Queen of Outer Space (1958) starring Zsa Zsa Gabor, Eric Fleming, Dave Willock
Synopsis of Queen of Outer Space
Queen of Outer Space begins with an intrepid captain and his men. After that, a space station is destroyed. However, when they land on a planet where the destructive beams comes from … All males are outlawed! However, some women there are eager to break the law!
Review
It should be clear that Queen of Outer Space is a parody of scifi movies of the time. Some people try to take it seriously, however it’s intentionally silly, and it works as a comedy. It’s set in the “distant future” of 1985! First, a mysterious ray from outer space destroys a space station. Then, it also causes a spaceship manned by our heroes to veer off course…. After that, they crash land on Venus. Which is populated by beautiful women, wearing makeup, beautiful dresses, etc. That is strange, since there are no men on the planet.
Most of the men died in an interplanetary war ten years ago. The useful survivors are kept on Venus’ previously-unknown moon. Effectively, a slave camp. The Queen blames all men for what happened on her planet … And for the radiation damage to her beautiful face. Next, she plans to destroy the Earth … Because it’s infested with men!
In conclusion, the beautiful women don’t want their new man toys destroyed. So, there’s going to be a revolution! Which lasts about two minutes. In other words, the Queen is killed by her own murderous ray, the beauties have retaken their society, and all live happily ever after.
Zsa Zsa Gabor says
I made Queen of Outer Space, which was destined to become a classic. Written by Ben Hecht (of Front Page fame), Queen was one of the last films he wrote….I play [Talleah], a scientist who is against all of Queen [Yllana’s] cruelties and wants to see her banished. The high point comes when I declare, “I hate that queen”—a line that even to this day causes a great deal of mirth among many of my gay friends. I liked Ben Hecht and adored my costumes, designed by Edith Head and costing a staggering $15,000 apiece.
Zsa Zsa Gabor in her autobiography, One Lifetime is Not Enough
Cast of characters
- Zsa Zsa Gabor (Lovely to Look At, Lili, 3 Ring Circus) as Talleah. No, she’s not the Queen. But, she’s her chief scientist, and leads the faction that don’t want all men destroyed.
- Eric Fleming (Rawhide, The Glass Bottom Boat) as Captain Neal Patterson. The stereotypical spaceship commander. Handsome, in control, his men follow his orders without question. In addition, Queen Yilana clearly likes him as well. She’s both attracted and repulsed by him. She even unmasks before him, showing her hideously disfigured face.
- Dave Willock (Revenge of the Creature) as Lt. Mike Cruze. Part of the crew, slightly more girl-crazy than the rest.
- Laurie Mitchell as Queen Yllana. The villainess of Queen of Outer Space. She blames her disfigurement and emotional pain on all men. In conclusion, a tragic villain. Although, still quite dangerous.
- Lisa Davis (One Hundred and One Dalmatians) as Motiya. One of the numerous, beautiful women that Venus is populated with.
- Paul Birch (War of the Worlds) as Professor Konrad. The stereotypical scientist, who knows things he frankly has no way of knowing.
Editorial review of Queen of Outer Space courtesy of Amazon.com
Prepare to blast off on one of the campiest cosmic capers in midnight movie history! On a routine mission, Captain Neal Patterson (Eric Fleming) and his crew encounter a mysterious ray beam that knocks their rocket off course and destroys a space station. They wake up on Venus and find the planet is home to a race of beautiful women, ruled by a man-hating, masked Queen who is determined to blow up the earth. The crew’s only hope is the Queen’s love-starved scientist (Zsa Zsa Gabor), who longs to free her people from the evil Queen and bring men back to Venus. It’s an interplanetary battle of the sexes as Zsa Zsa and the earthling’s team up to save each other’s worlds!