ALL SCI-FI

[Bud Brewster]

I've always loved the sound the ymir makes, and I wondered how it was made.

Am I correct in assuming that the sound was used again (modified somewhat), for the cyclops in the next Harrryhausen opus? They sound very similar, though often a bit deeper in tone.

We all know the story, of course, that the ymir's model was stripped of its rubber skin and used for the cyclops animation model, minus the tail.





Don't you just hate the things that were done to these works of art just to save a few bucks on production costs?

Bud
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[Bongopete]

I didn't like the Ymir.

I hated that the Ymir kills a farmer's German Shepherd.
I HATED PEPE!!!!!!!!!!

For me, the best part is the ship crashing.

And the cause of basically ALL the trouble is PEPE!!

[Bud Brewster]

Bongo! How could anybody not like the Ymir?


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Sure, the rocket crashing it great —





— but Pepe is the unsung hero of this sci-fi classic.

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A noble young cowboy-wannabe at heart, one of the true Sons of the Pioneers, it is Pepe who rescues the poor unborn ymir from a watery grave and delivers it safe-and-sound to a brilliant scientists who appreciates this unique discovery even before he knows what it is!

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And what about Pepe after the film's narrative leaves him behind?

Why, he turns into a fine young man!

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A brilliant scholar and scientist in his own right!

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And a distinguished older gentleman —

white] ______________

— who certain people have rumored to be the most interesting man in the world!

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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[Pow]

[Bud Brewster]

We have got to get Bongopete to come back, guys!

I've sent him emails, but gotten no replies. Please, everybody -- click on the email button on his post above and send him an urgent request to come back to All Sci-Fi.

He was one of the first guys to join the new board when the old one got shaky last December, and even though he hasn't posted anything here since December 20th -- just three days after he joined the new board -- he still has more posts on this board than anybody except me!

85 posts!

Help me out, guys! Bring back Bongopete!
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[Bud Brewster]

Brigz and I watched this movie in the chat room recently, and we both used the old DVD, which allows the viewer to chose "fullscreen" or "widescreen".

The Blu-ray doesn't have this feature, and I think that's a shame. Here's why.

The fullscreen version on the old DVD offers images of the Ymir that are very different from the ones in the widescreen version -- and sometimes that's a genuine bonus.

Consider these examples. Here's the widescreen version. It looks a bit too much like exactly what it is: a model being animated in front of a rear projection screen.



But the fullscreen version shows the way the ground slopes up towards the creature, thus convincing us that the Venusian is standing on a hill, looking down at the farm.



And notice how much more of that gorgeous creature we get to see — including its writhing tale! The same is true in several other scenes, and the difference is striking. Like this one.



This scene of the Ymir atop the Colosseum looks better with the extra part at the bottom. In addition to displaying more of the creature's lower body, the expanded view adds to the sense of great height.



Perhaps the best example is this scene. Here's the widescreen version —



— and here's the fullscreen version, showing the lower part of the creature's torso and the platform he was on. It looks great!



Guys, please don't think I'm disregarding the director's intent or the cinematographer's composition. I'm just commenting on the way we get to see extra areas that include Harryhausen's splendid model and his animation.

Some folks would argue that the extra areas at the top and bottom look like superfluous space in this scene from the elephant versus ymir fight.

I disagree.

The expanded version emphasizes the fact that this battle is taking place in the heart of a city, and that the last place a sane person would want to me is closer to these enraged beasts!



But if they ever create an IMAX 3D version of this movie, this would look just fine on that big screen.


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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[orzel-w]

What a swindle! This "widescreen" format is nothing more than the fullscreen version cropped top and bottom! (The fullscreen images show slightly less on the sides, but not nearly as much is missing as the top and bottom of the "widescreen" image.)

I overlaid two of the images to show what is missing in each format. The black areas in the corners indicate the extent of each frame:



And while we're here, I may as well reload my CAD rendition of the space ship:


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...or not...

WayneO
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[Bud Brewster]

Wow! A more expanded view of that scene than ever before! Love it! And the CAD rendering is magnificent.

As for the reason the two versions of the move are so different, that's simple. You know everything I'm about to say, Wayne, but a few other folks might not, so here we go again . . .

The movie was shot on 35mm film (naturally), and the film frames are shaped just as we see them in the fullscreen (4:3) version.

When this movie (and all the movies not filmed with an anamorphic lens) were shown in theaters, the projectionist simply masked off the top and bottom of the projected image so it would fit those wonderful new-and-improved screens that had been installed for CinemaScope and all it's cousins.

Normally a movie that has been shot with this matting in mind will have "extra" areas above and below the section of each scene which the cinematographer actually wants to be visible on the movie screen.

But with a Harryhausen movie like this one, we yearn to see more of that incredible creature, because every step it takes and every twitch of it's tail was the result of the hours Ray devoted to bringing his creature to life.

Ray loved his creations, and so do we.





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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[Rocky Jones]

A few years ago I rewatched this one and noticed a science faux pas that's kind of funny when you think about it. When the large creature is strapped down and anesthetized the scientist is discussing the fact that the creature breathes though it's skin. In the same scene, though, you see the sleeping monsters chest rising and falling-- obviously from filling it's lungs with air via it's mouth the same way we do. It's skin looks pretty similar to earthly reptiles, with scales and such. I think the film's writers knew viewers of films like this don't really pay attention to anything a scientist says, anyway.

[orzel-w]

[Rocky Jones]

I just assumed his mouth because it seems to be open most of the time. If my mouth is open and I'm breathing most of comes in through my mouth and not my nose, but whatever.

[Bud Brewster]

Gentlemen, you're overthinking this. Ray just wanted his rubber model to look alive, so he made it breath. Period.
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[Robert (Butch) Day]

Which must have been difficult since the mask didn't fit properly. It's Ray's CHIN that sticks out of the mouth!
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Common Sense ISN'T Common

[orzel-w]

(Crossover humor.)
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...or not...

WayneO
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[Bud Brewster]

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What this thread needs is the trailer for the Harryhausen masterpiece! And now it's got it.

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___Movie Trailer - 20 Million Miles To Earth (1957)


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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)