THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL seems to be the quintessential example of early science fiction films imbued with thoughtful social and political commentary. It was written, shot, and exhibited during a time of extreme political tension: the beginning of the Cold War, when the second wave of anti-Communist paranoia was back in full swing. On the surface, this bit of history may seem irrelevant to the subject matter and the message of the film, but having an understanding of the state of the world at the time it was made will allow you to appreciate its content that much more.
In THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL, the people of Earth are alarmed when a flying saucer lands in Washington, D.C. As the otherworldly spacecraft descends onto the lawn of the Mall, the army and the police force have their weapons at ready. "Every eye, every weapon is trained on that ship," says a news anchor, seconds before the door to the ship slowly draws open and a benevolent life form named Klaatu emerges. Klaatu states his intentions of "peace and goodwill" and cautiously approaches the crowd, then produces an unknown object from his spacesuit. Without hesitation, one of the trigger-happy guardsmen fires. Klaatu, having committed no crime other than looking suspicious, then lay on the ground injured with hundreds of weapons still aimed at him, ready to be fired. This provocative image sets the tone for the rest of the movie.
What I found most interesting about this film was that it focused more on the human populace's reactions to an alien's arrival on Earth, rather than on the arrival itself. There are a few exciting moments of special effects and out-of-this-world technology that we have all come to expect from science fiction movies, but a great deal of it concentrates on Klaatu's concealment of his identity as a "spaceman" as he interacts with a typical suburban family. From the conversations he has with these well-meaning but ignorant people, we are introduced to the hysterical and destructive nature of the American middle-class, and for all intents and purposes, the rest of the world. In one memorable scene, a discussion over dinner (with the disguised Klaatu present) reveals that some people, including one of the family members, are suggesting that the fugitive "spaceman" be destroyed because he is actually a Communist spy!
As the story progresses, we learn of Klaatu's intentions for arriving on the planet Earth: to prevent our usage of newly acquired atomic weaponry from destroying neighboring, inhabited planets. After organizing a summit for "the world's greatest thinkers" (that is, high-level scientists from every field), Klaatu presents an interesting, albeit flawed, ultimatum: disarm your atomic weapons and live in peace, or else suffer complete annihilation. What had previously been a completely anti-violent movie was now tripping over its own logic. The good intentions of this "peaceful" race of "more advanced" life forms were now marred with a very primitive, humanlike flaw: the threat of violence to solve problems. Perhaps this was writer Edmund H. North's way of saying that violence, no matter how despicable, is also inevitable, perhaps even a necessary evil? Whatever the intent, I was fascinated (but quite honestly, disappointed) at Klaatu's conflicting messages about violence and destruction. However, even though these themes put a damper on what would have been the perfect anti-war story, it does force its viewers to think about humans' (and by extension, perhaps even aliens') predilection towards justifying violent behavior, and the backwards idea many of us have that by threatening violence, we will somehow prevent more violence.
In THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL, the people of Earth are alarmed when a flying saucer lands in Washington, D.C. As the otherworldly spacecraft descends onto the lawn of the Mall, the army and the police force have their weapons at ready. "Every eye, every weapon is trained on that ship," says a news anchor, seconds before the door to the ship slowly draws open and a benevolent life form named Klaatu emerges. Klaatu states his intentions of "peace and goodwill" and cautiously approaches the crowd, then produces an unknown object from his spacesuit. Without hesitation, one of the trigger-happy guardsmen fires. Klaatu, having committed no crime other than looking suspicious, then lay on the ground injured with hundreds of weapons still aimed at him, ready to be fired. This provocative image sets the tone for the rest of the movie.
What I found most interesting about this film was that it focused more on the human populace's reactions to an alien's arrival on Earth, rather than on the arrival itself. There are a few exciting moments of special effects and out-of-this-world technology that we have all come to expect from science fiction movies, but a great deal of it concentrates on Klaatu's concealment of his identity as a "spaceman" as he interacts with a typical suburban family. From the conversations he has with these well-meaning but ignorant people, we are introduced to the hysterical and destructive nature of the American middle-class, and for all intents and purposes, the rest of the world. In one memorable scene, a discussion over dinner (with the disguised Klaatu present) reveals that some people, including one of the family members, are suggesting that the fugitive "spaceman" be destroyed because he is actually a Communist spy!
As the story progresses, we learn of Klaatu's intentions for arriving on the planet Earth: to prevent our usage of newly acquired atomic weaponry from destroying neighboring, inhabited planets. After organizing a summit for "the world's greatest thinkers" (that is, high-level scientists from every field), Klaatu presents an interesting, albeit flawed, ultimatum: disarm your atomic weapons and live in peace, or else suffer complete annihilation. What had previously been a completely anti-violent movie was now tripping over its own logic. The good intentions of this "peaceful" race of "more advanced" life forms were now marred with a very primitive, humanlike flaw: the threat of violence to solve problems. Perhaps this was writer Edmund H. North's way of saying that violence, no matter how despicable, is also inevitable, perhaps even a necessary evil? Whatever the intent, I was fascinated (but quite honestly, disappointed) at Klaatu's conflicting messages about violence and destruction. However, even though these themes put a damper on what would have been the perfect anti-war story, it does force its viewers to think about humans' (and by extension, perhaps even aliens') predilection towards justifying violent behavior, and the backwards idea many of us have that by threatening violence, we will somehow prevent more violence.