I began this film blog in 2016 to supplement my book of the same title. As thorough as the book was, there still was a lot more I wanted to say about Mars movies, plus this blog gave me a chance to share some special color posters and other graphics and even videos. To date, only about one-quarter to one-third of the film titles below have been augmented and converted into blog posts. It is natural that I started the blog with my personal favorites—while being well aware that tastes differ and that there are people whose tastes are diametrically opposed to mine.
If anybody who reads this Contents blog post would like me to publish an essay here on any particular movie in the list below, leave me a comment, and I will get to it as fast as I am able.
NOTE: Titles already included in the blog are colored GREEN.
Table of Contents of the BOOK—
Mars in the Movies: A History
Mars in the Movies: A History
Acknowledgments vi
Foreword: “Enigmatic Mars, Take Me Home!” by Michael Stein 1
Preface 3
The Concept of This Book and Its Organization 8
Chapter One—The State of Mars Cinema Before 1950
Introduction 17
The Silent Era—
A Trip to Mars (1910) 18
A Message from Mars (1913) 19
Himmelskibet/A Trip to Mars (1918) 20
A Message from Mars (1921) 21
M.A.R.S. (1922) 22
Aelita—The Queen of Mars (1924) 22
The One Talkie—
Just Imagine (1930) 24
In a Class by Itself: A Radio Broadcast to End All Radio
Broadcasts—
Orson Welles’ CBS Mercury Theater on the Air Radio-Play
Adaption of H.G. Wells’ The War of the Worlds (1938) 26
The Serials—
Flash Gordon’s Trip to Mars (Mars Attacks the World)
(1938) 28
The Purple Monster Strikes (D–Day on Mars) (1945) 32
Flying Disc Man from Mars (Missile Monsters) (1950) 33
Zombies of the Stratosphere (Satan’s Satellites) (1952) 34
.
Chapter Two—The Head of Zeus: Destination Moon (1950) 36
Chapter Two—The Head of Zeus: Destination Moon (1950) 36
Chapter Three—Voyages to Mars
Introduction 45
Rocketship X-M (1950) 46
Flight to Mars (1951) 51
Jack Rabin (1914–1987) and Irving Block (1910–1986) 58
Conquest of Space (1955) 59
George Pal (1908–1980) by Gail Morgan Hickman 70
“Mars and Beyond” (December 4, 1957, Disneyland Episode) 71
The Angry Red Planet (1959) 76
Ib Melchior (1917–2015) 81
Battle Beyond the Sun (1963) 82
Mechte Navstrechu (1963) 83
Robinson Crusoe on Mars (196
Nathan Van Cleave (1910–1970) by Dirk Wickenden 89
Byron Haskin (1899–1984) 91
The Wizard of Mars (aka Horrors of the Red Planet)
(1964) 93
The X from Outer Space (1967) 96
Mission Mars (1968) 96
The Astronaut (1972 TV Movie) 98
Capricorn One (1978) 99
The Martian Chronicles (1980 TV Miniseries) 101
Escape from Mars (1999 TV Movie) 103
Mission to Mars (2000) 105
Red Planet (2000) 108
Stranded (2001 TV Movie) 111
Crimson Force (2005 TV Movie) 113
Race to Mars (2007 TV Miniseries) 114
John Carter (2012) 117
The Last Days on Mars (2013) 120
Last Sunrise (2014 Straight-to-Video) 123
The Martian (2015) 125
Chapter Four—Invasions from Mars
Introduction 131
Haredevil Hare (1948) 131
The Thing from Another World (1951) 134
Red Planet Mars (1952) 137
Invaders from Mars (1953) 139
The War of the Worlds (1953) 145
Duck Dodgers in the 241/2 Century (1953) 153
Devil Girl from Mars (1954) 153
It! The Terror from Beyond Space (1958) 158
The Day Mars Invaded Earth (1963) 161
Queen of Blood (1966) 162
War of the Planets (1966) 165
Mars Needs Women (1967 TV Movie) 167
Five Million Years to Earth (aka Quatermass and the Pit)
(1967) 168
Jeff Wayne’s Musical Version of The War of the Worlds (1978
Rock Opera LP) 174
Star Crystal (1986) 177
Invaders from Mars (1986) 179
Sandkings (1995 Feature-Length TV Episode) 181
Mars Attacks! (1996) 183
Species II (1998) 186
Close Encounters of the 4th Kind: Infestation from Mars
(2004 Straight-to-Video) 188
Destination Mars (2006 Straight-to-Video) 189
War of the Worlds: Goliath (2012) 190
The Great Martian War 1913–1917 (2013 TV Movie) 192
Chapter Five—Still More “Wars of the Worlds”
Introduction 196
War of the Worlds (TV series, two seasons 1988–1990) 196
H.G. Wells’ The War of the Worlds (2005
Straight-to-Video) 198
H.G. Wells’ War of the Worlds (2005 Straight-to-Video) 200
War of the Worlds (2005)
War of the Worlds (2005)
War of the Worlds 2: The Next Wave (2008
Straight-to-Video) 204
Alien Dawn (2012 Straight-to-Video) 204
Chapter Six—Inhabited Mars
Introduction 207
Total Recall (1990) 208
Mars (1997 Straight-to-Video) 209
John Carpenter’s Ghosts of Mars (2001) 211
DOOM (2005) 212
Princess of Mars (aka John Carter of Mars) (2009
Straight-to-Video) 213
Red Faction: Origins (2011 TV Movie) 214
Martian Land (2015 Straight-to-Video) 215
Chapter Seven—Invasion of the Slapstick Comedies
Introduction 218
Abbott and Costello Go to Mars (1953) 219
The Three Stooges in Orbit (1962) 220
Pajama Party (1964) 221
Martians Go Home (1989) 222
Spaced Invaders (1990) 222
Rocketman (1997) 223
My Favorite Martian (1999) 223
Chapter Eight—Homages, Parodies, Satires, Send-Ups and
Spoofs
Introduction 225
Santa Claus Conquers the Martians (1964) 225
Frankenstein Meets the Space Monster (aka Mars Invades
Puerto Rico) (1965) 226
The Alpha Incident (1978) 227
Attack from Mars (aka Midnight Movie Massacre) (1988) 227
Lobster Man from Mars (1989) 228
Lost on Mars (2002 Straight-to-Video); Empire of Danger
(2004 Straight-to-Video) 229
Scary Movie 4 (2006) 230
Interplanetary (2008 Straight-to-Video) 230
Cave Women on Mars (2008 Straight-to-Video) 231
Christmas on Mars (2008); A Fantastical Film Freakout
Featuring the Flaming Lips 231
Mars (2010) 232
Chapter Nine—The Children of The Martian
Introduction 234
Citizen Mars (2015 Web TV series) 237
Tom Sachs Presents: A Space Program (2016 art film) 238
Approaching the Unknown (2016) 239
Passage to Mars (2016) 240
The Space Between Us (December 2016) 241
Mars (Cable Channel Miniseries November 2016) 242
Appendix A: Animated Mars 243
Appendix B: Mars Episodes in Television Anthology Series
(1951–1998) 246
Appendix C: Mars in the Movies Chronologically by Decade 249
Afterword 253
Bibliography 255
Index 261
This is excellent. I would like to add one for Chapter 3 if I may: "World Without End" (1956). After conducting a reconnaissance mission in Mars' orbit, the crew are time-displaced forward to 2508 Earth during their return.
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