Firebirds ready to go

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Movie
German title Firebirds ready to go
Original title Thunderbirds Are Go!
Country of production Great Britain
original language English
Publishing year 1966
length 90 minutes
Rod
Director David Lane
script Gerry Anderson , Sylvia Anderson
music Barry Gray , songs interpreted and composed by Cliff Richard and The Shadows
camera Paddy Seale
occupation
chronology

Successor  →
Thunderbird 6

Thunderbirds Are GO ( English title Thunderbirds Are Go! ) Is a British puppets - science fiction - feature film from 1966, which in the context of the television series Thunderbirds from Sylvia and Gerry Anderson was born. It was performed on August 11, 1967 in West Germany ; Years before the television series aired on the third programs . The follow-up production Thunderbird 6 from 1968 did not come to theaters in Germany and was only released on October 1, 2004 by MGM / 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment with German dubbing together with Part 1 in the "Thunderbirds Collection" on DVD. Both films will be released on November 6, 2014 in German by Concorde on Blu-ray Disc.

action

After the first terrestrial attempt to carry out a spaceship expedition to Mars was prevented by sabotage , the Zero X can be launched from the Glenn Field test site in the USA in 2067 . An expedition team lands on the planet with a lander . On Mars, space travelers will only find rock formations and no vegetation . When they make blasts to take rock samples, the living rocks open fire on the spacemen. With great difficulty they return to the Zero X with the lander .

When re-entering the earth's atmosphere , control problems arise on the Zero X that cannot be remedied with on-board resources. Therefore, International Rescue is asked to provide assistance with their special vehicles. In a difficult rescue operation, the crew is rescued, but Zero X falls and shatters.

Trivia

  • The film contains a dream sequence in which Alan Tracy and Lady Penelope fly into orbit in FAB 1 . They dock at a floating dance hall where Cliff Richard Jr. and The Shadows perform. The puppets are designed based on living models; the two songs they composed Shooting Star and Lady Penelope are also played and sung by them.
  • CITV is currently producing a new television series with 26 episodes, which will be broadcast from 2015, under the title "Thunderbirds Are Go" (that is also the name of the first feature film).

criticism

... The specialty of the film, staging an SF theme with mechanical puppets, did not catch on. The spectator simply does not have the opportunity to identify with the people involved, to cheer for them. As actors, dolls are just mere objects. Accordingly, the technical systems are only model size, which, however - and this is the strength of the film - often does not penetrate the consciousness due to good recording technology and the underlying real background noise ...

Hahn / Jansen, Lexicon of Science Fiction Films

The Protestant film observer comes to a mediocre judgment : “Tricks and construction skills cannot be overlooked, but a rather uncomfortable outlook on life and environment is offered. Not a feature film, but rather a toy film for young people and adult children. "

literature

  • Ronald M. Hahn , Volker Jansen: Lexicon of Science Fiction Films. 720 films from 1902 to 1983 . Wilhelm Heyne Verlag, Munich 1983, p. 148f. ISBN 3-453-01901-6 .
  • Simon Archer, Marcus Hearn: What made Thunderbirds Go! The authorized biography of Gerry Anderson . BBC Worldwide Limited, London 2002, ISBN 0-563-53481-8 .
  • Sylvia Anderson: Yes, M'Lady . London 1994.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Evangelischer Presseverband München, Review No. 355/1967