******COSMIC SPOILERS!******
A couple of weeks ago, I was shopping a nearby Barnes & Noble when I came across a reissue paperback of Walter Tevis‘ 1963 sci-fi novel (and partial autobiography) “The Man Who Fell to Earth.” I’d seen British filmmaker Nicholas Roeg’s 1976 film of it several times (most recently for this retrospective), but I was curious how far the film strayed from its source. To my surprise, the book was a surprisingly brisk, straightforward and comprehensive read, unlike its far less scrutable film version. The narrative was much less dense than I expected, and despite two efforts to film it (the second being a forgettable 1987 TV-movie) and sequel it (a 2022 Showtime series), I’ve yet to see a truly definitive adaptation of the original novel, though the 1976 film is the closest attempt to date.
Flashbacks throughout “The Man Who Fell to Earth” (1976) show flashbacks to the titular character’s life with his wife and two children on their dying home planet of Anthea.
The book was an allegory of Tevis’ own life, after moving with his family as a youngster from the bustling, bohemian metropolis of San Francisco to rural Kentucky, where he experienced major culture shock. His depression eventually led to alcoholism, much like the frail titular alien of his novel, alias ‘Thomas Jerome Newton,’ who ‘goes native’ after becoming increasingly reliant on alcohol and television to cope with the challenges (and failures) of his mission on Earth. Like Tevis when he first ‘landed’ in Kentucky, Newton is almost literally crushed by the oppressive gravity and toxicity of his new home. Newton’s mission is to build a space shuttle to ferry the rest of his people–numbered only in the hundreds–from their dying planet of Anthea to a new home on Earth.
The late rock legend David Bowie is the most alien human ever captured on film. He was born to play this role.
To build the ship, Newton needs to become a filthy-rich tech tycoon, and fast. Newton begins incrementally selling patents for advanced Anthean technology through a discrete lawyer named Farnsworth, but he arouses the suspicion of a science professor named Bryce, who is determined to learn the truth of the reclusive tech magnate. Meanwhile, Newton’s own earthly decadence, encouraged by his alcoholic friend Betty Jo (Mary Lou in the film), aids in the unraveling of his plans. After being nearly blinded by bumbling government researchers, Newton’s futile mission implodes from within, and the end of the book sees him squandering his days as a sad, anonymous, wealthy failure.
That’s the book, here’s the movie.
“The Man Who Fell to Earth” (1976)
The movie opens with our Anthean protagonist splash-landing in a river of rural Kentucky.
Note: Shot with a British film company in the United States for around $2 million, the movie lacked the sophisticated, post-“Star Wars” opticals to show the alien’s spaceship in flight, so director Nicholas Roeg used NASA Apollo-era stock footage, which is automatically public domain for free use, since NASA is funded by US taxpayers. The zooming aerial angles right before the unseen Anthean craft’s splashdown are similar to camera moves used to herald the splash landing of Charlton Heston and company on the “Planet of the Apes.” (1968).
Using a forged British passport under the alias of Thomas Jerome Newton, our Anthean protagonist (David Bowie) walks into a nearby Kentucky town with a collection of rings from his planet, which he sells for cash to get to New York.
Note: Battling his own demons of substance abuse at the time, the late David Bowie (1947-2016), making his film debut, looks terribly vulnerable walking down roadside knolls and avoiding traffic as he makes his way into town. His sometimes coltish gait suggests a being unaccustomed to Earth gravity. His alienness shows in other small moments too, such as savoring a drink of filthy pond water, as a being on a drought-plagued planet might. Newton’s mission in the film differs from his mission in the book; in the book, he hoped to build a shuttle to ferry his people to Earth. In the movie, he hopes to ship water back to Anthea. The movie’s plan is unnecessary, since there are far better prospects for pure ice water elsewhere in the solar system, such as the moons of the outer planets, or on comets (even our own moon or the polar caps of Mars); all of which are free of pesky humans to muck things up.
Newton arrives in New York, where he meets with top patent attorney Oliver Farnsworth (Buck Henry) to discretely offer bits of advanced technology from Anthea in order to raise capital for building a privately-owned spaceship to transport water to Anthea.
Note: The movie’s version of Farnsworth, played by the late actor/writer Buck Henry (“The Graduate”) is more of a nebbishy joke than a character, with his comically thick glasses and bodybuilding lover (Ric Ricardo). I wish they’d toned down the absurdity of his character a bit. As is, he’s visually distracting, and for no real story reason. At least Farnsworth’s love of music plays a role in the film, as the movie’s soundtrack creates a sonic mirror for its characters, much like George Lucas’ “American Graffiti,” (which also starred Candy Clark). The soundtrack ranges from Gustav Holst’s “The Planets” Suites (Mars & Venus) to “Blueberry Hill” (Fats Domino) and “Hello Mary Lou,” (covered by singer/composer John Philips, of the “Mamas and the Papas”). In the book, Newton hated the cacophony of Earth music; something changed for the film, with the casting of rock god David Bowie.
During a fling with one of his many students, college science professor Nathan Bryce (Rip Torn) learns of a new kind of instantaneous, gas-developing color film, courtesy of Newton’s patents from his newly-established World Enterprises. This discovery piques the scientist’s interests–and his tenacity to find its reclusive inventor.
Note: In the digital age, a new type of fast-developing color film is downright quaint; like making better wheels for horse-drawn carriages. Nevertheless, it’s a holdover from the 1963 book, when quick-developing Polaroid film was still a few years away (as a kid growing up in the 1970s, I would’ve never conceived of today’s smartphone cameras). While the book’s Bryce was ashamed of harboring sexual fantasies about his young students, the movie’s more piggish Bryce (Rip Torn) openly embraces his debauched fantasies. Not to be a prude, but I quickly tired of seeing Rip Torn repeatedly writhing around in bed with young girls sating a daddy complex. Once would’ve been more than enough, thanks. Also not buying Thorn as a scientist, either; he seems miscast, like seeing Sylvester Stallone play Ian Malcolm in “Jurassic Park.”
Forced into taking an elevator, the gravitationally-challenged Newton collapses in a heap, and is taken to his room to recover by goodhearted maid Mary Lou (Candy Clark), who finds she’s able to carry this unexpectedly featherlight man.
Note: As played by Oscar-nominee Candy Clark, the character of Mary Lou (Betty Jo in the book) is changed from a heavier, forty-something woman with a pronounced Southern accent to a slimmer, younger, more waifish woman whose codependent feelings for Newton are much more pronounced in the film. Both versions retain the character’s essential goodheartedness, despite her alcoholism.
While recovering from his collapse in the elevator, a smitten Mary Lou introduces “Tommy” (as she calls him) to gin, which becomes his drink of choice in the book and the film. Thus begins the seduction of Newton away from his mission, as he slowly ‘goes native.’
Note: Paralleling the life of author Walter Tevis (“The Hustler,” “The Color of Money”), the book and movie both portray alcoholism as almost unavoidable self-medication for a person feeling displaced from where they came (San Francisco or Anthea). While I wouldn’t recommend substance abuse to get into character, Bowie’s own struggles with addiction during filming did add to his authentic portrayal.
Flashbacks to drought-stricken Anthea are cut throughout the film, showing Newton’s wife (Claudia Jennings) and his two children. A ticking clock to remind us (and Newton) of the urgency of his mission.
Note: The movie shot in White Sands National Monument (now National Park) in New Mexico to depict the arid, dying world of Anthea. Newton’s wife and children on Anthea appear to be wearing versions of the Arrakis “still-suits” (moisture collecting garments to prevent dehydration) from the books (and later films) of Frank Herbert’s renowned “Dune” saga. The musical Anthean language is created using real-life whale songs on the soundtrack. Playing Newton’s wife is actress and former Playboy playmate Claudia Jennings (“Deathsport”), who tragically passed away in a 1979 car accident at age 29.
Living with Mary Lou, a near-permanently intoxicated Newton becomes addicted to television, as both feed their unhealthy habits. Mary Lou learns that Newton is a married father of two (somewhere…) but accepts him as a lover of convenience.
Note: This is a major deviation from the book, where the middle-aged Mary Lou reluctantly accepted being Newton’s live-in housekeeper for his companionship and the absurdly high salary he provided her. Despite their mutual addiction to gin, the relationship was not so “Sid & Nancy” as we see in the film.
Another divergence from the book is the nature of Newton’s ‘big reveal’ of his true appearance–free of human prostheses–to an increasingly codependent Mary Lou. Removing his human contact lenses, wig, nipples, ears and fingernails, Newton is revealed to be a bald, earless, cat-eyed being who sends Mary Lou into culture shock. She screams, wets herself, and runs to cry in the kitchen. This is one of the most pivotal and memorable scenes of the movie. Only later, does she return to have sex with him in his true form.
Note: Perhaps the movie’s most iconic and referenced scene is played a lot more traumatically onscreen than in the book, where his true identity did end their unconsummated companionship. Betty Jo/Mary Lou would later came to accept him after entering into a relationship with Bryce, as we also see in the film. However, the movie sees her still carrying quite the torch for “Tommy.”
The curious, tenacious Bryce tracks Newton down to his isolated home in Kentucky, where he lives with Mary Lou. After awkwardly meeting Newton, he clumsily but discretely plants an x-ray camera in the room, unaware that Newton can see in x-rays. Later, Bryce examines the photo and confirms Newton is not human.
Note: Limited by the opticals and visuals of the pre-Star Wars era, the movie’s x-ray of Newton is more of a ghostlike ‘phantom image’ which doesn’t reveal Newton’s physiological differences, such as his birdlike bones, different organ placement, etc.
Aware that Bryce x-rayed him without consent, Bryce meets with Newton in the back of his limo and they talk.
Note: Rumors abounded that actor Rip Torn and then-novice actor Bowie did not get along; Torn found the moody, addicted rock star to be unprofessional, despite his clear talent as an actor, while Bowie was equally frustrated with his hostile costar. That (rumored) tension actually works well for their scenes together.
After years of work and money, the expensive private spaceship is finally ready for its inaugural flight, with Newton slated to fly it (his true destination kept hidden from the press). Newton however, gets cold feet at the last minute, and declines. The ship is eventually destroyed, and written off as a rich man’s fancy that didn’t work out.
Note: Interesting coincidence, with “Tommy” slated to fly his ship, and Bowie’s classic 1972 song “Space Oddity” referencing an astronaut known as “Major Tom.” Real-life astronaut Captain Jim Lovell (1928-2025), who flew in the Gemini program, was mission pilot on Apollo 8, and commander of the infamously perilous Apollo 13 mission, cameos as himself at a pre-launch press gathering near Newton’s ship. When Lovell attended a screening of the film, he was embarrassed by it, and later remarked he didn’t like that kind of movie. I’m guessing Lovell never read the script. Decades after this movie’s release, billionaire private space enterprises have become downright cliché, with Elon Musk’s SpaceX, Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic, and Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin, among others.
Before his scheduled flight, Newton is plagued by visions of his farewell to his wife and family back on Anthea, when he took what appears to be a solar sail train to the launch area for his unseen spaceship.
Note: With their almost Star Wars-ish combination of high-tech and primitive, the Anthean flashbacks are masterful pieces of production design, framed in surreal, dreamlike cinematography by Anthony B. Richmond (“Don’t Look Now”). The whale song used for the (presumed) Anthean language is both lonely and haunting.
Newton has been hiding out since the failure of his mission to rescue his people, and Bryce tracks him down to a shack in the middle of nowhere, using clues from a record Newton made for his wife back on Anthea. The two have an open talk.
Note: This scene includes some of the best dialogue in the movie, as when Bryce asks Newton if he’s bitter about his treatment on Earth, and Newton replies: “Bitter? No. We’d have probably treated you the same if you’d come around to our place.”
Watching television alone, in his rundown mansion like an alien Nora Desmond, the seemingly ageless Newton is visited by a now middle-aged Mary Lou. They share one last toxic fling together before she returns to Bryce, with whom she’s living.
Note: Having failed in his mission, Newton degenerates into an ocean of depression, alcohol and TV. Or as he puts it, he’s “gone native.”
Bryce’s treachery leads government scientists to capture Newton, who perform invasive tests on the alien, including a dangerous x-ray eye exam that leaves him partially blinded. A guilt-ridden Bryce tries to intervene.
Note: Bowie excels beyond his own high standard for this scene, as Newton futilely begs the scientists to stop their examination of his eyes. They ignore his pleas that he can see in x-rays, and will be blinded.
Years later, Bryce once again tracks the ageless Newton to an outdoor cafe. Bryce leaves Newton a wealthy, broken failure.
Note: The final shot of the film, as the end credits roll, sees a hatted Newton gazing downward at the table, seemingly motionless, as people move around him. It almost looks like a visual effect, with Bowie’s total stillness, but it’s shot entirely in-camera without any special effects, save for Bowie’s almost preternatural acting. Yes, the movie is overindulgent and lacks coherency, but it’s worth owning both for its dreamlike Anthean flashbacks and for the late David Bowie’s never-bested debut performance. He left us too soon, and is greatly missed.
The End.
A New “Man.”
The new man falling to Earth finds out that aluminum foil spacesuits don’t microwave very well..
In 1987, an ill-advised TV movie version of “The Man Who Fell to Earth” was created for ABC-TV. Starring Lewis Smith (“The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai”), Robert Picardo (“Star Trek: Voyager”), Beverly D’Angelo, James Laurenson, Bruce McGill (“Quantum Leap”), and a teenage Wil Wheaton (“Stand By Me”). Directed with no particular flair or artistry by Bobby Roth, this version goes in the complete opposite direction of the esoteric 1976 film, turning Tevis’ vaguely autobiographical story of culture shock and depression into something akin to an episode of “Galactica 1980.” All the character names have been changed, which works for the book and Roeg’s film, lest anyone further associate this drivel with its source material. Costars Picardo and Wheaton would go on to do their respective Star Trek spinoffs afterward.
John (Lewis Smith) gives tech details to his lawyer (James Laurenson) and a curious scientist (Bruce McGill).
Newton, now named John Dory (Smith), is a wacky single dad to one extraterrestrial son he only sees in holograms. John now hooks up with a single mother named Eva (D’Angelo), who has a bratty son named Billy (Wheaton). This version jettisons the book/movie’s rural Kentucky setting, sending John straight into New York City, which automatically voids the rural culture shock that added to the spaceman’s depression and dissolution (the allegory for author Tevis). John’s wife on Anthea is also conveniently dead, so he’s free to sleep with Eva in a chaste, 1980s-TV sex scene. In the role of John, Smith has none of the depth of Bowie’s extraterrestrial, playing it shallow as a petrie dish. The material he’s given doesn’t lend itself to much profundity, either, so it’s just as well. The fake synth pop soundtrack is more grating than nostalgic. Overall, this truly stupid interpretation is best left ignored. It adds nothing to the lore of the book or movie.
Then there’s Showtime/Paramount+’s “Man Who Fell to Earth” (2022), which was created by Jenny Lumet and Alex Kurtzman, both of whom were/are producers/showrunners on post-2017 Star Trek. The series is a ten-episode sequel to the 1976 film, starring Chiwetel Ejiofor (“Serenity,” “The Martian”) as an Anthean named Faraday who’s arrived on Earth to complete the mission of his failed predecessor, Newton, now played by Bill Nighy (“Pirates of the Caribbean”). Naomie Harris (“Skyfall,”) costars as a woman who becomes involved with Faraday.
Joining Ejiofor and Harris is Bill Nighy as an aged Thomas Jerome Newton, the antihero of the original story.
For full disclosure, I haven’t seen this series. Since learning of its existence only recently (what can I say? Sooo much content out there), I’ve been unable to find it on Paramount+ or any current streaming service. If any readers have seen it, I’d really appreciate your thoughts and feedback in the comments section below. If it’s worth seeing, I’ll personally track down a Blu-Ray or DVD copy and review it separately for a future column.
Summing It Up
The 1976 film of “The Man Who Fell to Earth” has outgrown its source novel in popularity due largely to the magnetic central performance of young David Bowie (1947-2016), who made his feature film debut with this movie. With his thin frame, mismatched pupils, crimson hair and androgynous persona, Bowie was born to play otherworldly humanoid Thomas Jerome Newton. After all, he was the rock legend who created “The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars,” and the cosmic-themed songs “Space Oddity” and “Starman.” Whatever issues one may have with the film (and I have a few), Bowie’s performance–paralleling his real-life struggle with substance abuse–is utter perfection. His piercing intelligence is overwhelmed by his physical and emotional vulnerability.
Candy Clark (“American Graffiti,” “Blue Thunder”) plays functional alcoholic Mary Lou (nee: Betty Jo), the otherwise goodhearted woman who unwittingly aids in Newton’s decay by seducing him with gin, sex and other addictions. Straying from the book’s middle-aged, heavyset woman, Mary Lou is more waifish and emotionally codependent in the film. Newton’s patent lawyer Farnsworth (Buck Henry) is reduced to a joke, with thick Coke-bottom glasses and a bench-pressing lover named Trevor (Ric Ricardo), while science professor Bryce (Rip Torn) makes the book version’s secret coed sex fantasies all too real, as an embarrassing fifty-something sex hound who sleeps with students for passing grades. Otherwise fine actors Rip Torn and Buck Henry both feel miscast; they might’ve been better served if they’d switched roles, at least as I interpreted those roles from the book. Bernie Casey (“The Martian Chronicles” “Gargoyles”) is also a bit underused as Peters.
Despite these changes to the supporting characters, the novel’s overall story is more-or-less present, including specific lines of dialogue from Walter Tevis’ 1963 book. However, there’s also a lot of gratuitous nudity and a number of embarrassingly dated artsy flourishes that make this movie a bit less satisfying for those expecting a more fat-free adaptation of the book. Instead, the movie goes down the rabbit hole with Newton, rather than objectively observing him. By the end, we share his debauched confusion, decay and ennui, which are aided by a nonlinear screenplay and some less-than-coherent editing choices. On the plus side, the movie shares the fearless nihilism of other sci-fi films made in the late 1960s through the mid-1970s (“Colossus: The Forbin Project” “Logan’s Run,” “Silent Running,” “Planet of the Apes” etc), which weren’t afraid to end on a dour note, unlike most post-“Star Wars” sci-fi films, which calculatedly use fairy-tale endings to sell more popcorn.
The flashback/fantasy sequences of Newton’s Anthean family, seen here roaming in a painting, are elegantly crafted.
Before his death in 1984, author Tevis gave the movie a “C+,” calling it “confusing.” This is a fair assessment. Personally, I would love to see the movie retold with less obscurity, while retaining the cool intellect and overwhelming otherness felt by its protagonist, which readily speaks to today’s isolated, online culture. As it is, 1976’s “The Man Who Fell to Earth” is an ambitious, often fascinating undertaking that’s ultimately undone by its own excesses and incoherency. Like the pitch-perfect casting of the troubled David Bowie, real-life was mirrored in the art; perhaps too well.
Where to Watch
“The Man Who Fell to Earth” (1976) is available to for free streaming on Pluto and Plex, and can be purchased digitally on Prime Video or iTunes. The movie is also available on DVD/Blu-Ray through Amazon or Barnes & Noble.com. For the review, I dug out my old Anchor Bay 2-disc DVD, and even on a 7 ft/2-meter projection screen, it held up nicely.
Happy Easter and Happy 50th for this classic to remember David Bowie as a sci-fi star for.
Happy (belated) Easter to you, Mike!
And to my dying days, I believe that David Bowie was genetically engineered to play Thomas Jerome Newton.