Planet 51 facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Planet 51
Canadian theatrical release poster
Directed by	Jorge Blanco
Produced by	Ignacio Pérez Dolset Guy Colins
Screenplay by	Joe Stillman
Story by	Jorge Blanco Marcos Martínez Ignacio Pérez Dolset Javier Abad
Starring	Dwayne Johnson Jessica Biel Justin Long Gary Oldman Seann William Scott John Cleese
Music by	James Brett
Editing by	Alex Rodriguez
Studio	TriStar Pictures Ilion Animation Studios HandMade Films
Distributed by	DeAPlaneta Distribución (Spain) Sony Pictures Releasing (United States) Entertainment Film Distributors(United Kingdom/Ireland)
Release date(s)	14 November 2009 (2009-11-14) (Westwood) 20 November 2009 (2009-11-20) (United States) 27 November 2009 (2009-11-27) (Spain) 4 December 2009 (2009-12-04) (United Kingdom)
Running time	91 minutes
Country	Spain United Kingdom United States
Language	English Spanish
Budget	€49 million ($70 million)
Money made	$105.6 million

Planet 51 is a fun 2009 computer-animated science fiction comedy film. It was directed by Jorge Blanco and written by Joe Stillman. The movie features the voices of famous actors like Dwayne Johnson, Jessica Biel, Justin Long, Gary Oldman, Seann William Scott, and John Cleese.

This film was made by companies from Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States. It was produced by Ilion Animation Studios in Madrid and HandMade Films. Planet 51 cost about $70 million to make. This made it the most expensive film produced in Spain at that time. The movie was released on November 20, 2009, by TriStar Pictures.

What's the Story About?

On a planet called Planet 51, green aliens live a peaceful life. Their society looks a lot like the United States in the 1950s. One day, a strange spacecraft lands in their town.

Out steps a human NASA astronaut named Charles "Chuck" Baker. He is very surprised to find the planet is full of aliens! Chuck quickly escapes to the town's planetarium. There, he meets a teenage alien named Lem. Lem works part-time at the planetarium.

Lem soon realizes that Chuck is not dangerous. He agrees to help Chuck get back to his spacecraft. Chuck's command module, Odyssey, is orbiting Planet 51. It will soon leave for Earth, and Chuck doesn't want to be left behind.

Meanwhile, Planet 51's army arrives to check out the spacecraft. Their leader, General Grawl, is very suspicious. When Chuck's MP3 player accidentally starts playing music, Grawl thinks the astronaut is an alien invader. He believes Chuck wants to turn everyone into zombies! So, the army starts a big search for Chuck.

Lem asks his best friend, Skiff, for help. Skiff loves science fiction and believes in conspiracy theories. He thinks there's a secret "Base 9." Together, they try to hide Chuck from the army. While trying to keep Chuck a secret, Lem accidentally upsets his neighbor, Neera. Neera thinks the alien is friendly. Lem also loses his job when his boss finds Chuck.

In Lem's room, Chuck finds his dog-like NASA robot, Rover. Rover had escaped from the army's base. It tracked Chuck using GPS and came to the city. Rover even makes friends with a tiny alien creature!

The army searches Lem's home for the alien. So, Lem and Skiff move Chuck to the comic book store where Skiff works. A news station manages to film Chuck acting out Earth's pop culture. The aliens misunderstand this as threats. After escaping the army at the store, General Grawl moves Chuck's spacecraft to a secret place.

Later, Chuck is caught by Grawl's soldiers during a movie premiere. He is set to have his brain removed by Professor Kipple, an alien scientist. When Lem tries to defend Chuck, Kipple thinks Lem is a zombie helper. Chuck pretends to release Lem from his "mind control." Then, Chuck and Rover are taken to Base 9.

Lem gets his job back, but he is determined to save Chuck. He teams up with Skiff, Neera, her younger brother Eckle, and Rover. Lem finds Base 9 in the desert, near a gas station. Skiff accidentally opens a gate to the underground base.

They free Chuck from Kipple and find his spacecraft. But General Grawl and his soldiers corner them. Grawl wants to get rid of the human. He reveals that the base is set to explode! Lem accidentally starts the countdown. Grawl tries to shoot Lem but misses. He hits an explosive instead, and debris traps him. Chuck saves Grawl just before launching his spacecraft into orbit. They escape Base 9's destruction.

From space, they admire Planet 51's view. Lem successfully asks Neera out on a date. Grawl thanks Chuck for saving him. Chuck takes his friends home. He lets Rover stay with Skiff, who has become very close to the robot. Chuck says goodbye to Lem and the town. He then launches back into space. In the last moments of the film, we see that the little alien pet, befriended by Rover, is on board Chuck's ship!

Who's Who in the Voices?

Here are the actors who lent their voices to the characters in Planet 51:

• Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson as Charles T. "Chuck" Baker, the human astronaut from Earth.
• Justin Long as Lem Kerplog, a teenage alien boy on Planet 51.
  • Justin Long also voices Rover, the helpful robot probe.
• Jessica Biel as Neera, a teenage alien girl and Lem's crush.
• Seann William Scott as Skiff, Lem's best friend who works at a comic book store.
• Freddie Benedict as Eckle, Neera's younger brother.
• Gary Oldman as General Grawl, the army leader who fears aliens.
• John Cleese as Professor Kipple, a scientist who works with General Grawl.
• Mathew Horne as Soldier Vesklin, a soldier in the army.
• James Corden as Soldier Vernkot, another soldier.
• Rupert Degas as Chief Gorlock.
• Alan Marriott as Glar, a hippie alien who plays the ukulele.

Music from the Movie

The music from Planet 51 was released as a soundtrack album. A soundtrack is a collection of songs used in a movie. This album was put out by Decca Label Group. It was available digitally on November 10, 2009, and on CD on November 17, 2009.

Play the Game!

A video game based on the Planet 51 movie was released in November 2009. Sega published the game. You could play it on several gaming systems. These included Nintendo DS, PlayStation 3, Wii, and Xbox 360.

Pyro Studios developed the versions for PlayStation 3, Wii, and Xbox 360. Firebrand Games created the Nintendo DS version. There were also Planet 51 games for iPhones, other mobile devices, and Facebook. These were developed by Zed Worldwide.

See Also

• In Spanish: Planeta 51 para niños