Who's Out There? (1975) ** 1/2 (out of 4) The title question is asked throughout this 28-minute documentary but rarely is it actually answered. Orson Welles narrates and hosts this documentary that starts off with him reading from H.G. Wells' War of the Worlds and then talking about his own stunt and what the author thought about it. We also hear some interviews from those who were afraid of the radio broadcast. From here the subject pretty much turns to whether or not there's life on other planets and we get some stories about Mars and why life could be out there.When you view this documentary in current times, there's no question that things are quite dated and a lot of the things said here have been proved false since then. Still, this film remains slightly entertaining thanks in large part to Welles and that terrific voice as well as getting to hear some stories about his legendary radio broadcast. This portion of the film only lasts a few minutes so one shouldn't come into this expecting too many details. As for the rest of the film, I'd say it's certainly less entertaining but it's mildly interesting to see how this subject was looked at in 1975.

Never released legally on DVD, I found an out-of-print VHS copy at a video store's closing sale. I'd long heard about it, and anxiously scooped it up. By it's very nature, the film is "dated", having been produced in the early 70's, but that shouldn't stop those with more than a passing interest in NASA, the search for Extraterrestrial life, or Orson Welles. Welles is the host for the short film, and it begins with his reading of excerpts from H.G.Wells' WAR OF THE WORLDS. That is followed by a few brief interviews with "survivors" of the infamous Orson Welles radio broadcast. This segment alone is necessary viewing for all Welles fans.Though the film (and it's title) seems to promise a wider exploration of life beyond Earth, it's main focus is the possibility of life on Mars. NASA no doubt was drumming up interest in the 1976 Viking mission. Also included are clips from a symposium on life on other worlds held at Boston University which sports the likes of MIT's Philip Morrison and COSMOS' Carl Sagan. There is some archival NASA footage and a few bits of early space Animation, but that about does it for visuals in the film. Unfortunately, the transfer used in the 1998 VHS tape (which is illustrated by a suspiciously INDEPENDENCE DAY-like cover!) seems to be of a vintage (that is, 1975) 16mm print. It's grainy and the sound is muffled, making a definitive statement of the tech elements difficult. Orson Welles' personal cinematographer during his later years, Gary Graver, shot the Welles footage.

The video I got has the "Who's Out There" short, which has clips of Carl Sagan and others, and is then followed by the more interesting (to me) 25-minute film called "Life Beyond Earth", which the clips were taken from. "Life Beyond Earth" is a discussion of (mostly) scientists about how life may evolve in the universe, civilizations more advanced than ours, etc. Even though we have learned a lot since this was made, it doesn't really seem dated and is inspiring to watch.I got this mainly because Carl Sagan is in it, but all the other speakers were interesting too. Carl is as usual casual, charming, funny, completely interested in the topic. I wish his lectures would have been recorded more often like Richard Feynman's were, for its great to see/hear him speak.This is a great video, and if you want to see Sagan especially look for the release which includes "Life Beyond Earth", because he is only briefly in "Who's Out There". Still, "Who's Out There" is good too. Lots of interesting historical stuff, some great spaced-out visuals and interesting thoughts.