Devil Girl from Mars

No one drawn by the title will be disappointed with tall, amazonian Patricia Laffan in the title role of this nonsense in which Oscar-winning wartime documentarist David MacDonald shows the same respect for matriarchal aspirations he later did in 'Petticoat Pirates'. The title is misleading, though, since dressed in leather by Ronald Cobb to resemble a particularly ferocious principal boy, Martian warrior Nyah is plainly all woman.

The Danzigers seem to have read about 'The Day the Earth Stood Still' rather than actually seen it since Nyah is plainly Klaatu and Gort rolled into one; and her pet robot merely an afterthought.

Enlivened by a dramatic percussive score by Edwin Astley and a cast of familiar faces (too bad Nyah was seeking men, since Hazel Court & Adrienne Corri are by far the most impressive specimens). It also marks an interesting overlap of careers on the set of veteran cameraman Jack Cox - who shot 'The Lady Vanishes' - and child actor Anthony Richmond, who later shot 'Don't Look Now'.

Having read many comments written by various sorts of movie buffs and having checked some original posters and adverts of the movie, one can watch this film with some prefabricated expectations. On the one hand, one may look for an innovative gift from England that includes some aspects of early science fiction genre; on the other hand, being curious of a sexy Martian woman wearing black leather and rousing challenging lusts in men. Yet, DEVIL GIRL FROM MARS roused my interest in a slightly different way though science fiction isn't my cup of tea whatsoever.

DEVIL GIRL FROM MARS is, first of all, the movie that beautifully combines the virtues of old cinema with the elements of early science fiction. What we get here is an excellent, psychological insight into the contrast between "Earthmen" and "Martians", between the ability to use the senses and the ability to use the machines; between the ability to love sacrificially and the ability to gather selfishly; finally the contrast between obeying orders blindly and following own's will freely. The accurate representation of this contra-worlds is revealed in the character of the Martian girl Nyah (Patricia Laffan) and the Professor. While she parrots the slogans about the invisible war of the sexes, he experiences the innate war of the senses. These factors are memorably entailed in the old cinema style and charming scenes that portray human feelings like affection, curiosity and fear. That makes DEVIL GIRL FROM MARS convincing for various movie buffs.

Of course this highlighted aspect cannot be treated too seriously, as one of the commentators stated, it's no psychological movie nor any thought provoking story but only a fiction that deals with many shallow effects and odd "space talk" about a super technology of another planet. Nevertheless, this aspect of "earthmen" vs "martians" should not be neglected. Why? Because of a dangerous condensation...

Indeed, the character that is most memorable in this movie is Nyah (Patricia Laffan), not only due to her "Martian origin" nor sexually challenging looks nor even due to her good acting. She remains memorable because of her cold eyes, strict voice, so to say: her strength appeal. That was something extremely important about this new cinematic heroine and must have been very difficult for the actress to portray an alien in this way; yet she crafted the role perfectly. Yet, where does the danger lie? Many modern viewers tend to condense her role to sex appeal only. The earthmen around her are creatures of free will, they are not sex machines that would dream to make love to her. Therefore, it is significant to state here that you cannot watch this movie from today's perspective. Nyah and her robot that some science fiction buffs find ridiculous represent dominance through fear, through intolerance and cold cruelty. Mars vs Earth indicates unbelievable technology of weapons vs old fashioned toys but at the same time tyranny vs freedom. In this respect, we could as well say that this role of Ms Laffan highly refers to the one 3 years earlier in a sword and sandal colossal epic where she could, as well, constitute an object of lust only though there was something different about her role, too. But that's a different story...

The supporting cast include good British talents from beautiful Hazel Court as longing for love Ms Prestwick to Hugh McDermott as strong personality Michael Carter. The aforementioned Professor also does a good job as one who thinks what his brain tells him to think. Together with the performances come other artistic features of the film including cinematography, mood, pace. Although some aspects may irritate you as seriously dated, the mood is impressive. Since the movie is not long and the content is primarily built upon the dialogs and reactions in the particularly scary situations, much of the communication with viewers builds upon image. Consider, for instance, the memorable arrival of the Martians and Nyah's coming out of her spaceship. Therefore, lots of movie buffs will perhaps not find this movie scary; yet they will still find it thrilling.

Just in a nutshell, DEVIL GIRL FROM MARS is one the movies of the genre that I see with interest and recommend to the viewers for whom science fiction isn't their cup of tea. Not primarily because of its content, nor sexy/scary Nyah, but a cinematic surprise from England made more than 50 years ago but still impressive in a way.

A couple things upon which we can all agree: At the time of this production, Patricia Laffan had an absolutely wonderful set of gams, and those gams were very nicely displayed by her Martian costume. Another thing we can all agree upon is that within the parameters of this very genteel English 'Invasion Literature' flick, there is a window into some of the kinky thoughts lurking within the very genteel English writer who penned this yarn.

Certainly, this is the one of the quietest and perhaps dullest of the Alien Invader films of the 1950's...the opening credits telegraph this when they tell the audience that this film was based upon the PLAY of the same name. That fact alone, that somewhere upon the British Stage in the early 1950's, someone produced a play titled 'Devil Girl From Mars', is a thing very amusing to contemplate.

So yes, this film is quite talkative, and filled with recognizable stage play types as our cast of characters, and containing a prominent subplot involving a romantic and perhaps redeemable escaped murderer...these are the elements that keep this extra-terrestrial tale unduly Earth-bound. Worse, there appears to be a kind of gentlemen's agreement in effect between the eponymous Devil Girl and her earthly opponents to avoid any serious attempts to overcome the other, until the last moments of the film. And after about the first 20 minutes of the story, it is impossible to stop one's mind from repeating the question: Why doesn't the Devil Girl simply liquidate these annoying people since they are of no use to her?

But weaknesses aside, it is impossible to hate a 1954 British B-movie about an outer-space dominatrix with fabulous gams wearing shiny black leather and visiting Earth in search of male breeding stock. And besides giving her credit for great gams, I should also credit Ms. Laffan for giving what is actually a very good performance, radiating intelligence and menace, and seeming to be both simultaneously prim and lusty.

Also of interest to scifi fans would be the flying saucer design, which is interesting, and the robot, which is not bad. Additionally, Gerry Anderson worked on this pic, as a sound editor, thus beginning his long career in British celluloid scifi.

As I said previously, this opus began it's life as a stage play. The same thing is true of the 'Rocky Horror Picture Show,' which also featured a black clad quasi-dominatrix from outer space, stuck in the English countryside. I have to think that the Devil Girl helped pave the way for Dr. Frankenfurter.

It's chock full of clichés and is a bit stagy at times, but Devil girl from Mars still manages to entertain. The story concerns a group of guests at a remote Scottish inn who witness the landing of a strange unearthly craft and are subsequently held captive by its occupant, the comely Nyah, who is here to take back eligible men to repopulate Mars. Yikes! Needless to say the eligible men want nothing to do with this and plot to prevent her from carrying out her mission. Devil girl from Mars suffers from a number of problems, prime among them the absolutely inept acting of Hugh Mcdermott, who plays the newspaper reporter. He has a key role in the film, which really weakens it dramatically. The other actors can't quite make up for this, although Patricia Laffin is really quite menacing as Nyah. The film has a stagy feel to it, not surprising since it was based, believe it or not on a play. I can just imagine a local theater group trying to mount this! The movie's special effects are the real stars. The spacecraft is really pretty cool, and the robot Chani is a typical 50s conception of an automaton, even if he does resemble a refrigerator. This film belies its bargain basement budget much of the time and can be quite atmospheric with the sound of the wind and the shots of the studio bound Scottish moors. The scene of Nyah entering the drawing room of the inn for the first time still makes me jump.

There's no other movie quite like Devil Girl from Mars. It's cheesy and low-budget, unfolding like a stage-play ineptly filmed, with a script dulled by timid ideas and old-school misogyny. Yet in Patricia Laffan, the British actress who plays Nyah the Devil Girl, this picture presents a space-queen unrivaled in the annals of B-movie campiness. Her dominatrix boots and patent-leather cape, not to mention her highbrow imperious accent, easily outclass the features on display from those Venusian babes in Queen of Outer Space (1958) or the Martianettes in Flight to Mars (1951). And check out that Devil Girl headgear, a cross between medieval helmet and Egyptian sphinx! In silhouette, Nyah is the image of Darth Vader, striding about with cape swirling to do something unspeakably naughty. But before you conclude that Ms. Laffan's over-the-top performance is an instance of bad acting, consider this: there's no way to play a character like Nyah with psychological depth. The Devil Girl is a comic-book villainess, an icon, somebody who has to be bigger than big. Patricia Laffan is the perfect drama queen to meet the challenge. If you like her in this movie, be sure to see her in Quo Vadis? (1951), a glorious sword and sandal epic that also features the burning of Rome and the martyrdom of the Christians. In that film Laffan plays Poppaea, wicked Empress of Rome, opposite Peter Ustinov's even more formidable Emperor Nero. From bride of the Roman Antichrist to warrior-woman of Mars is just a small step -- or should I say, it's a small step for Patricia Laffan, but a giant leap for anyone else.