In the 1950s, the United States and the Soviet Union were engaged in the Cold War, which led to profound impacts on American society. Fearing the spreading influence of communism, many Americans, especially Joseph McCarthy, acted irrationally and falsely and accused people of consorting with the Soviet Union resulting in the second Red Scare in the US. Furthermore, as the Cold War nuclear arms race began to reach its peak, the US began to focus many of its resources on developing weapons. During this tumultuous time, American citizens had varying opinions as to what position America should take: continue to engage in the arms race with the Soviet Union or to take a neutral stance. The various opinions regarding the arms race and the feelings of anti-communism were expressed in movies made in Hollywood. In The Day the Earth Stood Still, Robert Wise, the director, attempted to express anxieties associated with the arms race and the anti-communist fervor during the Cold War. Through the use of an alien diplomat, a giant robot, and other human characters in the movie, Fried conveys messages advocating for international peace. The various reactions of the characters in The Day the Earth Stood Still reveal the true meaning of the movie: to denounce the spread of the McCarthyism movement and to criticize the support for the arms race with the Soviet Union.
The Day the Earth Stood Still opens with a UFO landing in the middle of Washington D.C. Klaatu, an alien emissary of an advanced alien civilization, and Gort, his robot companion, exit the spacecraft, and Klaatu declares in perfect English that he has a gift for the president of the United States. However, he is shot by a trigger-happy GI soldier who mistakenly thought that Klaatu was drawing a weapon. He is taken to a hospital where he heals overnight. There, Klaatu demands to meet with the world’s leaders, but when his request is rejected, he takes it upon himself to learn about humanity and leaves the hospital. On his excursion, he meets Helen Benson, who introduces him to Dr. Barnhardt. However, Klaatu is found by the authorities before he is about to meet a group of intellectuals and is killed. He is brought back to life by Gort using advanced technologies in the spaceship. Before leaving Earth, Klaatu issues a final warning: Earth’s people must learn to live in peace, or they will risk being obliterated by an alien race.
In this film, Klaatu’s demeanor and actions mirror those of Christ; thus, the authorities’ irrational fear and cruel assaults against this Christ figure reveal the denouncement of McCarthyism. The link between Klaatu and Christ is evident when Klaatu adopts the name Mr. Carpenter, the profession of Christ, and when he is revived, which represents the Resurrection of Christ. These parallels were introduced primarily to allow the audience to sympathize with Klaatu, who represents the victims of McCarthyism. Thus, any irrational anti-communist persecution would be the same as rejecting Christ himself. These parallels also suggest that the military movement sweeping the nation was inconsistent with the claim that the United States was in tandem with Christian principles. Because Klaatu was a victim of irrational fear and actions of American citizens, he represents those harmed by McCarthyism and the red scare; therefore, by being a Christ figure, the audience can understand the position of Klaatu and those affected by McCarthyism.
Within this movie, there is a critical commentary on the use of radio, the primary use of media in this movie, criticizing the role that media played in the determining the view of the people. Before the landing of the spacecraft, there is a typical movie montage fo various news commentators from around the world announcing the arrival of the mysterious ship, resulting in an unprovoked attack Klaatu. The rapid cutting clips of various news display the information in a sense of emergency setting the ground for how the audience interprets the shorter news clips heard throughout the movie. The next role that the media plays in spreading the fear of Klaatu is especially prominent once he escapes from the hospital. As he is walking in Washington disguised as Mr. Carpenter he hears the hysterical voices of radio announcers and TV commentators through the windows of houses he passes by denouncing him by comparing him to animals just as the news in the 1950s did to people suspected of supporting communism.
Also, in one scene there is a reporter searching for people to interview and just so happens to interview Klaatu in his disguise. Klaatu begins to make a defense of the alien, himself, but is quickly cut off by the interviewer who begins to search for someone else to interview. This incident criticizes how the media only search for the news that would support their own beliefs ignoring the true thought of the public, just as Klaatu, in disguise, was. Another critique of the presence of media is when Gabriel Heatter, a real-life famous news reporter, makes an appearance despite being portrayed negatively. On the verge of hysteria, he urges the media to search for Klaatu, calling him a monster and a wild animal. Because Klaatu is portrayed as a mild-mannered alien, the outlandish claims by Heatter that he is a monster do not entirely make sense. Furthermore, the way in which he spoke in that scene was similar to the way in which other radio announcers of the 1950s spoke when fueling the anti-communist hysteria sweeping the nation. This broadcast furthers the argument that the violent response to Klaatu at his arrival was immature supporting the idea that he was a Christ figure afflicted only by the hysteria caused by the news.
Not only does The Day the Earth Stood Still criticize the role of the media in spreading anti-communism hysteria, but also some specific aspects of American society. His first critique is found in the person of Mr. Barley. He is portrayed as a stubborn and pigheaded man just like his wife who claims to be a total Republican, connecting his one-track way of thinking to the Republican party who were beginning to be supportive of military funding in the 1950s. The connection between the stubborn Mr. Barley is further supported, when he is told that the government will be able to handle the crisis and scoffs, “They’re not people-they’re Democrats.” Also, similar to Klaatu being parallel to an important figure in the Bible, Tom Stevens mirrors the infamous Judas Iscariot, known mainly for betraying Jesus. Depicted as a jealous insurance salesman, he is quite happy when he discovers Klaatu’s cover as Mr. Carpenter and is more than willing to sell him out for the reward from the police, just as Judas did to Jesus. This link between him and Judas symbolizes the critique of not only the insurance business but can also extend to the entire American business specifically does that benefit from the mass hysteria sweeping the nation, such as newspapers and radio.
Despite the many critiques of humans, there are prominent examples of Americans who are depicted as the example of the way one should live their life. Because the common person in this film does not understand his message for peace, Klaatu must seek the intellectually elite, the only ones who could understand his message. Mr. Barnhardt, the smartest person in this movie, is portrayed extremely positively being the voice of reason among the chaos. He is simply the stand-in for Albert Einstein, because of his profession as a theoretical scientist and ruffled hair. During this time, Einstein was an extremely controversial figure. He was a Jewish foreigner and used his celebrity status to advocate for peace and at times speak in face of the government. Because of his willingness to advocate for peace, he continuously found himself confronting the authorities. For example, in 1945, Congressman John Rankin, member of the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC), attacked Einstein for being a foreigner attempting to spread communism. Because Einstein is parallel to Dr. Barnhardt, the most positively depicted person of the movie, the audience can sympathize with Einstein and understand the problems of the increase in military spending. Along with portraying Dr. Barnhardt in a positive light, The Day the Earth Stood Still depicts the other intellectuals with the ability that potentially suggest that could lead the country better than the current politicians, again supporting the idea that people should listen to intellectuals like Einstein advocating for peace, calling for an end to the arms race. In a sense, Klaatu can also be considered as one of the intellectuals of the movie. For example, he shown in one scene to solve a complicated problem that Barnhardt had not yet competed in a few mere seconds and is in actuality his knowledge and power is far superior to them, suggesting that he may be even more well suited to lead the country than they are. Klaatu’s desire for calling a meeting of intellectuals also reflects the call for a stronger United Nations and peacekeeping force.
To conclude the movie once Klaatu is brought back to life after being shot, he gives a long speech before leaving Earth that addresses the chaos on Earth and can be interpreted as a message warning about the dire consequences of a catastrophic war that could result from the massive buildup of arms during the Cold War. He begins with reminding the crowd gathered around his spacecraft that their fights and wars on Earth over their nuclear bombs are nothing compared to the threat of nuclear war with the entire galactic community, which is monitored by a peacekeeping force, Gort and his super being race. Next, he states that any threat of any group in the universe cannot be tolerated, and will be taken care of. Thus, he suggests that there is some kind of interplanetary United Nations, supporting the UN to monitor the countries power. An interesting to take note at the end, that Gort and the rest of his kind do in fact have power over Klaatu, but this power can only be manifested as being an armed peacekeeper. Gort’s power directly relates to the Baruch Plan, in which all nuclear weapons will be placed under the control of the United Nations, just like how Gort has all the power to enforce peace.
Through the excellent use of its character The Day the Earth Stood effectively expresses its opinions on military spending and the mass hysteria in the nation. During the 1950s, there was a great fear of the increasing atomic research and even a possible third world war. Throughout the movie, there is an ever-present social allegory to Klaatu and his companion Gort are the main devices used to condemn military spending and the spread of anti-communism. Klaatu is a Christ figure who his chased down by the media and is critiqued by common people one of which mirror Judas Iscariot. Furthermore, Dr. Barnhardt is portrayed as Einstein and because he is portrayed as a wise and compassionate man, the move supports the intellectuals advocating for peace in the time of chaos during the Cold War. Today, the message advocating for peace may same extremely common. However, in the Cold War period full of discord, the message condemning military spending and the spread of mass hysteria in The Day the Earth Stood Still can be considered an extremely bold and perhaps even brave statement.
Bibliography
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