- DOCTOR WHO: KEYS OF MARINUS, THE (DVD MOVIE)
On a remote island of glass surrounded by a sea of acid, there is a machine that can remove evil from the minds of an entire population – the Conscience of Marinus. Fearful of its immense power falling into the wrong hands, its sole guardian has scattered the machine’s operating keys across the planet. The TARDIS crew arrives to find the island under attack by the evil Voord. Marinus’ last line of defense – and its only hope – is the Conscience machine. The Doctor and his companions must undertake a deadly quest to recover the keys of Marinus.For all the Whos in Whoville (sorry, wrong Doctor), this vintage Doctor Who adventure from the venerable British series’ inaugural season is a must-own collectible. For the uninitiated, Doctor Who is television’s longest-running science fiction series and it has gained a cult following that rivals those of Star Trek and Star Wars. Dr. Who, portrayed here in his first incarnation by William Hartnell, is a Time Lord who travels the cosmos in a spacecraft called the TARDIS (Time and Relative Dimension in Space), whose exterior looks like a police call box.
Originally broadcast in 1964, The Keys of Marinus is a six-episode arc that features the doctor’s original traveling companions, science teacher Ian Chesterton, history teacher Barbara Wright, and the doctor’s granddaughter, Susan, who is given to screaming at the first sign of peril. Hartnell’s doctor is a sprightly curmudgeon who relishes adventure and mystery, which he finds after the group lands on Marinus, an island of glass surrounded by a sea of acid. Doctor and company are compelled to retrieve four microcircuits that are the keys to the Conscience of Marinus, a computer that has eliminated evil from the minds of men (except apparently the evil Yartek and his web-suited Voords, who want to seize the machine). Their quest takes them most memorably to “a planet of the most contented people” (beware the brainwashing powers of the “mesmerent”), another world overrun by plants, and finally a city where Chesterton, framed for murder, is considered guilty until proven innocent–by the doctor, of course. As is characteristic of this series, the special effects are a hokey hoot and the actors sometimes step on each others’ lines. Hartnell vacationed during production and is absent for two episodes. But this is a surprisingly prophetic cautionary tale: it may be good to heed the doctor’s prescient observation that “man was not made to be controlled by machines.” If you have yet to make an appointment with the doctor, perhaps the episodes featuring Tom Baker–the fourth and most popular of the doctors–are a more accessible introduction. –Donald Liebenson
Buy “Doctor Who: The Keys of Marinus “ For Only $17.74
March 5, 2010
#1
This production was an unmitigated disaster on multiple levels, and yet it still holds some charms for the Doctor Who fan who has acquired a taste for this sort of thing. If you’re looking for an introduction to classic Doctor Who or even to the first Doctor, run (don’t walk) away from this DVD. You will only find yourself staring at the screen in disbelief, muttering, “My God, why?” But if you’ve already purchased every other William Hartnell entry in the series, you might find this one instructive.
“The Keys of Marinus” was the first Doctor Who story scripted by Terry Nation with no Daleks in it, so it was predictably a mess: an episodic six-part hodgepodge in which the Doctor and his companions are whiplashed from one incongruous setting to the next, all purportedly on the planet Marinus. The story opens, for example, on a glass island surrounded by a sea of acid, then moves on to other regions of the planet. So where does the acid sea end, and how does it affect these other locales? At the same time, however, the veteran fan will recognize in short form the same basic formula that would later be used in multi-story arcs like “The Key to Time” season.
Next, set construction for this story was a fiasco, not for want of trying by set designer Raymond Cusick but for want of cash from the BBC. When the companions find themselves inside a mountain of ice caves, for instance, I thought, “Sheesh, it looks like papier-mache wrapped in cellophane.” Sure enough, as Cusick reveals in a hysterically funny interview in the Special Features menu, the cave walls were covered in cellophane to make them shine like ice. (Cusick’s deadpan account of how he had to pull the story’s scenery out of his backside with almost no money is the reason I give this DVD two stars instead of one. Don’t miss it.)
Finally, the acting and characterization in “The Keys of Marinus” are as erratic as the story: Susan (Carole Ann Ford) breaks down in hysterics even more easily than usual. William Hartnell seems listless in the early episodes and, in fact, took a two-week holiday in the middle of the story. Ian (William Russell) gives everybody their orders for defeating the Voords in the final episode, making one wonder who’s in charge on this show. And the numerous villains are uniformly dull and undeveloped–always a bad sign in a series known, even at its worst, for its memorable baddies.
March 5, 2010
#2
The classic Doctor Who adventure sees The Doctor, Ian, Barbra and Susan land on a strange island made of glass in a sea of acid. At the center a machine that can wipe the evil from the inhabitants of the planet. The computer however needs keys to operate all over the world. The Dcotor and the others are split up and must find the seven keys to activate it.
Sadly this dvd doesn’t have much and this really more for the die hard fans then anyone else. So if your looking for more bang for your buck on this one so that’s my revue.
March 5, 2010
#3
It was great. The old Doctor was himself. It contained 1964 special effects and a shoestring budget. It was a classic.
March 5, 2010
#4
Dr. Who: The Keys of Marinus is a fine restoration of a very early Dr. Who story. Despite the BBC’s shortsighted erasure of the original tapes, this Kinescope film reproduction is quite worthy.
This release features an excellent subtitle-commentary and very worthwhile sudio commentary by several of the original participants. Along with other special features are two .pdf computer files which are fun – once you ignore the instructions on the DVD and just open the files in (for PC’s) Windows Explorer.
This is recommended, even if you own a previous release.
March 5, 2010
#5
A rollicking fun adventure of a story makes its debut in the first season! This particular story tries to take our four travelers onto a grand quest to search for the four additional keys of the planet Marinus. Once the keys have been inserted into the machine known as the Conscience the evil Voords will be conditioned, and stop the Voords from trying to take over the machine. The story is a great romp that has wonderful performances from the main cast, and introduces us to memorable characters such as Sabetha and Altos. I remember watching this story in the 80′s and loving it, and I still enjoy it! The trial scenes are fun to watch, and the different parts of the planet help move the story along. Despite this movement, there are some minor areas of padding, and the plant life that attacks Barbara and Ian in the jungles of Marinus are not quite as convincing as one would hope for. Still, a fun story, with some decent extras!