The Story of Mankind (1957)

User Rating:

5.0/10   

Director:

Irwin Allen

Writers:

Irwin Allen (writer)
Charles Bennett (writer)

Release Date:

8 November 1957 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Fantasy

Tagline:

The Story of Men and Their Women From the Beginning of Creation!

Plot:

The council of elders of outer space is deliberating on a very important subject: Must mankind be allowed to survive...

Plot Keywords:

Angel | Outer Space | Devil | Apple | Harp

Cast

Ronald Colman	...	The Spirit of Man
Hedy Lamarr	...	Joan of Arc
Groucho Marx	...	Peter Minuit
Harpo Marx	...	Sir Isaac Newton
Chico Marx	...	Monk
Virginia Mayo	...	Cleopatra
Agnes Moorehead	...	Queen Elizabeth I
Vincent Price	...	Mr. Scratch / The Devil
Peter Lorre	...	Nero
Charles Coburn	...	Hippocrates
Cedric Hardwicke	...	High Judge
Cesar Romero	...	Spanish Envoy
John Carradine	...	Khufu
Dennis Hopper	...	Napoleon Bonaparte
Marie Wilson	...	Marie Antoinette

Runtime:

100 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Certification:

UK:U (original rating) | Finland:K-12

Company:

Cambridge Productions

Trivia:

One of the films included in "The Fifty Worst Films of All Time (and how they got that way)" by Harry Medved and Randy Lowell.

Quotes:

First Angel: This story here in the newspaper... Some devilish fellow down on Earth has actually discovered the secret of the super H-bomb!
Second Angel: That's impossible! The super H-bomb is not scheduled for invention by the Devil until the year... let's see... until... here it is... 2016. Why, they're not ready or wise enough to handle it yet. According to our heavenly statistics, if exploded now, the bomb would blow Man and his Earth sky-high. No one would be left alive. Everyone would be dead.
First Angel: My, my, the housing shortage up here would be terrible! What'll we do?

Movie Connections:

Edited from Land of the Pharaohs (1955)

Treasure Every Moment The Advocates Are Before The Judge

Irwin Allen's first venture into all star spectacle was one all star disaster. The Story of Mankind contains some of the most incredible casting decisions of all time. Virginia Mayo as the blond Cleopatra, Dennis Hopper chewing the scenery with Napoleon, Peter Lorre dining on the scenery for weeks as Nero, Marie Wilson as Marie Antoinette as a roadshow Marilyn Monroe, that's just some of them.

The film also is known for being the last film which featured all three of the Marx Brothers though they all have different roles. Chico plays a monk who is Christopher Columbus's confidante, Groucho euchres the Indians out of Manhattan island as Peter Minuit, and most astonishing of all, Harpo Marx as Sir Isaac Newton who discovers gravity when an apple conks him on the bean.

Holding all these portrayals together is a story where mankind itself is being judged. A super H Bomb is about to be discovered and let loose will do in the world's population. It's Judgement Day a coming.

But mankind has its advocates and detractors. Speaking for the prosecution is Old Scratch who's been bringing the worst out in man for centuries in the form of Vincent Price. But man has his good side as well and who better than Ronald Colman to demonstrate man at his most civilized best. Colman and Price plead their case before The Judge played by Cedric Hardwicke.

In those three individuals you have some of the finest speaking voices the English language ever knew. When the film is on them as they each bring out the exhibits for their case it's a pleasure to listen to. Then when the focus is on the individual stories, you want to scream in agony.

What was Irwin Allen driving at, I'm still trying to figure it out. Was he deliberately camping it up with some of these casting decisions? If it was satire, it just doesn't get off the ground.

This was Ronald Colman's farewell film and while it's hardly something I'd like to go out on, I can't think of any man who could have stated the case for civilization any better.

So when you see The Story of Mankind, fast forward through some of the exhibits and treasure every moment the advocates are before the judge.