I have to admit that as far as film genres go sci-fi is not one of my favourites. However, I can appreciate a great one when I see it and 1956′s Forbidden Planet is certainly one of them.
For some reason it took me this long to see the film and while obviously not up to scratch with the type of multi-million dollar effects we’re used to in the multiplex nowadays, the film is still astonishing in its use of effects that often leave you wondering how the hell they even did that. Visual techniques are used to create an awe-inspiring sense of scale at times and the above frame is taken from one of those moments, when Walter Pigeon’s reclusive Dr. Edward Morbius takes a young, pre-comedy Leslie Nielsen and Warren Stevens around his compound to show off the ancient technology he has discovered.
A lot can be read into the film on a political and social level or it can just be enjoyed for its (for the time) dazzling effects and enjoyably pulp plot. Highly recommended if you happen not to have seen it.
