This one is the grandfather of all outer space epics. The first science fiction film to feature humans travelling on a spaceship of their own design and the first to be set entirely on another world, Forbidden Planet (1956) is a milestone in genre cinema. The basic plot: a faster than light spaceship of the future is sent into interstellar space to investigate the disappearance of a second spaceship and mayhem ensues. Staring Leslie Nielson, Ann Francis, Walter Pidgeon and Warren Stevens, the structure and style of this film instructed the course of science fiction filmmaking up to this day. Another science fiction trope stemming from Forbidden Planet is in the figure of Robbie the Robot. Robbie represents the first time on film where a robot was conceived to be more than just a can wobbling around mindlessly on stiff legs. Robbie was given a personality and will, serving as another fully developed supporting character. With its wild electronic score (the first fully electronic soundtrack) composed by Louis and Bebe Barron and its standard setting striking Eastman color, Fred M. Wilcoxs science fiction masterpiece is groundbreaking and strange. Destined to remain an epic for the ages, the Library of Congress National Film Registry entered Forbidden Planet into their collection in 2013.
David Wagner is an author/musician who splits his time between Oakland, CA and Istanbul, Turkey.
David has published two novels, both available on his website, and as a fan of movies, comics, and genre television, he is happy to be working with WhatCulture as a regular contributor.
