MartinHafer Note--While this is a color film, the DVD is very scratched and the colors are pretty faded.This is one of a bazillion films made during the 1950s about space flight to either the Moon or Mars. And, like so many of them, once they get there, they find people who look and talk much like us. And, like so many of these films there is a "hot babe" scientist among the crew (do they come any other way?!) and once there she is forced to wear REALLY hot babe-style clothes! And, like so many of these films, the natives turn out to be jerks who want to take over the Earth--just like in CAT-WOMEN OF THE MOON--though at least the aliens ACT nicely for a while. So already at the onset, this film isn't exactly new or different--there are a lot of similar films.Despite all these similarities, I still enjoyed the movie. Seeing the Martians running about in their silly costumes as well as the humans landing on Mars dressed only in WWII-style bomber crew outfits both made me laugh and gave the film a kitschy-sort of style. You certainly don't watch films like this for their realism!! Believe it or not, while this movie is pretty high on the cheese-factor, considering it was made by a poverty-row studio (Monogram) it actually is amazingly good. Plus, the studio was able to scrape up the money for a couple minor stars who were good actors (Cameron Mitchell and Robert Barrat--a man who was a very prolific actor in the 1930s).For lovers of this sort of film, this is a must-see. Others might just find it all too old fashioned and silly to watch.

copper1963 First (blast) off, the Martian women are decked out in some of the shortest mini-skirts you've ever seen. Marguerite Chapman, who plays the Martian scientist, and, not surprisingly, falls for the leading human-about-town and space explorer, has a wardrobe that defies gravity, either here or on Mars. She could charm the spacesuit off any astronaut, too. The female scientist from Earth is given an outfit that must have shrank in the Martian laundry. Although the film's science is a bit screwy and contrived, the movie's plot makes up for it by heightening the drama, tension and its pulp fiction convictions. Mars is dying. There's no getting around this inevitable conclusion. The chief of the Martian council has decided to relieve the earthmen of their repaired spaceship in order to launch an invasion of Planet Earth. So much for outer space benevolence. I bet they regret being taken to this leader. The movie bops along at a healthy pace. And the ending is served up with the speed of an empty buffet line. I enjoyed the special effects (there are some imaginative matte paintings on display), art design and those female martian costumes. The acting is fine for a group of second-tier thespians. Kudos to Monogram Pictures for creating a plausible and well preserved Saturday afternoon adventure. Finally, in the name of diversity, something the 50's was not known for, one of the Martians in the greeting party turns out to be a black man. He's the one wearing a chocolate space suit. I kid you not.

Ripshin Sorry, folks, but I don't share the love for this inconsequential, poorly made B-movie. The production year of 1951 doesn't excuse its laughable images and performances. The lameness of this flick can be attributed to one thing only - a very low budget, and a shooting schedule of 5 - 11 days (depending on whom you believe). The spectacular "Metropolis" in 1927, and "Things to Come" in 1936, reveal that wonderful special effects were possible in the early decades of the film industry.Mongram Pictures had a history of churning out low-end westerns, so I imagine this experience was a bit of a stretch for the studio.I will give them kudos for using Eames chairs on Mars - furniture considered futuristic by the general public in the 50s. Indeed, Mid-Century designs are once again hip "fifty years in the future" from 1951.Colors are nice, even on the horrible print currently available on DVD.

BaronBl00d Cheaply-made, poorly acted, and unimaginatively directed, Flight to Mars still is entertaining despite what its has going against it. A flight to Mars is planned with five people(three older gentleman, Cameron Mitchell as a newspaperman, and one female scientist/obvious love interest)"manning' the ship. The spaceship gets there and finds that very human-like Martians live there and have technological advances that would make Earth blush. But all is not rosy in the subterranean cities of the Martians(here shown as some caves and a few rooms). The Martians are a dying planet and one faction wants the Earthlings to fix the ship only to take it away at the last moment and then mobilize for an attack on Earth and another faction wants to talk peace and see if they cannot persuade Earth to give them living space. The special effects here are pretty lame even for 50's sci-fi standards complete with slow-moving rocket ship, pastel/neon alien garb where the women wear shorts that would make many blush(except the men of course), and little less offered. Cameron Mitchell is the journalist and is affable if nothing else. Marguerite Chapman is beautiful in very short shorts but adds little acting range. The rest of the cast is filled with some older sci-fi veterans like Arthur Franz and Morris Ankrum doing serviceable jobs. This isn't a premiere sci-fi film from the Golden Age by any standard, but it is very watchable and zips by at fast pace.