A Bizarre, Hilarious Must See!

I like this movie, always have, for its eclectic mix of politics, science fiction, economics, physics, religion, espionage, Nazis, Communists and just about everything and everyone else. Actually, I find its plot lines quite intriguing, certainly unique. For example, the chaos the film envisions gripping the capitalist world when the messages from Mars are decoded seems a very likely by-product of such an event. The fact that Mars and the Martians remain an off-screen presence is also refreshingly different. To me, this film is barely true science-fiction at all, in the usual sense of the term.

One also has to take this film (like every film) in its context - in this case, at the depths of the cold war with Stalinist Russia (as opposed to the depth -- or if you prefer, height -- of the cold war at other points). Although set in a post-Stalin USSR of the near future, it offers a pretty good representation of the police-state terror Stalin routinely invoked to control his own people. Of course, in reality most Russians loved Stalin, even as they feared his wrath, much like the stern father figure he was always portrayed in Soviet propaganda as being. Most Russians of the time were not, alas, anti-Communist, as depicted in this film. Anyway, its simplistic Free World/Communist World approach may not have reflected reality, as history shows, but it did reflect popular (mis)conceptions of the time. Any true liberal (of which I count myself one) should be strongly anti-Communist, as Communism is antithetical to any concept of genuine political and social liberalism...the mindless attacks of propagandists of the left and right notwithstanding.

As for the film's relgious aspects, these are a bit too Christian-centric for my taste, but remember that it was in part the religious faith of many Eastern Europeans, particularly the Poles, inflamed by the election of a Polish Pope in 1978, that ultimately helped undermine Communist rule in Europe in the 1980s...certainly not the sole or most important cause, but it did provide a focal point for protest, so Red Planet Mars might not have been too far off the mark in its vision here. And cinematically, dragging religion into a sci-fi film was hardly unique -- look at most of George Pal's films, for instance, where God or religion were often a crucial plot point (When Worlds Collide, The War of the Worlds, Conquest of Space), among several others' sci-fi films. Even Forbidden Planet and This Island Earth reference God, as a sign of man's ultimate superiority.

Anyway, RPM is different, and decidely one-of-a-kind. Hilarious? No, I don't agree. Bizarre? Sure, somewhat. But principally I think it's an offbeat, interesting, in a few ways even prophetic, bit of propaganda that deals with some adult issues (economics) as well as more sensational ones (Nazis and Commies) in an entertaining way, and poses an odd story (based on little if anything of scientific merit) in an acceptably ironic, if not terribly realistic, fashion. Its message about religion is simplistic and western-oriented, its good-guys-vs.-bad-guys world order very simplistic, but its depictions of a Communist police state and the pitfalls of capitalism are pretty good. Dramatically, it's solid, considering. Herbet Berghof overacts as the Nazi, Andrea King is too loud and holier-than-thou to be entirely sympathetic, but overall the cast does well.

Sorry for the long comment, but I think this is a fairly decent movie, flaws and all, certainly an entertaining one. It was also one of the earliest I recall seeing on TV in the early 60s, so I suppose fond childhood memories are at play here.

Oh, and the Russians (mostly) speak (pretty good) Russian, not Boris-Badenov-style, comic-strip, Russian-accented English. That's also a plus.