Next: Alien Cruiser (“Flight of the Navigator”)
When it’s in flight, I’ll admit: the Aries 1B doesn’t seem all that impressive. But that’s precisely the point. It’s a rigid, silent, fixed object that does more floating than flying – which is probably a more accurate description of ships in space than anything involving warp drives or light speed. No, it’s when the Aries lands on the moon, its thrusters kicking up a cloud of moon dust, the hinges on its landing feet recoiling slightly as the vehicle touches down, that the effectiveness of this design – and these special effects – comes into focus. This movie was made before man ever landed on the moon but still today, more than 40 years later, it plays like a completely believable, delicate touchdown on the lunar surface. And the insides of the cruiser – a ship meant to transfer people from orbit to the surface – is believably populist. This isn’t a ship for scientists or the military; it has a cockpit for the crew and a commercial seating area for the passengers, complete with a stewardess wearing Velcro slippers, so she doesn’t float around. Realism was the thing with the Aries 1B, and it still seems real.
Previous: The Whale Probe (“Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home”), Next: Alien Cruiser (“Flight of the Navigator”)
