Customer Reviews

Flash Gordon's Trip to Mars

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

"Flash Gordon's Trip to Mars" is the second serial of theoriginal Flash Gordon films. The film picks up at the end of"Flash Gordon Space Solders." (Please note that each of the Flash Gordon films has been renamed and reedited numerous times.) The second series of chapters, 15 in all, are of a better quality then the first 12 chapters. The story picks up with the heroes returning from Mongo. The Earth is thrown into peril once again and Dr. Zarkoff. Flash and his friends must return to space once again to save the world. Ming is back as well. He some how managed to escape death at the end of the first serial and has moved his evil plans to Mars. I didn't really like the whole Mars thing. Knowing want we know about Mars today makes the whole story a little silly. But hay, this film was made at a time when the Red Planet still held a lot of mystery. So, we now know there are not any cities on Mars, you can still enjoy the movie. Buster Crabbe, who plays Flash, is much more secure in his acting. He speaks more, and is more proactive. I liked the character a lot better in this film. In the first serial Flash spent most of his him getting jumped on and being forced to defend himself. In this film, Flash plans attacks and fights when he know he has too. There is a lot of stock footage and a few flash backs to the first serial that pad out the film. This was a way to save money on the meager $175,000 budget, half of what they spent on the first serial. The return of all the same actors from the first film help the movie as well. For the third series the studio replaced Dale and Barin with new actors. The best part about this film and the previous one is the way that is displayed. This DVD has all 15 chapters just as they were shown in the theaters. Each as a title and introduction. They sum up the last chapter and then end with a cliffhanger. It is a lot of fun to watch a serial. The many other Flash Gordon titles are simply these same films recut as feature films. This DVD has all the footage as it was originally released. Larry "Buster" Crabbe played in many films, but really made the role of Flash Gordon special. He often can be found in westerns, and even played Tarzan in one film. He does a fine job on this film and pulls off the "All American Hero" better then anyone really should. I had not seen his work, but know I am a fan. Jean Rogers, who plays Dale, is a really cute girl next door. I have to say, I liked her blond hair in the first film, but the comic strip inspired hair change takes nothing away from her beauty. Dale does not have a lot to do in this serial, but she does manage to move a little away from the totally dependent Dale of the first films. Ming is even more evil as he should be. In the first film he sat around a lot and gave orders. In this film Ming is more active. He fights, shoots a ray gun, and even captures Flash Gordon by himself. Charles Middleton makes a great Ming and will have you plotting your own evil plans before the film is done. He makes the picture a lot of fun. You will notice a few bad spots in the film. The film is from 1938, so you have to chalk the flaws up to its age. Plus the flaws give the DVD character. The cheesy voice over will draw a laugh as well as the special effects. The "Bat Wings" are a great idea. The dolls that flew with them almost looked like.... well they looked like dolls. Buy this film and brush up on some film history as you enjoy some great science fiction!

Though an entertaining serial, "Flash Gordon's Trip to Mars" (1938) occasionally falters due to obvious padding and unnecessary comic relief. Luckily, Buster Crabbe and Charles Middleton resume their intergalactic battle in the classic Saturday Matinee tradition - highlighted by the memorable presence of the Clay People. The action-packed finale has a rousing vitality not evident in the previous chapters. Worth seeing, but definitely the weakest of Universal's Flash Gordon trilogy.

Make sure you get the Image Entertainment DVD! That one has all the episodes and runs 299 minutes. I bought the 97 minute edition by accident because the reviews are all combined!

Even the 97 minute version was good, but so much was edited out, and a few times the viewer is edited into a different situation completely.

The plot involves an attempt to destroy earth once again, and Flash Gordon, Professor Zarkhov, and Dale Arden come to the rescue. The queen of Mars has usurped the throne and turned her enemies into "clay men." But behind it all is Ming the Merciless. Lots of fun! But remember, with all these serials, the viewer had better not ask questions (like how is it everyone speaks English, or why can you fly from planet to planet and never worry about Oxygen or temperature). These movies are meant as an escape and are best called "feel good" movies. Kids love these as well as adults.

When I was growing up I remember being glued to the set every Sunday morning watching the Flash Gordon serials on WGN in Chicago. These episodes were great sci-fi back then and I was thrilled to find them again on DVD. With a little trepidation I started showing the episodes to the kids, ages 9, 6, and 4. I have been amazed how much they enjoy it. We are watching two episodes every Saturday night. The kids line up on the couch, watch it with complete attention, and hate having to wait a whole week to see the next episode. It has really been fun for the kids. My wife and I really enjoy it, too. The special effects are dated, but really, the action and story carry you along and it is a lot of fun to watch. For us, watching the old fashioned special effects are a blast, and for the kids the simple effects are plenty of fun to watch.

One thing that has made the series fun to watch is that we have only been watching two episodes at a time. Each episode is full of action, and watching them all at once would probably be less enjoyable. These episodes were originally shown one episode a week back in the 1930's. Each episode ends at a cliffhanger, so you really want to see the next episode. It is interesting to imagine the millions of people that went each week to the movies to see each episode.

We have finished watching the first serial, Flash Gordon - Space soldiers, are enjoying this series now, and look forward to watching the following, Flash Gordon Conquers the Universe. At this rate, it will take almost a year of to watch the series. What a great way this is to enjoy time with the kids. I think it is great that a movie series over 60 years old stands up so well.

The only reason to give it 4 instead of 5 stars is that the print used has little specks and a few sound glitches that might have been cleaned up with modern digital techniques. By the way, to clear up any confusion from the reviews, this product ASIN=6305773904 contains all the original episodes. It is not an edited version.

I just received my copy of the uncut FLASH GORDON'S TRIP TO MARS in the mail yesterday, and was really impressed. I grew up with the Buster Crabbe serials, seeing a single episode each day, and looking forward to the following Monday, when the next exciting episode would play. How I loved the gilded, swashbuckling Flash, the kindly Dr. Zarkov and the exquisite Dale Arden. I was also extremely fond of the great MING THE MERCILOUS, played with relish by Charles Middleton. Knowing how he scared me as a child, I can only imagine how he spooked the kids on Saturday afternoons, when the serials played on the big screen.

All that aside, this is FLASH GORDON'S TRIP TO MARS as it is meant to be seen: complete and uncut, and with a beautiful, clear print. True, it doesn't have all the "bells and whistles" that people expect with DVDs, but it doesn't need them. This edition is gorgeous.

I do have a warning for you, though. There are many "versions" out there, and a good many of them are butchered to fit a 90 minute time frame. If you want to see this classic as Universal meant it to be seen, get this COMPLETE AND UNCUT version. It's well worth the extra money.

Of the three Flash Gordon serials, the Trip to Mars is my favorite. Ming, for unexplained reasons has escaped death on Mongo and landed on Mars [which bears an uncanny resemblence to planet Mongo]. He is nasty as ever. I really, really hate that Ming!
I have a confession, however. I am really, really in love with Azura, Queen of Magic! [I don't want that to get around]!
For some reason, she presented me with my first prepubertal sexual awakening. I was eight. It may have been her glacial beauty, her imperious disdain or her ability to turn grown men to clay and vanish on the spot. I don't know.
She died in chapter 13. It's an ignominious death in a tacky suburb of Mars. Even worse, it was at the hands of her own guards. I only know, had I been there, it would have turned out differently!
The computer has presented me with magic beyond her dreams. I could obtain this DVD and perform a search for my Queen.
Queen Azura was played by Beatrice Roberts. The actress was born in Manhattan in 1905. As a young woman she entered several beauty contests including Miss America. She had a short term marriage to Robert Ripley [Believe It or Not], and a long term dalliance with Louis B. Mayer [MGM]. She appeared in a string of grade B [maybe C] movies, often uncredited.
I still bear a torch for her. In truth she would be as old as my grandmother. On the screen, however, she retains a regal appeal.
Beatrice Roberts vanished finally into obscurity and apparently is buried in Plymouth, Massachusetts near my hometown. If I ever find her grave I'll stop and plant some violets.

Note that the below reviews of this disc are for the complete, 15-chapter serial FLASH GORDON'S TRIP TO MARS. This disc, however, is an edited "feature" version and is a poor replacement for the full serial, available from Image Entertainment (along with the other two FLASH GORDON serials) in a beautifully restored edition. Get that and skip this.

A modern day approach to this classic from the past cannot do justice when compared to the attitude and actions of the American audience in the 1930's. I interviewed people who lived through the experience as teens when they went to the movies to see "Flash Gordon Goes to Mars". The response can only be compared to the excitement level generated by "Indiana Jones" or "Star Wars". People were looking for escape. Flash Gordon provided the vehicle to take them away. Despite special effects that look silly today, people were thrilled with them in the 30's. The monsters were scary and the idea of life on Mars with "Clay people" filled them with fear. One fact you should keep in mind. The largest money maker in the movies was not the best picture in 1938 or any other of that year,it was a re-hash of "FLASH GORDON". Audiences talked about the adventures of Flash as we would today of "Indy". This DVD is a nice piece of work and the copy lets you relax. It is typical stuff from the 30's and characters such as newsmen, scientists, government officials and butlers can be expected to behave like the idiots Hollywood portrayed them back then. This series of "Flash" was cheaply produced but made a fortune in the movies. The strangest of the three but perhaps the most interesting due to our familiarity with our neighbor, Mars as opposed to far off Mongo. Grab a Martian flying cape and try not to laugh, people did at one time think this was sci fi at it's artistic best!

Following Flash Gordon's original adventures in 'Space Soldiers' (also available on DVD), 1930's cinema goers were treated to this sequel - 'Flash Gordon's Trip To Mars'. All the regulars are back in action for a mamoth 15-part extravaganza. There are slight changes for this serial; Jean Rogers is now a brunette not a blonde and the story takes place on Mars instead of Mongo (not that you'd notice the difference). But fortunately some things never change. If, like me, you remember watching these classic serials during the school holidays you'll know that the combination of 'Buster Crabbe' and 'Flash Gordon' guarantees excitement, adventure and fun - and on this DVD you get 5 hours worth! Although Image Entertainment have not added any special features, the picture quality is excellent. So if you're a Flash Gordon fan this is certainly one for your collection.

These fifteen episodes, twenty minutes each, add up to a five-hour marathon of popcorn-worthy swashbuckling. It's based on Alex Raymond's comic strip from that pre-WWII era that now looks like such an Eden of innocence. It wasn't, of course, but they didn't know it back then.

Queen Azura of Mars has waged war on the clay people, who seem condemned to live their shambling lives away from the sun, in prison uniforms and itchy-looking rubber masks. Evil Ming the Merciless falsely befriends her, to take advantage of her mystic command of the White Opal. It is a gem that grants her magical powers and looks pretty good on with her perpetual evening gown. Somewhere along the line the good guy's gal, Dale Arden, also doffs her lab coat and spends the rest of the flick running through forests and caves in an evening gown of her own - more sparkly, and more dramatic about the bodice. Then there's Prince Barin, standing proud in his armored chestplate and shortie bloomers. And Ming, with a little arrow pasted onto his skullcap.

Well, ignore the costumes (and the plot, if you can). Instead, drink in the tubby little strato-sleds as they soar through the air, flatulent with drooping sparks and drifting wreaths of smoke. Or the wonderful labs, generally bare except for a few ominous Erlenmeyers and a Jacob's ladder or two, or more. Or the ray guns that look mostly like little cookie presses with the handle bent sideways.

It's great stuff. My childhood was, I admit, as close to the series's 1938 date as to this writing, or closer. It was wonderful, stirring adventure back then. It still is, if you can see it with innocent-enough eyes. If not, it's the epitome of camp, only better for being so un-self-conscious. And people don't have bloody fights and do keep their clothes on, so tender sensibilities need not worry.

//wiredweird