Planet of Storms (1962)

To me, this movie is perfection.

Simply A Masterpiece

For all the hype it got I was expecting a lot more!

It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.

If one wants to learn some Russian (which I would like to do if I could find the time), then this film would give some insights.I bought the version from Sinister Cinema which seems to be missing the first half and so it starts with the cosmonauts discussing a tragic collision in space as they prepare to embark on a trip to Venus. It is in Russian with English subtitles and the special effects and the background music are both awesome. The story is pretty straight forward about a Russian expedition to the planet Venus, their encounter with dinosaurs and other strange life forms, philosophical discussions about the role of man in space, speculation about extraterrestrial intelligent life, and an ironic ending in which intelligent humanoid life is shown to exist on Venus, yet there is no contact between them and earth-born humans. Perhaps the writers intended a sequel.Just like a lot of the German films from the 1930s, there is very little or no ideological propaganda, even though there is one reference to the Communist Party, Government, and the Soviet Union (thankfully a thing of the past). But aside from that single sentence, there is no reference to anything political. The story centers around a group of cosmonauts that represent not just Russia, but all of humanity as a whole as the crew embarks on an exploratory mission of the planet Venus. Recommended highly.Dan Basinger

This is beautiful story of cosmonauts landing on an alien planet, in this case Venus. Wonderful period special effects, some are truly astounding. An intelligent, engaging story dealing with the discovery of an ancient culture. Probably the best thought-out robot in screen history. While we were making Cat Women on the Moon, the Soviets were making this.

The russian language version is rare, but well worth seeing. If you're really curious, you can see the American version which was retitled "Voyage to the prehistoric planet" and released in 1966. Back in the early 1960s, when this film was made, the Soviets had focused thier space program on Venus. In fact, they were the first to send probes into the atmosphere, land successfully, and return pictures from the surface. It's no wonder they were inspired to produce an extravagant adventure, based on the promise of thier exploration. The story is basic and straight forward, about an expedition to the planet Venus, but the science is flawed. They encounter oceans, flooding rains, and animal life. When this film was produced, we were just beginning to discover the truth about Venus. A surface temperature at the melting point of lead. A poisinous atmospere, with crushing pressure hundreds of times as heavy as ours. No water, or oxygen, and sulfuric acid in the clouds. If you're lucky enough to run across this film, forget all that, suspend you disbelief, and enjoy this rare classic gem.

This is really an excellent film. Concerning a landing on Venus by cosmonauts( 6 men, 1 woman and a robot) and their many experiences trying to rescue stranded crew members, the film is well-written with outstanding sets depicting the Veneusian landscape. Unlike in much American Sci-Fi of the period, there are no evil aliens trying to take out our heroes, The only inhabitants they meet are carniverous plants, a peredactyl, and lizard-men( in one of the few poorly done scenes) This is is an excellent film and should be viewed by all Sci-Fi fans.