Set in 1970 (later 1985), "a strange, extraterrestrial spool is discovered at the site of the 1906 mystery explosion in Tunguska, Siberia. The discovery of this spool confirms that an alien spaceship from Venus crash-landed there and that the spool is a memory storage devise. A nuclear-powered spacecraft is manufactured and a multinational crew is assembled for a manned expedition to Venus. After a lengthy and risk-laden trip, the crew lands on Venus only to discover the planet devastated by a nuclear war and that the ship from Venus was an invasion force heading to Earth" <br /><br />"Originally produced cooperatively by East German and Polish film studios, 'First Spaceship on Venus' was partially intended as an anti-nuclear tract," according to the DVD sleeve's synopsis. Reportedly popular in its original form ("Der schweigende Stern"), this film's obviously anti-nuclear subtext is most interesting; apparently, the Communist satellite governments shared an apprehension over atomic war. The cast is notably diverse. Lastly, the suggestion that Venus once held life is possible; we won't know until we have the technology to thoroughly investigate the planet.<br /><br />**** Der schweigende Stern (2/26/60) Kurt Maetzig ~ Oldrich Lukes, Yoko Tani, Gunther Simon, Ignacy Machowski