The Day the Earth Stood Still is a 1951 American science fiction film from 20th Century Fox, produced by Julian Blaustein and directed by Robert Wise.

It stars Michael Rennie, Patricia Neal, Hugh Marlowe, Sam Jaffe, Billy Gray, Frances Bavier and Lock Martin.

Klaatu tells Barnhardt that the people of other planets are concerned about Earth's possible aggression, now that humanity has developed rockets and rudimentary atomic power.

The next day, for half an hour, starting at 12 noon east coast time, all electrical equipment on Earth ceases to function,[7] except for essential services, such as hospitals and aircraft in flight.

[9][10] In a 1995 interview, producer Julian Blaustein explained that Joseph Breen, the film censor installed by the Motion Picture Association of America at the Twentieth Century Fox studios, balked at the portrayal of Klaatu's resurrection and limitless power.

"[12] That the question even came up in an interview is proof enough that such comparisons did not remain subliminal, but they are subtle enough so that it is not immediately obvious to all viewers that those elements were intended to compare Klaatu to Jesus Christ.

[13] When Klaatu escapes from the hospital, he steals the clothing of a Maj. John Carpenter, giving him the initials J.C.. Carpentry was the profession the Bible says Jesus learned from Joseph, his father.

Other parallels include: his coming to Earth with a message for all mankind; his befriending of a child; possessing wisdom and specialized scientific knowledge beyond any human being; and people being given a sign of his power.

[14] Producer Julian Blaustein originally set out to make a film under the working titles of Farewell to the Master and Journey to the World which illustrated the fear and suspicion that characterized the early Cold War and Atomic Age.

He reviewed more than two hundred science fiction short stories and novels in search of a storyline that could be used because this film genre was well suited for a metaphorical discussion of such grave issues.

Studio head Darryl F. Zanuck gave the go-ahead for this project, and Blaustein hired Edmund North to write the screenplay based on elements from Harry Bates's 1940 short story "Farewell to the Master".

Director Robert Wise indicated in the DVD commentary that the United States Department of Defense refused participation in the film based on a reading of the script.

[18] The robot Gort was played by Lock Martin, who worked as an usher at Grauman's Chinese Theatre and stood seven feet and seven inches tall.

Not accustomed to a confining, heat-inducing costume, he worked carefully while wearing the two oversized, laced up, foamed neoprene suits for the illusion of a seamless metallic Gort.

[19] In a commentary track on DVD, interviewed by fellow director Nicholas Meyer, Wise said he wanted the film to appear as realistic and believable as possible, to push the core message against armed conflict in the real world.

Herrmann chose unusual instrumentation for the film: violin, cello, and bass (all three electric), two theremin electronic instruments (played by Dr. Samuel Hoffman and Paul Shure), two Hammond organs, Fox studio's Wurlitzer organ, three vibraphones, two glockenspiels, marimba, tam-tam, two bass drums, three sets of timpani, two pianos, celesta, two harps, one horn, three trumpets, three trombones, and four tubas.

[21] Herrmann's advances in film scoring included Unison organs, tubas, piano, and bass drum, staggered tritone movement, and glissando in theremins, as well as exploitation of the dissonance between D and E-flat and experimentation with unusual overdubbing and tape-reversal techniques.

Danny Elfman noted The Day the Earth Stood Still's score inspired his interest in film composing, and made him a fan of Herrmann.

[23] Variety praised the documentary style: "the yarn is told interestingly enough and imbued with sufficient science-fiction lures and suspense so that only seldom does its moralistic wordiness get in the way ...

It holds one's interest undiminished from start to finish and, although the theme is admittedly fantastic, one is made to feel as if he is seeing a real-life occurrence because of the expert handling of the subject matter and the extremely fine special effects work.

[26] The Day the Earth Stood Still was moderately successful when released, accruing US$1,850,000 in distributors' U.S. and Canadian rentals, making it the year's 52nd biggest earner.

[27] The Day the Earth Stood Still earned more plaudits in other countries: the Hollywood Foreign Press Association gave the filmmakers a special Golden Globe Award for "promoting international understanding".

[28] The French magazine Cahiers du Cinéma was impressed, its contributor Pierre Kast called it "almost literally stunning" and praised its "moral relativism".

[32] Ringo Starr brought the imagery of the film back into popular culture by using a modified scene of the ship and Klaatu for the cover of his 1974 album Goodnight Vienna.

Lou Cannon and Colin Powell believed the film inspired Ronald Reagan to discuss uniting against an alien invasion when meeting Mikhail Gorbachev in 1985.

Two years later, Reagan told the United Nations, "I occasionally think how quickly our differences worldwide would vanish if we were facing an alien threat from outside this world.

The album's title track was inspired by the deserted streets of New York City during the Covid-19 pandemic, and contains the "Klaatu Barada Nikto" phrase in its chorus.

'"[44] Edmund H. North, who wrote The Day the Earth Stood Still, also created the alien language used in the film, including the iconic phrase "Klaatu barada nikto."

Philosophy professor Aeon J. Skoble speculates the famous phrase is a "safe-word" which is part of a fail-safe feature used during diplomatic missions such as the one Klaatu and Gort make to Earth.

"[47] Billy Gray, who played Bobby Benson in the film, said he believed the message was coming from Klaatu and that "Barada Nikto must mean ... save Earth.