First Spaceship on Venus (1960)

6/10

mstomaso19 May 2005

The amazing imaginative fiction author Stanislaw Lem wrote this visually stunning East German space exploration film with a dated but still thoughtful message. The Sets of Der Schweigende Stern are detailed and beautiful - giving the film an amazingly alien feel. The cinematography varies from excellent to mediocre, and the visual effects are cleverly done - relying on actual props and set devices as opposed to split screen and blue or green screen trick photography. Lem's plot is poignant and well-paced, but, unfortunately, most of the acting in this film is a bit difficult to watch. Finally, the overuse of voice-over narration in the early part of the film detracts from its otherwise good artistic and technical merit.

The story begins with the discovery that, in 1908, an extraterrestrial space vehicle crash landed on earth. An electronic recording from the ship is recovered and linguists set about trying to decode its message. An international team of scientists, astronauts and engineers who are scheduled to undertake a manned flight to Mars are then diverted to Venus to make contact with the Venusians. On the way, they decipher the electronic "cosmic document" and learn that the Venusians were planning to attack the earth using nuclear warheads. To venture further in the plot would involve spoilers.

This is a film full of mysteries, and a film of its time - near the height if the cold war. A powerful point concerning the proliferation of nuclear arms is well made in this film, though it is perhaps the only truly predictable aspect of the plot. Lem's plot heavy brand of highly imaginative science fiction is very dense reading and often carries similar ethical messages, but rarely translates well into visual media. This is a worthy effort, maintaining the slightly wild and surreal feel of Lem's aesthetics and yet driving forward the film's plot at an entertaining pace.

Recommended for Lem fans, serious sci-fi film fans, and those interested in the connection between film and the social history of ideas. Unfortunately for Der Schweigende Stern, the average movie fan won't be able to handle this one.

67 out of 74 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

5/10

Surprisingly Kubrickesque

Mort-318 December 2003

Recently shown at the Viennale Filmfestival, this movie (one of only five East German sci-fi films) was spoken of rather than of a trashy museal antique stuffed with communist ideology. I had thought it would be about the quality of Plan 9 from Outer Space, so I was surprised to discover that First Spaceship on Venus is not at all trashy! A lot of money seems to have been invested in the design of the mysterious landscape on venus and the spacecraft. The technical effects look highly professional!

As regards ideology, one can't make out more than a slightly pathetic call for peace in the world (which is perfectly agreeable, really) and a casual remark on how well Soviet astronomy is developed. The crew of the spaceship, though, includes an American and a Japanese as well, so it is openly international.

The moment the spacecraft starts, however, the science-fiction story stands in the foreground. It was written by Stanislaw Lem and is therefore quite interesting, shocking and full of suspense - another aspect I wouldn't have expected to get in a film like that. Of course, the acting is stiff, dialogues are reduced to a necessary minimum and the romantic element in the plot is too weak to be convincing. Probably, the screenwriters have removed most of the depth of Lem's original novel. Nevertheless, the whole film manages to evoke Kubrickesque feelings at times (note that it was made before 2001: A Space Odyssey!) and serves as an interesting historical document but also as good sci-fi fun on a Sunday afternoon.

45 out of 53 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

6/10

Good story, great rocket, and a cool little robot.

Bruce_Cook9 February 2004

An artifact from the planet Venus is found buried on Earth, and scientists learn that the object is the log of an alien spacecraft which crashed. After attempts to contact the Venusian civilization are unsuccessful, a multi-national (and multi-racial) flight to Earth's sister planet is launched.

When the expedition arrives on Venus they find a dead world whose civilization has been destroyed by some kind catastrophe. The story contains good ideas, but the plot seems to race along with no regard for dramatic timing or narrative clarity, undoubtedly because of the thirty minutes of footage which were removed from the American version. The obvious dubbing is a major distraction, and the sound effects are garish and unappealing. For some reason, there are very few shots of the rocket traveling through space during the voyage. Generally speaking, the special effects run hot and cold.

The spaceship itself, however, is a beauty (both the interior and exterior), rivaling the best rockets for the 1950s. The little robot is memorable and well designed (it looks like a miniature tank).

The exterior shots of the strange Venusian surface are imaginative, with superimposed wisps of vapor constantly drifting past. Listen for several segments of music borrowed from "Destination Moon" and "This Island Earth".

30 out of 36 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

5/10

The version I saw had a lot of problems, but there is still something memorable about it

lemon_magic26 February 2006

Since this movie was covered fairly early on by the MST3000 crew (along with "Rocketship XM" and "King Dinosaur"), my initial perception of this movie was something on the lines of 'Ehhhh, pretty cheesy', although it was clearly one of the better films they covered. Undoubtedly I saw the chopped up 93 minute version, instead of the longer, more coherent original version mentioned by other reviewers.

However, I saw a standalone DVD edition on sale at a clearance store and picked it up for a couple of bucks on some obscure impulse, and one fine evening I gave it a spin.

You know...in spite of the dated message and foreign cultural references and the problematic dubbing and "Engrish" translations, "1st Spaceship To Venus" does have a certain quality about it that I've come to respect. There's a certain gravity and solemnity to the proceedings. There's a certain wildness and inventiveness to the art direction and the sound design. And while none of the actors here are going to win any awards (or even by remembered by American audiences), if you pay attention you will see humane, approachable performances (undercut by poor dubbing) that make the film much more watchable than glib junk like "Rocketship XM" or space flight oriented stuff out of the Roger Corman sausage factory.

When I first saw "1st Spaceship", I had the impression that it definitely had an East European vibe to it, and the only Slavic speculative fiction author I was familiar with was Stanislaw Lem (whose best known work is probably "Solaris", although my favorite piece is "Non Serviam"). Sure enough, this movie turns out to be based on a Lem piece from decades back. Lem's dispassionate, Kabbalistic voice and speech rhythms, and his gift for oddly moving plots and characters somehow survived the adaptation to film and the tiny budget and the "Engrish" translation, leaving a dignity and substance to the proceedings that many contemporary American sci fi flicks can't match.

No, this will never be anyone's first choice for a space opera shoot-em-up, but under the crappy dubbing and hacked-up editing, the sympathetic eye can see that there is some good work being done here. A good item to add to the collection of the sci fi completist and archivist.

31 out of 38 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

The Beginning

tedg2 February 2006

In the late 50s Russia changed the world by launching Sputnik. This really was a shock; modern readers may not appreciate it as of the magnitude (in the US) of 9-11. In terms of national will, there was a more universal mobilization and commitment of resources than after 9-11, that's for sure.

Both the Russian and American space efforts were at root militarily motivated, but wrapped in more glorious notions or exploration. And both depended on "captured" Nazi scientists. At the time, East Germany was considered the most oppressed of all the communist clients, and the leaders there tried so very hard to establish itself as the center of the communist world for technology (which is how Germans see science).

East Germany as a region was cut out of the space program proper, something they wanted to change. So huge government monies went into this movie, including permissions to use Americanfilm stock and technology.

As it happens, this film proved enormously popular across the communist world and did have a profound effect on the Soviet space program. See my comments on "Planeta Bur" for that background.

The avowed goal was to show Germany as the leader and catalyst of a future international collaboration, peace led by a cleansed nation. So look what we have: a rock from the Gobi desert, a meteor from Siberia, a team mobilized for a trip a team from all continents: American, African, several Asians. And a story from someone widely considered the father of modern science fiction, a sibling through Warsaw Pact.

It really is true that large fortunes, on the order of a trillion dollars, was swung in part by this film, money that could have eliminated all hunger and disease everywhere for generations.

But it has cinematic history as well. Was it the first one to open moving through a starfield as 3D points of light (with titles that recede ahead of us)? A totally fictitious effect that has become necessary since. Otherwise audiences won't think it "real."

The west already had "Forbidden Planet," of course, itself perhaps the most influential science fiction film in the west. In a way, the travel technology was incidental there and in fact the design of the rocket was V2-like. Here, matters of the technology of travel are central.

You have some shades of "Forbidden Planet:" a lost, powerful race. You have some by now staples: lava flows and meteor showers (even in "Star Wars"). There's an Orrery as a model of and control of the attack plan. The black man is less racistly portrayed than Americans would have. That's the point. But he still is the "don't worry, be happy" personality in the group.

They discover a geodesic dome on the planet. In the 60's this was an architectural icon of modern architecture. Interestingly, there is a wonderful sequence where the explorers come upon this thing and are amazed by it. They are talking to the space ship cut to the interior of the space ship and what is the ceiling? Yup, a geodesic dome!

Ted's Evaluation -- 3 of 3: Worth watching.

39 out of 59 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

2/10

The 93-minute American version is just rubbish

junk-monkey10 January 2006

Warning: Spoilers

The original might have been great, as some people seem to suggest, but the American dubbed version looks like it has been cut to ribbons - the dialogue is risible:

"They, and the others who are coming, will form the crew!" is an early example of English being horribly mangled to vaguely fit the mouth movements of the actors.

The story (as it survives) was hardly original even in 1960:

In 1985 a fragment of an extra-terrestrial message is found in the Gobi desert. Somehow, (There is an awful lot of unexplained "Somehow" in this film) this is connected with a supposed meteor that hit Siberia 75 years before. Lots of "International scientists" are given access to the world's biggest computer (and it is very big - must be lots and lots of vacuum tubes in there) they manage to decipher some of the message - but not all.

"We must renovate it!", cries one of the vaguely ethnic International Scientists, "We must soak it in a catalytic medium then subject it to radiation!"

"Very good idea," says another, not bothering to ask why radiating a heat-damaged magnetic recording would do any good whatsoever. Though I must remember that trick next time I accidentally erase one of my answer machine messages.

Meanwhile, another scientist, who has big shiny hair, has worked out that the trajectory of the alien ship means it can only have been launched from Venus! How? I mean how DID he work that out 75 years after the event? Find some 100 year old Yak farmer who saw it crash and asked him which way it came from?

As luck would have it the World League of Super Scientists have just finished building a pretty nifty looking space ship that not only looks like a Stark lemon squeezer but has Artificial Gravity, a machine shop and a fully equipped operating theatre. Why, after going to all that effort, they didn't manage shoehorn in a small kitchen somewhere is beyond me but if they had, the crew wouldn't have got to drink great Science Fiction Chocolate Flavoured Smoothies for the whole trip. Wow! The future is so exciting!

The crew, their cute robot, and (GASP!) a woman doctor! blast off for Venus. Suddenly there is an unexpected meteor shower - didn't these people ever see any crappy old SF films? - there is ALWAYS a sudden unexpected meteor shower. One of the crew goes outside to fix something before they hit an even bigger slightly more expected meteor shower. He fixes it (apparently by letting off a fire-extinguisher in its general direction) they swerve at the last moment and aren't doomed any more.

This whole sequence is deathly dull. One of the most boring unexpected meteor shower scenes ever.

After 45 days in space (sick to the back teeth with chocolate smoothies) and just three days away from Venus they decipher the rest of the message which basically says "All your base are belong to us - Mwahahahaha!"

EEK! Dilemma! Go on? or go back and warn Earth?

They grimly go on. One of the crew goes ahead to scout for a good landing site. He looses radio contact. He lands. He gets out to go for a walk and falls down a hole where he is attacked by metal insects. (Note: "Attacked" in this context means a Not Very Special Effects guy up a stepladder bounces some totally non-scary kid's toys on thin elastic in front of the camera.) His scout ship explodes. The big ship nearly lands on top of him. Everyone meets up.

"Look, your ship exploded because you parked it on top of that buried power cable."

"It didn't say anything about not parking near power cables in the manual. Who do I sue?"

They follow the power cable. It leads to a strange, ginormous glowing ball.

They follow it the other way. It leads to a strange, ginormous underground control centre place - an entire planet to land on and they arrive at the Venusian's High command's secret underground bunker...! Nice one! Suddenly they are attacked by a bezzillion tons of malevolent black porridge which chases them up a spiral ramp. Trapped at the top, one of them pulls out his disintegrator ray and fires. The porridge runs away but things start happening. Lightening flashes. The strange, ginormous glowing ball turns red and gravity starts getting stronger! The spaceship can't take off! Everyone rushes back to the spaceship where they sit around and talk for ages. The cute robot goes berserk (well, rolls backwards and forwards a bit) and (God knows how) manages somehow to seriously injure someone.

The most Asian member of the crew remembers he caught a glimpse of a control panel down the bottom of a very deep hole back at the Secret Bunker and is convinced he can reverse the process. He sets off with the only black member of the crew and lowers HIM down the very deep hole for some reason, before getting a puncture in his space suit and dying.

Suddenly (again for no explained reason) the whole process goes into reverse. Gravity reverses. "Energy is being converted into mass!" Now they are struggling to keep the ship on the ground! They fail. They are flung into space leaving the black guy, and someone who went off to rescue him behind. They go home. Sombrely they step from the ship and make little speeches. Big Shiny Haired scientist is reunited with someone who was cut out of the earlier part of the film. The Lady doctor consoles someone else who was cut out of the earlier part of the film. I wonder who they were because we had seen neither of them before.

The original 130-minute version may well have been great but its 93-minute American version is just rubbish.

8 out of 16 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

2/10

A review on the original German version, by a Survivor.

mart-4526 April 2006

I hear a lot of people yearning for some mysterious original version of this film, which is supposed to last for around 4 hours or so. Well, DEFA has recently released an original version DVD, and it still runs for exactly 1 hour 30 minutes. If you think the English version was badly dubbed - be prepared for a treat of your lifetime. The multitude of actors (this word should be used in parentheses) who worked on this film, came from Germany, Russia, Poland, China, France (the Japanese actress is French) and Africa, and God only knows what mish-mash of languages they used on the set. It's all dubbed in German, in a sound booth that has the acoustics of a bucket, regardless whether the actors are in their space suites, in an Sound-of-Music-like mountain paradise, or fighting the boiling tar on Venus. Amazingly, the original version takes place in the year 1970, not 1985 as the version released in the US.

I can't really say anything redeeming about this over-lit, under-directed yarn. There's a bunch of extremely unexciting actor wannabes with the average age of somewhere around 55, who in real life would probably have hard times climbing the stairs to second floor, let alone flee from the living slime which at one point is supposed to be so sticky that the slightest drop glues the female to the floor, and which a minute later pours over the protagonists like a sea of mud (which it is) with no visible effect. Everything is shot in a rather small sound stage (as opposed to Russian sci-fi classic Voyage to the Prehistoric Planet), and how some viewers can deem this dermatine-plasticine world to be eerily alien, is far over my head. I remember the time when every Socialist coffee house had furniture like the "glass forest of Venus".

The way the director, the cameramen and the lighting crew have managed to neglect their tasks, is biblical. The scriptwriters probably just were somewhere else from the very beginning. The actors are quite often a real pain to behold, especially the black astronaut who probably was simply the only black man they had in East Germany, and who is so miserable, that the director, on his more sane moments, has wisely asked him to turn his back to the camera while delivering his dialog. Another horrible character is the TV-woman with her bedroom eyes (don't forget it's a 1959 Socialist bedroom), who covers the event globally on a live Intervision network. Then there are some excitingly unnecessary characters like Brinkmann's mother and Arsenjew's wife, who were cut from the first part of the film for US release, but for some inexplicable reason can be seen at the ending, thus making the whole mess even more perplexing.

Oh, and let's not forget the despicable, but unavoidable precious little robot, one of which you can unmistakably find in every 50s sci-fi flick, so you can marvel how it's cute little light bulbs start flashing frantically when it starts talking in a funny little voice! Even though it looks like a tiny toy tank, it manages to run over the stomach of a 7 foot Russian astronaut, thus giving the petite female surgeon excuse to undress the heroic male and operate on him to save his vitals (sorry, not shown!).

I find Stanislaw Lem one of the best writers in this genre, and that makes me wonder whether the fact that his name was used for this miserable screensoiler tormented him throughout his life.

Please don't waste your time on this film, otherwise you'll want to waste some more time to write a comment about how you wasted your time in the first place.

9 out of 20 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

7/10

STRIKING, THOUGHTFUL SCI-FI.

Bob-4516 July 1999

What's wrong with this picture? This movie is neither highly regarded by critics nor IMDB voters. Yet, it contains some striking visuals; thoughtful comments on the "human" condition; an attractive, multiracial, coed international cast (daring for the time); and a pretty good storyline, to boot.

Excavators at the site of the 1906 mystery explosion in Tunguska, Siberia, discover evidence that the explosion was the destruction of an alien spaceship. Evidence includes a "memory spool." Scientist determine the alien spaceship came from the planet Venus, and cryptographers and linguists begin to translate the memory spool.

Before translation can be completed, an international crew is assembled and an enormous nuclear powered spaceship constructed (a stunningly beautiful piece of matte work) for a flight to Venus. The ship begins its voyage before the on-board linguist makes a startling announcement. The memory spool contains plans for a Venusian invasion of earth!

The ship lands on a eerie, vapor-cloaked Venus (Striking art direction; just how did they do those strange, microbe-like vapors?). The crew discovers, a burned out, uninhabitable planet. The Venusians, apparently attempting an invasion to escape either overcrowding or an impending nuclear war, have destroyed themselves, leaving only the shadows of their disintegrated bodies. Further exploration discovers a strange, living amoeba-like organism and a damaged, super-gravity beam weapon aimed toward earth. Many members of the crew are lost, and the ship is eventually deflected back to earth by the accidental discharge of the gravity beam.

The movie IS choppy, without a doubt because the American distributor, Crown International, cut the film by over one half hour. I'd certainly LOVE to see the excised footage; however, since the film is East German, I doubt if a complete print still exists. Besides, we Americans are having enough trouble finding obscure fifties and sixties from ENGLISH-speaking countries, including our own.

100 out of 109 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

5/10

Bardzo dobrze!

NerdBat16 February 2020

European history always fascinated me nearly as much as early science fiction. This film stood out to me one day when I decided to watch a film, but couldn't quite decide on which one to watch. I was pleasantly surprised by an interesting plot and very nice effects for such a film. This was a rare as well, as the film is dubbed in different languages, and Polish is not an easy language to dub. I would say this film is definitely worth a watch on a rainy day. I wouldn't call it a Classic, but I would say go for it.

1 out of 1 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

6/10

A Bit Of A Surprise - slight spoilers

hung_fao_tweeze25 June 2010

Warning: Spoilers

When this movie was being made - 1960 - there was an attempt to make a fairly decent film. Discerning individuals will pick this up right away. There wasn't a astronomical amount of money being spent to create this slightly tarnished gem, but that which was available appears to have used quite efficiently. The costuming and the sets are essentially not bad. The casting was a bit of a surprise. Star Trek likes to tout their use of multiple ethnicities in their cast commanding significant roles. This movie predates them by over half a decade. I wonder whether Roddenberry didn't use this movie as a partial inspiration? On the other hand this movie isn't a U.S. product so that may account for much of the laxity. Meanwhile, the story, while not on a razor's edge by today's standards, must have been top-notch sci-fi (a nod to Forry Ackerman here) in 1960. The story is a good and still credible idea that would hold together well today if remakes are in order. There are the obvious science blunders in the script ('meteorites' being used when 'meteors' is more accurate - 'asteroids' would probably be even more accurate) but these flaws don't damage the final presentation. The premise is simple enough. We find an artifact on Earth and somehow determine it came from Venus. It is discovered to contain a message of destruction for our planet and we decide to go to Venus and see if we can prevent the promised Venusian attack. What awaits on the Venus is the point of this movie. The Venus sets though inexpensive are handled nicely through lighting, forced perspective, some matte work, superb direction and editing, etc. It seems to work and the effect is frequently nightmarish. There is a message buried in the story which is obvious and, as noted, not unknown in today's sci-fi goulash, but it doesn't hit you over the head. It has its say and comes to an end as they return to Earth (whether they like it or not). I believe this movie deserves better than the dismal rating given by those who have already voted. The story alone is worthwhile and the fact that an attempt was made to create a good movie despite finances is worth a 6. I was reminded of 'Forbidden Planet' when watching this. Another movie which also had a decent script as well as a better budget. One thing I will opine is that the sound effects were better in this movie than 'FP'.

7 out of 8 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

5/10

Lovably Cheesy

herbsharpe6025 January 2023

I don't know if it was Technicolor, but this movie was in bright colors, literally very colorful. Interesting rocket design, rudimentary science, and multi-national, multi-ethnic, multi-gender characters and crew. Otherwise typical of late 50's early 60's sci-fi. The acting wasn't bad bad, just kind of bad. There was even the hint of romance or at least a relationship connection. The special effects were what you would expect from the time - - - definitely not big budget but adequate enough to convey a true sense of curiosity and sci-fi, provided and given that there was the proper suspension of belief. All in all, lovably cheesy.

1 out of 1 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

8/10

Minor Sci-Fi Masterpiece from Behind the Iron Curtain

csdietrich17 February 2001

FIRST SPACESHIP ON VENUS (aka "The Silent Star") was a collaborative effort between film studios in East Germany and Poland and picked up by Crown-International Pictures for a 1962 US release. Far ahead of its time FSOV delivers the pacifist message in no uncertain terms. An international crew lands on the planet Venus to discover that a war has completely destroyed its inhabitants. Venusian landscapes are surrealistic and wonderous to behold and the spaceship itself gets my vote as the coolest cinematic craft of all time. The late Japanese/French actress and model Yoko Tani leads the cast and is fetching to look at and enjoy. Englewood Entertainment once again has delivered a flawless print of this film and is available in VHS or on DVD and is letterboxed at proper aspect ratio. The film is a bit slow even at its 78 minutes (originally it ran at 130 minutes!) This critic would love to see the uncut version someday. Superior sci-fi from the Eastern Bloc!

35 out of 41 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

7/10

Ahead of its time with a few technical issues that scream 1960's...

AlsExGal5 August 2016

... and since it was made in the 1960's, what else would you expect? This film is based on a 1951 novel called The Astronauts by Polish science fiction writer Stanislaw Lem, and it is much better than the current rating. That low rating may be because of some things I mention in the next paragraph. I am reviewing the dubbed version.

First some of the not so good stuff. This is unmistakably an early '60s era work and clumsily dubbed into English. By that I mean you can't escape the crudeness of some of the special effects and some of the dialogue can be a bit clunky. And besides some of the dated aspects of effects and dialogue, you have to try to forget what you already know about what Venus is really like.

Now for the good stuff. In its own right this was an ambitious movie. It's a story of pure space exploration or more particularly exploration of a strange new world. And the depiction of that world might be a touch crude but it is nonetheless imaginative and fascinating. An alien artifact is found on Earth and its origin is traced back to Venus. In the peaceful Earth of 1985(!!!) an international group of scientists and specialists man the advanced spaceship Cosmostrator to travel to Venus to investigate and possibly make contact with any alien intelligence to be found.

Some of the imaginative set designs and models could have been lifted right off the covers of some of the most romanticized scifi novels. I love the design of the Cosmostrator and the ship's control deck bears a striking conceptual similarity to the bridge of Star Trek's starship Enterprise yet the film came out six years before Star Trek aired on American television! The film also features an intelligent yet non humanoid robot called Omega. And the crew is genuinely interracial. The ship's commander is German or perhaps Polish. The communications specialist is African. The pilot is American. The ship's physician is a Japanese woman. And the two chief scientists are Indian and Chinese. Plus they all have authentic ethnic names. This is also an ensemble cast with no true prominent character. While Forbidden Planet is recognized for likely greatly influencing Gene Roddenberry in developing Star Trek, this film introduces ideas that Roddenberry couldn't have gotten from Forbidden Planet such as the interracial crew. And could Matt Jefferies have been influenced by this film when designing the Enterprise bridge? It makes you wonder.

I'm normally not keen on films that are dubbed into English, but I have to say that this film caught my attention right off and held me to the end. Because in the final assessment the good outweighs the bad.

On further thought, considering Hollywood's current obsession with remakes, here's a film with some good ideas that could could use a good polishing. The basic story is genuine deep space, far future space adventure. Oh, and change the locale and give it a better title.

6 out of 7 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

5/10

I like the workmen's outfits the best!

boris-2611 February 2006

FIRST SPACESHIP| is a 78 American dubbed version of DER SCHWEIGENDE STERN, a 130-minute German sci-fi film made in 1959. Based on Stanislev Lem's novel "The Astronauts", this was the first German sci-fi film made after World War II A meteor fragment is found to have discarded radio signals from Venus, so an international team of scientists travels in a sleek George Jetson style rocket to our "sister planet". Presented here in letterbox format, in generally bold storybook like color, VENUS makes it DVD debut courtesy of Wade Williams. Mr. Williams is a valuable modern day video and film distributor who has kept a running supply of Edward Wood movies and other drive in treats on video shelves. The cinematography by Joachim Hasler displays Venus as a planet alive with primary colors. Some elements are sure to make DVD buyers giggle. The surviving inhabitants of Venus are tiny, spidery and bounce around, resembling cat's toys on strings. The workmen who help rocket blast off and return all have enormous letters on their chest, making them look like escapees from an Alpha-Bits commercial.

3 out of 6 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

Contact?

dbdumonteil11 June 2005

Rarely a rating was so unfair.At my time of writing,the film only gets a poor 4,1.Something has to be done,it's all the more revolting as the users generally wrote favorable reviews.

"Der schweigende Stern" is an adult responsible movie closer to "forbidden planet" or "planet of the apes" than to "close encounters of the third kind".Its special effects might seem laughable to some ;if the first part has not worn well,as far as these effects are concerned,the second one and Venus landscapes retain a strange charm.

But the main thing is somewhere else.The movie was made in 1960,when WW2 was not far behind.Culpability hangs over the whole work.After all,it's a German movie ,and hints at Hiroshima and the building of the bomb abound.Like Charton Heston and his mate riding along the sea,the astronauts will meet their fate on "der schweigende Stern",Venus.

14 out of 21 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

4/10

"We'll fly following a hyperbolic trajectory."

classicsoncall14 January 2006

Warning: Spoilers

No space monsters, no death rays, no strange alien beings. Perhaps I've been conditioned by too many cheesy sci-fi and horror films of the 1950/60's era, but "First Spaceship on Venus" is simply so boring that it overrides the few inventive elements that it otherwise contains.

There is one humorous idea though that stands out. Filmed in 1960, the story takes place in the way distant future of 1985, when an extraterrestrial "spool" is discovered in the Gobi Desert area of Siberia. Voice-over narration states that a connection has been made between the alien artifact and a meteor explosion that took place there in 1908, some seventy eight years earlier. On the spaceflight to Venus in the Cosmostrater 1, world renowned scientists have made a breakthrough regarding the spool's information - the Venusians have targeted Earth for conquest and intend to decimate the planet's population. Frantic to warn Earth, the scientists are frustrated in their inability to break through space interference to get their warning heard. Now in thinking about this, and piecing together information from the film that places the Earth to Venus trip at about thirty one days, my question would be - "What's the rush?" The communication is almost eighty years old, wouldn't they have gotten around to it by now?

The reason the Venusians haven't gotten around to it is because their own advanced technology had already done them in. Landing on Venus, the exploratory force runs into nothing more ominous than metallic "insects" and black lava-like attacking ooze, but nothing else! Though the astronauts have set a destruct sequence into effect, they quickly find a counter measure that reverses it. One almost begs for a big goofy alien like the one from "The Phantom Planet" to appear to lighten things up a bit.

On the flip side, the movie assembles an impressive, though no name international cast, including Asians, a black, a Russian and a German. Seven men and one woman from the scientific community form the astronaut team, though why Sumiko is given a bright red jumpsuit to wear instead of the same color as the men is intriguing. She's also portrayed as the most human of the team, suggesting a heart for the robot that continuously beats Professor Orloff at chess.

I guess my main problem with the film is that it takes itself way too seriously. The constant narration in the first half of the film seems to neglect the players instead of letting them move the story along through their own interaction. With no comic relief to counteract the monotony, I found myself wanting this one to be over quick, which it was at a seventy nine minute run time, but it seemed much longer.

6 out of 16 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

4/10

Technically it's very good, but the story is talky and slow.

planktonrules3 January 2010

Warning: Spoilers

This is an apparently Soviet-Bloc (from East Germany and Poland) film that has been dubbed into English. How much of the original story is preserved is unknown. Several similar films were re-dubbed during the 1960s and the efforts were, to put it mildly, very sad. But it's easy to tell its Communist origins--dig those crazy Commie hairdos so popular in the 1960s! This film begins with a scientist announcing that a famous meteorite that struck Siberia and laid waste to so much of it in 1906 was actually a Venusian space ship! Because of this, he urged the international space effort to change their plan to visit Mars and go to Venus instead—who cares about the extremely high temperatures and metal-smashing atmosphere (two facts never mentioned in this film). In fact, who cares that in this film there is no zero gravity in space, rockets decelerate when the engines are cut in space (space is a vacuum or near-vacuum—deceleration does not occur in this state), people are thrown about the ship as it steers and other "facts" that are contradicted by the laws of physics! Once the ship nears the planet, one of the crew members figures out the Venusian language and realizes that these people were planning on attacking the Earth and wiping out everyone. Now their goal is to reach those in charge on Venus and convince them not to attack. However, various radioactive attacks are launched on the team once they near the planet and things look pretty bad for the Earth. And, when they finally are able to penetrate the planet's defenses, a surprising thing is learned about the Venusians themselves.

The film looks extremely primitive today, but when it debuted its special effects and costumes were actually quite advanced. With 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY and subsequent sci-fi films, we've come to expect a much higher level of sophistication in the look of space travel but if you look at the film in context, it was well done. My biggest problem isn't the effects but the last 25 minutes of the film—when it just becomes incredibly talky. Again and again, the characters just go on and on and on as well as come up with amazingly uncanny conclusions about Venus—things they could have only gotten by reading the script! This made the film a bit of a letdown towards the end, but still, I have seen worse sci-fi films and the dubbing was actually pretty good. Worth seeing for sci-fi fans, though most others probably won't be that impressed today.

4 out of 10 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

4/10

First Something on I can't be bothered writing a summary

Bezenby2 April 2017

Folks on the IMDb love this one. It's Kubrick-esque, they say. For it's time, the special effects are amazing, they say. I say I watched it over the course over two nights and even though I was sure it was nearly finished at the end of night one, I was dismayed to find out tonight that I had almost the entire film to sit through! For those asking, I have to split up films due to my demanding job of murdering blue bottles trapped in people's sheds in my local allotment. They pay me in runner beans.

Folks on a multi-cultural, united Earth discover an object that seems to have some sort of recording from the planet Venus that ends up in the Gobi Desert via the Tunguska Explosion. Curious, they gather together a crew of many nations (something they got right, says I, from the racially tolerant world of 2017) and head off for Venus. This takes an awfully long time, even with all the exciting bits where a human plays a robot at chess, but eventually they do make it to Venus.

Not much there makes sense, but at least our actors stand around for ages talking about every strange occurrence that happens, like when this guy's buggy explodes and he falls into a hall full of bouncing metal insects, or when someone else kicks a rock into some black mud which not only causes the black mud to chase them, but also happens to turn a huge golf ball shaped object red. You heard me.

Yeah, the effects are good and the sets are good and the robot looks like something that would probably last about ten seconds on Robot Wars, but there's a huge amount of nothing happening in this film. I know it kind of ends up being the point of the film, but I was seriously on the verge of nap time during most of this film's duration. Next!

2 out of 4 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

7/10

Only moderately entertaining but visually striking

jamesrupert20148 May 2019

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.

3 out of 3 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

4/10

Cold War Curio

liberal-guilt11 December 2013

When an alien artifact discovered on Earth is found to have come from Venus, an international team of astronauts embarks to investigate its origins.

Odd film made in East Germany during the cold war.

When the film came to the states characters were switched in the dubbing.

The film is interesting as a curio piece on two levels....the cold war angle AND just because it's sci fi from 1960 set in 1985.

Over all the problem with the film is that it's overly slow. The action doesn't really get going until 2/3s into the film. But it's in color which is a rarity for a film made in 1960.

It's worth a look see if you're a die hard early sci fi fan. If not you probably should move along.

2 out of 5 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

6/10

Good movie for its time

Snaug2 December 2000

It is always difficult to rate or recommend an old movie. Especially for hard SF movies, things date really quickly and special effects seem rather silly by todays standards. Given that, this movie was rather well made, tried to predict technological advances reasonably (although I'd love to see that anti-anti-gravity device!) and had potentially a good story by Stanislaw Lem. The movie would probably have had a much better story line if it hadn't been cut in half and might have become a classic. For now, it doesn't come beyond the usual warnings about technological advancements such as nuclear bombs - although I admit that was a rather new message in the time the movie was made. Acting wasn't particular good, but no worse that other SF movies in that era.

Is it worth watching? If you like SF movies, and are not prejudiced against old "dated" effects: Yes. Not spectacular, but a good watch

6 out of 9 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

2/10

Too much talk, so little action.

mark.waltz25 January 2016

Warning: Spoilers

This is the epitome of what makes some subject matters the perfect replacement for a sleeping pill. What little plot there is surrounds the discovery of an apparent meteor near Venus, and a journey to find out what it is and if it is, does it pose any threat? I kept patiently waiting for something thrilling, but all I managed to discover after 45 minutes of scientific mumbo jumbo that I was checking out the remaining time on it. Without a doubt one of the most pathetically boring and unnecessary trips into the wild dark yonder. I found it tedious, uninspiring, and would learn more about astronomy through the most boring science teachers of my educational past.

3 out of 10 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

8/10

Good old sci fi

jake-17926 February 2001

This movie suprised me. I thought I was going to see a cheesy old science fiction movie. But this movie, for its time, is actually really good. The special effects are pretty impressive for a film this old, and I love the design of the spaceship. I have no idea what kind of budget this movie was done on, but there are a lot of scenes in this movie that look BIG budget! The sets are very impressive, lavish and expansive. And the enviornment of Venus is detailed, spooky, and bizarre. I didn't care for the little plastic spiders, I thought that was distractingly goofy. I was very suprised to see such a forward thinking and racially diversified cast. For its time, such diversity was totally unheard of. Its a little long and slightly boring, but for good old fashioned sci fi, with cool alien landscapes and bizarre spaceships, this is a must see. Thats why I am rating this movie fairly high, giving it an 8.

36 out of 46 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

6/10

Great Scifi film from behind the Iron Curtain

daikaiju195427 February 2013

This East German/Polish film called Der Schweigende Stern(The Silent Star) is a really good. The movie is based on a novel called The Astronauts, by Stanislaw Lem. Who also wrote Solaris and that would later be made into a movie in 1972.

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

The story starts with a mysterious alien artifact is discovered in the Gobi desert in the year 1970. It is found out that it might have come from Venus. An international crew along with a R2-D2 like robot call Omega are sent to Venus and find an apocalyptic landscape with melted buildings and alien shadows on the walls. The astronauts explore the planet and discover that the Venusians were about to attack the Earth but a nuclear war wiped them out. They head back to Earth and warn humanity with an anti-nuclear message.

One of the many things I like about the film was the Kosmokrator rocket ship. It's such a unique design like the Luna rocket from Destination Moon(1950)and the Ark from When Worlds Collide(1951).

3 out of 4 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

5/10

Bad dubbing and an uneven print mar this Eastern Bloc Sci Fi Effort

Vornoff-38 July 2003

Unfortunately, most who see this movie today are robbed of whatever chance there might have been to appreciate it as a serious effort at speculating about mankind's future by it's current re-edit and the atrocious choices made in the dubbing room. It is inconceivable that an adaption of a Stanslaw Lem novel could be plotted so incoherently, and even more improbable that English-speaking male astronauts would board a craft called the `Cosmostrator' or that a robotics expert would name his creations `Automats' in honor of the popular coin-operated cafés of the 1940's.. The heavy contrast on the print may have been the original cinematographer's fault or it may be a result of decay setting in, but it doesn't help at all. The one black character in the film appears as a faceless shadow, except when his glistening teeth or the whites of his eyes break through the gloom.

The flaws do not completely ruin the tale, however: following in the Soviet tradition of `Aelita, Queen of Mars' the filmmakers present a dazzling vision of an alien world, and combine it with a compelling argument for international cooperation. The devastated face of Venus is brilliant, as are the `data spiders' the lifeform used to store information by the Venusian culture. Unfortunately, audiences rocked by the hysterics of an `MST3K'-style viewing may have difficulty approaching its deeper philosophical insights.

2 out of 6 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

User Reviews

See also

Opinion

Details

Storyline

Did You Know?

Photo & Video

Related Items

User Lists

Recently Viewed