The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976)

User Rating:

6.7/10   

Director:

Nicolas Roeg

Writers:

Paul Mayersberg (writer)
Walter Tevis (novel)

Release Date:

26 May 1976 (Netherlands)

Genre:

Sci-Fi | Drama

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...

Plot Keywords:

Water | Alien | Dying Planet | Lakeside | Crotch Shot

Awards:

1 win & 3 nominations

Cast

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
Jim Lovell	...	Himself (Commander of Apollo 13) (as Captain James Lovell)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Claudia Jennings	...	Peters' Wife (uncredited)
Debbie Letteau	...	Professor's (Nathan Bryce's) Daughter (uncredited)
Terry Southern	...	Reporter at space launch (uncredited)

Directed by
Nicolas Roeg

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Paul Mayersberg		writer
Walter Tevis		novel

Produced by
Michael Deeley	....	producer
Si Litvinoff	....	executive producer
John Peverall	....	associate producer
Barry Spikings	....	producer

Original Music by
John Phillips
Stomu Yamashta

Cinematography by
Anthony B. Richmond

Film Editing by
Graeme Clifford

Production Design by
Brian Eatwell

Set Decoration by
Simon Wakefield		(uncredited)

Costume Design by
May Routh

Makeup Department
Ellis Burman Jr.	....	special makeup effects artist
Linda DeVetta	....	makeup artist
Martin Samuel	....	key hair stylist

Production Management
Roy Stevens	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Kip Gowans	....	assistant director

Art Department
Ron Downing	....	stand-by prop
Tom Raeburn	....	property master (as Tommy Raeburn)

Sound Department
Alan Bell	....	dubbing editor
Desmond Briscoe	....	electronic sound effects
Robin Gregory	....	sound recordist
Bob Jones	....	dubbing mixer
Colin Miller	....	dubbing editor
Terry Sharratt	....	boom operator
Michael Ellis	....	sound editor (uncredited)

Visual Effects by
Harrison Ellenshaw	....	special photographic effects

Stunts
Richard Graydon	....	stunt coordinator (as Dickie Graydon)
Matthew Norris	....	stunt double: David Bowie (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Martin Evans	....	gaffer
Gordon Hayman	....	camera operator
Harry Jackson	....	best boy
David James	....	still photographer
Derek Suter	....	electrician
Michael Thomas	....	electrician

Casting Department
Jeanne Swain	....	casting: New Mexico
Alan Swain	....	extras casting (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Ola Hudson	....	suits of Mr.Bowie
Mike Jarvis	....	wardrobe master
Janet Tebrooke	....	wardrobe mistress

Editorial Department
Rodney Glenn	....	first assistant editor: film
Melinda Rees	....	assistant editor

Music Department
John Phillips	....	musical director

Other crew
Gregg Champion	....	production assistant
Terence Churcher	....	location manager
Marilyn Clarke	....	production coordinator (as Sue Merry)
Ronald Cook	....	production accountant
Susanna Merry	....	continuity

Production Companies

• British Lion Film Corporation

Distributors

• Columbia Pictures Home Entertainment (1980) (USA) (VHS)
• Criterion Collection, The (2008) (USA) (DVD) (Blu-ray)

Other Companies

• Houtsnede Maatschappij N.V.  copyright holder
• Lee Lighting  grip and lighting equipment

Runtime:

139 min | Sweden:119 min (cut version)

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo

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:

Alamogordo, New Mexico, USA

Company:

British Lion Film Corporation

Trivia:

The music that Oliver Farnsworth is listening to in the first scene we see him in and in one of the last is Gustav Holst's "The Planets".

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: When Newton opens the cabinet mirror in the bathroom we can briefly see the reflection of a crew member.

Quotes:

Waiter: I think perhaps Mr. Newton has had enough, don't you?
Nathan Bryce: I think... perhaps... you're right.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)

Soundtrack:

Try To Remember

Bowie's entire idea of himself?

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