The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)

The original “The Day the Earth Stood Still” is a cheesy 1950s space invasion flick with stiff acting, a condescending treatment of women and limited special effects, but it’s glorious. It’s an anti-war call for coming together that ought to be played around the world today. The plot: Human-looking alien Klaatu (Michael Rennie) comes to Earth, with robot Gort in tow, and lays out the facts: Bickering humans are out of control with their petty “my [god, country, skin color, way of life] is better than yours” wars and threaten the universe. Klaatu promises that if Earth keeps this pace, it’s going to get vaporized. (Tough love!) A White House flack sputters, and basically says, “Well, hell, other than killing each other, we don’t know what else to do.” Klaatu rolls his eyes. Gort gets mad. This film is 60 years old, and it’s more viable now than ever. Rennie, tall and emulating wisdom, rocks. Patricia Neal, a favorite 1950s actress of mine, is relegated to panic. Several plot mechanics grind my mind, especially the clueless military approach, but that’s the film’s weird, quaint charm. Skip the remake, which is neither quaint nor charming. A-