Robinson Crusoe on Mars - Criterion Collection
by Byron Haskin
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Adam West, Barney (IV), Paul Mantee, Victor LundinDirector: Byron Haskin
Brand: Image Entertainment
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language)
Format: Color, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen
Picture Format: 2.35:1
Running Time: 110 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2007-09-18
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: Criterion Collection
Movie Reviews of Robinson Crusoe on Mars - Criterion Collection
Movie Review: Space Age Sci-Fi Classic
Summary: 4 Stars
This film came out in 1964, which strikes me as a fascinating time in humanity's growing awareness of interplanetary space. It came out just as the American space program was on the verge of going full throttle toward the moon and our knowledge was just beginning to increase re: the improbability of exotic "Flash Gordon" like alien civilizations existing elsewhere in this solar system. Of course we all know Mars to be much deader and more inhospitable to most life-forms than was known at that time. But don't let that knowledge interfere with your enjoyment of a classic "man on a desert island" premise transposed to a technologically advanced future. This is a golden age, labor of love production, with cool improvised gadgets (nicely illustrated in the special features that ought to delight the Boy Scouts and tech geeks in the audience) and a decently engaging performance from Paul Mantee as the sole character on screen for most of the film ('cept for him and his monkey...)
As Criterion DVDs go, it's on the slight side, content-wise, and may be overpriced if you consider it at the full retail ($40) mark-up, even though the features are nicely done. Look for a bargain price and set your cinephile pretensions to the side for a bit... cook up some popcorn and enjoy the spectacle!
Summary of Robinson Crusoe on Mars - Criterion Collection
Special-effects wunderkind and genre master Byron Haskin (The War of the Worlds The Outer Limits) won a place in the hearts of fantasy-film lovers everywhere with this gorgeously designed journey into the unknown. When his spaceship crash-lands on the barren wastelands of Mars U.S. astronaut Commander "Kit" Draper (Paul Mantee) must fight for survival with a pet monkey seemingly his only companion. But is he alone? Shot in vast Techniscope and blazing Technicolor Robinson Crusoe on Mars is an imaginative and beloved techni-marvel of classic science fiction.System Requirements:Running Time: 110 Mins.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre:?SCI-FI/FANTASY Rating:?NR UPC:?715515025621 Manufacturer No:?CC1712DDVDAlthough it is a thoughtful and surprisingly nonexploitative movie, the title Robinson Crusoe on Mars might conjure up unholy echoes of cross-pollinated genre movies such as Jesse James Meets Frankenstein's Daughter or Santa Claus Conquers the Martians. Well, don't worry. This 1964 space epic is in fact an adaptation of the classic Daniel Defoe novel, and it plays fair by logic and science. After his spaceship crash-lands on Mars, astronaut Paul Mantee must figure out how to survive on the hostile planet (shot mostly in Death Valley), aided only by a monkey from his ship. Director Byron (The War of the Worlds) Haskin's sober approach brings a refreshing emphasis to issues of survival--how many space travel movies have you seen where the traveler tests the air of a distant planet and discovers that, by George, he can breathe just fine? Not this one. Mantee's desperate methods of tracking his air flow and experimenting with methods of breathing are painstakingly explored, and seem like exactly the kind of problems a real planetary voyager would encounter. The second half of the picture cleverly blends Defoe's plot with sci-fi conventions, and the movie never does "dumb down."
The Criterion Collection's DVD of Robinson Crusoe on Mars is a handsome treatment of a minor classic. A commentary track stitches together comments from a variety of participants, including Mantee, Haskin (in a 1979 interview), and original screenwriter Ib Melchior (disagreements between Haskin and Melchoir are included). A featurette, Destination--Mars gives some of the "science fact" behind the movie, and excerpts from Melchoir's original treatment show suggest changes made. And a "music video" puts movie clips alongside a song written and performed by co-star Victor Lundin, a number he developed for his appearances at sci-fi conventions. --Robert Horton
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