Clip from 1918 Danish silent film Himmelskibet

Here’s a short but fascinating clip from Himmelskibet (1918), a famous Danish silent science fiction/fantasy film in which an astronomer named Professor Planetaros travels to Mars, where he finds a race of mystic vegetarians, enlists the services of the daughter of the local High Priest, converts to pacifism, and returns to Earth to spread a message of peace, love and harmony. Apparently, the film is a commentary on the horrors of World War I.



Adapted by filmmaker Ole Olsen from a work written by Sophus Michaëlis, the film was restored by the Danish Film Institute and re-released on DVD in 2006.