A spool is discovered near the Tunguska site that, when partially translated, reveals that the 1908 explosion was the crash of a spaceship from Venus. No communication can be established with Venus so an expedition is sent, only to discover a dead, radioactive planet. Complete translation of spool reveals that it contained a plan for Venus' conquest of Earth. This East German-Polish co-production featured a multinational cast (including one of the first Africans to play a prominent role in a science fiction film). The film's message is not subtle, especially the images of the Venusian's 'shadows' imprinted into the walls evoking the ruins Hiroshima (apparently the actual reference to Hiroshima was removed from the American release). As a pacifist parable, the story is not very original (being similar to 1950's 'Rocketship X-M'), but the imagery is excellent, especially the imaginative spaceship, the surreal Venusian landscape, and the melted city. Similar to 'Forbidden Planet' (1956), the alien technology is powerful and beyond Earthly understanding, and so too the ending of the film, when one of the Earthling's ray guns triggers an atomic reaction that first increases, then reverses, the planet's gravity. Worth watching if only for the Venusian scenery.
Review of First Spaceship on Venus
