I didn't give this film a rating of 10/10 because it's a great movie, it's a really bad movie, but that's what science fiction in the 50s was all about -- stilled dialogue; awkward exposition; a literal, plot-spoiling title; goofy sounding score; giant insect puppets; sexy women on extraterrestrial worlds; and every kind of science fact error possible. "Cat Women of the Moon" has it all, and then some. If you want to know what 50s science fiction was all about, just watch this perfect specimen of the genre.
The plot is typical. A group of astronauts take off in a pointy, single stage rocket and fly to another world (while experiencing normal gravity throughout the flight -- audiences and filmmakers didn't know about zero-G until after we started sending people into space in the early sixties). Along the way some hero disobeys orders to perform some dangerous, selfless deed in order to save the rest of the crew. When they get there they meet and interact with the inhabitants there, often sexy women and often far more advanced than earthlings, and then there's battle (often with gunpowder weapons) and guess who wins?
This one is particularly special because it includes something that was usually (and typically) part of another type of 50s science fiction that played out entirely on earth -- the radioactive giant insect movie. This one had a giant spider that attacked folks and was eventually shot to death with an astronaut's gunpowder pistol.
It also had something else that was unique for its time -- a woman astronaut! And she was smart, assertive and even took the lead and began issuing orders to the rest of the crew once they were on the moon. And the men followed her orders! You have to understand how things were for women in the 50s to fully appreciate how unique that was.
One more thing that was kind of special in this film -- it included teleportation. The Cat Women had a transporter device that allowed them to instantly disappear and reappear at another location. Although teleportation had appeared in fiction before, it only appeared a couple of times before this film, which was released nearly a decade before Star Trek made the transporter a household name.
But the real gems in this film were the awkward one liners. Here's a sample:
"Something's embedded in our rear section!" -- "We've never seen the dark side of the moon." -- "We have no use for men!" -- "I'll make a deal with you; you let me come aboard your rocket ship, and I'll show you the cave of gold." and many more...
Overall, this film is perfect for a person who wants to know about 50s science fiction and get the gist of the whole genre in one film. And it's funny as hell!
triggers: all white cast (duh, it was 1954); gun violence; animal cruelty (poor spider puppet!)
rating 10/10; (submitted July 1, 2020, 11:55 p.m. EDT)
The plot is typical. A group of astronauts take off in a pointy, single stage rocket and fly to another world (while experiencing normal gravity throughout the flight -- audiences and filmmakers didn't know about zero-G until after we started sending people into space in the early sixties). Along the way some hero disobeys orders to perform some dangerous, selfless deed in order to save the rest of the crew. When they get there they meet and interact with the inhabitants there, often sexy women and often far more advanced than earthlings, and then there's battle (often with gunpowder weapons) and guess who wins?
This one is particularly special because it includes something that was usually (and typically) part of another type of 50s science fiction that played out entirely on earth -- the radioactive giant insect movie. This one had a giant spider that attacked folks and was eventually shot to death with an astronaut's gunpowder pistol.
It also had something else that was unique for its time -- a woman astronaut! And she was smart, assertive and even took the lead and began issuing orders to the rest of the crew once they were on the moon. And the men followed her orders! You have to understand how things were for women in the 50s to fully appreciate how unique that was.
One more thing that was kind of special in this film -- it included teleportation. The Cat Women had a transporter device that allowed them to instantly disappear and reappear at another location. Although teleportation had appeared in fiction before, it only appeared a couple of times before this film, which was released nearly a decade before Star Trek made the transporter a household name.
But the real gems in this film were the awkward one liners. Here's a sample:
"Something's embedded in our rear section!" -- "We've never seen the dark side of the moon." -- "We have no use for men!" -- "I'll make a deal with you; you let me come aboard your rocket ship, and I'll show you the cave of gold." and many more...
Overall, this film is perfect for a person who wants to know about 50s science fiction and get the gist of the whole genre in one film. And it's funny as hell!
triggers: all white cast (duh, it was 1954); gun violence; animal cruelty (poor spider puppet!)
rating 10/10; (submitted July 1, 2020, 11:55 p.m. EDT)
