Robinson Crusoe on Mars (#404)

Special-effects wunderkind and genre master Byron Haskin (The War of the Worlds, The Outer Limits) won a place in the hearts of fantasy-film lovers everywhere with this gorgeously designed journey into the unknown. When his spaceship crash-lands on the barren wastelands of Mars, U.S. astronaut Commander “Kit” Draper (Paul Mantee) must fight for survival, with a pet monkey seemingly his only companion. But is he alone? Shot in vast Techniscope and blazing Technicolor, Robinson Crusoe on Mars is an imaginative and beloved techni-marvel of classic science fiction.

SPECIAL FEATURES

Restored high-definition digital transfer, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray edition

Audio commentary from 1994 featuring screenwriter Ib Melchior, actors Paul Mantee and Victor Lundin, production designer Al Nozaki, Oscar-winning special effects designer and Robinson Crusoe on Mars historian Robert Skotak, and excerpts from a 1979 audio interview with director Byron Haskin

Excerpts from Melchior’s original screenplay (DVD only)

Destination: Mars, a featurette from 2007 by Michael Lennick detailing the science and dreams behind Robinson Crusoe on Mars

Music video for Lundin’s song “Robinson Crusoe on Mars” from 2007

Stills gallery of behind-the-scenes photos, production designs, and promotional material

Theatrical trailer

English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing

PLUS: An essay by filmmaker and space historian Michael Lennick, Melchior’s “Brief Yargorian Dictionary” of original alien dialect, and a list of facts about Mars from his original screenplay