Conquest of Space

A mission meant to take American astronauts to the Moon is redirected from Earth, and the crew leaves its space station aboard a ship bound for Mars instead. The commander, Gen. Samuel T. Merritt, grows troubled as the voyage proceeds, turning to the Bible and coming to see the journey as an act that oversteps limits set by God. His conviction puts him at odds with the rest of the crew, including his son Barney, and threatens the mission itself.

Byron Haskin directed the film, which came after Treasure Island, Warpath and The War of the Worlds in his filmography, and George Pal produced it for Paramount. Walter Brooke plays Merritt, with Eric Fleming as Barney Merritt and Mickey Shaughnessy, Phil Foster, William Redfield and William Hopper among the crew. The film was made for about 2 million dollars and returned roughly half that amount at the box office, a poor result relative to its cost.

Audience response has been modest: on IMDb it holds 5.6 out of 10 from around 2,000 votes, and on TMDB it also sits at 5.6 out of 10, from 48 votes. Haskin returned to a Mars setting nearly a decade later with Robinson Crusoe on Mars.