Underplayed Gems

Destination Moon (1950)

Destination Moon poster
Directed by
Irving Pichel
Genre
drama film, adventure film, science fiction film, speculative fiction film
Country
United States
Runtime
1h 31m
Rated
12
Rating
5.9 of 10 from 100 voters
Elsewhere
IMDb
The 3D catalogue: film cases on wooden shelves, with the cat sitting at the counter next to its greeting.

The catalogue in 3D

The film shelves have a room of their own that you can walk around in. The cat behind the counter is the AI Catbot, and they pick real films from the same catalogue when you tell them what you feel like watching. Nothing is for sale, here or in there. Go in from here and this film is already out on the counter, with more like it waiting on the shelf next to it.

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How it feels

A group of American industrialists and scientists race to build the first rocket to the moon. They argue that private industry must lead space exploration to keep the United States ahead in a coming space race. The film shows the technical problems they solve to make the trip happen.

earnestspeculativeslow-pacededucativeoptimisticfocusedseriousmethodical

What happens

Destination Moon (a.k.a. Operation Moon) is a 1950 American Technicolor science fiction film, independently produced by George Pal and directed by Irving Pichel, that stars John Archer, Warner Anderson, Tom Powers, Dick Wesson and Grace Stafford (voice). The film was distributed in the United States and the United Kingdom by Eagle-Lion Classics. Destination Moon was the first major U.S. science fiction film to deal with the practical scientific and engineering challenges of space travel and to speculate on what a crewed expedition to the Moon would look like. Noted science fiction author Robert A. Heinlein contributed to the screenplay. The film's premise is that private industry will mobilize, finance, and manufacture the first spacecraft to the Moon, and that the U.S. government will be forced to purchase or lease the technology to remain the dominant power in space. Different industrialists cooperate to support the private venture. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

More like this

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