JOURNEY TO THE FAR SIDE OF THE SUN was Gerry Anderson's first live-action theatrical movie, though it retains much of the same crew who made Anderson's beloved television series. As result, the film has much the same aesthetic as UFO or Thunderbirds, and comes complete with the marvelous music of Barry Gray and the amazing miniature effects of Derek Meddings. Even so, the film's tone is quite a bit darker than the family puppet shows audiences were familiar with and connected to Anderson's name. Some time in the future, the EUROSEC space agency discovers a new planet in Earth's orbit, but directly on the other side of the sun. EUROSEC balks at the idea of sending a rocket there when the cost is calculated at a billion US dollars. When a spy is caught transmitting information about the new planet to unfriendly powers, however, EUROSEC joins forces with N.A.S.A. to send a pair of astronauts to investigate the new world in our system. Roy Thinnes stars, and finds that this other planet is... Adult-themed science fiction epic plays politics as much as it does adventure. It is, at times, shockingly cynical, in fact. Thinnes is having troubles with his wife (while the film doesn't come straight out and say it, we get the distinct impression that she's been stepping out on him), and the relationship is rather more shaded than one might expect. (Also interesting is that she's played by Lynn Loring, Mrs. Roy Thinnes herself.) Herbert Lom has a brief turn as a spy with a false eye, and Edward Bishop is on hand for an all-too-short segment. Intriguing film is thought-provoking and colorful, but wasn't what audiences expected. Reportedly, the film did only fair at the box office and Gerry Anderson returned to the safety of television. Many of the props and costumes were recycled for UFO.
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