Quick Rating:  ****

This is a classic sci-fi movie - one of the best ever.  It starts with radars all over the globe picking up a superfast object in the earth's atmosphere.  They know it's something strange and guess that it's something not of this world.  The spacecraft lands on the Mall of America in Washington DC.  Everyone is curious and scared, and the craft is greeted with scores of police and military men.  The door of the ship opens and a man in a spacesuit walks out.  He claims he comes with a message of peace, and as soon as he brings out a hi-tech gizmo, he is shot in the arm.  Out of the ship steps Gort, the 8 foot tall silent robot.  He disintegrates all weapons (including the nearby tanks) with a blast from his eye.  Then we learn that the man's gizmo was a gift for the President, with information on all life forms in the universe.
 
The man is taken into the hospital and guarded by two MPs (!).  A representative of the President meets with him, and we discover that the man's name is Klaatu, and he wants a forum to talk to all the people of the world.  This is during the Cold War, and there was no way to bring all the nations of the world together peacefully.  This irritates Klaatu, and when all he finds is beauracracy, he escapes the prison to interact with the populace.
 
I won't ruin the rest of the story, but it is very well told.  The logic and reason spoken by Klaatu should not be ignored.  In the 50s or today.  The acting is great, especially Michael Rennie in the lead role.  The movie keeps you interested the whole way through, as little tidbits of info are given slowly, as the story unravels.  It's not a particularly complex story, but it is very interesting and has an important message.  The spacecraft, the robot Gort, the message of peace, and the words "Klaatu, Barada, Nikto" have lived on, and have achieved cult status.  This film has been incredibly influential for all sci-fi that has followed it.  And it really hasn't lost any of it's steam in over 50 years.  Check it out whenever you get the chance!
 

 

 

 
 

Quality: 8.5  Visuals: 8.0  Intensity: 8.5 
OVERALL RATING: 8.3