Thu 26 Nov 2015
A Sci-Fi Movie Review by Jonathan Lewis: WILD, WILD PLANET (1966).
Posted by Steve under Reviews , SF & Fantasy films[5] Comments
WILD, WILD PLANET. MGM, Italy-US, 1966. Original title: I criminali della galassia. Tony Russell, Lisa Gastoni, Massimo Serato, Carlo Giustini (as Charles Justin), Franco Nero. Director: Antonio Margheriti.
Directed by Antonio Margheriti (under the name Anthony Dawson), Wild Wild Planet is a low-budget Italian science fiction movie with some ridiculously stilted dialogue, silly miniatures for special effects, and a plot that defies credulity, even for outlandish science fiction.
Yet, for those fans of campy and dare I say it – cheesy – movies, it’s not without its charms. Much like Mario Bava’s Planet of the Vampires (1965), it’s the atmosphere, rather than the plot, that counts. With a skillful use of color and costumes and a hint of grotesquerie here and there, there’s just enough pizazz to keep the viewer engaged throughout. Plus, there’s cult film favorite Franco Nero – a quite young and clean-shaven Nero, I should add – in an early supporting role.
The plot, such as it is, is something straight out of the serials. A diabolical scientist named Nurmi (Massimo Serato) is engaged in a sinister plot to create a master race of humans. Sounds typical enough, right? Oh, did I mention that Nurmi has some affiliation with a sinister sounding entity called “the corporations†and that he utilizes female robots to kidnap persons he wants to use for his experiments? Of course, it’s up to the movie’s hero, Commander Mike Halstead (Tony Russell) to stop him and to rescue the beautiful Connie Gomez (Lisa Gastoni) from Nurmi’s evil grasp.
As I said earlier, it’s not the plot, but the borderline psychedelic atmosphere that counts and makes the movie worth watching. Sometimes the special effects are just plain silly, but every now and then, they work and create an indelible impression on the viewer.
I wouldn’t dare suggest that Wild, Wild Planet is a great science fiction movie. Not by any means. At the end of the day, here is a film too ambitious for its comparably low budget, making it simultaneously an example of clumsy filmmaking and unleashed creativity. That’s got to count for something.
November 26th, 2015 at 6:43 pm
Those Italian set and costume designers were fabulous.
They always dressed up movies in zippy, zingy style.
Both the science fiction and Western films from Italy were often eye-popping.
Thanks for an interesting review.
I’d never heard of this film.
November 26th, 2015 at 7:21 pm
Actually this film works as a sort of pulp space opera brought to life, despite the ridiculous dialogue and often poor special effects (Gammera set more realistic sets on fire with his prehistoric turtle breath).
I can’t call it a good film, but like you, Jonathan, I enjoyed it.
November 26th, 2015 at 8:52 pm
Mike is right; the Italian Sci-Fi Flicks of this vintage generally had a visual flair that made them worth looking at.
November 27th, 2015 at 12:24 am
There are four of these movies which were shot at the same time for Italian TV. My favourite is SNOW DEVILS because of its zippy score.
November 27th, 2015 at 9:31 am
Thanks for the info, Tim.
From Wikipedia:
“The film [WILD, WILD PLANET] is the first of four ‘Gamma One’ science fiction films. The films were originally contracted by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer to be made for TV movies but were released theatrically instead in some countries.”
From http://www.dvddrive-in.com/reviews/t-z/wildwildplanet65.htm
“In both the United States and Italy, [WILD, WILD PLANET] was very successful and Margheriti directed three more adventures set on Gamma One. These include WAR OF THE PLANETS (1965), THE SNOW DEVILS (1965) and WAR BETWEEN THE PLANETS (1966). WAR OF THE PLANETS and THE SNOW DEVILS also had U.S. releases through Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer while WAR BETWEEN THE PLANETS was later picked up by Fanfare Films in 1971.”