Journey to the Seventh Planet



Journey to the Seventh Planet is a 1962 English/Danish B science-fiction/horror film directed by Sidney W. Pink.

In the year 2001, the United Nations has assumed total control of Earth; there are no longer any wars and mankind is solely concerned with science. To that end, most of the solar system has been explored. Five astronauts; Captain Don Graham, Eric, Karl, Barry O'Sullivan and Svend (John Agar, Carl Ottosen, Peter Monch, Ove Sprogoe and Louis Miehe-Renard) embark on a mission to the one planet that hasn't; Uranus, the Seventh Planet. Once there, they detect radiation, and upon going into free-fall around the planet a mysterious alien force freezes them in time and scans their minds. When they regain conciousness their instruments say that only 2 hours have passed, but they verify via a rotten apple that far more time has passed. Upon landing, they discover an earth-like forest, which one of the astronauts recognizes as being one he remembers from his childhood, and which they then discover is just an illusion. Effigies of women from their past then also appear. The astronauts then find a force-field surrounding the forest, and eventually decide to venture beyond it into the natural Uranusian environment. There, they discover a cave containing a giant alien brain; and it is revealed that the brain read their minds and conjurred the forest and the women to weaken their minds so it could possess them and go to Earth via them and take it over. The astronauts must now defeat the entity; but the effigies of the women under its control aren't about to let that happen...

The film features a comparative lack of Narm and Nightmare Retardant compared to usual 50s/60s B sci-fi/horror fare; the plot is interesting and the atmosphere is genuinely spooky. The film is also notable for its similar plot to that of Solaris, which it precedes by a full decade; however the book Solaris is based on came before it by a year.

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This film provides examples of:

 * B Movie
 * Did Not Do the Research: Most notably, Uranus is depicted as having a solid surface and Earth-like gravity.
 * Femme Fatale: The women.
 * Fridge Logic: The supposedly omniscient alien brain had the effigies steal the gun as opposed to the liquid nitrogen that could actually harm it. Also, if the effigies were just illusory, how could they physically steal the gun? Furthermore, if the workshop was likewise illusory, how could the astronauts make the gun in it in the first place?
 * Giant Spider: The brain summons a vision of a giant tarantula at one point to frighten the astronauts.
 * Mind Rape
 * Rodent Of Unusual Size: The brain also summons a vision of a giant, hairless, one-eyed rat.
 * Uranus Is Showing: Sadly averted, despite the planet the action takes place on.