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The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976)
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Overview
User Rating:
Director:
Writers:
Release Date:
26 May 1976 (Netherlands)
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Tagline:
You have to believe it to see it
Plot:
Thomas Jerome Newton is a humanoid alien who comes to Earth to get water for his dying planet. He starts...
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Plot Keywords:
Water
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Alien
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Dying Planet
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Lakeside
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Crotch Shot
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Awards:
1 win
&
3 nominations
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NewsDesk:
(7 articles)
Ground Control to Duncan Jones, Director of Moon
(From Vanity Fair. 8 June 2009, 9:45 AM, PDT)
Blu-ray Review: The Man Who Fell to Earth (Criterion Collection)
(From Rope Of Silicon. 28 December 2008, 11:05 PM, PST)
(From Vanity Fair. 8 June 2009, 9:45 AM, PDT)
Blu-ray Review: The Man Who Fell to Earth (Criterion Collection)
(From Rope Of Silicon. 28 December 2008, 11:05 PM, PST)
User Comments:
Bowie's entire idea of himself?
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Cast
(Cast overview, first billed only) | David Bowie | ... | Thomas Jerome Newton |
 | Rip Torn | ... | Nathan Bryce |
 | Candy Clark | ... | Mary-Lou |
| Buck Henry | ... | Oliver Farnsworth |
| Bernie Casey | ... | Peters |
| Jackson D. Kane | ... | Professor Canutti |
| Rick Riccardo | ... | Trevor |
 | Tony Mascia | ... | Arthur |
| Linda Hutton | ... | Elaine |
| Hilary Holland | ... | Jill |
| Adrienne Larussa | ... | Helen |
| Lilybelle Crawford | ... | Jewelery Store Owner |
| Richard Breeding | ... | Receptionist |
| Albert Nelson | ... | Waiter |
| Peter Prouse | ... | Peters' Associate |
Additional Details
Parents Guide:
Runtime:
139 min | Sweden:119 min (cut version)
Country:
Language:
Color:
Aspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Certification:
Norway:18 (1976) |
New Zealand:R18 |
Iceland:12 |
Netherlands:12 |
UK:18 |
Argentina:16 |
Australia:R |
France:-12 |
Sweden:15 |
UK:X (original rating) |
USA:R |
West Germany:16 |
Finland:K-16
Filming Locations:
Company:
Fun Stuff
Trivia:
Goofs:
Revealing mistakes: Towards the end of the movie, Newton walks through a long, saloon-like room while the camera pans back. A lamp at the upper right part of the screen moves, probably touched by the camera crew.
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Quotes:
Mary-Lou:
What are they like, your children?
Thomas Jerome Newton: They're like children. Exactly like children...
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Thomas Jerome Newton: They're like children. Exactly like children...
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Movie Connections:
Featured in Watching the Alien (2003) (V)
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Soundtrack:
Mandala
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FAQ
This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.more (81 total)
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I went into this film expecting something more like Walkabout, because that is all I had seen of Nicholas Roeg's work previously, and the thought of David Bowie being in it enticed me. Really, though, I had it backwards... It's David Bowie's creation with a little bit of Nicholas Roeg in it.
The whole "human alien" thing is very much Bowie's schtick, and to a degree I found it hard not to imagine that this was Bowie's entire idea of himself. A sort of silent tragedy encompasses his character, expressed mostly in the scene with the eye-test where Bowie says very smally and pathetically "Oh... now I'll never get them out." Bowie sees himself as an alien that just can't escape being human.
On a broader sense than this one artist's idea, however, this is a fascinating science fiction film because it points out a side of human nature not often developed very well in other science fiction films. Instead of dissecting the alien, which is what everyone always expects humans will do, the humans do everything in their power to make him more human. Where not actually working towards constructing this "other" as a human, they try to own him, via capitalism or politics or, yes, even love.
It's interesting then the space they put him in, with all of the various rooms like different human-empathetic places. On one hand, it's a self-reflective look at the "set" of the movie, showing that we are designing this alien to look human, but secondly a lot of it is surreally natural, as if to imply that even nature is forced to be human at our hands.
--PolarisDiB