Horst in Translation ([email protected]) "Der schweigende Stern" or "First Spaceship on Venus" 8and there are several other German and English titles for this one) is an East German movie from 1960. It had its 55th anniversary last year. The original film runs for 90 minutes, but the English dubbed version only goes on for 80 minutes. The English title is already a good indicator what this film is about, namely the exploration of space, especially of the planet Venus. The film is based on a novel and the director here is Kurt Maetzig and he is also one of the several writers who adapted the original work by Stanislaw Lem. Maetzig lived until 2012 and became over 100 years old. There are a handful of somewhat known science-fiction films from (East) Germany that are still known very well today despite being from the 1960s or 1970s. The most significant thing is maybe the cultural diversity of the cast. There's Caucasian actors, Asian actors, Black actors... as if this was Star Trek. I cannot say I am familiar with any of the cast members though.All in all, I found this a really generic science-fiction film. Mystery Science Theatre 3000 made this a lot more famous than it has any right to be with their unfunny and ignorant spoofing. Anyway, back to this one here. It's always surprising to see so many writers work on a film and then it becomes so mediocre and forgettable. Yes there was a trashy scene here and there and it felt pretty bizarre how the movie still took itself so seriously, but all in all I thought this was not a very interesting or even entertaining watch. Maybe it is worth checking out for the biggest SciFi fans who have seen almost everything else from the genre, but I cannot say that I would recommend checking this one out. Not even the visual side is really convincing, so four stars are still pretty generous. Better stay away.

arfdawg-1 (U.S. Version) A mysterious magnetic spool found during a construction project is discovered to have originated from Venus. A rocket expedition to Venus is launched to discover the origin of the spool and the race that created it.Oh so amazing. Or not.It's actually rather hard to watch. Talk talk talk. You wait for the action.And there is actually a scene where a spaceman gets injured and the doctor says "I think he has internal injuries. I must operate." As they drag him into the ship. What?It's a really bad film.

Aaron1375 I saw this film originally on the cult show, Mystery Science Theater 3000. I actually have it without the riffs in a package of two science fiction films, both foreign in origin. As far as films done by the gang on the satellite of love, this is one of the better ones they have done. That being said, it is still riff worthy, but that is more due to the fact it is very dated now and of course, the cut of the film they saw was a chopped up and repackaged version of the film. The special effects in areas look very good, but at the same time some of the effects look dated and kind of silly. Granted, this was in 1960 so one can be a bit more forgiving when one sees a string used to simulate weightlessness. Of course, the fact it was made in 1960 also makes the Venus set piece all the more impressive along with the strange ooze pit found on the silent planet. At the same time, the movie suffers from the fact that not enough time is spent on Venus and too much time is spent prepping for the trip and flying there. There is supposedly a cut of the film that runs 120 minutes, but if this is indeed a U.S. cut of the film, I'd imagine that there are not a lot of action sequences on the cutting room floor, but rather even more dialog scenes.The story has a mysterious object found that seems to suggest that there is life on Venus. A team of scientist launch into space to try and make contact with the planet. During their flight, one of the scientist is able to translate the object as it is apparently some sort of communication device and learns that Venus plans to attack Earth. Unable to relay the message to Earth, the continue onward to Venus in the hopes of making contact with its people and somehow convincing them not to attack the Earth. They finally land on the planet, but there seems to be no aliens there. They begin to explore the remnants of the seemingly lost civilization and begin to uncover the truth. Unfortunately, they also set into motion something that may doom them all to become permanent residents of the planet themselves! As an episode of Mystery Science Theater 3000, this one was an okay episode. It was a bit talky in areas and some of the jokes were repeated a few times. Still, it had some good moments, not just the riffs, but the actual movie as the scene where the scientist try to escape the ooze is particularly good. The robot of the film is kind of lame and it does make me chuckle when he just rolls over the one guy, talk about something that was completely avoidable! The bumps in the show were okay, the best being that robot that Tom and Crow created that talked in foam! So the film is a bit better than a lot of the films the show MST3K has riffed, but not the best. It was a bit too talky and could have used more action as they actual did make some impressive sets for the film and created some tension when they had to get off the planet. They also had a bit too much death at the end too. Everyone survives the trip and are doing fine, then the tail end they start dropping off! Still, a movie that I would say you may wan to view without the gang from the satellite of love. Not completely without merit and had an interesting concept. Just a bit more time on Venus would have been nice and less time watching doctor trying to feed her crew.

bkoganbing Back when Germany was divided politically and ideologically the Communist East German half gave us First Spaceship On Venus which is a rather self explanatory title. It hasn't worn well with time, but it's still open to speculation what's on Venus.A magnetic spool containing Venusian recordings is found in the wreckage of what was thought to be a meteor hitting the Siberian tundra in 1908. Just enough to arouse scientific curiosity is translated and an international expedition is formed.Back in 1908 things were happening on Venus and it was a more advanced civilization on that planet and more warlike. But a big old disaster happened and the Venusians were all killed. What happened to the Venusians is why you watch the film.The film is a plea for universal disarmament and it was made sincerely with the best of intentions. The message is laid on with a sledgehammer and the acting not great and the dubbing even worse.Still Walter Ulbricht who led East Germany back then had no real reason to be ashamed of the film, but it is sadly and badly dated.