obviously nervous about our increasing technology with nuclear weapons and have come to the Earth with their message of peace. However, it clearly isn't a message of peace. They've come to destroy us if we don't listen. The aliens obviously do not have any more right to use these weapons than we do. The moral superiority displayed by Carpenter is contradictory to the very methods he uses. When the Professor suggests he make his point by making a peaceful presentation of awesome power, the solution is to shut down all electronic and mechanical equipment around the world. This is most certainly a violent attack, as people would definitely be killed. Unfortunately, Wise misses an important opportunity by denying us the chance to see such an event.

The film was made during a time when there were two somewhat equal superpowers threatening to obliterate each other (and the rest of the world) with their nuclear arsenal. Perhaps the filmmakers didn't imagine the modern scenario, where there is only one truly dominant superpower attempting to will the others into submission by threat of superior force. Or perhaps they had a crystal ball and saw exactly what was going to happen. Either way, they somehow ended up with a story that is even more relevant in 2007 than it was in 1951. The aliens threaten us with their superior technology, just like today we threaten inferior nations with our superior technology. In fact, they are using our own "might makes right" style of foreign policy against us. Do the filmmakers endorse the alien's methods? It's pretty doubtful. If anything, they are merely drawing a parallel between the alien's ideals and our own.

Also interesting is the way Carpenter regards the people of Earth. Learning early on that the leaders of nations cannot come to an agreement on a place to meet him, he still refuses to meet with nations individually. His message is for the world, not just one part of it. The aliens don't see Earth as a collection of nations, but as an entire race of people divided by only petty political squabbling. They're not interested on whose fault it is, but just want it to stop. At the time, this message was obviously meant for the Cold War situation between the USA and USSR. There is even a point where one of the characters suggests the alien might actually be a communist sent as a spy. Given the recent diplomatic failures in world foreign policy that have led to disastrous violent confrontations, this message remains potent today.

Wise did a terrific job in creating supplementary characters that help immerse the viewer into the film. If Bobby represents the child in all of us who loved to dream about giant robots and outer space then the Professor represents us as adults who are amazed by the potential of the advanced technology. The Professor follows Carpenter like an eager puppy, waiting to find out as much wonderful information as possible, and even helping him come up with his eventual scheme. Both of these characters beautifully work as conduits to get us into the story, making the political message seem to have an even greater urgency.

If I've made this movie sound like a dull political message, then I've done it a disservice. There are a great number of pleasures to be had along the way. Special effects are outdated today, but the simplistic nature of the destruction that Gort causes makes his power seem all that much stronger. Rennie turns in a masterful, pitch perfect performance. He blends the blank, unemotional line delivery with a gentle kindness. Carpenter has a certain fondness for a few of the human characters and we can see that in Rennie's eyes. Also notable is the entertaining performance of Sam Jaffe, who portrays Professor Barnhart as a lovable wide eyed scientist.

The film does have problematic pacing throughout its second act. The time between Carpenter's initial hospital escape and his visit to the Professor moves very slowly. Wise's quick abandonment of the genre conceit is admirable, but throwing in a few goodies along the way would have been a better way to keep the plot moving forward. Instead, he gets lost while exploring his political themes and the film loses the sense of danger it created with the fantastic opening scene.

The fascinating thing about The Day the Earth Stood Still is that it has stood the test of time so well that it seems to be commenting on events happening 56 years after it was made. As you listen to the final speech delivered by Rennie, the parallels to our current administration's ideology are all too apparent. In this terrific film, Robert Wise shows us what happens when might makes right, but we no longer have the might.