The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976)

[Dave]

Weird.

This is on BBC2 in the UK tomorrow if you haven't seen it.

I've seen it a few times but don't really understand it all, and it is way too long.

David Bowie is a visitor from another planet who tries to colonize Earth, amassing a huge fortune using special psychic powers and clairvoyancy, but when his powers are desroyed, he ends an alcoholic cripple.

 

[ravenus]

The Man Who Fell to Earth

My detailed impressions of it HERE

It'd be nice to hear other people's opinion of this decidedly interesting experimental SF pic.

 

[Foxbat]

Re: The Man Who Fell to Earth

It's been quite a while since I've seen this but here goes with my thoughts.

I think you hit the nail on the head with your point about its slow pace becoming wearisome. It's just too spaced out for me (and by that I mean too slow a pace). I think better editing would have given it a bit more of an edge.

It's certainly an intelligent film and, in some ways, Bowie was the obvious choice for the lead. Still, sometimes the fact that it's Bowie gets in the way, and I think they'd have been better going with an unknown. I'm always left with the feeling that it's Bowie just playing himself rather than acting.

All in all.....not a masterpiece in my humble opinion - but not a bad film either.

 

[j d worthington]

Re: The Man Who Fell to Earth

The majority of my complaints against this film lie with the "director's cut". Roeg seems to not know how to edit a film properly when given a free hand, and ends up adding superfluous scenes of, e.g., gratuitous (and, frankly, silly) sex that does not advance plot or character or much of anything else... and his pacing is often 'way off. I much prefer the original theatrical release cut of the film, which was tighter without losing any of the dreamlike atmosphere of the tale; it simply didn't have extraneous nonsense that seemed to go nowhere and have no point, as the director's cut did.

This said, the film is a very interesting piece, certainly very different, and an intelligent adaptation of Walter Tevis' novel and as a study in alienation. I never had a problem with Bowie playing the role; in fact, I think he captured the character very well indeed.

Essentially, give me the original theatrical release, and I'd be tempted to put it in with the more memorable sf films I've seen in a lifelong love affair with the genre....

 

[Omphalos]

Re: The Man Who Fell to Earth

Interesting concept, kind of boring execution, and winds up being more about the consequences of excess more than about the genre motifs. I also found the nudity at the end of the movie distracting. I thought it was out of place at the end of the film.

 

[clovis-man]

Re: The Man Who Fell to Earth

I watched this many years ago. My remembered impression is very ho-hum along with the sense that David Bowie was busy feeding his ego.

Jim

 

[Dave]

Re: The Man Who Fell to Earth

I think you hit the nail on the head with your point about its slow pace becoming wearisome.

I really had a force myself to watch until the end. I felt it was something I ought to watch, rather than something I enjoyed.

The majority of my complaints against this film lie with the "director's cut".

Since I've only seen this on TV, I expect it was the theatrical cut I saw. Even that had too many "superfluous scenes" for my taste.

This said, the film is a very interesting piece, certainly very different, and an intelligent adaptation of Walter Tevis' novel and as a study in alienation.

Probably frequently copied too.

 

[iansales]

Re: The Man Who Fell to Earth

I have the Criterion edition DVD, and I was surprised to find myself enjoying it when I watched it (I'd not seen it before). I'll agree that it seemed less like a genre film than I'd expected.

 

[Omphalos]

Re: The Man Who Fell to Earth

I have the Criterion edition DVD, and I was surprised to find myself enjoying it when I watched it (I'd not seen it before). I'll agree that it seemed less like a genre film than I'd expected.

That is the version that I had. I sold it because I decided after watching it a time or two, I would likely never go back to watch it again.

 

[j d worthington]

Re: The Man Who Fell to Earth

Well, to show how little I actually knew about the history of this one....

The original American theatrical release was 20 minutes shorter than the British release, which may go very far in explaining the difference in impressions here. What was called the "director's cut" in rereleases here in the early 1980s may actually be the British version of the film. At any rate, the film has apparently been cut and edited for different screenings, so I've no idea at this point what version most have seen.....

 

[iansales]

Re: The Man Who Fell to Earth

Omphalos - my version came packaged with a matching copy of the book. (So did my DVD of Slaughterhouse Five, although that's not Criterion Collection.)

 

[Omphalos]

Re: The Man Who Fell to Earth

Omphalos - my version came packaged with a matching copy of the book. (So did my DVD of Slaughterhouse Five, although that's not Criterion Collection.)

My copy of The Man who Fell to Earth had the book too. It was beautifully packaged, wasn't it? The film itself was very nicely restored too. I really like the Criterion treatments. I just borrowed the Criterion edition of Naked Lunch from my brother to watch this weekend. And you know what, after seeing the Criterion release of Robo-Cop, I really saw that movie in a different light.

J.D., I would guess that the Criterion is the complete film. The last time I saw this film before the Criterion release was on BetaMax, so I would guess that what many Americans saw was the Criterion (though I could be wrong).

 

[j d worthington]

Re: The Man Who Fell to Earth

Thanks for the information. Perhaps I should revisit the film and see if I feel differently about it now than I did then. I just recall how the original American theatrical release impressed me and -- reading Tevis' novel within a few days after seeing the film -- how surprisingly faithful it stayed to the book....