Film #028 - Dr. Who and the Daleks (1965)
Dr. Who and the Daleks is the big screen adaptation of the second Doctor Who serial, “The Daleks”. It takes a lot of liberties with the story, mostly with the characterization of the lead character, who is here known literally as “Dr. Who” (on the show, he is almost always called “The Doctor”) and is played by Peter Cushing. Also, all references to his being from another planet are removed and he and his granddaughter Susan (Roberta Tovey) are simply scientifically-minded earthlings.
The changes don’t really affect the plot. So Ian (Roy Castle) and Barbara (Jennie Linden) aren’t Susan’s teachers. Barbara is Susan’s sister and Ian is her boyfriend. What they do hasn’t changed much. What it does affect is the overall tone of the story. They are obviously much more trusting of Dr. Who than TV’s Ian and Barbara are of The Doctor. Ian is also much more bumbling than William Russell’s man of action. But it makes sense for a film that inevitably had to cut down the original story’s over three-and-a-half hour runtime.
And the story that emerges is tighter and more economically plotted, with little chaff remaining on the wheat. It is also lavishly produced, with spectacular sets that the television show wouldn’t be able to match for decades. Even the Daleks get an upgrade, being more mobile and colorful than their TV counterparts.
The cast, it must be said, proves very different from the original, even given the necessary changes for the shift from television. Cushing is just naturally more likeable than William Hartnell’s gruff old man and the film’s Susan is actually a girl, not a grown woman like Carole Ann Ford. Whether they are *better* than the original or not is up to personal taste. I certainly found them more accessible when I was younger, but prefer the originals now. (Not by much, though, it must be said. I think the producers did a marvellous job casting the film.)
In the end, Dr. Who and the Daleks is a fascinating look at what Doctor Who could have looked like if it had a decent budget and it’s a solid, entertaining film in its own right. The fact that it is a remake and has so many changes to the script put it outside of the official Doctor Who canon, which has caused many fans of the show to dismiss it and its sequel undeservedly. When this film was made, the facts about The Doctor were practically wide open and this is every bit as valid a take on the character as what developed on television. Fans of the show should certainly see this and I find it hard to understand why any of them wouldn’t like it.
March 29th, 2007 at 2:30 pm
I remember being more dismissive of this when I was quite a bit younger, but these days, I’m quite a bit more forgiving. I find it amusing that kids at the time wrote in to complain that the Daleks weren’t murderous enough - talk about a different time and a different place!
Some time back, my wife said she wanted to watch the first full Doctor Who story, An Unearthly Child, and I balked - the first 25 minute episode is magic, but the rest of it is something even I can barely bring myself to watch. I showed her this instead. I don’t think it “breaks” the mythos, and the condensed nature of the story is a huge part of its charm.