ROCKETSHIP X-M in '50s Horror and Sci-Fi Forum

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ROCKETSHIP X-M

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SFfilmfan	ROCKETSHIP X-M	Lead	[-]
Nov 29 04 1:14 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Bill Warren announced at Loscon that his research has revealed that ROCKETSHIP X-M was ghosted by the great Dalton Trumbo. It seems very likely that it was Trumbo who added the element of a civilization on Mars that had been destroyed by atomic devastation. Trumbo's genre credits include I MARRIED A WITCH, A GUY NAMED JOE, and JOHNNY GOT HIS GUN as well as such film classics as SPARTACUS, GUN CRAZY, ROMAN HOLIDAY, and LONELY ARE THE BRAVE. (Edited title -- All Caps: G Prange)
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taraco	Re: Rocketship X-M	#1	[-]
Nov 29 04 1:38 PM Burgomaster Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Dalton Trumbo's involvement only raises the esteem with which I hold ROCKETSHIP X-M. From its unexpected visit to Mars to its surprising, even now, downbeat ending, ROCKETSHIP X-M delivers far more than the 'better' DESTINATION MOON. Thanx for the updates, Bill and Dennis. david "Works begins tomorrow on X-M2."
SteveZodiak	Re: Rocketship X-M	#2	[-]
Dec 1 04 12:41 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	X-M is ok.
VULTURA	Re: Rocketship X-M	#3	[-]
May 7 05 1:18 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	'ROCKETSHIP X-M' WAS MY FAVORITE MOVIE FOR MANY YEARS AND I LOVE THE SCORE COMPOSED BY FERDE GROFE.
GaryP11111	Reposts	#4	[-]
Nov 2 05 10:13 PM Burgomaster Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Jacks Garage Member (3/28/05 10:16 am) 63.73.213.5 Reply \| Edit \| Del All Rocketship XM -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- In the 70s there were some additional scenes filmed (with Bob Burns I think) for this film, and I was wondering if they were ever added, and if that version was avaialbel anywhere. If so, has anyone seen it? Did the new stuff help at all? TomWeaver999 Member (3/28/05 12:25 pm) 172.153.1.6 Reply \| Edit \| Del Re: Rocketship XM -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Bob Burns (who worked on the new footage) tells me it's on the Navarre DVD entitled "REEL VALUES SCI-Fi Classics Volume 2 Triple Feature" (which features RXM, DEVIL GIRL FROM MARS and MONSTER FROM GREEN HELL). He says they obviously took it off of the laser disc from Image. Jacks Garage Member (3/28/05 1:43 pm) 63.73.213.5 Reply \| Edit \| Del Re: Rocketship XM -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thankyou! Any idea how much additional footage was added? Bill Warren Member (3/28/05 2:34 pm) 207.200.116.8 Reply \| Edit \| Del Re: Rocketship X-M -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The additional footage totaled less than ten minutes, probably considerably less. They added at least one shot of the ship in space and at least one of it on the surface of Mars. I think there was a landing scene, too. There's an exterior shot of the ship with the crew heading out to explore; Bob Burns was one of them. taraco Administrator (3/28/05 4:26 pm) 159.54.131.7 Reply \| Edit \| Del Re: Rocketship X-M -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I have always been confused about these additional scenes, and which versions actually have them. I thought the laserdisc did have the extra scenes but now folks here say it doesn't? Are they on the DVD? Help! Bill Warren Member (3/28/05 4:15 pm) 207.200.116.66 Reply \| Edit \| Del Re: Rocketship X-M -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Quote: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I thought the laserdisc did have the extra scenes but now folks here say it doesn't? Are they on the DVD? Help! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tom offered the straight dope a couple of messages back. The extra scenes were on a laserdisc and that version is also on a DVD--but there are several DVDs that feature RXM. Incidentally, someone stumbled across the fact that Dalton Trumbo worked on, or wrote, the screenplay for RXM. Edited by: Bill Warren at: 3/28/05 4:16 pm jimi d2 Member (3/28/05 6:07 pm) 64.230.103.185 Reply \| Edit \| Del Re: Rocketship X-M -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Quote: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The extra scenes were on a laserdisc and that version is also on a DVD--but there are several DVDs that feature RXM. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- So my ol' faithful Image DVD is just the original, right? I wouldn't put it past Wade to add a few scenes here an' there, but I don't recall any notes to that effect on the liner notes... Bill Warren Member (3/28/05 6:42 pm) 207.200.116.130 Reply \| Edit \| Del Re: Rocketship X-M -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The DVD from Wade Williams via Image is indeed the original cut, as far as I have been able to determine. Robert Richardson Member (3/29/05 1:01 am) 70.69.121.202 Reply \| Edit \| Del Re: Rocketship X-M -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Image DVD I have of the film has "50th Anniversary Edition" printed across the bottom of the case front. The information on the back includes "Digitally-restored with enhanced special effects sequences by Academy Award-winner Dennis Muren (STAR WARS, THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK, RETURN OF THE JEDI), Bob Skotak, Tom Scherman, Mike Minor, Bob Burns, and Kathy Burns". A couple of different publications detailed the shooting of the new footage under Wade Williams' supervision. This took place on June 24, 1978 somewhere outside of Mojave. Dennis Muren photographed two live-action sequences - one of the RXM crew leaving the ship after it lands on Mars, and the other of crew members fleeing back to the ship while having rocks thrown at them by a mutant. CPC Associates handled the inserts and effects footage; Dave Stipes and Harry Walton also worked on this. luluthebeast Member (3/29/05 10:20 am) 66.82.9.22 Reply \| Edit \| Del Re: Rocketship X-M -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I've got the Wade Williams laser disc with three minutes of new footage and a running time of 78 minutes. Either way I like this movie! Bill Warren Member (3/29/05 12:55 pm) 207.200.116.66 Reply \| Edit \| Del Re: Rocketship X-M -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Quote: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Image DVD I have of the film has "50th Anniversary Edition" printed across the bottom of the case front. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Interesting; I was told that the Image disc doesn't have the extra scenes. Have you watched it? I bought the edition mentioned above that definitely does include the additional footage. Robert Richardson Member (3/31/05 7:35 am) 70.69.121.202 Reply \| Edit \| Del Re: Rocketship X-M -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Quote: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Interesting; I was told that the Image disc doesn't have the extra scenes. Have you watched it? I bought the edition mentioned above that definitely does include the additional footage. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Dang, now I'm confused! I went through the Image DVD I have, but I'm not significantly familiar with the original cut of the film, nor the Navarre DVD release. The first time I saw the movie was on a Nostalgia Merchant video cassette eons ago. When the new footage was shot they mentioned just two live action scenes; I'm not sure how many effects shots the crew did. On the Image DVD when the RXM initially lifts off the optical bleeds through the spaceship model, and some stock shots from a rocket launch follow. The scenes of the RXM descending to Mars (around the 48 minute mark) and once more breaking away (at the 67 minute mark) look to be newer effects - but not having seen the original I can't say for sure. Jack Rabin and Irving Block were profiled in the second issue of Robert Skotak's fanzine FANTASCENE, and there are several stills printed from RXM. One of them is of the crew exiting the ship on Mars; it doesn't look any different from what is in the movie on the Image DVD. Also - all of the Martian sequences (including the landing and take off) are Sepia toned. Was the original and the subsequent video releases like this? Edited by: Robert Richardson at: 3/31/05 6:00 pm Bill Warren Member (3/31/05 12:16 pm) 207.200.116.66 Reply \| Edit \| Del Re: Rocketship X-M -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tell you want--remind me next week (this one is busy) and I'll double-check the two prints I have, one of which definitely has the extra shots, the other being the standard version. Or maybe someone else who has both can do it before I do. Kogar Member (4/8/05 12:36 am) 68.165.183.73 Reply \| Edit \| Del RXM question -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Old Bob Burns here. I might be able to clear up the "new footage" question. We did around 7 or 8 new scenes and Nostalgia Merchant released it on Beta. When Image released it on laser disc they used that version. Unfortunately, the folks at Nostalgia weren't very smart and tossed all of the original 35mm footage that we shot so the only version that has our new footage was the old Beta and the Image laser disc. I had sent Wade a couple of the shots that we did and when he released it on DVD from Image he included those couple of scenes. That's why it says that we did "new" footage for the DVD but it's only those shots. I told Tom that when that cheap company put out those titles with Devil Girl From Mars, Green Hell, and RXM they obviously used the Image laser disc. The bottom line is that if you want our "complete version" I would suggest that you pick up that cheap DVD. Since it was taken off of laser it looks pretty good. I hope this helps Bill Warren Member (4/8/05 12:43 am) 207.200.116.66 Reply \| Edit \| Del Re: RXM question -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Quote: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I hope this helps -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Yep. Th at cheap multi-movie set you mention was cited by someone else early on, and I was able to track it down. Robert Richardson Member (4/8/05 12:56 am) 70.69.121.202 Reply \| Edit \| Del Re: RXM question -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Quote: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I had sent Wade a couple of the shots that we did and when he released it on DVD from Image he included those couple of scenes. That's why it says that we did "new" footage for the DVD but it's only those shots. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mr. Burns - thank you for solving the mystery & easing my confusion! It was indeed the Nostalgia Merchant beta tape that I first saw, and there was a good gap of years in between that viewing & the Image DVD so my memory of the individual scenes was not sharp. Were the couple of scenes that you supplied to Wade Williams footage with the actors, or special effects shots? When I looked at the DVD recently the scenes of the RXM descending to Mars and later lifting off looked like it may have been some of the new stuff. Ted Newsom Member (4/8/05 1:36 am) 207.200.116.131 Reply \| Edit \| Del Re: RXM question -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Off the footage track a moment... I was talking to the above-referenced Bob Skotek a couple years back about assorted stuff (God! This must've been just after Mark Willaims died, and that's got to be six years. Sorry. I just had a missing-time moment). Anyway, Bob is as much a film scholar as an fx whiz-- witness his essays in Film Fax on Ruskie sci-fi... and he had & has been digging into the Rocketship X-M / Destination Moon history. I'm not going to drop everything he said, that's his baby, but the upshot is, the little ride-the-tail cheapie apparently has been getting a bum rap all these years, and the Technicolor classic may well have been the offspring, not the progenitor. I defer to Mr. Skotek and wait with patience. Kogar Member (4/8/05 2:15 am) 68.165.183.73 Reply \| Edit \| Del RXM effects -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- You have very sharp eyes as those were the two scenes on the new DVD version. I think that was all that's in this version. I haven't viewed it in a long while and I'm older than dirt so my memory isn't as good as it once was. Just ask Tom Weaver. Beast wishes, Old Monster kid, Bob TomWeaver999 Member (4/8/05 2:35 am) 172.174.138.179 Reply \| Edit \| Del Re: RXM effects -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- << my memory isn't as good as it once was. Just ask Tom Weaver.<< Bob who? taraco Administrator (4/8/05 12:50 pm) 152.163.100.137 Reply \| Edit \| Del Re: RXM effects -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Now I'm bummed I sold the laserdisc on eBay all those years ago!! Jacks Garage Member (4/8/05 3:28 pm) 63.73.213.5 Reply \| Edit \| Del Re: RXM effects -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thanks for the info Bob. Now, I hafta find that set and check out the extra scenes. I haven't seen the film in ages as is, so thanks to everyone for the descriptions fo the new scenes.
skelton knaggs		#5	[-]
Nov 20 08 1:15 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Boy o boy. Our 50's space travelers were stylish, well groomed, and pretty darn easy on the eye. Not to mention a very cool dashboard..... "You can't smell any reefer, can you"?
bipolarber		#6	[-]
Nov 20 08 12:49 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	I've only ever seen the "remastered version" of X-M... who has an original cut of the film I could pick up? (I'm assuming the original cut is in Public Domain) I'd love to compare and contrast it against the new effects.
bob7708.themousepad	Origional RXM	#7	[-]
Aug 26 11 11:25 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	I have three good copies of the origional RXM with the red tinting on VHS tape. How do I get my VHS copy of RXM onto a DVD disk that is superior to copies made by copying VHS directly onto DVD. I hear that there is a device on the maket that will transcribe analog signals from VHS tape into digital signals onto a DVD disk. In my opinion Wade Williams is a "TOTAL ASS" for not offering the origional red tinted version of RXM along with his sepia tinted version. Where do these guys like Wade Williams get off screwing up the origional versions of these classics to offer their own "superior" versions? I heard that he really doesn't own the copyright to RXM. Is this true?
ryanbrennan		#8	[-]
Aug 27 11 12:00 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	For about $150 you can buy a VHS/DVD combo player/recorder. If the tape isn't encrypted you just pop it in the machine, put in a blank DVD-+R and hit record. Another method would be to run a VCR into your computer, record the tape onto your hard drive, and burn a disc from that. I"ve tried both and I prefer the former. I'm on my second combo player/recorder. I wouldn't mind seeing the original version of RXM again myself.
todmichel		#9	[-]
Aug 27 11 6:42 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	The red-tinted Mars sequences were in the 35mm print released in France in the 1950s. I don't care for the new FX, good or bad - I just want the original movie. And I agree with Bob about Wade Williams and this kind of revisionists.
bob7708.themousepad		#10	[-]
Aug 27 11 7:24 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Here is a place to buy RXM with the origional red tint. This is a copy of the origional RXM as it was released in 1950 in American theaters. it is in VHS format however, and I can't find one in DVD format at all. So I guess I will have to copy my VHS copy onto a DVD disk. I had smeone do this last year for me but the reddish tint came over onto the DVD disk all streaked with orange color running thru it. I will have to get a device that translates analog into digital so that the color comes thru O.K. Here is the Amazon website where you can buy the origional RXM with the red tint color and the stock footage that was in the origional RXM film release in 1950.....V2 Rockets and all. let me know what you think if you buy it. http://www.amazon.com/Rocketship-X-M-VHS-Lloyd-Bridges/dp/6304680694/ref=sr_1_2?s=movies-tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1314489425&sr=1-2
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bob7708.themousepad		#11	[-]
Aug 27 11 7:28 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	P.S. To above. This release at Amazon is in VHS format only and this is the only place on this entire planet that I could find the origional RXM film. Don't buy the DVD copy of this film from the same website becouse the DVD is the Wade Williams version. Last Edited By: bob7708 Aug 28 11 5:06 AM. Edited 1 times.
todmichel		#12	[-]
Aug 28 11 9:29 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	ROCKETSHIP XM will be released in a few weeks in France (near the end of September), along with three other "Mars" films of the same decade: INVADERS FROM MARS, RED PLANET MARS and FLIGHT TO MARS. All of them include the original soundtrack of course, and removable French subs, plus 2 French short movies and bonuses. The set is produced by Artus Films. However, I don't know at this time if the print for ROCKETSHIP XM (known in France as "24 heures chez les Martiens") is the original version or the revised one. Suspense! http://www.artusfilms.com/coffret-destination-mars Last Edited By: todmichel Aug 28 11 9:34 AM. Edited 2 times.
Rick		#13	[-]
Aug 28 11 12:04 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Boy, depending on quality of course, that looks like one of the best excuses for a multi-region player. Three out of four films that I could gladly revisit. And RED PLANET MARS, too.
bob7708.themousepad		#14	[-]
Aug 28 11 12:23 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Thanks for the info Todmichel and I hope that it includes the original RXM.... red tint and all. I loved this little film but have to laugh at some of the nonsense that went on among the crew members. The biggest faux-pas commited by any space crew anywhere was when the RXM crew stumbled upon that iron bust of a Martian? when there were domed shaped buildings just a short walk away containing scientific treasures beyond belief. Oh well! I'm sure the time constraints imposed upon the Producer of RXM to get to the theaters first before Destination Moon (Thank God, Wade Williams didn't get his paws on that one!!) had a lot to do with it. If he didn't feel so compelled to beat Destination Moon to the theaters they could have filmed a masterpiece that delt with the domed buildings, the Martians and some other events in the film and certainly would have rivaled Destination Moon in popularity and possibly even surpassing it in popularity. Last Edited By: bob7708 Aug 28 11 12:34 PM. Edited 4 times.
bipolarber		#15	[-]
Aug 29 11 4:36 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Well, Bob, I thought they explained the reason they didn't get closer to the Martian city really well: The radiation was increasing the closer they got. Just digging up a nearby artifact was enough to send their geiger counter into the dark gray! I love science, but knowing what the Martians were like is not something I'd be willing to sacrifice my life for... "[The audiance] will populate the darkness with more horrors than all the horror writers in Hollywood could think of. If you make the screen dark enough, the mind's eye will read anything into it you want! We're great ones for the dark patches." -VAL LEWTON
Monsterpal		#16	[-]
Aug 29 11 5:11 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Yes, that's right. The radiation was too powerful for them to move any closer. The budget probably couldn't provide for anything more than a matte painting, anyway, so Neumann and company came up with a satisfactory compromise, leaving it with an air of mystery.
bob7708.themousepad		#17	[-]
Aug 29 11 9:26 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	bipolarber wrote: Well, Bob, I thought they explained the reason they didn't get closer to the Martian city really well: The radiation was increasing the closer they got. Just digging up a nearby artifact was enough to send their geiger counter into the dark gray! I love science, but knowing what the Martians were like is not something I'd be willing to sacrifice my life for... Your right bipolarber, I forgot all about their geiger counter's massive radiation readings.
todmichel		#18	[-]
Sep 2 11 8:37 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	I got the French set this morning. INVADERS FROM MARS (in English & French), ROCKETSHIP XM (in English) are on disc A, and FLIGHT TO MARS and RED PLANET MARS (both in English) on disc B. ALL the subs are removable. The set includes a 12-pages booklet (in French) with color reproductions. Four lobby card repros (the size of a postcard) are also in the box, printed on strong cardboard. An alternative ending for RED PLANET MARS is included among the bonuses, with two French short movies, "La révélation" by Vincent Diderot (10 mins) and "Beyond Lifedome" by Viktor Alexis (8 mins). Also included are two diaporamas of posters and stills, and trailers, in both discs. The video standard is Pal, zone 2. About ROCKETSHIP XM, no mention of Wade Williams anywhere, and the Mars scenes are tinted in red, not sepia - and are far more subdued than most of the current horrible "fluo" tinting seen in too many old silents these days. This being said, if somebody can tell me where would be the added elements included by Wade Williams I'll can verify of course. The running time of ROCKETSHIP XM is 1.17.34 - in Pal.
.		#19	[-]
Sep 2 11 9:03 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	One Wade Williams shot that remained in the Image DVD is the rocket leaving Mars. I understand it was V-2 footage originally, then Williams replaced it with a model shot. Can you list the running times for each film on the dvd - trying to avoid standards conversions!
todmichel		#20	[-]
Sep 2 11 10:06 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	You mean this shot? if it's the added Wade Williams spfx, yes, it's in this version, I'm afraid... The running time (taken on the screen): Invaders from Mars: 1.25.10 Rocketship XM: 1.17.34 Flight to Mars: 1.08.12 Red Planet Mars: 1.23.23
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