Featured Audience Ratings

• Tim S

  
  Wonderful film. It's nice to see science fiction treated seriously for a change in the era that it was made. At the time, B movies were ruling the drive-in screens and something like this was just not commonly done. It makes for an entertaining character film that doesn't… More
  Wonderful film. It's nice to see science fiction treated seriously for a change in the era that it was made. At the time, B movies were ruling the drive-in screens and something like this was just not commonly done. It makes for an entertaining character film that doesn't require a lot of exposition - mostly just the visuals to tell its story. And for that, I am grateful. One of my very favorite sci-fi movies and thanks must be given to Criterion for their wonderful Blu-ray presentation of this classic film.

• AJ V

  
  The beginning and ending of this movie are horrible, for one thing, West's character dies in the first scene! Putting the story of Crusoe in space was probably their first mistake.

• Mister C

  
  Special effects wunderkind and genre master Bryon Haskin(who is mostly known for his work in the 1953 science-fiction classic War Of The Worlds and for the 1960's television series The Outer Limits among others)won a place in the hearts of fantasy film lovers everywhere with this… More
  Special effects wunderkind and genre master Bryon Haskin(who is mostly known for his work in the 1953 science-fiction classic War Of The Worlds and for the 1960's television series The Outer Limits among others)won a place in the hearts of fantasy film lovers everywhere with this gorgeously designed journey into the unknown in this innovative retelling of Daniel Defoe's classic story. The story involves when a intrepid adventurer aboard a spaceship crashes on the barren wastelands of Mars. United States astronaut commander "Kit" Draper(Paul Mantee) must fight for survival with a pet monkey in tow as his only companion and a runaway slave from an exotic planet. Is he alone? All three survivers must use their ingenuity and resources in order to stay alive on a hostile planet. Released in 1964,this imaginative and dazzling beloved techni-marvel of classic science fiction was Oscar nominated in 1964 for Best Special Effects. Presented in astounding widescreen Techniscope and Technicolor this classic also stars Adam West(the former TV's Batman),and Victor Lundin(as Friday). Running Time of 106 minutes.

• Conner R

  
  It's nothing special and completely ridiculous, but there's something really interesting about the idea of a man surviving on mars. I think since it was released in the early 60s, things like physics didn't really have to play into sci-fi movies (just give them a pill… More
  It's nothing special and completely ridiculous, but there's something really interesting about the idea of a man surviving on mars. I think since it was released in the early 60s, things like physics didn't really have to play into sci-fi movies (just give them a pill and they can breath). The acting is pretty terrible, especially since it's not played for camp and is supposed to be taken 100% seriously. Mars hot dogs, alien slaves with tans, glowing rocks, etc. it's worth seeing just for how outlandish it gets.

• Byron B

  
  This is an odd choice for the Criterion Collection to make available. It does contain some beautiful vistas of Death Valley with a red sky matte. A documentary (made a couple years before we landed a rover on the red planet) is included. The talking heads in the doc about Earth's… More
  This is an odd choice for the Criterion Collection to make available. It does contain some beautiful vistas of Death Valley with a red sky matte. A documentary (made a couple years before we landed a rover on the red planet) is included. The talking heads in the doc about Earth's exploration of Mars say that this movie was more scientifically authentic than most sci-fi. However, it was the year after this movie was released that our assumption about Mars' atmosphere being similar to Earth's was proven wrong. So the hero of our story can breath for a time without his helmet and only needs to take bursts of oxygen from a tank at regular intervals. The discovery of an oasis and pastel colored rocks are equally fictional though they lend themselves to technicolor. Commander Kit is our Robinson Crusoe. He has a pet monkey and must learn to be quite resourceful to survive. I love stories like Robinson Crusoe, but there is something too far fetched about being stranded on a planet, especially from the point of view of a 1960s understanding of outer space. The effects of the attacking space ships and Friday's loincloth costume are laughable as well. There are moments that offer worthwhile glimpses of a future, which are really a look at the past, but they are not sustained overall.

• Chris B

  
  While many of the effects are showing their age, the films elements of survival and humanity remain timeless. The acting is good and the sense of isolation is essentially there from beginning to end. Even when finding Mona or discovering "Friday" there are language… More
  While many of the effects are showing their age, the films elements of survival and humanity remain timeless. The acting is good and the sense of isolation is essentially there from beginning to end. Even when finding Mona or discovering "Friday" there are language barriers that must be overcome. Survival is hard and the going is treacherous throughout the film but as most older films do, it has a happy ending. Recommended!

Read all 6 featured audience ratings