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Excellent, Without a doubt!!

I really wanted to like this movie. I feel terribly cynical trashing it, and that's why I'm giving it a middling 5. Actually, I'm giving it a 5 because there were some superb performances.

This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

Peter Cushing is one of my favorite actors, a veteran of many classic horror films, from Hammer Films and Amicus, which produced this theatrical version of my favorite series, an adaptation of the second story, but first Dalek adventure from the TV show, called 'The Daleks', which starred William Hartnell as the Doctor, William Russell as Ian, Jaqueline Hill as Barbara, and Carole Ann Ford as Susan.Here, all the parts are recast, since this does not share the same continuity as the series. How could it? Despite Cushing's likable performance, this film is a pointless and dumbed down version of the brilliant and atmospheric TV original, superior in every way possible. The F/X to this film look more dated than the series, which has aged quite well.Finally saw it on DVD, with a double feature of the sequel.

I'm sure that on release DR WHO THE DALEKS was a perfectly serviceable children's adventure, colourful, light-hearted and action-packed. Seen today, though, it's an embarrassing cash-in on the popularity of TV's DOCTOR WHO, and it can't hope to hold a candle to that production.Where to start with what's wrong with this outing? Not least Peter Cushing, whose Who is a doddering ninny, a version of the same irritating character he wheeled out in AT THE EARTH'S CORE (although he's even more irritating here). An obvious spin on William Hartnell's portrayal, Cushing is awful - and it's not often I get the chance to say that! I'd much rather see him playing the dogged Van Helsing or ruthless Frankenstein, I have to say.We're also treated to Roy Castle indulging in some sub-standard comedy routines and a couple of irritating kids thrown into the mix. The story is paper-thin and it's pretty silly the way that the characters find themselves randomly catapulted to the alien world within the first couple of minutes.The supposed good guys, the Thals, are a fairly annoying riff on the Eloi from THE TIME MACHINE, and the Daleks are grating in the extreme; they have a way of speaking in very slow, stilted voices here and it makes listening to them a real chore. Throw in schlocky effects and a general pandering to the lowest common denominator and you have an annoyingly twee movie.

I have never understood the rather low esteem the die-hard Who fans give to the Amicus films. I'm a casual Yank fan of the series; I enjoy the series overall, but find individual episodes and portrayals to be very hit and miss. However, I enjoy the heck out of the movies, despite hearing bad things about them before finally encountering Dr. Who and the Daleks on a late night TV broadcast.The films depart from the series in a few respects, mostly in the character background. The Doctor is an eccentric Earth genius who has developed the TARDIS, rather than an alien. He has two granddaughters, Barbara and Susan, where only Susan was a granddaughter in the series (though the 20th anniversary magazine had a story that suggested Susan wasn't a blood relation of the Doctor). In the series, Barbara and Ian are Susan's teachers, who stumble into the TARDIS, after following the odd little girl home. Here, Ian is Barbara's boyfriend, who is shown the TARDIS by the family. Also, the TARDIS interior is vastly different, with the film version looking like a complicated mess of wires, tubes, and equipment, compared to the cleaner and more functional lines of the series. After that, the film pretty much follows the plot of the original Dalek serial.Our explorers are accidentally propelled into the future, and to another planet (Skaro), where they discover a devastated world, as seen in the wonderfully designed petrified forest. They encounter a strange city, where they meet the Daleks, armored apparently robotic creatures who have survived a nuclear holocaust. Later, they will meet the Daleks' foes, the Thals, humanoids who have developed a serum to cure radiation sickness and create immunity. The Doctor and his family join with the Thals to stop the Daleks and their aims of conquest and destruction.The world is wonderfully realized, at times very reminiscent of the 60s, yet also appearing otherworldly and timeless. The exterior of the Dalek city is very evocative of this strange race, while the insides are sleek and functional, as who fit this mechanical race. The Dalek designs are slightly modified from the series, with some of the "plunger" arms replaced by gripper claws, slightly larger dome lights, and wider bases. Also, since the film is in color, we get to see varied designs for the Daleks that weren't available in the original black & white TV broadcast. The petrified forest is an amazing set, with a sandy gray texture and the appearance of a world frozen in time (rather like Pompeii or the petrified forest of Arizona). Watching the film, you feel like you are observing an alien world, not a studio set.The actors are all terrific, with Peter Cushing making a fine Doctor. he was a bit of a departure from the gruffer William Hartnell, but fits right in with the more twinkle-eyed qualities of Patrick Troughton or Tom Baker. It's a lighter portrayal, for sure, but never campy. Jennie Linden makes for a fine Barbara, who gets to muck in with the action, though she is the closest to the standard Who companion, asking lots of questions and screaming at the appropriate moment (though not nearly as much as the television ladies did). Roy Castle adds some comic relief as the slightly bumbling but valiant Ian. Castle proves very versatile and would have made a great hero, had he continued in the sequel. Roberta Tovey is excellent as Susan, the youngest granddaughter. She essays a very mature character, one who combines the seriousness of an adult scientist with the curious nature of a young girl. Susan makes for a great heroine, as she doesn't stand around screaming or whining. She explores and she solves problems. She could have easily have been the main focus of a whole series. The Thals are able assayed by Barrie Ingham and Geoffrey Toone, in the key roles. They are given an odd appearance that does look very 60s, but doesn't scream "The 60s" at you. really, they kind of look like a proto-Glam Rock band.The film offers plenty for everyone, with great sets, costumes, and vibrant colors contrasted with more subdued elements in the petrified forest. The is plenty of mystery to go along with the action and fantastic, presenting something for both child and adult. It has many tense moments and a rousing climax that makes good use of plot points that were introduced along the way.I personally feel that the harsher criticisms of some fans are grounded in fact that they forget this (and the series) was designed for children. As such, many elements are kept simple; but, that helps strip away some of the excess baggage of many sci-fi dramas and lets you focus on the key story elements. The lighter tone helps offset the rather grim nature of the story (a post-holocaust world and a fight for survival), but it never descends into farce. If you enter the film with an open mind, you will find much to entertain you.

I might be more forgiving of the poor story adaptation than some other reviewers, because the TV show had more than its share of turkeys mixed in with the good (even great) stories. However, the producers of this film apparently decided that the only essential elements for a Doctor Who movie were a police box and some Daleks. Change those two details and there would be absolutely nothing else about this movie to tell you this was a Doctor Who adaptation. I'd call myself a fan of the series, but I'm not die-hard about it. When I discovered that this existed -- one of two Doctor Who films featuring "Hammer Horror" star and "Grand Moff Tarkin" Peter Cushing -- I was definitely curious. I will give it this, the super-saturated color makes it look great, and the Daleks' hot-rod paint jobs are simply awesome. Lava lamps even add a fun and campy "period" touch to the Daleks' impressive command center set. The visuals alone earned 5/10, but nothing else about this film really deserved a rating. Even putting aside the whole "Time Lord/Human" thing, the characters bear absolutely no resemblance to their already-established TV namesakes. The Doctor comes across not as an absent-minded professor, which I'm sure was the aim, as opposed to William Hartnell's imperious TV manner. Instead, Cushing's addled portrayal makes it completely implausible that the Doctor could have invented a blender, much less a time-space machine. Ian's goofy portrayal was lifted straight from the Dick Van Dyke show, a sharp contrast from the strong TV character. The movie version of Barbara was simply awful, as she was basically both helpless and useless - nothing like the TV version's intelligent and resourceful woman. Susan was the only character who didn't lose too much in translation, although there was no apparent reason to cut her age basically in half. Even the Daleks are badly played, mainly due to their unnecessarily slow rate of speech and lack of the famous "Exterminate!" catchphrase (the fire-extinguisher guns don't help). They're too mechanical and lack the barely-controlled malice of TV Daleks; there's no sense of menace from them at all. The TARDIS is recognizable only from its blue police box exterior, as the interior is basically a backyard shed's tangled collection of random junk. You half-expect to see a bicycle hanging from the ceiling, or a rake propped against a wall. The clean lines of the original TARDIS control room, its iconic control console with moving column, and even its characteristic "wheezing" sound effect don't exist at all. The characters, acting and stories made Doctor Who the phenomenon it was (and remains), but all of those elements were poorly executed here. Watch this for its glorious Technicolor visuals and maybe for the novelty factor, but it takes more than some Daleks and a blue police box to make Doctor Who.