I can't take it seriously when I see the characters walking on the surface of the Moon whithout the space suits??? This only four decades BEFORE the USA's Apollo flights to the Moon. By the way, Hermann Oberth who helped Lang in this film, worked for USA after he was brought, alongside his friend Von Braun, as a POW in 1945 and helped develop the rockets that this country use to send men and satelites to space and the Moon.
shareWhen was it first realized that there was no atmosphere on the moon? Méliès' "A Trip to The Moon" made is seem like all they had to do was just shoot their way about 250,000 miles and carry an umbrella. How many movies made after this had characters walking on the moon or other planets without spacesuits complete with helmets?
Probably one reason - at least in movies to allow for a lunar atmosphere comparable to Earth's is so you can see the actors' faces. What people realized about 40 years later was that there probably wasn't going to be any way you could see the face of a lunar astronaut because of the coloration of the visors.
Thanks!
shareYes, I'm sure Lang wanted the viewers to be able to see their expressions. That was the overriding concern, especially when you remember that one cannot hear any dialog.
shareI'm sure the scientific advisors knew there was no atmosphere to speak of, even in 1929 when Neptune was the edge of our solar system.
Sometimes you just have to let artistic license do it's thing to tell a good story. The movie wasn't about the technical marvel of the spaceship or the details of the journey - it was about who should control the use of the moon: CAPITALISTS or DREAMERS?
And it was suppose to funny. Why is anybody taking this great film seriously.
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