esmorr I like this 1950's movie. I enjoy most of the pictures from this era and have several of its contemporaries. I won't go into the storyline, as many other reviewers have already done that, but suffice it to say that this is one more of those 50's space movies that so many of us love. They just can't make gems like this today.I have seen some reviews here which bag the available DVD print. I must say that I picked this DVD up a few days ago, and it seems fine; there are no scratches etc on it, and it plays perfectly well. It is a 'Bounty' DVD from Australia, and a 'Monogram' production, so whether or not it has been taken from the same master as the 'Image' print mentioned by other reviewers I do not know. My only query about it is that for the first 15 min's or so, and in some subsequent scenes, everything appears quite greenish, (ie: there is a distinct greenish tinge to the whole thing, almost as though a green filter was used in the making of the film, which I would doubt very much). I have been told that that is because it has been taken from a print which has not been re-mastered. However, it's not something that will ruin the movie for me, nor should it for you.This movie has lots of the quaint things which are distinctive about the pictures from that era, such as fantastic rocket ships, great imagination, quaint outfits, (leather flying jackets and leather flying caps as spacesuits, alien women with padded shoulders and mini-skirts), and a martian surface with no change of gravity! - and breathable air !!! All in all it's great!I have given this movie a 9 out of 10 because it doesn't quite come up to the level of other movies of the period such as Forbidden Planet, (one of the best), When worlds collide, or The day the Earth stood still, (even though it's a black and white movie). Even Destination Moon was a more polished production and it was made the year before. However, it's still a great movie for any fan's collection and I'm glad to finally have it in mine!

dbonk Actually, the leader of so-called 'poverty studios' was given the highest accolade by French New Wave director Jean Luc-Godard who sited Monogram Pictures as a significant influence in his seminal 1959 film BREATHLESS.FLIGHT TO MARS certainly has a Saturday afternoon matinée feel to it backed with a popcorn budget with butter. It is filmed in warmly lit Super Cinecolor. The movie was lensed in five days according to Cameron Mitchell who portrays the stalwart lead character. With his trusty Underwood typewriter he is chronicling an on board journal for his newspaper of this intrepid crew's voyage to the red planet. The crew members on board, including flight commander Arthur Franz, are dressed for a camping trip. The exception is Virginia Huston, introduced as 'the lady scientist', wearing a skirt and heels.When this movie was released in 1951, remember, there was no NASA, no satellites for that matter, and Flash Gordon was really the closest thing to reality regarding space travel. Given these parameters, it's relatively simple to suspend belief and be caught up in the moment to which this film takes us.After a white knuckle landing on Mars surface, one crew member suggests putting on oxygen masks before venturing outside. They have no pressurized space suits or helmets, you see. Oddly enough, the Martians do, hand me downs from the movie DESTINATION MOON.The Earthlings are given the tour of the Martian's underground city which resembles a paper mache version of H.G. Wells' THINGS TO COME. Upon seeing their living quarters, lady scientist Virginia Huston's first question is "Where's the kitchen?" Terris, the comely Martian hostess,(Lucille Barkley) informs the crew that there are no kitchens, but laboratories and meals are delivered by request. Yes, the Martians speak perfect English. They listen to radio shows. Evidently, that green-eyed monster,television, which has already subjugated Earth has not invaded Martian soil....yet. She then presses a button and a cart of food with drinks emerges from the wall. Terris reminds me of Betty Furness who would always look so comfortable showing off the features of the latest Westinghouse refrigerator on TV. Makes me wonder how many more fridges Betty could have sold if she was wearing the ensemble that Terris is sporting.Oh yes, the Earth crew's wardrobe have to comport with the typical Martian. That means the men appear in Prince Valiant garb with gray flannel underwear and boots. Virginia, the only female crew member is given what every Martian woman wears, a sleeveless mini-dress with go-go boots. Terris says, "they're very comfortable." One of the more prominent citizens is leggy Alita,played by Marguerite Chapman. Alita was originally Aelita the Queen of Mars in the classic 1924 Soviet film bearing her name. For FLIGHT TO MARS she appears to have been dethroned to a more subordinate role of administrative assistant to the Council of which her father is a member. Yet, Alita is obviously high up in the Martian fem corporate ladder as she doesn't wear boots, but customized jet black pumps with her mini outfit.One can imagine Dr. Werner Von Braun and his fellow scientists getting a kick out of this flick in their desert compound at Los Alamos, New Mexico, when they weren't developing their Redstone rocket.FLIGHT TO MARS is short enough at 72 minutes that there's no chance of boredom to set in. So bring along a B-17 flight jacket and prepare to board ship.

ptb-8 Monogram Pictures fizz off into outer space using gym locker room sets as spaceship interiors, military disposal store props and 2 color color and then reveal Mars is populated with man hungry showgirls wearing miniskirts sporting hairdoos by the Bettie Page salon de crater. What's not to like? this theme was recycled into at least three films I embrace equally: Cat Women Of The Moon, The Queen Of Outer Space (yippee!) and Mesa Of Lost Women. Showgirls, hairy spiders with goggly eyes, fellers with tin ray guns and possibly the same sweat stained space suits in each film. Very good. This one skipped the spider though and is a remake of Rocketship XM. I love the idea we can get into a flying pencil-case with a cracker up the exhaust pipe, settle into a bunk yanked from a submarine, crash-land in a quarry and meet scantily clad ex-LasVegas assistant cashiers who each look like Aunty Lorraine and her gal-pal Lois. You know you are really living when this is exciting.

BaronBl00d Cheaply-made, poorly acted, and unimaginatively directed, Flight to Mars still is entertaining despite what its has going against it. A flight to Mars is planned with five people(three older gentleman, Cameron Mitchell as a newspaperman, and one female scientist/obvious love interest)"manning' the ship. The spaceship gets there and finds that very human-like Martians live there and have technological advances that would make Earth blush. But all is not rosy in the subterranean cities of the Martians(here shown as some caves and a few rooms). The Martians are a dying planet and one faction wants the Earthlings to fix the ship only to take it away at the last moment and then mobilize for an attack on Earth and another faction wants to talk peace and see if they cannot persuade Earth to give them living space. The special effects here are pretty lame even for 50's sci-fi standards complete with slow-moving rocket ship, pastel/neon alien garb where the women wear shorts that would make many blush(except the men of course), and little less offered. Cameron Mitchell is the journalist and is affable if nothing else. Marguerite Chapman is beautiful in very short shorts but adds little acting range. The rest of the cast is filled with some older sci-fi veterans like Arthur Franz and Morris Ankrum doing serviceable jobs. This isn't a premiere sci-fi film from the Golden Age by any standard, but it is very watchable and zips by at fast pace.