Nostalgia Nugget: Star Trek was Always Around - Part 1

Just seeing this title screen brings back the warm
fuzzier of nostalgia.

Star Trek was always around.

That said, I honestly don't remember the very first time I saw an episode or a movie. I just seemed to always know who Captain Kirk was. I knew Mr. Spock was logical and calm. I knew that McCoy was a doctor dammit! I know I must have seen some episodes of the original series before I saw Star Trek II - The Wrath of Khan, because Spock's death upset me. I suppose I could blame the emotion on James Horner's excellent score and the performances, but I had an idea who these characters were.

I know I saw Star Trek: The Motion Picture in the theaters in 1979, but I honestly don't remember seeing it. I have more vivid memories of the Happy Meal carton with The Real McCoy match game on the side and the Starfleet iron ons that came with it. I may have watched the film on VHS a couple times before 1982. At that point in my childhood I was watching anything and everything with spaceships and aliens (Battle Beyond the Stars and The Black Hole were definitely on the VHS rotation).

Space and Greek Gods! Sign 8 year old me up!

At some point after seeing the Wrath of Khan I started watching the original series on syndication. My grandmother was a big fan of William Shatner (and action movies in general, she loved TJ Hooker). She lived with our family for a number of years in the 1980s and I remember us watching the adventures of Captain Kirk and his crew. I have vivid memories of a few episodes, like seeing Captain Pike in mangled form in The Menagerie, the reptilian Gorn in Arena (I always loved lizard men monsters) and most vividly Who Mournes for Adonis.

The reason that episode really caught my attention is because it combined two things I loved: spaceships and Greek mythology. In that episode the crew of the Enterprise runs into the Greek god Apollo. He turns out to be a real jerk, and of course Kirk is about to outwit him. That always disappointed me a bit, because I really like the concept of the Greek gods and heroes. I lay the blame firmly at the feet of Clash of the Titans for that.

Seriously this was a real episode? I thought it was
some kind of candy fueled fever dream from the 80s.

I must have seen about half the episodes of the original series with my grandmother. I eventually picked up the DVD releases of the original series, and was surprised how much the imagery came back to me in these odd nostalgic flashbacks. The strange puppet alien from The Crobomite Manuver, the myriad of alien races from Journey to Babel and the odd journey to the old west in Specter of the Gun. For years I thought that was just some bizarre dream I had about Star Trek and cowboy hats.

As a kid what stuck out to me were the strange aliens, bright colors and spaceships zipping around. I really didn't remember much about the plots or the themes of the episodes. I mean I remembered Kirk and the Gorn wandering around in the desert trying to kill each other, but I didn't remember why.

What I did remember was the music. Obviously there was the main theme, which pretty much anyone who's seen an episode of the original series remembers all too well. But I also remembered certain cues that were used time and again. On of the most distinctive was the music from Amok Time composed by Gerald Fried. I always associated it with Kirk fighting (since I think it was used in many Kirk fight scenes after it's first appearance here). I don't think I ever saw Amok Time until many years later, so this music will always be Kirk's Fighting Music. I remember laughing my butt off during an episode of Mystery Science Theater 3000 when Joel and the bots suddenly break out into an a cappella version of this music during a fight scene in Hercules Against the Moon Men.

Another distinctive piece was for the episode The Doomsday Machine. Composer Sol Kaplan provided this memorable theme and again it was reused throughout the series, usually when something intense was occurring. it just stuck in my memory and when I revisited this episode in the late 2000s, the score brought back a slew of memories about my grandmother and hanging out watching Star Trek.

For the rest of the 1980s the original crew of the enterprise were always around in the theater. I loved that Spock came back in the spoiler-rific title The Search for Spock. Just like everyone else in 1986 I thought The Voyage Home  was a ton of fun, feeling most like some of the classic episodes I remembered watching. I remember thinking The Final Frontier was Ok at the time. But I also remember Batman being a lot more entertaining that same year. By the time The Undiscovered Country rolled around in 1991, I was losing interest in Star Trek, but still though the movie was good. Any movie that had David Warner in it and surrounded by floating Klingon blood is a good movie.

Every few years in the 1980s you could count on a Star Trek
film to hit theaters.

In a strange twist of fate, one of the very first CDs I ever purchased with my own cash from my job at the video store was the score to The Undiscovered Country. The moody and dark score really appealed to me, even though I was getting into Mtv and SNL at that same time.

I also remember watching a few episodes of the original series on VHS around this time. I tried to watch them in some kind of order following the VHS releases that had two episodes per cassette. I didn't get very far into them. I think I saw The Squire of Gothos episode and it was so goofy that I decided to just stick with the movies.

I eventually came back to Star Trek because of a friend, who was very much a Trekkie, got talking about the classic series. I mentioned the fond memories I had of the show and also that I hadn't seen it in years. Well he had the newly released box sets on DVD that came out around 2008 or so. He generously let me borrow them.

The colors on the remastered Trek are so vivid
Mr. Spock needs shades.

That summer my wife and I watched all three seasons of Star Trek the original series and had a blast with it. It was so colorful (much more colorful than I remembered from the old syndicated prints I watched in the 80s) and the updated visual effects and surround sound was so much fun. Yeah there were clunker episodes, but even the goofy ones had an energy and fun to them that kept us watching. I was surprised my wife enjoyed them as much as I did, but it turns out she grew up with Star Trek always on the television too, her dad was a big Kirk fan. I ended up returning the box sets to my friend, but turned around and bought them myself.

I still revisit the series from time to time. It has a lot of nostalgia for me, and now I can enjoy some of the really excellent episodes the original series had to offer. Mr. Spock is still my favorite character, but I've grown to really like Dr. McCoy as well.

The Enterprise never looked this good on my 80s
televison set!

As for the rebooted series that J.J. Abrams brought to us in 2009. Well, I've enjoyed the first two films quite a bit. Not quite the Star Trek of the 1960s, but I honestly wouldn't expect that. Its fun and entertaining and filled with great action. But like many modern blockbusters, feels a bit empty inside. While I think Star Trek needs to change with the times, I do wonder if this change is going to end up being a problem when Star Trek Beyond comes out later in 2016. Only time will tell.

So Star Trek was always around, especially when it came to Kirk and the crew. But I have a whole different set of memories when it comes to The Next Generation and all the series that followed. Stay tuned for part 2 of this nostalgic trip through space... the final frontier.

Score Sample: Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country

When it comes to Star Trek the movie franchise has a pretty impressive legacy. Jerry Goldsmith knocked it out of the park with Star Trek: The Motion Picture and followed it with the excellent score to The Final Frontier a decade later. In between James Horner brought us to tears with The Wrath of Khan and to thrills with The Search for Spock. Now we have Michael Giacchino giving us top notch scores for Star Trek (2009) and Star Trek into Darkness.

But there have been a couple of other composers who got to tackle a single movie. They tend to get lost in the shuffle, and I wanted to spotlight the work of one of them today: Cliff Eidelman and his music for Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country. His score is much different from the ones that preceded it. Instead of starting with a bombastic fanfare he gives us a dark brooding opening theme that builds and builds in intensity until it erupts into a barrage of notes at the end. it does a great job of setting us up for the darker movie we had coming our way. But I also want to share Eidelman's cue Sign Off which acts as a wonderful farewell to the cast. The heroic theme plays as each cast member's signature appears on the screen before erupting into the classic Star Trek theme for Shatner's name. Eidelman composed one of the best scores of the series, and deserves some recognition for it. So please enjoy two samples, the Overture and the Sign Off cue from Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country.

Overture

Sign Off

Big Eyes (2014)

Introduction:

There are some things that we see all the time and it never crosses our minds to think about where they came from. One of my favorites comes from Calvin and Hobbes where Calvin ponders who was the first human to look at a cow’s udder and say, “I’m going to drink whatever comes out of this.” But I digress. I had seen the big eyed little waif pictures before, but I had never thought about who painted them. And lo and behold, Tim Burton decides to make a movie about this. Well this ought to be interesting.

Summary:

Life is tough for Margaret (Amy Adams) and her daughter. She’s left her husband to make a life in San Francisco. There she meets fellow artist Walter Keane (Chrisoph Waltz) a charming man who sweeps her off her feet. The two marry and attempt to make ends meet selling their paintings. But when Margaret’s big-eyed waif paintings start selling like hotcakes, Walter accidently tells a few folks that he painted them.

Soon the lie gets out of control, and as the popularity of the art grows, so does Walter’s fame. Margaret is pushed aside to paint in a secluded room in their own house (even hiding the truth from her own daughter) while Walter finds more ways to exploit their fame. But this secret can’t stay buried forever, and when it gets out that Margaret may have painted all the paintings with Big Eyes, Walter isn’t going to let her get away with it. Danny Huston, Krysten Ritter, Jason Schwartzman, Terence Stamp and Jon Polito round out the cast.

Good Points:

• Solid acting by the whole cast
• Some great use of colors and visuals
• Moves at a good pace 

Bad Points:

• Follows the typical biopic beats – no surprises here
• Comes across a little less visually interesting than you’d expect from Mr. Burton
• A few characters seem to get lost in the story only to reappear when needed

Overall:

This is one of those movies that will be a great find for those interested in the Keane’s saga already. For everyone else, it is solid entertainment, but is missing that extra something to really knock it out of the park. Part of issue is expectations. Burton crafted the amazingly entertaining Ed Wood so I was expecting something with a bit more of a unique flavor. But this is not even in the same league. It is closer to Lovelace. Not a bad film by any means, but not one you are likely to remember a year or two from now.

Scores (out of 5)

Visuals: 3

Sound: 3

Acting: 4

Script: 3

Music: 3

Direction: 3

Entertainment: 3

Total:  3

Curious about a full review, sent me an email and I’ll make additional thoughts to this review.

My Neighbor Totoro (1988)

Introduction:

No one sets out to make an iconic character, or at least those that do usually don’t accomplish this. These characters are just connect with an audience and grow into a phenomenon. If you are an anime fan, you know who Totoro is, you can’t escape his fuzzy presence. If you don’t know who Totoro is, then go watch My Neighbor Totoro as soon as you can, because he is an iconic character, not just in Japan, but around the world.

Summary:

Satsuki (Noriko Hidaka) and Mei (Chika Sakamoto) are moving to the country with their father (Shigesato Itoi). We soon discover that the girl’s mother (Sumi Shimamoto) is sick and hopefully the country air will help her get well. But mother has to stay in a local hospital until she is well enough to join the three at the new place. After they arrive the girls think mysterious Dust Bunnies may haunt the new home. Satsuiki and Mei explore the house and discover clues to supernatural inhabitants.

In the meantime the girls help their dad around the house and make new friends like Kanata (Toshiyuki Amagas) a young boy who thinks Satsuki is cute, but doesn’t know what to do about it. They also befriend kindly old Granny (Tanie Kitbayashi) who tells them about the forest spirits that live nearby. That is when Mei encounters the Totoro, a huge furry creature living in a huge camphor tree near the house. Totoro and his tiny friends befriend the girls and take them on all kinds of adventures including flying through the air, taking a ride on a Cat Bus and entering an enchanted tree. But when mother takes a turn for the worse is there anything Totoro can do to help the girls in there hour of need?

Good Points:

• Miyazaki creates a wonderful sense of place and wonder in the animation
• Totoro and all the supernatural creations are a joy to behold
• You grow to like all the characters in the film

Bad Points:

• There isn’t really an overall story, more like a series of vignettes
• Looking for an antagonist to boo? Not going to find one here.
• Some may find the movie too simple or too childish (I don’t agree, but I’ve heard that argument before)

Overall:

This is a wonderful example of family entertainment. Young children will connect with the protagonists and fall in love with Totoro and his pals. Adults will find a nostalgic quality to the film that is so appealing. The movie puts you into the world of a child and does it so effectively. All the pieces come together to make a film that is entertaining and soothing all at once. It isn’t hard to see why this became a big hit and remains a classic in Miyazaki’s filmography ever since.

Scores (out of 5)

Visuals: 5

Sound: 4

Acting: 4

Script: 4

Music: 4

Direction: 5

Entertainment: 5

Total:  4

In Depth Review

The big Totoro lets out a giant Yawp!

I think that one of the toughest genres to create in movies is the family film. Most end up too dumbed down for adults to enjoy. Others end up a little too snarky and meta to be anything more than a mild amusement that is soon forgotten. It is rare that you actually see a family film that is whimsical, positive and entertaining all at once. My Neighbor Totoro should be required viewing for anyone attempting to create family entertainment and do it the right way.

I often hear Hayao Miyazaki called the Japanese Walt Disney, and I think his work on My Neighbor Totoro and Kiki’s Delivery Service is where that idea comes from. I appreciate the comparison, but it doesn’t quite fit. Both men are more then just comparison points to each other. As I mentioned above, you could compare Totoro to Mickey Mouse when it comes to a popular icon created from family entertainment. Totoro is inescapable in Japan. And if you have any stores near you that sell merchandise or pop culture from Japan (especially anime or manga) odd are you’ve seen Totoro there too.

Why the lasting appeal? Why the accolades? Why the huge amount of success that allowed Miyazaki to continue with his dream of making animated films into 2013? Let’s take a look at all the different elements and see how they work together.

The pastoral and old fashioned setting.

For the first time in a Miyazaki directed feature film we have a setting in Japan. Because we aren’t in the post apocalyptic world of Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind or the steam punk fantasy of Castle in the Sky, the design has a more down to earth feel. The film is a period piece, set in 1958. This gives the clothing, automobiles and town surrounding our protagonists an old fashioned but homey feel to it.

The country setting allows Miyazaki to show off nature in the form of the giant camphor tree, the rolling hills surrounding the village and waving open fields of grass. My Neighbor Totoro feels much more open and airy compared to Castle in the Sky. The setting adds to the nostalgic atmosphere that wraps the whole film in a comfy familiar blanket, even for non-Japanese audiences.

What mysteries await in the new house?

The character design follows Miyazaki’s normal style. They are variants on what we’ve seen in the past. The Totoros look related to the Panda family from Panda Go Panda and Satsuki could be Nausicaa’s little sister. Old Granny could be a stand in for Yubaba in Spirited Away. But this movie actually establishes more designs that Miyazaki will use in future films.

Like the previous films, some of the visual highlights include moments when characters take flight. Totoro uses a magic top to take to the air with Mei and Satsuki. Later in the movie, the flying Cat Bus hurtles across the countryside and leaps high into the air, providing a thrilling ride for those inside. It just wouldn’t be a Miyazaki film without those moments.

Who ya gonna call? Dust Bunny Busters!

But I also like some of the creepy scenes early in the film, when the girls explore their new house.  The home has plenty of darkened passages and closed doors that could open to anything: even a group of Dust Bunnies! Miyazaki does a good job creating an eerie atmosphere of mystery. It’s not too scary (like elements we’d see in Spirited Away or Princess Mononoke). But it creates a few moments of the uncanny as the two girls come in contact with the spirits that inhabit the house and surrounding forest.

Sound work follows suit for the film. Most of what we hear is typical sound effects for the pastoral setting and vintage cars. When some magic is needed for the Totoros and the Cat Bus then some interesting sound design is used. It is all creative and immersive.

Mei befriends the giant Totoro.

When it came to the music for My Neighbor Totoro Miyazaki once again turned to his composer of choice, Joe HIsaishi. Hisaishi creates three main melodies for the film, and they are all used to flesh out songs used in the film and on the soundtrack album. The opening title theme Hey Lets Go! gets things off to a cheery start. It is also used when the family goes to visit their sick mother in the local hospital. The end title track, is the theme for the Totoros, and actually features a chorus singing their name several times. It’s a jaunty tune and is used several times in the film. The other theme is one used when Mei gets lost. We only hear it a couple times at the end of the film, but Hisaishi uses the melody for a song called The Lost Child on the album. Hisashi creates a set of other memorable motifs for the Dust Bunnies, Cat Bus and the girl’s mother. The music is all light, melodic and fits the film so well. Much of the emotion and nostalgia comes from Hisaishi’s score. While it is primarily orchestral, there is some use of 80s synthesizers in nearly every track to supplement the music. It may be one of Hisaisihi’s most cheerful and uplifting scores for a Miyazaki film – and that is saying something.

Even the Cat Bus is pleased that Mei and Satsuki find
each other.

When it comes to the vocal cast, it is important that the two main girls are able to convey the mixture of innocence and wonder that makes the film work. In Japanese you have Noriko Hidaka as Satsuki and Chika Sakamoto as Mei. Both girls do a fine job. Sakamoto makes Mei just cute enough that you don’t want to strangle her when she gets bratty. Hidaka also does a great job combining the affection and annoyance of having a younger sibling to take care of. Their interaction with each other and the other characters goes a long way to making the whole thing work. There have been two English dubs for this film one done in 1993 for Fox and one in 2005 for Disney. Both English dubs work well, with Dakota and Elle Fanning appearing in the Disney version with Lea Salonga (of Aladdin fame) as their mother.  I usually like to watch this one in Japanese, because of the very Japanese setting, but both English dubs work just fine and allow English speaking viewers a chance to enjoy the animation.

Mei in hot pursuit of the white rabbit... I mean
little and medium Totoros!

If there is one criticism you can level at My Neighbor Totoro it is that the film doesn’t have a traditional narrative. The movie plays out more like a series of vignettes about the girls moving into the new home with their father and how they adapt to the changes and the fact that their mother is still very ill. There is a story arc of sorts, as both girls grow up a bit over the course of the movie. But there is no antagonist to challenge the girls, or grand goal or objective at the heart of the film, at least not one that is obvious. As a writer I really admire how Miyazaki and his crew are able to make this approach work. We connect immediately with the girls, most of us have moved to a new home and had to deal with all the strange things we encounter. I love how Satsuki and Mei have this mixture of excitement, fear and daring in the first portion of the film as they explore the “haunted house” and meet the dust bunnies. Even the scenes where the girls meet Totoro are an interesting mixture of suspense and wonder. All these moments keep us interested in the girls and what they are going to encounter next.

Satsuki is isolated in this frame, as she searches
for the lost Mei.

In many ways this film reminds me strongly of Alice in Wonderland as envisioned by Disney or the Jim Henson film Labyrinth. You get a series of encounters and adventures, but not a clear plot path. The story seems to meander at times as you take the journey with the characters. But by the time it is over, you realize that each moment played into the character’s growth in some way and by the end of the film they have learned something about themselves.

It takes a deft touch to make something like My Neighbor Totoro work. For me this is the first film where everything comes together just about perfectly for Miyazaki. His abilty to capture that childlike wonder, that thrill of discovery, the fear of the unknown and the dispair of losing someone so important to you – all these elements come into play in this simple story. But it is that simplicity that makes the film so endearing, entertaining and have that staying power. Pretty much anyone who sees My Neighbor Totoro will not forget it. Children connect with the girls and the cute and helpful Totoro. Adults will pick up on the nostalgia for a simpler time and the delightful visuals that capture the imagination. Miyazaki even manages to include a little ecological message about the Totoros being spirits of the forest and being attracted growing plants.

The leaf hat just isn't cutting it.

Of course some folks find the whole thing just too cute, or too slight. While I can understand that to a point, I think they don’t understand the core of the film. My Neighbor Totoro Isn’t going for the narrative scope of something like Princess Mononoke or even Castle of Cagliostro. It is about a family dealing with some serious issues, a sick mother, a big move to a very different place and meeting new neighbors. But it does it from the point of view of children, who see some of these things as games, fantasy or sometimes as confusing and scary events. That is the magic of the film. Miyazaki reaches younger viewers who feel like the film is speaking to them. It reaches older viewers because it reminds us of our childhood and some of the great and amazing things we experienced. My Neighbor Totoro is a must see for anyone who enjoys good entertainment. I can understand why it is many people’s favorite Miyazaki film, and while I rate a few other films a bit higher, it is the start of his winning streak.

The girls rush to find adventure in the "haunted house".

Time for a snack after the move.

The girls visit their sick mother.

She seeks him here, she seeks him there. She seeks
that rascal everywhere.

And then this happened... a cat bus appeared.

"Are you seeing this $%@&?" "Yeah, I totally see
a Cat Bus."

The girls and the Totoro's combine forces to make the
little acorns grow.

Mei is a child of the corn.

Hey Link, I think the Totoro has the Ocarina of Time.

This has to be one of my favorite scenes in the movie.

Anime Juke Box - Absolute Destiny Apocalypse - Revolutionary Girl Utena

The 1990s were great for fans of the 1970s, because there was a huge nostalgic boom for that disco decade. It explains why we ended up with The Brady Bunch Movie as well as Boogie Nights. But we also had a bit of a 70s throw back for film music and even J-pop featured in anime. One of the most 70s-tastic scores of the 1990s was for the anime series Revolutionary Girl Utena. During the series the leading lady would engage in a sword duel with various rivals, and the whole thing was scored with a full blown 70s rock opera style of pop.

The musical style is kind of hard to describe, so I'll just let you listen to it. This piece is played quite a few times during the series as Utena climbs a glass staircase to face her next dueling opponent. The title can be translated a few ways, but I've always seen it as Absolute Destiny Apocalypse performed by the mysterious J.A. Seazer. And if you think this sounds strange, some of the other dueling songs are even odder.

Mad Max (1979)

Introduction:

Some of the big holes in my movie watching experience are the Mad Max films. Honestly, I’ve only seen about 20 minutes of Beyond Thunderdome at a friends house. I just wasn’t terribly interested in dystopian science fiction when I was a kid, and it wasn’t until much later did I hear how insane The Road Warrior was supposed to be. I was finally able to see the first film in this franchise and I’ve got to be honest, it wasn’t what I was expecting.

Summary:

Max (Mel Gibson) is part of a group of highway patrollers attempting to keep the highways in Australia safe. But marauding gangs of thugs are criss-crossing the country after an undisclosed crisis has brought the world to the brink.  During an extended chase with a particularly nasty madman, Max takes the killer out. He figures he should take some time off with his wife Jessie (Joanne Samuel) and their son.

Of course, the thug has friends, and they are lead by the ruthless Toecutter (Hugh Keays-Byrne). The gang starts a campaign of harassment against the police, but Max and his pals think they can handle it. The dangers escalate and Max realizes that he may be in over his head and putting his family in jeopardy. Should he attempt to face Toecutter and his cronies, or make an escape with his wife? In the end Toecutter is going to face Mad Max and wish he had left well enough alone.

Good Points:

• Some excellently staged chases and driving
• Charged with intensity and unease
• Creative sound and visuals add to the unique feel of the film

Bad Points:

• I found the score to be very distracting
• The plot is nothing terribly new
• Thick accents and very loud music may make it hard to follow some of the dialogue.

Overall:

Based on all the trailers for Fury Road and what I keep hearing about The Road Warrior I expected a massive action-fest. Instead I got a simple tale of a man fighting to stay sane in an insane world. Vengeance fuels the final ten minutes of the film, but the rest of the movie is the build to that climax. Miller does a fine job keeping the pacing brisk and the atmosphere of intensity rising and rising. The car chases are filmed very well, pulling you into the thrills. I enjoyed this grim film, but was expecting something a bit more fun.

Scores (out of 5)

Visuals: 4

Sound: 4

Acting: 4

Script: 3

Music: 2

Direction: 4

Entertainment: 4

Total:  4

Curious about a full review, sent me an email and I’ll make additional thoughts to this review.

The Black Hole (1979)

Introduction:

I know a lot of movie snobs that blame Star Wars for all the bad movies after 1977. I love that movie too much to join them. However, we can certainly blame George Lucas’ space opera for the sudden attack of science fiction adventures that flooded the cinemas in the late 70s and early 80s. 20^th Century Fox was raking in the cash and all the other big studios wanted in on the action. Disney was no exception. It would be decades before they brought Star Wars under the power of the mouse, but before that happened, we were treated to this film.

Summary:

The starship Palomino is exploring deep space when it comes upon a black hole of enormous size. Captain Dan Holland (Robert Forster) and his crew are excited about the scientific discoveries they can make. Then they find something even more interesting, a long lost ship, the Cygnus, just hovering at the very edge of the black hole and seemingly unaffected by the tremendous gravity.

The Palomino attempts contact with the Cygnus but it is almost destroyed by the black hole. They land on the ghost ship and discover that only one man remains alive on board, Dr. Hans Reinhardt (Maximilian Schell). He is a genius scientist who created the field that holds the Cygnus in place. He is surrounded by a crew of robots that run the ship and maintain order. But as the crew of the Palomino start to find out more about Reinhardt and the Cygnus the more they realize that they are in terrible danger. Reinhardt is preparing for his ultimate experiment and none of them may escape the destructive power of The Black Hole.

Good Points:

• Some gorgeous and unique production design
• Solid acting by the entire cast
• An impressive score by John Barry

Bad Points:

• Cute robot antics may rub some viewers the wrong way
• The derivative nature of the story or characters may be too familiar
• Anyone looking for hard science fiction should look elsewhere 

Overall:

This is one of those movies that almost works but never quite gels into a complete entertainment package. So many elements are solid or even excellent. But when taken together you get a movie that feels messy and unrefined. The film looks and sounds spectacular considering its age and Schell gives a performance that steals the show. Those who remember this fondly will probably find plenty to enjoy but new viewers may find it lacking.

Scores (out of 5)

Visuals: 5

Sound: 4

Acting: 4

Script: 3

Music: 4

Direction: 3

Entertainment: 3

Total:  4

In Depth Review

He can't stop watching The Black Hole either.

When I was a kid I used to torment my sister by watching The Black Hole and Tron over and over again. My goal wasn’t to torment her, I just liked the creativity and adventures in those movies. For me, these two Disney flicks represent some of the amazing risks the studio was taking at the time and also some of the issues they couldn’t seem to avoid. 

The Black Hole is essentially a retelling of Disney’s take on 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea with Maximilian Schell playing the Captain Nemo role that James Mason owned in 1954. 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea was one of Disney’s most popular and lucrative films in the 1950s. So it makes sense that they wanted to mirror that success with their space adventure. The story acts as the frame The Black Hole is built on. But it is the other influences that end up muddying the clarity of the film.

The black hole or  V'ger's cloud?

Star Wars was a pioneer for visual effects. Things were accomplished in that film using computer controlled cameras and a variety of innovative techniques to create a type of realism that hadn’t been seen in science fiction films since 2001: A Space Odyssey. What makes the Black Hole impressive is that the visuals were accomplished not by ILM or anyone from Lucas’ team, but by Disney’s in-house effects crew. It may be one of the last Hollywood films to actually feature effects by the studio instead of an independent specialized effects house.

Visually the movie forged its own path. A quick look at the space ship, robot and costume design will show you that. The starships in The Black Hole are completely unique. The Palomino is a squat cylinder with extended legs and thrusters. It looks very functional, almost like a 1970s satellite.

"Like a tree on Christmas Morning..."

But the real visual masterpiece is the Cygnus. This is a gorgeous ship. I love the lighting scheme used on it, giving it a warm and yet sinister feel. It exudes mystery and menace in equal measure. During the scene where the crew of the Palomino does a flyover of the Cygnus we are treated to some up close views of this impressive model. Both The Black Hole and Star Trek: The Motion Picture feature this kind of flyover sequence and I find both very effective. Oddly enough, both films came out the same year.

The interiors for the ships follow a similar feel. The Palomino is cramped, utilitarian and mostly grey. Again, it feels like a natural progression from the 1970s space technology. But the Cygnus is all gothic style mystery. It’s filled with struts, supports creating a web of crisscrossing lines. It has a huge scope, one that often feels like it is overwhelming and devouring the cast (thanks to some impressive matte painting work). The Cygnus could very well pass as a futuristic Flying Dutchman – a ship destined to journey into hell and take you with it.

What the drone sees.

Finally there are the robots. The Cygnus has its private army of robot enforcers. These guys serve as your Stormtroopers, with all the same look and movement. I do like their two barreled laser guns (which reappear in Guardiansof the Galaxy as a kind of homage). Those suckers always looked cool. I was always a bit disappointed that S.T.A.R., their leader, got taken out like a punk, but it was to show off how cool V.I.N.CENT. and B.O.B (Slim Pickens) were . But before I talk about them, I have to mention the creepy looking Drones that populate the ship. These robed figures with reflective faces really gave me the chills when I was a kid, and they move around the ship almost like ghosts. We are told early on that they are robots, but the crew of the Palomino discovers a horrible secret about them.

The two hero robots of The Black Hole are V.I.N.CENT. and B.O.B. These two little guys float around, crack wise and at times V.I.N.CENT. is smarter than most of his companions. In many ways these guys are obviously inspired by R2-D2, but actually manage to be different enough to keep Lucasfilm from coming after anyone.

Nothing sinister here.

But the most distinctive robot from The Black Hole is the red devil Maximilian. He is a hulking monstrosity, all angles and sharp points. He hovers over the ground just above all the other characters in the film. His single red eye glows a fearsome red and pulses when he is angry (harkening back to original Cylons form Battlestar Galactica). He also has whirling blade appendages that he uses to cut down anyone he feels like. Reinhardt claims to have created Maximilian, but at times he seems fearful of the giant, and it doesn’t always obey him. Why would you create a robot with whirling death blades if you weren’t interested in butchery? Maximilian is a fearsome and disturbing puzzle, and adds to the feel of dread that the movie attempts to capture.

THE scene from The Black Hole.

One more word about the visual effects. No matter how scientifically inaccurate the movie is (and yeah it really goes off the rails at times), the special effects are visually stunning and impressive. The black hole is a whirling vortex of blues, blacks and greens. It is always spinning outside the Cygnus and looks sinister enough to increase the disquieting feeling of horror. The Black Hole looks evil, something that plays into the themes of the film. But I also have to mention the meteor shower that comes crashing into the Cygus during the finale of the film. Asteroids are a staple of space adventure films from The Phantom Planet to The Empire Strikes Back. But never before have hurtling asteroids looked so diabolical. These suckers are flaming balls of death that come crashing down and destroy everything in their path. If one image has remained from The Black Hole over the years, it is of our heroes crossing a thin bridge in front of the rolling ball of flames.

The sound work does a fine job of supporting the visuals. Dialogue is crisp and clear and never overpowered by the sound design. The audio work for the sci-fi gadgets, ships and robots is unique to the film and helps build the world we see. I especially like how the interiors of the Cygnus sound cavernous and disturbingly quiet further adding to the disquiet the audience and Palomino crew feel.

The music certainly adds to the bizarre finale.

I posted a blog about John Barry’s score to The Black Hole and focused on the main theme, a swirling tune that captures the relentless power of the black hole. But the score has several other elements that work within it. There is a heroic theme for the action scenes, especially when Captain Holland or V.I.N.CENT. are battling the enforcer robots in the final third of the film. It’s a bit brash and maybe even a bit corny, but it works. To me the moments where Barry’s music really takes flight is when he’s building suspense in the first portion of the film. His music captures and enhances the majesty of the Cygnus and scope of the Reinhardt’s ego very well. As the movie continues, he builds this relentlessness of power in the score. The final third is equal parts action music (based on the heroic theme) and driving intensity as the Cygnus attempts to dive into the Black Hole. Barry keeps things slowly but steadily climbing. The crescendo is the finale piece as both crews discover the existential reality within the Black Hole. This piece combines the diabolical and hopeless with the triumphant and angelic. It brings unity to a sequence that would be quite baffling without music. But it is also one of the best tracks in the score. And yes, I have to mention that Barry uses the Blaster Beam in this score, as a part of the baseline. It isn’t as obvious as Goldsmith’s work in Star Trek: The Motion Picture or even it’s use in Rosenman’s Lord of the Rings in 1978, but its synthetic tones add dimension to the score.

A genius or a madman? Can Durant really tell?

The cast for The Black Hole does a fine job with the roles. Maximilian Schell gets all the scene stealing moments, and his performance is a combination of ego and madness. He is a joy to watch, even if he gets a bit theatrical. While his performance overwhelms the rest of the cast at times, you also get a great pair of vocal performances by Roddy McDowall as V.I.N.CENT. and Slim Pickens as B.O.B. Yeah they are scripted a bit too cute, but both men give a lot of humanity to the robot roles and you actually care about the little guys. Robert Forester and Joseph Bottoms as LT. Pizer fit the heroic mold well, and are pretty straight-laced in the film. Bottoms gets a slightly more interesting part, as he’s rash youth that rushes in, and sometimes gets overmatched. Yvette Mimeux as Dr. McCrae is solid in her role, but it is one that doesn’t have a lot to do in the story, other than tie her to the crew of the Cygnus and be the object of rescue late in the film. Ernest Borgnine plays a street-smart reporter Harry Booth, who is out to get a good story, but also not willing to risk his life when things get too dangerous. He does a good job with the part. Anthony Perkins really throws himself into the interesting role of Dr. Durant. His character is seduced by the Cyngus’ power and scientific advancements. He sees a real boon to human knowledge if Reinhardt’s plan is successful. We can see his doubts as things start to get darker, but his struggle is very clear. We like him, and want him to make the right choice, but things turn out a bit differently when the robot Maximilian takes matters into his whirling blades.

Hell is unleashed!

Where The Black Hole falters is in the script and the final execution of the movie. As it is written, the Black Hole is a gothic mystery set in space. Our heroes are investigators who stumble upon a haunted mansion inhabited by a mad man. As they explore the mansion they realize that their lives and their souls are in danger and try to escape. But like any good horror story, several characters are unable to leave the fall of the house of Reinhardt. The madman and his servants are destroyed and consigned to hell. While our heroes remain pure and retain their souls, leaving darkness behind them.

Yeah I simplified it, but that is the basic structure of the story. This is Disney trying to make a horror film a few years before TheWatcher in the Woods.

Damnation eternal?

It is actually fascinating to dig into the script and identify all the little nods to gothic horror. I’d hazard that the characters name drop hell, the devil and evil more than any scientific concepts. Reinhardt is a the classic crazed noble, who literally sacrifices the souls of his people to obtain more and more arcane knowledge. He crafts a monster of his own design, the hulking red Maximilian, and grows to fear that creation. His fascination with the Black Hole is like a man fascinated with seeing into hell or perhaps sharing more with Belloq from Raiders of the Lost Ark who is convinced the Ark can be used to speak with God. What we come to understand is that Reinhardt is the Dr. Frankenstein of this tale. He destroys nature and the pure souls around him to aspire to meet God, and in doing so, damns himself.

Kate fights fire with lasers!

We have the makings of an interesting film, something along the lines of Event Horizon actually. But Disney never commits to the horror concept. Instead we have too many cute robot moments that break the tension, but in a way that is distracting instead of entertaining. The laser battles are all fun and exciting, but they seem shoehorned into a film that attempts to plumb into the depths of a mad man’s quest for God. When The Black Hole works best it is when it embraces its core of gothic horror. The crew of Palomino being pursued by Reinhardts robots, attempting to escape before the Cygnus is destroyed by flaming asteroids and then ripped apart by the spinning eye of a demon should have provided enough thrills for everyone. But this half and half approach ends up diluting the film as a whole, and confusing some viewers who came into the film expecting Star Wars or Star Trek and instead got a twisted take on Poe's Fall of the House of Usher.

Nothing sinister here either.

While I see some folks complain about scientific accuracy in The Black Hole I think they are missing the main theme of the story. It is not about the black hole at all. It is about one man’s drive to become more than human and how he destroys everything, including himself, to do it. Heavy stuff for a Disney movie. I end up appreciating the film’s many merits and its attempt at something greater. But I always wish that Disney had stuck to their core script and went for gothic horror in space. Combined with Alien also released in 1979, we could have had one hell of a terrifying combo of horror from beyond our stars.

The functional Palomino comes in for a landing.

The robot enforcers move in for the kill.

The massive control room for the Cygnus.

"You can trust me, my eyes are only lit this way for
dramatic effect.

Harry's nose for news tells him something is up.

V.I.N.CENT. and B.O.B. discuss Tigerbot magazine.

You know, Reinhardt spoiled Maximilian when he was
a little robot, and now he can't control him!

The red eye of doom in the center of the Black Hole.