The Man Who Fell to Earth

"Power, space, time and a visitor."

1976 2h 19m EN

👍

6.5

SOLID

🍅

79%

FRESH

💯

METACRITIC

⭐

6.6

IMDB

★6.5TMDB · 631🍅79%Rotten Tomatoes●81Metacritic★6.6IMDB · 30,059

Science FictionDramaFantasy

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Thomas Jerome Newton is an alien who has come to Earth in search of water to save his home planet. Aided by lawyer Oliver Farnsworth, Thomas uses his knowledge of advanced technology to create profitable inventions. While developing a method to transport water, Thomas meets Mary-Lou, a quiet hotel clerk, and begins to fall in love with her. Just as he is ready to leave Earth, Thomas is intercepted by the U.S. government, and his entire plan is threatened.

“Power, space, time and a visitor.”

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Cast

David Bowie
Thomas Jerome Newton
Rip Torn
Nathan Bryce
Candy Clark
Mary-Lou
Tony Mascia
Arthur
Buck Henry
Oliver Farnsworth
Bernie Casey
Peters
Adrienne La Russa
Helen
Claudia Jennings
Peters' Wife (uncredited)

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Nicolas Roeg
Writers: Paul Mayersberg
Languages: English
Countries: United Kingdom, Netherlands Antilles

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $1.5M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

50 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

International production across 2 countries: United Kingdom, Netherlands Antilles.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Nicolas Roeg, shot by Anthony B. Richmond. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by John Phillips. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Graeme Clifford shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

CAST

Did you know

David Bowie and Rip Torn and Candy Clark carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "Power, space, time and a visitor.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Nicolas Roeg directs. Anthony B. Richmond behind the camera. John Phillips scores. Graeme Clifford cuts. Produced in United Kingdom, Netherlands Antilles. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Shot for just $1.5M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
250 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
3International production across 2 countries: United Kingdom, Netherlands Antilles.
4Directed by Nicolas Roeg, shot by Anthony B. Richmond. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Original score by John Phillips. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
6Editor Graeme Clifford shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
7David Bowie and Rip Torn and Candy Clark carry the top of the cast.
8Marketing tagline: "Power, space, time and a visitor.".
9IMDB entry: tt0074851 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

The technical file

Cinematography: Anthony B. Richmond
Original score: John Phillips
Editing: Graeme Clifford
Production design: Brian Eatwell
Costume design: May Routh
Makeup / hair: Ellis Burman Jr.
Stunt coordinator: Richard Graydon
Runtime: 139 min · 2h 19m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $1,500,000
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976)
Rotten Tomatoes: 79% 🍅 Fresh
Metacritic: 81/100
IMDB rating: 6.6/10 · 30,059 votes
MPAA: R
US box office: $100,072

Awards

1 win & 4 nominations total

Also by

Nicolas Roeg

Stills · wallpapers

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Wallpaper

Trailers & featurettes

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Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2023-01-02
★ 6/10
Very much a vehicle for David Bowie, this is otherwise a rather derivative and unimaginative story of an alien ("Newton") who arrives on Earth, naked and penniless. He is tasked with trying to find a way to save his own doomed planet, but quickly discovers that he has skills! He can make money, and money buys nice things; it buys nice sex; it gives him power... All of these pleasures distract him from the purpose of his visit. Can he refocus? Well his infatuation with "Mary-Lou" (Candy Clark) isn't helping, nor are those around him - "Bryce" (Rip Torn) amongst them - with their own rather parasitic agendas, and his own character undergoes quite a few transformations as his exposure to the Earth and all of it's frequently conflicting moralities presents him with quite a few challenges. To be perfectly honest, I was rather bored with this. It offers us a smorgasbord of humanity with little context or character depth. Bowie is attractive to look at - sometimes - but really isn't much of an actor and at over 2¼ hours long, the plot had little option but to recycle itself - in various thinly disguised guises - just once too often for me. Stomu Yamashta's score is heavy overused, I thought, and by the end I really wasn't so very bothered whether or not he succeeded. As an observation of 1970s priorities, aspirations and excesses, it is quite illustrative I suppose, but as a film to see on a big screen it is really nothing at all to write home about, sorry.

Production companies