Film Series Offers N.M. Cult Classic

David Bowie stars as Thomas Jerome Newton in the 1976 film, “The Man Who Fell To Earth.” The film was shot in New Mexico.

The movie stars David Bowie, Candy Clark, Buck Henry and Rip Torn and was filmed, with the exception of one scene filmed in Los Angeles, in New Mexico. The now-cult classic follows Thomas Jerome Newton, played by Bowie, who is a humanoid alien who comes to Earth to get water for his dying planet. Newton then starts a high-technology company to get the billions needed to build a return spacecraft.

It will be screened for free as part of the Centennial Film Series at the KiMo Theatre tonight.

Ann Lerner, the city of Albuquerque film liaison, said the idea for the series came out of the city’s Cultural Affairs Department. The series has been screening movies all year.

“We’ve averaged about 300 people for the films,” Lerner said. “(It’s) a great response and it’s been a great way to highlight the impact that the film industry has had on the state of New Mexico.”

The movie was filmed in Albuquerque, Artesia, Los Lunas, Madrid, Roswell, White Sands National Monument and Fenton Lake, near Jemez Springs.

Swain, who is now a location scout, said he worked on the film for a couple months and helped the British crew with locations and getting around New Mexico. He said when the crew got to White Sands Missile Range security was tighter.

“All of the cast and crew had to be cleared by the government,” he recalled. “There was even a time when we were filming that the military police showed up and made us stop filming. The range was doing a missile test and I think they remembered that there was a foreign crew on the ground. We had to wait until the missile was up and then it was fine.”

Swain also recalled a scene in the movie when the spacecraft of Bowie’s character first lands on Earth and makes a splash in Fenton Lake.

“The first time that they tried to do it, the splash was too small,” he said. “The scene was shot again and it was big enough, but killed all the fish in the lake.”

The film company helped to purchase more fish and help clean up all the dead fish, he said.

Swain said that while at Fenton Lake, the crew took some time to teach Bowie how to fish.

“He didn’t really like it, but Rip Torn was an avid fly fisherman,” he said. “When he wasn’t shooting, he would take off and just start fishing.”

Swain said the movie is perfect for local film buffs because it shows a lot of the Duke City and New Mexico.

“If you look closely when Bowie is driving, you can see the reflection of Downtown Albuquerque in the window,” he said. “It was supposed to be in New York, but anyone familiar with Albuquerque will notice it.”
— This article appeared on page C2 of the Albuquerque Journal

If you go
WHAT: “The Man Who Fell To Earth”
WHEN: 7 tonight
WHERE: KiMo Theatre, 423 W. Central
HOW MUCH: Free