Blu-Ray Reviews: Sci-Fi Catalog Releases Including ‘Matrix Reloaded,’ ‘THX 1138’

Printer-friendly versionE-mail page to friendPDF version

“Forbidden Planet”

Blu-Ray Rating: 3.5/5.0

The most notable release of the sextet of sci-fi catalog titles is probably the HD debut of the incredibly-influential “Forbidden Planet,” a film that genre fans admire and adore. When “Forbidden Planet” was released on standard DVD in a gorgeous anniversary set in 2006, it was an event for sci-fi fans. The Blu-ray release is essentially an import of that release with the same special features and essentially the same video and audio transfer. In fact, some might even call this a “downgrade” as the HD picture looks a little more unnatural than the standard quality on the DVD.

Forbidden Planet was released on Blu-ray on September 7th, 2010. Photo credit: Warner Bros.

The films (and TV shows) influenced by Robby the Robot and the tale of “Forbidden Planet” are too many to count. Having said that, there’s a difference between influential and enjoyable and “Forbidden Planet” is more of the former. It’s a film that’s incredibly easy to admire on a historical level but not that easy of one to get through on a Saturday night. The special features on “Forbidden Planet” are almost more interesting than the film itself, including a separate feature film (“The Invisible Boy”) and an episode of “The Thin Man” that feature Robby the Robot. Extensive documentaries, lost footage, and deleted scenes round out a very remarkable package of special features.

Synopsis: “Forbidden Planet is the granddaddy of tomorrow, a pioneering work whose ideas and style would be reverse-engineered into many cinematic space voyages to come. Leslie Nielsen plays the commander who brings his spacecruiser crew to Planet Altair-4, home to Dr. Morbius (Walter Pidgeon), his daughter (Anne Francis), a dutiful robot named Robby…and to a mysterious terror. Featuring sets of extraordinary scale and the first all-electronic musical soundscape in film history, Forbidden Planet is in a movie orbit all its own.”

“Forbidden Planet” is presented in 1080p High Definition 16x9 2.40:1 widescreen with a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track.

Special Features:
o Deleted Scenes and Lost Footage
o 2 Follow-Up Vehicles Starring Robby the Robot:
- Feature Film “The Invisible Boy”
- The Thin Man TV Series Episode “Robot Client”
o TCM Original “Watch The Skies!: Science Fiction, the 1950s and Us”
o “Amazing! Exploring the Far Reaches of Forbidden Planet”
o “Robby the Robot: Engineering a Sci-Fi Icon”
o Excerpts from “The MGM Parade” TV Series
o Theatrical Trailers of “Forbidden Planet” and “The Invisible Boy”