It is difficult to evaluate Destination Moon, not easy to give it a rating of good or bad. It is a gigantic film, a brilliant landmark in the history of sci-fi movies. Destination Moon set the standard, dialed in the setting and launched 50s space sci-fi. Yet, for all that, is it watchable today in the 21st century? Or are modern viewers so distracted by the dated and corny elements that they lose sight of the sheer genius of the film?
Bear in mind that Destination Moon was made at a time when everything we knew about the moon came from a telescope. The most advanced rockets in the world were an aging handful of captured German military V-2s, left over from WWII and sparingly launched from the desert of White Sands, New Mexico.
Desination Moon set the standard for rocketshps of the 50s. Spaceship Luna introduces the style that would come to dominate the decade. Luna is graceful, sleek, and sexy - a design derived from the famous V-2 (we get to watch a V-2 launch as the film begins). This style of rocket became outdated (sadly) when the actual space program was underway and it was realized that wings on rockets were unnecessary.
Destination Moon helped inspire ordinary moviegoers to think seriously about space travel (by mid-decade popular magazines like Collier's would be imagining space vehicles and Disney produced a TV show on the subject). Robert Heinlein is to be congratulated for helping to deliver an excellent story, but even more so for his clear vision of the science and technology needed for actual moon landings. What other movie of this era is so faithful to science? The special effects look great - the depiction of weightlessness, the spacewalk, the gravity boots, the seat cushions compressing with g-forces, the performance of the rocket...I don't know how the special effects could have been better done in 1950.
Destination Moon articulated the awesome experience of venturing into space. From the awe of leaving the earth, to the wonder of walking on another world, the Destination Moon writers clearly saw the poetic and emotional impact of space travel. In the film, the astronauts reach the moon (and burn up most of their fuel looking to land, just like the Eagle did on the Apollo 11 mission) and two of them walk around and establish radio contact with earth. They attempt to communicate their feelings (what an amazing artist's conception of the lunar surface!). The things these guys say are eerily similar to statements made by the first men to actually walk on the moon. Almost 20 years after the movie, Americans left a plaque on the moon which read, "We came in peace for all mankind." It was one of America's finest moments.
Destination Moon helped 50s America prepare for that future moment.
Bear in mind that Destination Moon was made at a time when everything we knew about the moon came from a telescope. The most advanced rockets in the world were an aging handful of captured German military V-2s, left over from WWII and sparingly launched from the desert of White Sands, New Mexico.
Desination Moon set the standard for rocketshps of the 50s. Spaceship Luna introduces the style that would come to dominate the decade. Luna is graceful, sleek, and sexy - a design derived from the famous V-2 (we get to watch a V-2 launch as the film begins). This style of rocket became outdated (sadly) when the actual space program was underway and it was realized that wings on rockets were unnecessary.
Destination Moon helped inspire ordinary moviegoers to think seriously about space travel (by mid-decade popular magazines like Collier's would be imagining space vehicles and Disney produced a TV show on the subject). Robert Heinlein is to be congratulated for helping to deliver an excellent story, but even more so for his clear vision of the science and technology needed for actual moon landings. What other movie of this era is so faithful to science? The special effects look great - the depiction of weightlessness, the spacewalk, the gravity boots, the seat cushions compressing with g-forces, the performance of the rocket...I don't know how the special effects could have been better done in 1950.
Destination Moon articulated the awesome experience of venturing into space. From the awe of leaving the earth, to the wonder of walking on another world, the Destination Moon writers clearly saw the poetic and emotional impact of space travel. In the film, the astronauts reach the moon (and burn up most of their fuel looking to land, just like the Eagle did on the Apollo 11 mission) and two of them walk around and establish radio contact with earth. They attempt to communicate their feelings (what an amazing artist's conception of the lunar surface!). The things these guys say are eerily similar to statements made by the first men to actually walk on the moon. Almost 20 years after the movie, Americans left a plaque on the moon which read, "We came in peace for all mankind." It was one of America's finest moments.
Destination Moon helped 50s America prepare for that future moment.