Devil Girl from Mars
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''Devil Girl from Mars'' is a 1954 British
black-and-white Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white in a continuous spectrum, producing a range of shades of grey. Media The history of various visual media began with black and white, and as technology improved, altered to color. ...
science fiction film Science fiction (or sci-fi) is a film genre that uses speculative, fictional science-based depictions of phenomena that are not fully accepted by mainstream science, such as extraterrestrial lifeforms, spacecraft, robots, cyborgs, interstellar ...
, produced by the
Danziger Brothers Edward J. Danziger (1909–1999) and Harry Lee Danziger (1913–2005) were American-born brothers who produced many British films and TV shows in the 1950s and 1960s. According to one profile "throughout the 1950s and early 1960s, their second fea ...
, directed by David MacDonald and starring
Patricia Laffan Patricia Alice Laffan (19 March 1919 – 10 March 2014) was an English stage, film, television and radio actress, and also, after her retirement from acting, an international fashion impresario. She was five-feet-six-inches tall, with dark red ...
, Hugh McDermott,
Hazel Court Hazel Court (10 February 1926 – 15 April 2008) was an English actress. She is known for her roles in British and American horror films during the 1950s and early 1960s, including Terence Fisher's ''The Curse of Frankenstein'' (1957) and ...
, Peter Reynolds, and
Adrienne Corri Adrienne Corri (born Adrienne Riccoboni; 13 November 1931 – 13 March 2016) was a Scottish actress. Early life She was born Adrienne Riccoboni in Glasgow in November 1931, the daughter of an English mother (Olive Smethurst) and an Italian f ...
. It was made at
Shepperton Studios Shepperton Studios is a film studio located in Shepperton, Surrey, England, with a history dating back to 1931. It is now part of the Pinewood Studios Group. During its early existence, the studio was branded as Sound City (not to be confused w ...
with sets designed by the
art director Art director is the title for a variety of similar job functions in theater, advertising, marketing, publishing, fashion, film industry, film and television, the Internet, and video games. It is the charge of a sole art director to supervise and ...
Norman G. Arnold Norman G. Arnold (19 September 1892 – 7 December 1963) was a British art director who designed the sets for over a hundred and twenty films. Early life and World War I Arnold studied architecture, interior decoration & design. During the Firs ...
. The film was released by British Lion.Warren 1982 It was released in the United States the following year. The film's storyline concerns a female alien commander sent from
Mars Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and the second-smallest planet in the Solar System, only being larger than Mercury (planet), Mercury. In the English language, Mars is named for the Mars (mythology), Roman god of war. Mars is a terr ...
to acquire human males to replace their declining male population, thereby saving Martian civilisation from extinction. When negotiation, then intimidation fails, she must use force to obtain co-operation from a remote Scottish village where she has landed her crippled flying saucer.


Plot

Nyah, a female commander from Mars, heads for
London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
in her
flying saucer A flying saucer (also referred to as "a flying disc") is a descriptive term for a type of flying craft having a disc or saucer-shaped body, commonly used generically to refer to an anomalous flying object. The term was coined in 1947 but has g ...
. She is part of the advance alien team looking for Earthmen to replace the declining male population on her world, the result of a "devastating war between the sexes". Because of damage to her craft, caused when entering the Earth's atmosphere, and an apparent crash with an airliner, she is forced to land in the remote
Scottish Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...
moors The term Moor, derived from the ancient Mauri, is an exonym first used by Christian Europeans to designate the Muslim inhabitants of the Maghreb, the Iberian Peninsula, Sicily and Malta during the Middle Ages. Moors are not a distinct or ...
. She is armed with a
raygun A raygun is a science-fiction directed-energy weapon that releases energy, usually with destructive effect.Jeff Prucher, '' Brave New Words: The Oxford Dictionary of Science Fiction,'' Oxford University Press, 2007, page 162 They have variou ...
that can paralyse or kill, and is accompanied by a tall, menacing
robot A robot is a machine—especially one programmable by a computer—capable of carrying out a complex series of actions automatically. A robot can be guided by an external control device, or the control may be embedded within. Robots may be c ...
named Chani. Professor Arnold Hennessey, an astrophysicist, accompanied by journalist Michael Carter, is sent by the British government to investigate the effects of the crash, believed to be caused by a
meteorite A meteorite is a solid piece of debris from an object, such as a comet, asteroid, or meteoroid, that originates in outer space and survives its passage through the atmosphere to reach the surface of a planet or Natural satellite, moon. When the ...
. The pair come to the Bonnie Charlie, a remote inn run by Mr and Mrs Jamieson in the depths of the Scottish Highlands. At the bar they meet Ellen Prestwick, a fashion model who came to the Bonnie Charlie to escape an affair with a married man. She quickly forms a romantic liaison with Carter. Meanwhile, escaped convict Robert Justin (under the alias Albert Simpson), convicted for accidentally killing his wife, comes to the inn to reunite with barmaid Doris, with whom he is in love. Nyah happens across the inn, incinerates the Jamiesons' handyman David, and enters the bar. When she finds no one willing to come with her to Mars, she responds with intimidation, trapping the guests and staff within an invisible wall and turning Chani loose to vaporise much of the manor’s grounds. Discovering Justin and Tommy, the Jamiesons' young nephew, hiding in the grounds, Nyah kidnaps Tommy as a possible male specimen, and sends Justin back to the inn under some manner of mind control. Nyah then brings Professor Hennessy aboard her spaceship to view the technological achievements of Martian civilisation, including the ship's atomic power source. In exchange for Tommy, Carter volunteers to go to Mars with Nyah. Realising that the only road to victory over Nyah requires trickery, Hennessy suggests Carter sabotage the ship's power source after take off. However, Carter attempts a double cross before boarding the ship, snatching Nyah's controller for Chani, but this attempt is thwarted by Nyah's mind control powers. Carter is released by Nyah, and they both return to the bar, where she announces that she will destroy the inn and kill everyone within when she leaves for London. However she allows for one man to go with her in order to escape death. The men draw lots and Carter wins the draw, still hoping to enact Hennessy's plan to destroy the spaceship. At the last minute, Justin, alone at the bar and now free from mind control when Nyah returns, offers to go with her of his own free will. After take-off he successfully sabotages Nyah's flying saucer, sacrificing himself to save the men of Earth, and atoning for the death of his wife. The survivors celebrate their escape with a drink at the bar.


Cast

*
Patricia Laffan Patricia Alice Laffan (19 March 1919 – 10 March 2014) was an English stage, film, television and radio actress, and also, after her retirement from acting, an international fashion impresario. She was five-feet-six-inches tall, with dark red ...
as Nyah, the Devil Girl from Mars * Hugh McDermott as Michael Carter *
Hazel Court Hazel Court (10 February 1926 – 15 April 2008) was an English actress. She is known for her roles in British and American horror films during the 1950s and early 1960s, including Terence Fisher's ''The Curse of Frankenstein'' (1957) and ...
as Ellen Prestwick * Peter Reynolds as Robert Justin/Albert Simpson *
Adrienne Corri Adrienne Corri (born Adrienne Riccoboni; 13 November 1931 – 13 March 2016) was a Scottish actress. Early life She was born Adrienne Riccoboni in Glasgow in November 1931, the daughter of an English mother (Olive Smethurst) and an Italian f ...
as Doris *
Joseph Tomelty Joseph Tomelty (5 March 1911 – 7 June 1995) was an Irish actor, playwright, novelist, short-story writer and theatre manager. He worked in film, television, radio and on the stage. starring in Sam Thompson's 1960 play ''Over the Bridge''. ...
as Professor Arnold Hennessey *
John Laurie John Paton Laurie (25 March 1897 – 23 June 1980) was a Scottish actor. In the course of his career, Laurie performed on the stage and in films as well as television. He is perhaps best remembered for his role in the sitcom ''Dad's Army'' (196 ...
as Mr. Jamieson *
Sophie Stewart Sophie Stewart (5 March 1908 – 6 June 1977) was a British actress of stage and screen. Biography She was born as Sophia Lyal Drummond Stewart in Crieff, Perthshire, Scotland in March 1908 and died in June 1977 at the age of 69, in Cupa ...
as Mrs. Jamieson * Anthony Richmond as Tommy * James Edmond as David


Production

In an interview with Frank J. Dello Stritto, screenwriter John Chartres Mather claimed that ''Devil Girl from Mars'' came about while he was working with
The Danzigers Edward J. Danziger (1909–1999) and Harry Lee Danziger (1913–2005) were American-born brothers who produced many British films and TV shows in the 1950s and 1960s. According to one profile "throughout the 1950s and early 1960s, their second fea ...
, who were producing ''
Calling Scotland Yard ''Adventure Theater'' is a dramatic anthology series that aired on NBC from June 16, 1956, through September 1, 1956. The series was produced in England in 1953, but was never broadcast there as a series. It was also known as ''Calling Scotland ...
'' that appeared as both an American television series and as cinema
featurette In the American film industry, a featurette is a kind of film that is shorter than a full-length feature, but longer than a short film. The term may refer to either of two types of content: a shorter film or a companion film. Medium-length film ...
s in Great Britain and the British Commonwealth. When production finished ahead of schedule, Mather says he was ordered to use up the remaining film studio time already booked and paid for by working on a
feature film A feature film or feature-length film is a narrative film (motion picture or "movie") with a running time long enough to be considered the principal or sole presentation in a commercial entertainment program. The term ''feature film'' originall ...
for the Danzigers. The interview also claims Patricia Laffan's devil girl costume was economically made by designer John Sutcliffe. The film was made on a very low budget, with no retakes except in cases where the actual film stock became damaged; it was shot over a period of three weeks, often filming well into the night.Boot 1996, p. 57. Actress Hazel Court later said: "I remember great fun on the set. It was like a repertory company acting that film".Weave
2006, pp. 40–42.
/ref> The robot, named Chani, was constructed by Jack Whitehead and was fully automated, although it suffered breakdowns during the filming.Johnson 1996, p. 14. The alien Klaatu, posing as "Mr. Carpenter" in ''
The Day the Earth Stood Still ''The Day the Earth Stood Still'' (a.k.a. ''Farewell to the Master'' and ''Journey to the World'') is a 1951 American science fiction film from 20th Century Fox, produced by Julian Blaustein and directed by Robert Wise. It stars Michael Renn ...
'' (1951), was intended by screenwriter
Edmund H. North Edmund Hall North (March 12, 1911 – August 28, 1990) was an American screenwriter who shared an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay with Francis Ford Coppola in 1970 for their script for ''Patton''. North wrote the screenplay for the 1951 ...
to evoke
Jesus Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...
,Weaver 1996, p. 342. so too are there indications that the Martian woman Nyah was intended to evoke an anti-
Virgin Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother o ...
image.Mille
2016, p. 158.
/ref> ''Devil Girl from Mars''s sound editor was
Gerry Anderson Gerald Alexander Anderson (; 14 April 1929 – 26 December 2012) was an English television and film producer, director, writer and occasional voice artist. He remains famous for his futuristic television programmes, especially his 1960s produ ...
(listed as Gerald Anderson in the credits), later to create UK television series such as '' Thunderbirds''. To save time and money, composer
Edwin Astley Edwin Thomas "Ted" Astley (12 April 1922 – 19 May 1998) was a British composer. His best known works are British television themes and scores, most notably the main themes for ''The Saint'', ''Danger Man'' and '' The Baron''. He also successfu ...
reused his ''
Saber of London ''The Vise'' (later known as ''Saber of London'', also known as ''Mark Saber'') is an American detective drama that was broadcast on ABC (1955-1957) and then moved to NBC (1957-1960). The series is a reboot of the '' ABC Mystery Theater'' radio a ...
'' score for the film.


Reception

The reviewer for the British ''
Monthly Film Bulletin ''The Monthly Film Bulletin'' was a periodical of the British Film Institute published monthly from February 1934 to April 1991, when it merged with ''Sight & Sound''. It reviewed all films on release in the United Kingdom, including those with a ...
'' (1954) writing at the time of the film's release, wrote the "settings, dialogue, characterisation and special effects are of a low order, but even their modest unreality has its charm. There is really no fault in this film that one would like to see eliminated. Everything, in its way, is quite perfect".Hunte
1999, p. 62.
/ref> ''Devil Girl from Mars'' developed a following via home video.Johnson et al. 2004, p. 38. ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...
'' columnist Doug Pratt later called ''Devil Girl from Mars'' a "delightfully bad movie". The "acting is really bad and the whole thing is so much fun you want to run to your local community theatre group and have them put it on next, instead of ''
Brigadoon ''Brigadoon'' is a musical with a book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner, and music by Frederick Loewe. The song " Almost Like Being in Love", from the musical, has become a standard. It features two American tourists who stumble upon Brigadoon, a ...
''."Prat
2004, p. 332.
/ref> American film reviewer
Leonard Maltin Leonard Michael Maltin (born December 18, 1950) is an American film critic and film historian, as well as an author of several mainstream books on cinema, focusing on nostalgic, celebratory narratives. He is perhaps best known for his book of fil ...
said the film is a "hilariously solemn,
high camp High may refer to: Science and technology * Height * High (atmospheric), a high-pressure area * High (computability), a quality of a Turing degree, in computability theory * High (tectonics), in geology an area where relative tectonic uplift to ...
British imitation of U. S. cheapies".Wilso
2005, p. 95.
/ref> In the book ''Going to Mars'' the authors described the film as "an undeniably awful but oddly interesting" film. They noted that the plot was "more a reflection of the 1950s view of politics and the era's inequality of the sexes than a thoughtful projection of present or future possibilities". Muirhead et al
2004, pp. 63–64.
Eric S. Rabkin likens the character Nyah to a
dominatrix A dominatrix (; ) or femdom is a woman who takes the dominant role in BDSM activities. A dominatrix can be of any sexual orientation, but this does not necessarily limit the genders of her submissive partners. Dominatrices are known for inflic ...
and even a
neo-Nazi Neo-Nazism comprises the post–World War II militant, social, and political movements that seek to revive and reinstate Nazism, Nazi ideology. Neo-Nazis employ their ideology to promote hatred and Supremacism#Racial, racial supremacy (ofte ...
. He said of the film that, "a host of charged images and subconscious fears" are handled with a broad camp irony. Otherwise, "without some underlying psychological engagement, how could anyone sit through a movie so badly made"? Rabki
2005, p. 154.
The film inspired
Hugo Hugo or HUGO may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Hugo'' (film), a 2011 film directed by Martin Scorsese * Hugo Award, a science fiction and fantasy award named after Hugo Gernsback * Hugo (franchise), a children's media franchise based on a ...
and
Nebula A nebula ('cloud' or 'fog' in Latin; pl. nebulae, nebulæ or nebulas) is a distinct luminescent part of interstellar medium, which can consist of ionized, neutral or molecular hydrogen and also cosmic dust. Nebulae are often star-forming regio ...
award-winning author
Octavia E. Butler Octavia Estelle Butler (June 22, 1947 – February 24, 2006) was an American science fiction author and a multiple recipient of the Hugo and Nebula awards. In 1995, Butler became the first science-fiction writer to receive a MacArthur Fellowshi ...
to begin writing science fiction. After watching the motion picture at age 12, she declared that she could write something better. Drew 2007, p. 49. Butler, Octavia
"Devil Girl From Mars": Why I Write Science Fiction."
''MIT Communications''. Retrieved: January 10, 2015.
Likewise, the Los Angeles avant-garde artist
Gronk ''grOnk'', or GRoNK, was a Canadian literary magazine begun in 1967 by bpNichol and others (for example, David Aylward, David W. Harris (later David UU; co-editor for the first series (8 issues, 1967), and editor of most of the seventh series ( ...
lists this film as the crucial factor that guided him in his career choice. Jame
2005, p. 66.


See also

* ''
Mars Needs Women ''Mars Needs Women'' is a 1968 independently made American made-for-television science fiction film from Azalea Pictures. The film was produced, written, and directed by self-proclaimed schlock artist/auteur Larry Buchanan, and stars Tommy Kirk ...
'' (1967); a gender-reversed version of the same theme * '' Under the Skin'' (2013); a somewhat similar theme


References


Bibliography

* Boot, Andrew. ''Fragments of Fear: An Illustrated History of British Horror Films''. Bangkok, Thailand: Creation Books, 1996. . * Drew, Bernard Alger. ''100 Most Popular African American Authors: Biographical''. Westport Connecticut: Libraries Unlimited, 2007. . * Hunter, I. Q. ''British Science Fiction Cinema. British Popular Cinema''. Abingdon, Oxon, UK: Psychology Press, 1999. . * James, David E. ''The Most Typical Avant-garde: History and Geography of Minor Cinemas in Los Angeles'' (An Ahmanson Foundation book in the Humanities). Oakland, California: University of California Press, 2005. . * Johnson, John. ''Cheap Tricks and Class Acts: Special Effects, Makeup, and Stunts from the Films of the Fantastic Fifties''. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company, 1996. . * Johnson, Tom, Mark A. Miller and Jimmy Sangster. ''The Christopher Lee Filmography: All Theatrical Releases, 1948-2003. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company, 2004. . * Miller, Thomas Kent. ''Mars in the Movies: A History''. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company, 2016. . * Muirhead, Brian, Judith and Garfield Reeves-Stevens. ''Going to Mars: The Stories of the People Behind NASA's Mars Missions Past, Present, and Future''. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2004. . * Pratt, Douglas F. ''Doug Pratt's DVD: Movies, Television, Music, Art, Adult, and More!, Volume 1''. Sag Harbor, New York: Harbor Electronic Publishing, 2004. . * Rabkin, Eric S. ''Mars: A Tour of the Human Imagination''. Portsmouth, New Hampshire: Greenwood Publishing Group, 2005. . * Warren, Bill. ''Keep Watching The Skies, American Science Fiction Movies of the 50s'', (Vol I: 1950 - 1957). Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company, 1982. . * Weaver, Tom. ''It Came from Weaver Five: Interviews With 20 Zany, Glib and Earnest Moviemakers in the Sf and Horror Traditions of the Thirties, Forties, Fifties and Sixties''. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company, 1996, ASIN: B000MBQROA. * Weaver, Tom. ''Science Fiction Stars and Horror Heroes: Interviews with Actors, Directors, Producers and Writers of the 1940s Through 1960s''. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company, 2006, . * Wilson, John. ''The Official Razzie Movie Guide: Enjoying the Best of Hollywood's Worst''. New York: Hachette Digital, Inc., 2005. .


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Devil Girl From Mars 1954 films 1950s science fiction films Alien invasions in films British black-and-white films British science fiction films 1950s English-language films Films about extraterrestrial life Films directed by David MacDonald (director) Films set in Scotland Films shot at Shepperton Studios British Lion Films films Mars in film Robot films 1950s British films