Women of the Prehistoric Planet
Entry updated 19 May 2025. Tagged: Film.
US film (1966). Standard Club of California Productions. Directed and written by Arthur C Pierce. Cast includes Wendell Corey, Bob Ito, Keith Larsen and Irene Tsu. 87 minutes. Colour.
The Spaceships Cosmos One, Two and Three are returning to their home world after visiting Centaurus, some of whose inhabitants are passengers; but two of the Centaurians now hijack Cosmos Three and demand to be returned to Centaurus, believing they will be treated as Slaves on the others' world. Control is lost of the ship and it wanders into the Solaris system, to be caught in a planet's "field of Gravity" and crash landing there. Aboard Cosmos One, despite instructions from "Space Command" not to look for survivors, Admiral King (Corey) orders Commander Scott (Larsen) to take the ship to Solaris: travelling at sub-lightspeed, the two ships are six months apart, so time dilation (see Relativity) will mean that from any survivor's perspective they arrive 18 years later.
Though their Weapons dispose of a giant iguana, two members of an exploration party die. Meanwhile, Linda (Tsu) – a Centaurian – leaves Cosmos One and bathes in a Edenic pool, only to be attacked by a serpent: she is rescued by Tang (Ito), the child of a couple from Cosmos Three (they, and the three other survivors, are long dead). Having quickly fallen in love, Linda goes to tell the Admiral (revealed to be her father) that she intends to stay; however the couple are attacked by an indigenous tribe (who look like cavemen and "fear men who are different"): Tang fights back, but the ship's latest search party arrives and shoots at everyone who isn't Linda, injuring Tang. Linda protests but, believing her delirious, is drugged and carried back to the ship. A team eventually goes out to look for Tang but has to retreat when a volcano begins to erupt – the ship lifts off, preparing to depart. But Linda has sneaked away: the eruption obligingly ceases and the lovers meet; the crew note they are alive but the admiral decides they will be happier here. As Cosmos One leaves we see the planet's continents are familiar, whilst – as it was previously unknown – the Admiral decides to give it a name (or two), stating it "will be known as the Blue Planet, the designated planet [pause] Earth" (see Clichés).
The crews of the three Cosmos ships are Caucasian, the Centaurians Asian: this is a cause of tension (see Race in SF). Scott is said not to consider the Centaurians people and describes them as "hardly more than barbarians"; his bitterness apparently because one of them married a member of Cosmos Three's crew, rather than him (this couple's son is Tang). Tang's mother-to-be is shocked when a female member of the Cosmos Three crew whom she considered a friend becomes hostile, despite her having no part in the attempted hijack and indeed having tried to stop it.
The world building is a little unclear, doubtless in part to prevent second-guessing of the reveal. The Cosmos spacemen's homeworld is unnamed; Centaurus is a fallen civilization (it appears to be referred to as a "deep space colony" at one point), whilst a suggestion that its people might live on the new world could imply it suffered a Disaster (thus the passengers). During most of the film the viewer probably assumes this is the future, after Earth has engaged in the Colonization of Other Worlds: the film's ending could be read as how it went into decline, as did its colonies; with Admiral King unaware the planet he has named Earth is humanity's home world. However, the intention seems to be that events take place in the distant past (Solaris is referred to as a "new Star"), with parallel Evolution presumably explaining why there are human-like people on different planets (the exploration party takes "oxygenium" tablets and complains about the thickness of the atmosphere on what is revealed to be Earth); though there are also indigenous humans present, the cavemen, Tang and Linda are presented as Adam and Eve figures (see Prehistoric SF and Origin of Man).
The Communications with "Space Command" suggests an Ansible-like system exists. Using time-dilation as a plot device is interesting, though the explanation is inaccurate (perhaps dumbed down for the not particularly bright crew member it is given to). The anti-racist message is worthy and perhaps slightly deeper than would be expected; though top billing is given to Corey the central characters are Asian, unusual for a US film of that time. Unfortunately the script, acting, directing and special effects are poor, with unintentional Humour whose highlights include a crew member falling into a pool of acid (there is also intentional humour, but this is unfunny). However, any mockery by the viewer of how the "alien" life is indistinguishable from Earth's proves ill-judged, whilst the iguana is referred to as a "giant lizard", so avoiding the traditional Scientific Error of Dinosaurs alongside humans (though there is some unlikely giantism: besides the iguana, there is a large-ish spider). The film's title is a little misleading and the advertising tag line even more so: "It's the battle of the sexes as savage planet women attack female space invaders."
This film should not be confused with Voyage to the Prehistoric Planet (1965), nor Voyage to the Planet of Prehistoric Women (1968) (for both, see Roger Corman). [SP]
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