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This Island Earth

This Island Earth

Science Fiction · Adventure · Horror · 1955

Aliens have landed and are hiding on Earth, but need Earth’s scientists to help them fight an inter-planetary war.

Movie details

This Island Earth

“2½ Years in the Making!”

1955 Science Fiction · Adventure · Horror 1h 25m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

6.0 / 10

Community rating

Aliens have landed and are hiding on Earth, but need Earth’s scientists to help them fight an inter-planetary war.

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over This Island Earth?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

Oblivion

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Robotech: The Shadow Chronicles

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The Black Hole

The Black Hole

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The explorer craft USS Palomino is returning to Earth after a fruitless 18-month search for extra-terrestrial life when the crew comes upon a supposedly lost ship, the USS Cygnus, hovering near a black hole. The ship is controlled by Dr. Hans Reinhardt and his monstrous robot companion, but the initial wonderment and awe the Palomino crew feel for the ship and its resistance to the power of the black hole turn to horror as they uncover Reinhardt's plans.

Babylon 5: The River of Souls

Babylon 5: The River of Souls

Action · 1998

A group of Soul Hunters come to Babylon 5 demanding the return of something that was stolen from them.

Babylon 5: The Gathering

Babylon 5: The Gathering

Sci-fi · 1993

The feature-length pilot for this Emmy award-winning show. Babylon 5 is the latest in a series of space stations built by humans. The Vorlon ambassador, Kosh, has been poisoned. It is the new commanding officer, Jeffrey Sinclair, who has the responsibility of finding the culprit. Otherwise, the space station will fail in its role of bringing many alien races together.

Babylon 5: A Call to Arms

Babylon 5: A Call to Arms

Action · 1999

Allies of the Shadows seek revenge against humanity. This movie sets up the series, "Crusade," the sequel to "Babylon 5."

Forbidden Planet

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Sci-fi · 1956

Starship C57D travels to planet Altair 4 in search of the crew of spaceship "Bellerophon," a scientific expedition that has been missing for twenty years. They find themselves unwelcome by the expedition's lone survivor and warned of destruction by an invisible force if they don't turn back immediately.

Star Trek: Insurrection

Star Trek: Insurrection

Sci-fi · 1998

When an alien race and factions within Starfleet attempt to take over a planet that has "regenerative" properties, it falls upon Captain Picard and the crew of the Enterprise to defend the planet's people as well as the very ideals upon which the Federation itself was founded.

Stargate: The Ark of Truth

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Action · 2008

SG-1 searches for an ancient weapon which could help them defeat the Ori, and discover it may be in the Ori's own home galaxy. As the Ori prepare to send ships through to the Milky Way to attack Earth, SG-1 travels to the Ori galaxy aboard the Odyssey. The International Oversight committee have their own plans and SG-1 finds themselves in a distant galaxy fighting two powerful enemies.

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Joseph M. Newman · Jack Arnold

Written by

Franklin Coen · Raymond F. Jones · George Callahan

Rex Reason

Rex Reason

Dr. Cal Meacham

Faith Domergue

Faith Domergue

Dr. Ruth Adams

Jeff Morrow

Jeff Morrow

Exeter

Lance Fuller

Lance Fuller

Brack

Robert Nichols

Robert Nichols

Joe Wilson

Russell Johnson

Russell Johnson

Steve Carlson

Douglas Spencer

Douglas Spencer

The Monitor of Metaluna

Court is in session

Put This Island Earth on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Adrenaline Seeker

“Its refusal to behave is the point.”

The strange choices create the kind of friction that follows you out of the theatre and into the argument.

The prosecution The Prestige Tourist

“Oddness is not depth.”

A film can break every rule and still leave nothing behind but the memory of how hard it tried to be singular.