Rocket Ship Reviews

The one, the only, the original, and the best, this film was initially released as a 13-part serial based on a King Features comic strip. Flash Gordon (Crabbe), his companion, Dr. Zarkov (Shannon), and sweetheart Dale Arden (Rogers) blast off for the planet Mongo, trying to stop it from a collision course with Earth. In a flash, Flash encounters evil Ming the Merciless (the unforgettable Middleton) along with assorted hawk men, shark men, dinosaurs, horned gorillas, giant lobsters, space ships (hanging from decidedly visible wires) and some mighty nifty costumes. Ming lusts wantonly for Dale, and Princess Aura (Lawson), Ming's equally lustful daughter, has a heavy crush on Flash. A film whose naive, eager-to-please energy is almost as transporting as Flash's rocketship, FLASH GORDON is likely to delight even the fussiest audiences. The music and some of the sets were borrowed from THE BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN, and several sequels were to borrow heavily from this film. Not to be missed.