The day the earth caught fire
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| German title | The day the earth caught fire |
| Original title | The Day the Earth Caught Fire |
| Country of production | Great Britain |
| original language | English |
| Publishing year | 1961 |
| length | 99 minutes |
| Age rating | FSK 6 |
| Rod | |
| Director | Val Guest |
| script | Val Guest, Wolf Mankowitz |
| production | Val Guest |
| music | Stanley Black |
| camera | Harry Waxman |
| cut | Bill Lenny |
| occupation | |
| |
The Day the Earth Caught Fire (original title The Day the Earth Caught Fire is a) British science fiction film from 1961, directed by Val Guest . The film premiered in November 1961. In Germany it appeared on April 30, 1971 in a television version of the ZDF .
action
The journalist Peter Stenning walks through the deserted streets of London . Exhausted, he reaches his newspaper office and tries to write an editorial on the typewriter. Due to the prevailing heat, the ribbon has become unusable, so he gives the item to the printer by phone. Stenning begins the article by stating that 30 minutes have passed since the "corrective bombs" were detonated and that the world will know within the next few hours whether this is the end or a new beginning.
The film then fades back 90 days: Reporters for the London newspaper Daily Express report confusedly about abnormal weather phenomena around the world. There are increasing reports of plane crashes caused by sunspots. New York is ravaged by blizzards , devastating tornadoes are raging in the Soviet Union , and Londoners are suffering from a severe heat wave. Since there are no official statements on the situation, the media indulge in speculation.
Two employees of the newspaper, veteran reporter Stenning and science editor Bill Maguire, find out the cause of the weather disturbances: The Americans and Soviets carried out a nuclear test at the same time, the Americans at the North Pole, the Soviets at the South Pole. Stenning establishes contact with Jeanie Craig, who works as a telephone operator in the Met Office . Through them he learns that the nutation , i.e. the angle of inclination of the earth, has changed by eleven degrees. In an editorial conference , the staff later learned from the editor Arthur Christiansen (who was actually the editor of the Daily Express in real life and who plays himself) of a press conference by Soviet scientists in Moscow : the earth has left its orbit and is drifting towards the sun as a result of the explosions . The newspaper prints this news and causes panic among the population. According to Maguire, humans have four months to survive because of the steadily rising temperatures, which are already over 40 degrees in London and over 60 degrees in Mexico City .
To control the panic, governments are taking security measures. The cities are evacuated, food and water are given out in rations. Nevertheless, there are looting and demonstrations. Scientists from several countries are working on a plan to detonate four large atomic bombs in Western Siberia in order to return to their original orbit. On the day of the planned detonation, people seek cover in air raid shelters and cellars. While police cars drive through the streets and report the remaining time until the ignition, Stenning, Craig and Maguire go to their local pub, where they toast each other shortly before the end of the countdown. The detonation of the correction bombs is obviously so strong that the effects can still be felt in London: The pub is shaken slightly, the dust comes down from the ceiling. Shortly thereafter, Stenning made his way to the editorial office, where he wanted to wait for the effects of the explosions and passed his text on to the printer. At the same time, the newspaper's typesetters were preparing two headlines for the next issue. One is, “Will the world be saved? Humanity prays ”(“ World Saved. A nation prays ”), the other:“ Is the world doomed? ”(“ World Doomed. Now nation prays ”).
The camera then pans over the houses of London to St Paul's Cathedral , under the closing sentences of Stenning's leading article: “And should man be given a new future, then it would be time to show his relentless pride and striving for power forgets. Then he has to put love in place of all of this. Maybe one day he will be able to say again: How beautiful the light is. And raise your eyes to the sun. ”The film ends with bells ringing.
background
Michael Caine can be seen as a police officer and Peter Butterworth as a reporter in small supporting roles .
The editorial scenes were filmed on location in Fleet Street in London. The Daily Express provided office space for this. One of the editors of this newspaper, Arthur Christiansen , plays himself in the film.
The film was shot in black and white, but has some color effects that were created by using special camera filters.
Reviews
“A technically cleverly developed science fiction film that - based on the knowledge of its time - wants to make it clear that an understanding between the atomic powers is vital,” said the lexicon of international film . In doing so, “from the editors' point of view, social criticism and fiction are skilfully mixed”, which on the one hand creates “an oppressive description of a state of emergency” and on the other hand “critically questions the cynical professional view of journalists”. The conclusion of Cinema was: "Fascinating doomsday story".
Variety emphasized the brisk directorial style, the fast-paced and refined dialogues and the effective presentation. The Time Out Film Guide described the film as a "fascinating end-time film". Here, too, guests find rapid and exciting staging well received.
Awards
The screenplay won the British Film Academy Award for Best British Screenplay in 1962 .
synchronization
The German dubbed version was only created in 1970 on behalf of ZDF.
| role | actor | Voice actor |
|---|---|---|
| Peter Stenning | Edward Judd | Karl Heinz Bender |
| Bill Maguire | Leo McKern | Alf Marholm |
| Jeannie Craig | Janet Munro | Helga Trümper |
| Jacko, editor on duty | Michael Goodliffe | Günther Sauer |
| Mr. Davis, news editor | Bernard Braden | Manfred Andrae |
| Harry | Reginald Beckwith | Walter Clemens |
| Mr. Sanderson | Edward Underdown | Herbert Weicker |
| Jefferson, editor in chief | Arthur Christianson | Heinz Engelmann |
| Pat Holroyd | Geoffrey Chater | Kurt E. Ludwig |
| Ronnie | Robin Hawdon | Holger Ungerer |
| Angela | Renée Asherson | Charlotte Kerr |
| Prime Minister (voice) | Erik Jelde | |
| Radio announcer (voice) | Holger Hagen |
Web links
- The Day the Earth Caught Fire in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- The Day the Earth Caught Fire at Rotten Tomatoes (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ The day the earth caught fire. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed March 2, 2017 .
- ↑ See cinema.de
- ↑ Cf. variety.com ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ See tvguide.com
- ↑ See synchrondatenbank.de ( Memento of the original from March 5, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed May 30, 2017.
