DESTINATION MOON (DVD) C/M DVD

Destination Moon
Producer George Pal assembled an impressive roster of behind-the-camera talent -- including noted science fiction author Robert Heinlein and artist Chelsey Bonestell -- for this pioneering sci-fi adventure. Scientist Dr. Charles Cargraves (Warner Anderson), former Air Force General Thayer (Tom Powers), and industrial tycoon Jim Barnes (John Archer) believe that it's time that the U.S. blazed new trails and found new adventures. Convinced that exploration of space is the wave of the future (and that America's dominance in space is vitally important if they are to continue to dominate the Earth), the three men begin planning and constructing a spaceship called "Luna" in the Mojave Desert that will take the men to the moon and back. However, anti-American forces begin flooding the press with propaganda against the moon mission, and finally the men make their way to moon without the aid of the federal government. While the men are thrilled to succeed in their mission, it turns out that they miscalculated the amount of fuel needed to return -- and that the rocket needs to drop a lot of weight if it is to return to Earth. Destination Moon won an Academy Award for Best Special Effects of 1950; the film also features a brief appearance by cartoon favorite Woody Woodpecker, who helps explain how rockets work. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Cast Warner Anderson as Dr. Charles Cargraves John Archer as Jim Barnes Tom Powers as General Thayer Dick Wesson as Joe Sweeney Ted Warde as Brown

Crew Walter Lantz - Animator Irving Pichel - Director Duke Goldstone - Editor Leith Stevens - Composer (Music Score) Ernst Fegte - Production Designer Lionel Lindon - Cinematographer George Pal - Producer George Sawley - Set Designer Lee Zavitz - Special Effects William Lynch - Sound/Sound Designer Rip Van Ronkel - Screenwriter Robert A. Heinlein - Screenwriter James O'Hanlon - Screenwriter Robert A. Heinlein - Book Author

Destination Moon
(not reviewed)
 

Ernst Fegte: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie, Best Color Art Direction (nominated) George Sawley: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie, Best Color Art Direction (nominated) Leith Stevens: Golden Globe, Best Original Score (nominated)

Berlin International Film Festival, Bronze Bear - Crime & Adventure Film (winner)

General Specifications: Language Options: English Subtitle Options: Sound Processing: DD1: Dolby Digital Mono Additional Features: none specified DVD Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1: Pre-1954 Standard MPAA Rating: NR DVD Discs Included: 1 DVD Sides: 1 DVD DVD Region Code: 1 Content Length: 91 min Part of Series: Wade Williams Collection, 50th Anniversary Edit   DVD Chapters: Side #1 1. Main Title; Sabotage [4:52] 2. Lunch or the Moon? [5:13] 3. Rocketeering Basics [9:26] 4. The Race Is On [10:10] 5. Blast Off [9:12] 6. A Safe Orbit [5:33] 7. Walking in Space [6:58] 8. Adrift [5:01] 9. Touch Down [5:31] 10. One Small Step [6:36] 11. The Lunar Lab [5:31] 12. Stripping Down [4:49] 13. The Ultimate Sacrifice [4:19] 14. Joe Bails Out [5:02] 15. Homeward Bound [2:42]