The Space Museum is perhaps the most overlooked Hartnell episode of all- when it was released in VHS, it was put on the same tape as the surviving episodes of The Crusade and, of course, it was treated as a ‘supporting feature’ and therefore one would assume that it was just filler. It has a simple plot- the Morok Empire has conquered the planet Xeros and turned it into a museum dedicated to their empire building. The Xerons are planning a rebellion to overthrow the Moroks. So far, so generic. However, the way in which the story does this is what sells this.
The eponymous first episode is truly brilliant. The TARDIS crew arrive on Xeros, but they find that they are wearing their usual clothes, not the clothes they were wearing at the end of The Crusade. They leave no footprints, cannot be seen, cannot hear the Moroks or Xerons and cannot touch anything. Finally, we see their bodies in display cases- they have arrived in their own future, but are not fully synchronised with time. This episode is brilliantly disorientating and keeps the viewer wondering what the hell is going on (in a good way) thanks to Mervyn Pinfield‘s assured direction, great performances and some simple, but very effective effects work. The remaining three episodes are not as striking, but are effective enough. I must also mention that the fight scenes are some of the most effective I have seen in any era of the programme.
On a deeper level, the story deals with the age-old philosophical propositions of free-will and determinism. The characters are obviously trying to avoid ending up in those display cases, but wonder if their attempts to avoid it are actually leading them to that fate. Of course, free-will wins out, and furthermore the story seems to suggest that the fact that they acted at all, as opposed to accepting the ‘future’ is why that future did not come to pass. Which is brilliant. Just as importantly, the triumph of free will shows, for the first time, that history can be changed. It is this that lifts episodes 2-4 from the standard ‘rebels vs invaders’ story it could have been.
The performances of the regulars are brilliant as usual. There is a great sequence in "The Dimensions of Time" where the Doctor is interrogated by Lobos, the Morok Governor. He makes the mistake of informing the Doctor that he can see what he is thinking on a screen, whereupon the Doctor brilliantly misdirects Lobos with images of penny-farthings, walruses and himself in a bathing suit. The Doctor’s giggling at his own cleverness is a joy to behold. Ian is the consummate hero here, being intelligent, resourceful and single-minded in his quest to rescue the Doctor. However, this is the story where Vicki shines. We see her inspire the Xerons to seize control of the Morok Armoury, where she fools the computer into allowing the Xerons to take the weapons. Maureen O'Brien is fantastic throughout.
On the minus side, the Xerons and Moroks are slightly disappointing in their realisation (The Xerons’ alien feature is that they have four eyebrows) and although their portrayal is sound, there are no real stand-out performances amongst the guest cast. It is also unclear as to what exactly happened when the TARDIS crew saw their futures and the Doctor’s explanation makes no sense. These days, of course, there would be a wibbly-wobbly timey-wimey explanation that would be more convincing. Also, the presence of the Dalek in the museum sort of implies that the Moroks conquered them, which I doubt- although, of course, there is another reason for the Dalek’s presence…
This story is a neglected gem of the Hartnell era. Watch it now!
NEXT: The Chase
Showing posts with label Mervyn Pinfield. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mervyn Pinfield. Show all posts
Monday, 15 September 2008
Monday, 1 September 2008
Planet of Giants
The second season kicks off with the first three part story of the series. It starts off well with the Doctor and his companions exploring what seems to be a bizarre world with outlandish creatures. Then, of course, it turns out that they have been miniaturised in the course of materialisation, and the stage is set for a battle of wits against a familiar world made deadly, as in the 1957 science fiction film The Incredible Shrinking Man.
However, there is also a larger problem for the time travellers and, unfortunately, the insecticide plot is unambitious and dull in the extreme. The nature of the story means that the ‘giant’ side of the plot must take place in a geographically limited setting- two rooms and a garden door in this case. A limited environment such as this means that character interaction must be paramount; however, with Farrow being shot in his first scene, we are left with the characters of Forester and Smithers, who are allies, which makes for far poorer drama. This is exacerbated by the fact that Alan Tilvern puts no effort into his performance as Forester, seeming to rely on his naturally villainous looking face.
This is a real shame, as the ‘miniature’ half of the story works excellently. The giant sets are fantastic, as are the giant insects encountered. The fly is brilliantly done, pivoting its head and bobbing its abdomen up and down. The use of photographic blow-ups for some backgrounds actually works, probably because of the 405 line black and white image. Also, the idea that the voices of the ‘giants’ are too low frequency to be understood is something which has never popped up in similar stories told elsewhere. For the first time, this is a story where the special effects succeed across the board. There is some excellent visual direction and ‘cinematography’- light is used very effectively, and there are good uses of high shots, although no low shots (which would have been impossible with studio cameras, and would have to have been done on film). However, direction of the actors is very slack- Alan Tilvern was not a bad actor (at least judging from the only other thing I’ve seen him in, an episode of Dad’s Army) and the directors should have pushed him a little harder! The regulars are excellent as usual, with Jacqueline Hill putting in a great performance as Barbara (something I seem to be typing in every review) with her great stoicism and unselfishness as she is being poisoned by the pesticide.
The plot is simple, but there are still a few things that bother me. What the hell is ‘space pressure’? And why, exactly, does the seed not just become bigger with the TARDIS? Also, I’m surprised that a children’s show was allowed to show a scene with a gas tap being ignited and used to explode a pressurised container! In addition (although there is no way the production team could have known this) we have a ruthless magnate who produces a hazardous substance with a subordinate called Smithers!
This story is one of the reasons I don’t give stories marks. The adventures of the inch-high regulars are simply too well done to allow the tepid ‘giant’ side of the story to ruin it. All I can say is that it is watchable and enjoyable, but it probably won’t move you in the way that the best Doctor Who stories do.
NEXT: The Dalek Invasion of Earth
However, there is also a larger problem for the time travellers and, unfortunately, the insecticide plot is unambitious and dull in the extreme. The nature of the story means that the ‘giant’ side of the plot must take place in a geographically limited setting- two rooms and a garden door in this case. A limited environment such as this means that character interaction must be paramount; however, with Farrow being shot in his first scene, we are left with the characters of Forester and Smithers, who are allies, which makes for far poorer drama. This is exacerbated by the fact that Alan Tilvern puts no effort into his performance as Forester, seeming to rely on his naturally villainous looking face.
This is a real shame, as the ‘miniature’ half of the story works excellently. The giant sets are fantastic, as are the giant insects encountered. The fly is brilliantly done, pivoting its head and bobbing its abdomen up and down. The use of photographic blow-ups for some backgrounds actually works, probably because of the 405 line black and white image. Also, the idea that the voices of the ‘giants’ are too low frequency to be understood is something which has never popped up in similar stories told elsewhere. For the first time, this is a story where the special effects succeed across the board. There is some excellent visual direction and ‘cinematography’- light is used very effectively, and there are good uses of high shots, although no low shots (which would have been impossible with studio cameras, and would have to have been done on film). However, direction of the actors is very slack- Alan Tilvern was not a bad actor (at least judging from the only other thing I’ve seen him in, an episode of Dad’s Army) and the directors should have pushed him a little harder! The regulars are excellent as usual, with Jacqueline Hill putting in a great performance as Barbara (something I seem to be typing in every review) with her great stoicism and unselfishness as she is being poisoned by the pesticide.
The plot is simple, but there are still a few things that bother me. What the hell is ‘space pressure’? And why, exactly, does the seed not just become bigger with the TARDIS? Also, I’m surprised that a children’s show was allowed to show a scene with a gas tap being ignited and used to explode a pressurised container! In addition (although there is no way the production team could have known this) we have a ruthless magnate who produces a hazardous substance with a subordinate called Smithers!
This story is one of the reasons I don’t give stories marks. The adventures of the inch-high regulars are simply too well done to allow the tepid ‘giant’ side of the story to ruin it. All I can say is that it is watchable and enjoyable, but it probably won’t move you in the way that the best Doctor Who stories do.
NEXT: The Dalek Invasion of Earth
Tuesday, 26 August 2008
The Sensorites
The Sensorites is one story that seems to be very much overlooked, which is strange, as this story introduces many features which would become intrinsic to Doctor Who. For the first time, the story is set in the future. For the first time, there are scenes set on a spaceship. And for the first time, we have aliens portrayed as having a real culture, rather than being just ‘monsters’. Most importantly, the Doctor is not merely observing events or helping himself and his companions, for the first time he takes a truly active role in the events. In fact this is a very important story in the development of the programme.
The story is one of two races who do not trust one another. The fear of the titular aliens is very well realised in the first two episodes, with the dimply lit spaceship set. The shock appearance of the first Sensorite must have been truly frightening at the time. There is also a fantastic bit of direction and acting in this scene, where the camera follows Ian’s face and we see his reaction to the Sensorite. However, the Sensorites are portrayed increasingly sympathetically- their fear of loud noises and darkness is put across well by the actors and makes the audience see them not as monsters, but as people. The realisation of the Sensorites is very effective and the simplicity of the design is inspired, as they can appear as terrifying faceless apparitions at one point and meek bearded old men at another.
The human supporting cast are excellent, with the exception of Lorne Cossette as Maitland- thankfully he remains on the ship after the action transfers to the Sense Sphere. Stephen Dartnell deserves special mention for his performance as John. There are none of the histrionics and eye-rolling you would expect, had this been any other 60s science fiction programme. Ilona Rodgers as Carol is also solid, and her scenes with John are very poignant. The survivors of the previous expedition are interestingly depicted as half-crazed colonialists who still maintain the trappings of military discipline.
The regulars do their usual sterling work. Carole Ann Ford is easily the weakest performer of the quartet, but she is totally convincing here. Barbara is fast becoming one of my favourite companions, even though she has less to do here. And we come to the most interesting development in the character dynamics of Doctor Who. Ian is incapacitated for a time, and it and it is the Doctor, not Ian, who is the most physically active character in the story. We see him explore the aqueduct, find the cause of the poisoning and concoct a cure for the plague.
There are a few nit-picks. The Hartnell era has a reputation for fluffed lines which is unfair, but is fully justified here, as many characters are guilty of it. (Mind you, molybdenum is a bit hard to say!) Also, while I can accept that the Sensorites can survive in space without a pressure suit, it is implied that sound travels through space (of course, the Sensorites could be sending a radio transmission of the sound). We all take it for granted that everyone in the Universe speaks English, but writing messages to aliens in it is a bit much. This was also a problem in The Daleks, by the way!
However, this is a better story than The Daleks and therefore the best science-fiction story in the first season. As said, is very important in the development of the character of the Doctor- although, again, he is compelled to stay because the TARDIS is incapacitated, this is the Doctor as hero and enabler who has endured as a character until the present day.
NEXT: The Reign of Terror
The story is one of two races who do not trust one another. The fear of the titular aliens is very well realised in the first two episodes, with the dimply lit spaceship set. The shock appearance of the first Sensorite must have been truly frightening at the time. There is also a fantastic bit of direction and acting in this scene, where the camera follows Ian’s face and we see his reaction to the Sensorite. However, the Sensorites are portrayed increasingly sympathetically- their fear of loud noises and darkness is put across well by the actors and makes the audience see them not as monsters, but as people. The realisation of the Sensorites is very effective and the simplicity of the design is inspired, as they can appear as terrifying faceless apparitions at one point and meek bearded old men at another.
The human supporting cast are excellent, with the exception of Lorne Cossette as Maitland- thankfully he remains on the ship after the action transfers to the Sense Sphere. Stephen Dartnell deserves special mention for his performance as John. There are none of the histrionics and eye-rolling you would expect, had this been any other 60s science fiction programme. Ilona Rodgers as Carol is also solid, and her scenes with John are very poignant. The survivors of the previous expedition are interestingly depicted as half-crazed colonialists who still maintain the trappings of military discipline.
The regulars do their usual sterling work. Carole Ann Ford is easily the weakest performer of the quartet, but she is totally convincing here. Barbara is fast becoming one of my favourite companions, even though she has less to do here. And we come to the most interesting development in the character dynamics of Doctor Who. Ian is incapacitated for a time, and it and it is the Doctor, not Ian, who is the most physically active character in the story. We see him explore the aqueduct, find the cause of the poisoning and concoct a cure for the plague.
There are a few nit-picks. The Hartnell era has a reputation for fluffed lines which is unfair, but is fully justified here, as many characters are guilty of it. (Mind you, molybdenum is a bit hard to say!) Also, while I can accept that the Sensorites can survive in space without a pressure suit, it is implied that sound travels through space (of course, the Sensorites could be sending a radio transmission of the sound). We all take it for granted that everyone in the Universe speaks English, but writing messages to aliens in it is a bit much. This was also a problem in The Daleks, by the way!
However, this is a better story than The Daleks and therefore the best science-fiction story in the first season. As said, is very important in the development of the character of the Doctor- although, again, he is compelled to stay because the TARDIS is incapacitated, this is the Doctor as hero and enabler who has endured as a character until the present day.
NEXT: The Reign of Terror
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)