A clever, if implausible, premise with some trite dialog and an abundance of plot holes and goofs - not to mention numerous bad guesses on future technologies. You definitely have to suspend disbelief here, but the storytelling is good enough this isn't a huge issue.Some impressive production design and miniature effects foreshadows Gerry Anderson's later cult classic series 'Space: 1999'.Special effects hold up quite well - this movie looks better than many CGI-riddled features made decades later.And the climactic destruction of the launch complex is spectacular - miniature effects involving smoke, liquids and fire tend to suffer, it's even distractingly noticeable in Titanic, and troublesome enough that Terry Gilliam doesn't even attempt realism in The Adventures of Baron Munchausen. But the explosions in this movie definitely don't look like miniatures, they're utterly convincing, comparable to footage I've seen of propane facilities and oil fields blowing up. The miniatures must have been quite large, and I can't imagine how they could have kept this under control in a closed indoor set. A jaw-dropping technical achievement.

Journey to the Far Side of the Sun aka Doppelgänger was the first live- action film to be made by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson, who also wrote the screenplay. It was directed by Robert Parrish.SYNOPSISA planet is discovered in the same orbit as the Earth, but on the far side of the sun. The European Space Exploration Council (EuroSEC) decide to send American astronaut Colonel Glenn Ross and British scientist John Kane to investigate. After a crash-landing, Ross discovers that Kane is near death and that they have returned to Earth. Unfortunately, things are not at all as they appear.REVIEWThis is one of the best Science Fiction films ever made. To start with, it comes from the people who made their name bringing us the future, when the future was still a long way away; 'Fireball XL5', 'Stingray', 'Thunderbirds' and 'Captain Scarlet', to name a few. If you keep that in mind then you will see where I am coming from, with this review. Set in 2069 the story, although now completely absurd, concerns the discovery of an Earth-like planet in our Solar System, in our orbit, but on the opposite side of the Sun. From the moment after launch, you have to pay real attention, otherwise you will miss important moments, because there is a subtlety used in the film that means that not all of the clues are 'shoved in your face', like many of the movies nowadays. This leads you to see the film through Colonel Ross' eyes, meaning you discover things as he discovers them. Roy Thinnes, who plays Colonel Glenn Ross, gives an enigmatic performance as his character goes through various changes. From being the confident American astronaut, to the shaken post crash- landed broken man to the paranoid, but not paranoid, family man trying to get home. It is this character that we follow and, in some ways, feel more for than any other. Ian Hendry, who portrays the ill-fated British scientist John Kane, plays the perfect foil to the character of Ross. At times the two actors play the roles as if they are in a buddy-movie, like 'Lethal Weapon'. Other supporting actors, who deserve a mention, are Patrick Wymark, George Sewell and Lynn Loring. Herbot Lom makes a sinister appearance as Doctor Hassler, a character that I felt absolutely no connection to, or understood what he added to the story. The effects are exactly what you expect from a Gerry Anderson production. Some fantastic models that could quite easily fit into any of his 'puppet' programmes. In fact, many of the models, sets and costumes, from this film, ended up being reused in Gerry Anderson's 'UFO', as did many of the cast members. The computers are dated, as they are in most movies of this era, including '2001: A Space Odyssey', but this is a film that was, in some ways, dated the moment it was released. Remember, when this movie was released on August 27 1969, man had only set foot on the moon, one month before, on July 20 1969. There are a few other problems with the movie, like continuity, plot-holes and editing errors, the latter of which is surprising as the film's director, Robert Parrish, won an Academy Award for Best Film Editing on the 1947 film, 'Body and Soul'. Another, often overlooked, part of this film is the soundtrack. Sometimes a score can spoil a movie, because it isn't matched to the tone. Other films suffer because the composer uses a score that he originally wrote for a different movie. Here, Barry Gray's score works in such a way that the film and soundtrack become one perfect piece of sight and sound.REMAKEThis film was remade as a TV Movie, in 1973, as the pilot for a TV show. The series was never made.

Do I like this movie or not? Here is a special effects movie full of futurist sets, futuristic cars, futurist security and of course space ships. The story talks about a planet found on the far side of the sun in the same orbit as Earth. So of course we get to sit through a lot of meetings and international politics and other boring stuff that would make George Lucas proud. Then all that futuristic technology is mostly stuff that wouldn't be out of place in the 1960s, with endless tape reel computers and flashing lights. No objection to the fact that the girls only wear mini-skirts.So anyway, they go to the far side of the sun and come back, but something is wrong, and so we get the actual plot. It is great to know that in every era there were movies with pointless high budget special effects that had no impact on the story.

How well I remember seeing this made for TV movie when it finally got over to this side of the pond on American television. This British made for TV film has a most intriguing idea, but it could have been better conceptualized.Journey To The Far Side Of The Sun begins with the discovery some time in the future of a planet never seen before which is 180 degrees on the same plane diameter on the opposite side of the sun. Naturally the European Space Agency and its head Patrick Wymark want to make a voyage, certainly not in a straight line I hope or things could get hot for the astronauts.Picked to go are American Roy Thinnes and British Ian Hendry. What they find there is something pretty frightening.A lot's at fault here. I would think that an opposite Mercury and Venus would have been discovered as well, but no mention of that let alone the planets farther than earth from the sun. And while this body moves with'the same speed exactly across the diameter of the orbit the others certainly would have been noticed before even our time.I also don't think the marital issues between real life husband and wife Roy Thinnes and Lynn Loring have anything to do with the main plot and add nothing. An interesting idea not well thought out.