The Day The Earth Stood Still Analysis

Following World War II, tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union grew out of political, cultural and economic differences. The former allies found themselves in competition for power, land and nuclear arms. Known as the Cold War, this period provoked an anti- communist hysteria in America. The fear of a communist takeover in the United States ignited Americans to support a “witch-hunt” in which several American citizens were summoned to court over their political beliefs. The film industry was debatably the most affected as government officials pinned a number of Hollywood directors and producers for possible communist propanda in their films.
With the potential of a nuclear war, America condemned Communism. Starting in the

late 1940s, the containment of the Soviet Union was a priority for the United States. Out of fear and paranoia, the American government created a media explosion around Hollywood in attempting to reveal any secret communist propaganda. However, the movie industry found a new form of expression in the Science Fiction Genre. With the genre’s ability to disguise its social and political context, the 1950s and 1960s experienced a trend of films involving an Alien Invasion. By escaping government censorship, science fiction allowed filmmakers to freely create their interpretation of the cold war.
The Cold War was essentially a battle of two very different political ideologies. While the United States supported a democratic and capitalist system, the USSR pushed for a communist dictatorship. For the USSR, the fair and equal principles of Communism would hopefully create a Utopia for their impoverished nation. Yet, the United States disapproved of the heavy government regulations.
With Communism spreading across Eastern Europe, the United States experienced a period of paranoia. After China adopted the Communist regime, the American government believed they needed to start taking action to prevent the Soviet Union from world domination. In an effort to contain Communism, the United States started a domestic investigation of any secret communist activity. One of the first publicized steps occurred when the government created the House of Un-American Activities (HUAC) to expose American citizens that had secret Communist affiliations. Beginning in 1947, the HUAC committee started to accuse Hollywood professionals for promoting Communist ideas in several films.
During HUAC’s investigations, the committee first brought ten Hollywood directors and screenwriters to court. Known as the Big Ten, the accused consisted of Alvan Bessie, Lester Cole, Ring Lardner Jr., John Howard Lawson, Albert Maltz, Samuel Ornitz , Dalton Trumbo, Edward Dmytryk, Adrian Scott and Herbert J. Biberman. In the highly publicized trial, the Big Ten were asked, “ Are you now or have you ever been a communist”. However the defendants refused to answer any questions regarding their political party membership. On November 24, 1947, the ten were sentenced to a one-year jail sentence for contempt of Congress. Following the court’s decision, Eric Johnson who was currently serving as president of the Motion Picture Producer Association (MPPA) summoned the executives of the major Hollywood studios for a meeting. In considering the outcome of the trial, the MPPA decided to dismiss all the contracts of the Big Ten as well as announcing a blacklisting in Hollywood of any known Communists. The executives made a public declaration to the public in the following statement: “We will not knowingly employ a communist or a member of any party or group that advocates the overthrow of the government of the United States by force or by illegal or unconstitional methods”. As a result, numerous working directors and writers in Hollywood were banned from studios. Since many of Hollywood Producers and Directors were Jewish, a large portion of their films revolved around the defeat of Nazi Germany by the USSR. . Films originally meant to express sympathy for the Jewish culture were mistaken for attempting to promote a Communist agenda. There was no clear evidence of any communist connections for those who were blacklisted but America’s paranoia over a Soviet invasion became a huge influence over Hollywood.
The Communist “witch-hunt” in Hollywood lead to an increase of censorship on the films released. Fearful of any further communist accusations, Movie studios steered clear of producing films with a political theme. However, Hollywood found a solution to voice their opinions through the science fiction genre. While aspects of the genre had previously appeared in the 1930s, Science Fiction’s popularity took off in the 1950s. With the decade’s anxiety about the nuclear war and the recent success of Science Fiction literature, Hollywood realized that the genre was a major opportunity for the film industry. At a time where the possibility of an atomic bombing was imminent, the concepts of Science Fiction films were relatable to the public. In having technology as a driving force for the genre, the films were a more accurate portrayal of America’s growing focus on machinery. Science Fiction scholar Eric Rabkin explained the genre as “a phenomenon that arises wherever modern science and technology make people aware of new problems aware of new problems or cause them to view old problems in new ways.” With the films containing themes of alien invasions and nuclear disasters, Science Fiction in the 1950s and 60s became a representation for the anxieties America faced during the Cold War. Furthermore, the genre’s format was able to escape the scrutiny of the American government. By developing fabricated plots, filmmakers were able use alien invasions as way to disguise their own political commentary over the Cold War. In using unrealistic scenarios, Hollywood was able to avoid scandal while at the same time lifting the creative constraint on directors and screenwriters.
The correlation between the Cold War and Science Fiction genre can be observed in The Invasion of the Body snatchers. Released in 1953, the film presents a small American Town secretly housing an alien race. Throughout the plot, the non-human life forms attempt to infiltrate the town’s residents. The “Body snatchers” desire to replace the current consumer society with a perfect and harmonic Utopia.
The aliens’ depiction in Invasion of the Body snatchers is a clear parallel to the Soviet Union. Similar to the Communist ideology, the aliens were less focused on individualism and more concerned with their race as a whole. However the body snatchers had deficit shortcomings in showing love or faith. In essence, the film’s social commentary involved the comparison of the humans verse the aliens.
While the humans had the ability to show emotions, the aliens were all the same in lacking any emotional connections. The Body snatcher’s absence of individuality was a purposeful resemblance to America’s perception of the Soviet Union.
In addition, the aliens were able to transform themselves as humans. Therefore, the town was unable to differentiate the townspeople from the aliens. As a reference to the Cold War, the human like extraterrestrials were an analogy to the ability of Communists to go unnoticed in America. The connection was extremely relevant in considering the ongoing Communist Witch-hunt was focused on exposing any secret Communist activity on American soil. On the other hand, the film’s underlying focus could be seen as a social critique on American culture. The invasion of Aliens originating from tiny seeds that blew from outer space could be a comparison to the unlikelihood of a Communist takeover in the United States. The absurd storyline surrounding the Alien’s presence in the small town emphasizes the rare chance that Communism would fall to America. Thus, Invasion of the Body snatchers could be justified as a visual criticism of the Anti-Communist hysteria. By utilizing the Science Fiction genre, the film’s plot was secretly able to ridicule the government’s unnecessary paranoia over Communism.
While Invasion of the Body Snatchers gave a negative portrayal of extraterristals, aliens were seen as misunderstood in The Day The Earth Stood Still.

Released in 1953, the film begins with the arrival of an alien by the name of Klaatu.
Klaatu announces that he comes in peace and has arrived to deliver an important message to the human race. He traveled to earth in order to warn the world leaders about the consequences of their violent political atmosphere. The alien believes that earth is reaching a technological level in which their violent actions could prove to be a danger to other planets. He states that if earth’s corrupt political climate expands to outer space then humans will face lethal repercussions. Yet, the American military starts to deploy their weapons immediately after Klaatu exits his spaceship. The alien is therefore forced to use his robot, Gortu, to melt the weapons with a ray of energy. In observing his advanced knowledge of technology, America reacts to the alien’s arrival in a defensive and hysterical manner. As Klaatu repeatedly assures earth of his peaceful intentions, the world still labels him as a dangerous enemy. In one critical scene, the alien is seen peacefully eating breakfast. At the same time, a radio station alarms the public of

Klaatu.
“And now on this Sunday morning, we ask some questions which have
been haunting the entire nation for the past two days. This creature- Where
is he? What is he up to? If he can build a spaceship that can fly to earth and a
robot that can destroy our tanks and guns, What other terrors can he unleash
at will? Obviously the monster must be found. He must be tracked down like
a wild animal, he must be destroyed. The question remains: What can we do
protect ourselves? What measures can we take to neutralize this menace
from another world? Destroy it? Of course!”
The combative tone of the radio announcer is interpreted by the film as excessive and ridiculous. Klaatu’s peaceful demeanor and actions prove that he is anything but a menace. The public perceives the alien’s intelligence as a threat instead of actually acknowledging his forewarnings concerning earth’s future.

At the time of the release, the social commentary in The Day The Earth Stood Still had a significant distinction from other science fiction films. The director, Robert Wise, used the storyline of the film to interrogate US culture. He reversed the roles of the aggressor and the victim for viewers to consider all sides of the story. Klaatu’s desire for a peaceful co-existence between the human race criticizes the damaging effects of the Cold War. Not to be mistaken as pro-communist, the film rather examines the limited mentality of human culture. In conveying America’s reaction over Klaatu as unwarranted, The Day The Earth Stood Still questions the cultural mechanisms around fear. In having Earth refuse to form a peaceful relationship between Klaatu, the film becomes a social commentary on America’s refusal to put aside their cultural differences with the Soviet Union. The Day The Earth Stood Still has since become famous for criticizing America’s unjustified hostility towards Communists during the Cold War.
The release of The Thing From Another World was seen as a polar opposite to The Day The Earth Stood Still by exploring the possibility of a World War 3.

While Invasion of the Body snatchers and The Day The Earth Stool Still contained themes that denounced a nuclear arms war, The Thing From Another World supported the idea of using military action. The storyline begins with an alien landing in the North Pole discovered by Scientists and the American Air Force. They bring back the frozen extraterrestrial to a research station to investigate the unknown life form. The Air Force views the alien as an invader to destroy while the Scientists want to protect the creature. However, the alien unfreezes and starts to wreak havoc throughout the research base. Differing from the previous two films mentioned, the alien gives no mercy to the humans, repeatedly attacking anyone in his

way.
As the only solution, the Air Force decided to take a direct approach by using military force. The film’s social commentary is unique for examining America’s engagement in the arms race. The Thing From Another World forms a Pro- American Theme in encouraging the attack on an enemy that strikes first. Relating to the ongoing arms race between the Soviet Union and the United States, the film is memorable for backing a military response in the case of a Communist attack. Instead of criticizing America’s paranoia surrounding Communism, The Thing From Another World considers the possible outcome of the tension between the U.S.S.R. and the United States.
The Communist hysteria in the United States during the 1950s and 1960s has been perceived as a key reason to the rise of Science Fiction films. Films such as Invasion of the Body Snatchers, The Day The Earth Stood Still and The Thing From Another World used themes of technology and alien invasions in order to relate to the Cold War. In creating a fabricated world, Hollywood avoided the extreme government censorship and scrutiny stemming from the ongoing Communist witch-hunt in America. As a result, the popularity of Science Fiction Films went hand in hand with the ability of filmmakers to indirectly and freely express their interpretations of the political and cultural tensions during the Cold War.