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My apologies for the long post. Once I started looking for good things to say about this movie, I found a lot more than I expected. For the record, I was watching it for the fifth time while I wrote this. If you folks have only seen it once (and many years ago), maybe you should give it another chance.

First of all, I think the dialogue and the plot are very intelligent. The story is not just about a spaceship -- it's about the people who have dedicated their lives to building and launching the ship. The characters aren’t cardboard space cadets; they’re real people who are experiencing troubled relationships because of their dedication to a dream.

I was especially impressed by the conflict created by Kieron Moore's dedication to the space program and Lois Maxwell's strong opposition to it. The conflict did a great job of addressing the question of whether mankind should spend millions of dollars and risk hundreds of lives just to reach other planets which are, in the eyes of the public, both dead and useless.

Lot's of folks today view this question in exactly the same manner.

The reason for Miss Maxwell’s opposition turns out to be connected with the fact that her father died while trying to develop a new rocket propellant. In one of the film’s best moments, Maxwell learns that the “Stardust” is using the rocket propellant her father helped to develop! She realizes that her father’s dream has become a reality.

The story also addresses the issue of nuclear proliferation. This question is very relevant today in view of the recent events in North Korea.

Having defended the subjects addressed by all the "talk" that some folks find so boring, I should also say that this movie isn't any more "talky" than acknowledged classics like "When Worlds Collide". Sure, “Collide” was a great movie, but please remember that its audience is forced to wait until the last 15 minutes to see the launch of the rocket and the brief FX scenes which follow. In “Satellite”, the launch occurs forty minutes into the movie, and the entire second half of the film takes place in space!

On the same note, even though I love "World Without End" (mostly for the girls, I'll admit), that particular movie is absolutely nothing BUT talk!

I also maintain that the interior design of the "Stardust" is far better any other spacecraft from the 1950s (with the exception of the C 57-D). It’s roomy and well designed. The interior includes a wealth of details such as pipes, conduits, control panels, ladders, lockers, beams, etc, etc. etc.

Hell's bells, the "Stardust" is even equipped with two seven-foot observation ports and an airlock which extends from the bottom of the ship!

And hey, how 'bout those spacesuits? I submit that the spacesuits in "Satellite" are equal-to-or-better-than anything else presented in the 1950s. And these suits are equipped with thrusters on the backpacks! These thrusters play an important role in the dramatic climax of the film.

The fact that this is the only film which presented the idea of spacesuit thrusters – a feature which NASA spacesuits are equipped with today – should certainly be credited as a plus for this remarkable film.

Lastly, please ponder the fact that IMDB list Mr. Walley Veevers as the “director of special effects for “Satellite in the Sky”.

They also list Mr. Veevers as the “special photographic effects supervisor” for 2001, as well as a credit for “assistant special effects “ on Things to Come – along with many other films.

In view of these credential, I think that criticisms of the FX in “Satellite” should be made with a certain amount of well-earned respect.

Learned gentlemen, please reconsider your opinion of this much-maligned movie. It was released when even the oldest of us was too young to fully appreciate it – and the only copy available today is horribly flawed. With that in mind, I submit that this film IS the “lost classic” from the 1950s.

PS: Note to Bill – I certainly was not assuming that Wade Williams owned the rights to this movie when I suggested that he might release a DVD of it. I just know that fans like myself appreciate the efforts Mr. Williams has made to rescue obscure movies from oblivion by releasing high-quality DVDs to the public.