Usually when a film has *two* opening narration -- from different narrators -- is *not* a good sign.
Some of the details in the second, more thought provoking opening narration are hilariously out of date now. "Lava" on Jupiter... Yet, the way it's presented is still captivating and even pretty in all it's matte painting detail.
In part, that's also the transfer I have this time around. Even though it's only DVD (I didn't spring for the more expensive Blu-ray), the detail is jaw dropping.
Dear Universe. It's hard not to ignore the cultural impact this film had.
The protagonist is.....Dr. Clayton Forrester. Yeah, I've been a MST3k fan for this many decades and only now I got where the classic Mad got his name.
The initial interaction between Clayton and the female lead feels like a direct inspiration for The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra.
The initial appearance of the Martian craft is still a classic. The slow, ponderous examining of the surroundings, the brushed metal appearance, and finally the fiery blast of the energy beam.
It's still captivating today.
Ahhh, General Mann. Good. I've had enough of Specific Use Case Mann.
