Sci fi Movies: Journey to the 7th Planet (1962)

Exploring the Planet Uranus in Solid Sid Pink Style

Jun 8, 2009

The ol'boys club takes a camping trip to Uranus only to find a massive alien brain that dredges up old memories from home sweet home.

Journey to the Seventh Planet follows (1962) of five men as they boldly fly a rocket out to the only unexplored planet in the solar system – Uranus. Set in the year 2001, the Planet Earth has finally rid itself of the scourge of war and poverty thanks to the massive, worldwide bureaucratic regime of the United Nations.

A Campy Start to a Long Voyage

The story begins on the ship’s bridge. The all-male crew takes the time to engage in some male bonding by exchanging stories about the women they’ve met along their terrestrial journeys on Planet Earth. After a crew member lectures on the virtues of settling down with a single woman, the Captain(John Agar) finally gets around to reading their orders with regards to their mission to Uranus.

A Boring Planet Except For Those Mysterious Radiation Signals…

The key points of their mission entail: achieving orbit around the planet, taking a looksy to see if there any life on Uranus and to find out where that odd, massive radiation signal is coming from. Another important factor is that they can only sustain orbit around the planet for no more than ten days.

Paradise Uranus

Upon their orbital approach, a wave of bright lights swirls around the bridge and discloses (through an eerie voiceover) that its intention is to take over the minds of these feeble earthlings and conquer Planet Earth. The guys wake up, find out that a lot of time has passed and land the ship only to find a lush, green Uranus instead of the helium, methane filled environment they had expected.

Five Men and a Giant Tarantula

The ship’s doors open and they set out on their adventure only to find a barrier that can’t be penetrated, lost loves from their past and mighty beasts such as a giant tarantula and Cyclops that guard a massive alien brain responsible for tricking the feeble-minded space faring men from Earth. As in most sci-fi movies, our lovable jocks look for a way to outwit their brainy counterpart and head back home.

Writer, Director and Producer Sid Pink (1916-2002)

Sid Pink's claim to fame was through the production of Bwana Devil (1922), the first 3-D feature film. Pink grew up in Pittsburgh and studied business administratiom before taking his first steps in the film industry. He began working as a film projectionist, budget manager and finally graduated to producing, writing and directing. He was also the first producer to cast Dustin Hoffman in the feature film, Madigan's Millions (1968). Sid Pink died on October 12, 2002 in Pompano Beach, FL at the age of 86.

Film Credits

Cpt. Don Graham (John Agar), Eric (Carl Ottosen), Karl (Peter Monch), Barry O'Sullivan (Ove Sprogoe), and Svend (Louis Miehe-Renard).

Film Info

Journey to the Seventh Planet was released in the US on the 10th of March 1962 and in Italy on the 10 of April of the same year. The total budget for the film was approximately $74, 600.

References

The copyright of the article Sci fi Movies: Journey to the 7th Planet (1962) in Sci-Fi/Fantasy Films is owned by Michael Falcone. Permission to republish Sci fi Movies: Journey to the 7th Planet (1962) in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.