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Forbidden PlanetFun, superior sci-fi that sets Shakespeare's 'The Tempest' in outer space. Headed by handsome young commander Leslie Nielsen (he wasn't always old, grey and deadpan you know), a crew of US spacefarers arrive on the colourful planet Altair to rescue a missing expedition that had left Earth some 20 years earlier.
They find the only survivor, dramatic Dr Morbius (Pidgeon, in the Prospero role), his nubile daughter Altaira (Francis) and a gullible, whiskey distilling robot called Robby, cowering from the malevolent, invisible force that skirts the fence of their compound.
Yes, the red peril was everywhere back then. Groundbreaking special effects decorate this, the smartest of the 50s B-movies. There's humour (especially from the robot), patronising romance and high camp, while the unusually intelligent script builds a winning tension as the force starts its violent campaign against the players.
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