Red Planet Mars Blu-ray - Peter Graves / Andrea King

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S E A R C H D V D B e a v e r

(aka "Miracle from Mars" or "Endstation Mars")

Directed by Harry Horner
USA 1952

It's global chaos when an American scientist (Peter Graves) makes radio contact with Mars, receiving messages of an ideal life on the fertile and energy efficient planet. But when the messages inexplicably take on a more religious tone, a question arises that threatens to cause even more turmoil: did the messages come from Mars...or is there an imposter? Also stars Andrea King and Herbert Berghof.

***

An amazing cold-war artifact from 1952. Decoded messages reveal Mars to be the power base of an interplanetary religious revival, prompting the godless Russkies to shape up tout de suite. Harry Horner directed, from a dumbfounding script by Anthony Veiller and John L. Balderston, author of the 1920s stage version of Dracula. With Herbert Berghof, Andrea King, Marvin Miller, and, of course, Peter Graves.

Excerpt from Dave Kehr's review at The Chicago Reader located HERE

***

A husband-and-wife scientist team (Peter Graves, Andrea King) are experimenting with a "hydrogen tube" invention (which he got from a missing German scientist, lost in the collapse of the Reich), when they get signals back from what appears to be Mars. The culture-shock of that event is serious enough, and the couple and their family are suddenly thrust into the spotlight. But then they begin to translate the increasingly complex messages (which started out as mathematical equations) that they receive back, and find that Mars is a perfect world, a true Utopia, and that the messages are quoting Scripture -- and the inevitable conclusion is that God is speaking from Mars. Soon a religious revival starts to spread across the globe. What they don't realize is that the messages are a very calculated fraud, being engineered by a Communist operative (Marvin Miller) and carried out by the scientist (Herbert Berghof) who invented the hydrogen tube, and who now has an even more sinister agenda of his own.

Posters

Theatrical Release: May 15th, 1952

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Review: Allied Vaughn (MGM) - Region FREE - Blu-ray

Box Cover		CLICK to order from: Bonus Captures:
Distribution	Allied Vaughn (MGM) - Region FREE - Blu-ray
Runtime	1:27:06.220
Video	1.33:1 1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 18,905,958,603 bytes Feature: 18,898,937,856 bytes Video Bitrate: 25.27 Mbps Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video
	NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.
Bitrate Blu-ray:
Audio	DTS-HD Master Audio English 2095 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 2095 kbps / 24-bit (DTS Core: 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1509 kbps / 24-bit)
Subtitles	English (SDH), None
Features	Release Information: Studio: Allied Vaughn (MGM) 1.33:1 1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 18,905,958,603 bytes Feature: 18,898,937,856 bytes Video Bitrate: 25.27 Mbps Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video Edition Details: • None Blu-ray Release Date: January 16th, 2024 Standard Blu-ray Case Chapters 10

Comments:

NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc.

ADDITION: Allied Vaughn (MGM) Blu-ray (January 2024): Allied Vaughn (MGM) have transferred Harry Horner's Red Planet Mars to Blu-ray. The title has been kicking around on YouTube and SD digital (surely in the public domain) in some of the poorest image quality. Allied Vaughn have brought it to 1080P with, presumably, the best elements as it looks very strong now. The 1.33:1 presentation has excellent contrast and appreciated grain textures. There are a few speckles here an there but this is a massive upgrade. We've compared captures below to this unwatchable interlaced Cheezy Flics DVD, reviewed HERE. This is only on a single-layered Blu-ray with a supportive bitrate. This is a pressed disc not a MoD.

NOTE: We have added 32 more large resolution Blu-ray captures (in lossless PNG format) for DVDBeaver Patrons HERE

On their Blu-ray, Allied Vaughn (MGM) use a DTS-HD Master dual- mono track (24-bit) in the original English language. Red Planet Mars is fairly passive with a lot of laboratory and observatory dialogue. There is a modestly-impacting score by Mahlon Merrick (Alaska Patrol, Passage West sounding clean in the lossless transfer. Allied Vaughn (MGM) offer optional English (SDH) subtitles on their Region FREE Blu-ray.

The Allied Vaughn (MGM) Blu-ray has no extras and one menu screen. A commentary would be valuable.

Harry Horner's Red Planet Mars is one of the most bizarre of the 50s sci-fi genre - if it can be considered part of it at all. It is a very odd Cold War artifact that fuses theological ideas about a Martian supreme being and the evils of Communism. No creatures, rockets, space travel, ray guns - just a worldwide religious unification - once we establish communication with aliens. I prefer this era's sci-fi to be more effect-laden and less cerebral, although I admit to being fascinated every time I see it. Can the "Red" in "Red Planet..." relate to the commies? The bare-bones Allied Vaughn (MGM) Blu-ray is remarkable for the gargantuan a/v upgrade. For film-oddity historians and genre completists only.