The Creation of the Humanoids
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| Original title | The Creation of the Humanoids |
| Country of production | United States |
| original language | English |
| Publishing year | 1962 |
| length | 84 minutes |
| Rod | |
| Director | Wesley E. Barry |
| script | Jay Simms |
| production | Wesley E. Barry Edward J. Kay |
| camera | Hal Mohr |
| cut |
Ace Herman (as Leonard W. Herman) |
| occupation | |
| |
The Creation of the Humanoids (alternatively Creation of the Humanoids ) is an American science fiction film directed by Wesley E. Barry from 1962 . The film is not based on Jack Williamson's novel The Humanoids (Eng. Wing 4 ), as erroneously stated in the Internet Movie Database , but on an original script by Jay Simms.
After a nuclear war, robots in human form are part of everyday appearance, as mankind suffers from a declining birth rate and is dependent on machine support. A fanatical organization of humans is trying to prevent the robots from gaining full civil rights. At the same time, a scientist is experimenting with human doppelgangers with authentic feelings and memories.
action
The earth is suffering from the consequences of nuclear war, and the human population is inexorably shrinking due to declining birth rates. The "humanoids" of the film title, technically advanced robots in human form with artificial personalities , support people in the scientific field as well as in everyday life. A fanatical organization of people, the “Order of Flesh and Blood”, tries to restrict the freedoms of the robots and does not shy away from illegal actions, including violent attacks.
The scientist Dr. Raven developed a technique called “ thalamic transplant ” that can transfer the personality and memories of a deceased person to a machine doppelganger. This doppelganger is unaware of its artificial nature; he can move freely, he only switches off once a day for an hour to give feedback to the humanoids. With Dr. Raven's help is secretly exchanged by the humanoids, one by one, who have died.
Cragis, one of the leaders of the "Order of Flesh and Blood", and Maxine fall in love, although Maxine rejects the machinations of the "Order". At the same time, Cragis tries to persuade his sister to break up with her life partner, a robot, as this connection endangers his leadership position. In the finale, Cragis and Maxine have to learn that they belong to the artificial doppelgangers that Dr. Raven made from people who died recently. Maxine was killed in a bomb attack that the "Order" had carried out against the robots. Raven, himself a duplicate after a fatal attack, explains to Cragis and Maxine that the two are already humanoids of the next generation - they are able to reproduce in human-biological ways.
background
According to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) directory, filming of The Creation of the Humanoids was completed in August 1960. On July 3, 1962, the film was launched in Los Angeles.
The AMPAS directory, Leonard Maltin's 2008 Movie Guide , Phil Hardy's The Aurum Film Encyclopedia - Science Fiction and Michael Weldon's The Psychotronic Encyclopedia of Film give the running time of the film as 75 minutes. However, the US DVD by Dark Sky runs for 84 minutes (as does the no longer available VHS release by Something Weird Video). It is unclear whether the different information was due to an error or whether a shorter version of the film existed.
The opening credits of the film do not provide any information about the composer of the film music, which primarily consists of spherical female chants. Instead, a title appears with the note "Electronic Harmonics by IFM" The Internet Movie Database shows this abbreviation as the pseudonym of the film composer (and producer of the film) Edward J. Kay , who was primarily active in the 1940s and 1950s , but there is no evidence of this.
The Creation of the Humanoids is often cited as Andy Warhol's favorite film, although it is not known whether Warhol actually made this statement or even knew the film.
Reviews
It is not known whether The Creation of the Humanoids was recognized by contemporary critics and how it was evaluated by them. However, the film was mentioned in Susan Sontag's 1965 essay on science fiction cinema entitled The Imagination of Disaster .
The following reviews are from later decades:
“Theatrical cheap product without any speed.” - Leonard Maltin .
"This interesting film [...] suffers a lot from Simms' chatty script." - The Aurum Film Encyclopedia - Science Fiction .
"A badly undervalued gem of great value [and] a perfect example that science fiction should serve as a creative field for ideas instead of special effects." - Richard Scheib, Moria - The Science Fiction, Horror and Fantasy Film Review .
"Granted, it's a gross, unsubtle film, but to make this one in the early 1960s, with the oncoming storm of the civil rights movement in mind, took some courage on the part of the filmmakers." - Erick Harper, DVD Verdict .
"While unquestionably a well-thought-out science fiction film, The Creation of the Humanoids remains an odd work." - Glenn Erickson, DVD Savant .
DVD release
The Creation of the Humanoids is available in the USA on a double DVD with the film War Between the Planets ( Il pianeta errante , Orion-3000 - Raumfahrt des Horens ). The DVD is distributed by Dark Sky. The VHS release of Something Weird Video is no longer available.
The film was not shown in German cinemas and is not offered on DVD in German-speaking countries.
Web links
- The Creation of the Humanoids in the Internet Movie Database (English)
Individual evidence
- ^ A b The Creation of the Humanoids in the Internet Movie Database .
- ↑ Information in the opening credits: “Story and screenplay by Jay Simms”.
- ↑ Entry ( Memento of the original from March 3, 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. from the Directory of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, accessed June 5, 2012.
- ^ Leonard Maltin's 2008 Movie Guide , Signet / New American Library, New York 2007.
- ↑ Phil Hardy (ed.): The Aurum Film Encyclopedia - Science Fiction , Aurum Press, London 1991.
- ↑ Michael Weldon: The Psychotronic Encyclopedia of Film , Plexus, London 1989.
- ↑ Article by David Bourdon in The Village Voice, December 3, 1964, accessed June 5, 2012.
- ↑ Chris Fujiwara: Intonation Please: The Creation of the Humanoids . In: Gregg Rickman (Ed.): The Science Fiction Film Reader . Limelight, May 1, 2004, ISBN 9780879109943 , p. 153 ( Accessed August 30, 2010).
- ^ Susan Sontag: The Imagination of Disaster , in Commentary , October 1965, New York.
- ↑ "Slow, stagy cheapie [...]" - Leonard Maltin's 2008 Movie Guide , Signet / New American Library, New York 2007
- ↑ "This interesting film [...] is badly let down by Simms' over-talkative script." - Phil Hardy (Ed.): The Aurum Film Encyclopedia - Science Fiction , Aurum Press, London 1991
- ↑ "[...] a highly underrated gem of considerable worth [and] a perfect illustration of how science-fiction should work as a literature of ideas rather than of special effects." - Online review by Richard Scheib on Moria - The Science Fiction , Horror and Fantasy Film Review , accessed June 5, 2012.
- ↑ "Yes, it is ham-handedly, painfully un-subtle, but making a film with this message in the early 1960s, with the storms of the civil rights movement still raging, required considerable courage on the part of the filmmakers." Erick Harper's online review on DVD Verdict , accessed June 5, 2012.
- ↑ "Undeniably sophisticated as science fiction, The Creation of the Humanoids is one weird movie." Online review by Glenn Erickson on DVD Savant , accessed June 5, 2012.
