Robinson Crusoe on Mars

John Chard

Robinson Crusoe on Mars (1964) The title does the film no favours at all because it kind of reeks of daft Z movie origins, in fact if I hadn't looked up some research on the film prior to viewing it, I would have expected a comedy! This is an interesting variant on the much loved Daniel Defoe story about Robinson Crusoe, only as the title suggests, this is set on Mars. Whilst orbiting Mars, Commander Kit Draper is forced to eject and is stranded on Mars with only his wits and Mona the monkey for company. Here he has to source all the basic ingredients to stay alive, but he finds that mans need for companionship can trouble the mind greatly, and not only that, he finds that he is not alone after all, and the visitors that turn up are not exactly of the friendly kind.. This is a very solid and intelligent sci-fi picture, dealing with isolation and the will to stay alive, Robinson Crusoe On Mars is very much a film that relies on story over style, that it succeeds is with much credit to Paul Mantee as the lonesome Draper, carrying the film for two thirds on his own (except for the wonderful Mona Monkey of course), he infuses emotion and credibility in abundance to lift the film way above average. 7.5/10

drystyx

Batman dies. But he dies early in this film, so that isn't a spoiler. This is one of those "think piece sci-fi" films from the sixties and seventies. It's sort of a sister piece to films like "Silent Running", "The Andromeda Strain", and a few others that go more into psychology than action. Still, there is action, or at least the semblance of action due to smart writing and directing. An astronaut finds himself alone on Mars after Batman dies. Okay, it isn't Batman, but it is Adam West. We're wondering if he is imagining the strange things going on, or if they're real. And there are strange things happening. And those "strange things" get wilder and wilder and more sinister, but is this a dying man's last dream? Or is it real? We're left with believing it is real.