Leslie Neilson

It is with sadness that I hear today that Leslie Neilson has passed away. He will of course always be remembered for his brilliant comic timing in classics such as Police Squad and the Naked Gun films.

To me though, he will always be Commander John Adams the leading man in one of my all time favourite films, Forbidden Planet.

Released in 1956, Forbidden Planet was an updating of Shakespeare’s Tempest, set in Space. It featured cutting edge special effects courtesy of the Disney Studio animators and the first ever all electronic musical score in a film.

Despite being over 50 years old, it’s still a thoroughly enjoyable film full of wonderful and impressive sets, fantastic ideas, slightly creaky space ships, The Krell and Monsters from the Id and of course the first appearance of Robby the Robot.