I saw this movie when I was a teenager and the physical violence scared the hell out of me but even worse was the corporate that push buttons in the back of my head which are coming to fruition today
The final game was never about the score. Those two teams were gonna kill one another. Jonathan had a target on his back for defying 'the system,' since the game was supposed to show that there were no heroes. One man couldn't make a difference. But one man could, and he showed the world. Jonathan! Jonathan! Jonathan! When the music kicks in, it's so awesome.
and remember, at the ending, after he knocked "Toughie" off of his motorcycle (who was on NY team after washing out with Houston!) , he could have bashed his head in with the ball, but saw the look on Toughie's face and decided to spare him, showing the world he was not an animal who would indiscrimanantly kill helpless creatures.
@@vikramparmar8093 BS! New York wuz robbed!!! The Refs were in Houston's pocket! I actually remember a MAD magazine parody of this.... Jonathan asked who are we playing....and you saw a team surrounded by garbage and rats and holding we are on strike signs...and Jonathan goes oh, new York....
@@vikramparmar8093 Thanks for that. I kept looking at New York's last surviving biker and thinking "Is that the same guy who Jonathan E humiliated during the coaching session for newcomers to the team?" I wasn't sure as in the training session he was skating while here he's biking.
AS an 8 year old whose father dragged him to this movie only because the baby sitter didn't show up.....Not only did it give me chills but it also made me a sci fi lover for life
@mr bungle ....Not sure what AA means. I'm in the USA and back in the 70's parents could take their kids anywhere. I dont think the "NC17" rating (nobody under 17) came about til the 2000's....But thanks for calling me Sunshine.
It's such a great movie. I mean, this movie is next level greatness. It's such a shame that the remake was _so bad._ I've never seen a remake so completely miss the mark.
Fuckin aye right it does. Just checked it out while cleaning up from Thanksgiving. Had to stop an watch the last gladiatorial game of the film. That last few seconds. The last two zoom ins. You can feel the pride welling with every “JON NA THON”!! Just like the end of the ‘300 films. James Caan is secured in the history of film for all time. ROLLERBALL. One of the greatest of the earliest dystopian films.
One scene that always grabbed my attention was at one point, despite all the drama that had taken place, the scoreboard reflected HOU 00 NY 00 ... A real feeling of futility
There are three movies that were a yearly ritual for me as a kid. "Rollerball", "Logan's Run" and "Westworld" were something to look forward to. That was the days of only a few channels and no on-demand capabilities.
I wish to extend my most heart-felt feelings of condolences to James Caan's Family and relatives. He surely was one of the greatest actors in history, with plenty of charisma and for-the-role looks ever. I first saw him in "Rollerball" and then it was a "crescendo" of recognition for his immense sense of acting ( and humour, like in "Mickey blue eyes"). I will miss him so profoundly, as part of my own generational heroes. May You Rest In Peace and Than You so deeply for all You gave us a average people. Grazie, James!!!
MY LOVE TO CAAN AND HIS FAMILY ED,, CONNECTICUT! THE REMAKE ONE SUCKED! SAW HIM ON CHAPTER TWO! IN 1979 MAY JESUS TAKE HIM IN OPEN ARMS AND WIPE AWAY ALL TEARS IN THIS SORROW
@@antonboludo8886 I did not know he died, either. Though with years passing, that was to be expected. Rollerball is one of my favorite movies. I grew up in munich, so some sites from that movie, BMW buildings, are familiar to me. My father worked at BMW for 25 years. However, I think James Caan became known to me in his role as the crippled but recovering Agent in the Killer Elite. There was a very unique "west vs east" showdown. That movie is a classic imo. Ofc, there is his role in the Godfather. RIP Caan!
The 1975 version was an insightful, darkly prophetic cautionary tale about corporate fascism. The 2002 remake had no fucking idea what the 1975 version was even about.
You are right. The 2002 remake has nothing to do with it. I had a girlfriend who showed her ass in the 2002 version, without knowing what the movie she was in was about, LOOOOOL! xD
Still one of the best ending in cinema history. The VERY worrisome state our world is in today makes the movie even MORE compelling. It's not "just" a truly GRAND movie ; it's also one of the best dystopias Americans made in the 70s. The rating it gets on IMDb is a farce.
Every post season should end this way. Movies from the 1970s like Rollerball and Network foretold of the corporate controlled dystopia we now reside in. Beautiful prescient storytelling.
The one thing the corporate establishment overlooked in their efforts to have the game eliminate Jonathan. The more difficult you make the game, the more likely the most talented individual will win. And that's exactly what happened. The triumph of the individual spirit.
That was a gamble that their experts probably told them to take. The Jonathan phenomenan was unexpected. (Notice that he insisted to a personal flight to a game...) Jonathan is a curious character to look into. On the one hand, he is not particularly intelligent. He is intelligent and curious enough to go to switzerland to get some information, because "redacted and summarized" books were not good enough for him. Otoh: Evereyrbody nowadays would scoff at redacted and summarized books. But apparently it is a good approach for even the intelligentia. On the other hand, he is curious to investigate the reasons of "the game". If you actually look for his reasons to continue the game, it is inspite. He realized that he was played with his "wife" that he actually loved, and saw through the mechanisations thrown at him. It stands to reason, how intelligent the decisionmakers actually were. They should have foreseen that Jonathan was a wildcard and should have been eliminated before the end. All the indications would have strongly suggested to such an action. But it´s a nice SF story where corporate establishment fails. They don´t.
Tomtom34b: your statement is accurate but one thing I might clarify. He actually insisted on not taking a personal flight to the game. He usually always took personal flights but it would been easier for them to kill him. He insisted that this time he would fly with the whole team. They’re not gonna go have a whole team be killed
I watched this movie with my dad when I was 10 years old and I was shocked and goosebumps. I was afraid, precisely that ending with this music. I spent years looking for her name, which for me was simply the music that played at the end of Rollerball... And nobody knew. Today, I noticed that it made me love classical music and I realize that it was one of the best marriages between sound and image in a 20th century film, only comparable to the opening of 2001... By the way the name of the music is "Toccata and fugue in D minor" by Johann Sebastian Bach.
@@redsabreanakin There are a few ways to interpret it. But I interpret it this way: people in that world feel so impotent because they can't make any real decisions about anything in their lives. But! They can exert control over things like trees! "Look at my power! I can destroy things, isn't it wonderful! See nature fall with just a wave of my hand! I AM POWERFUL!" While at the same time, they know that they're not. They've been neutered, as has most of the human race in this film.
I first saw this movie on TV when I was still in high school. I don't remember which network, but I'd seen ads for it and mentioned that I wanted to watch it. My parents were going to be out of town that night and my mother said I wasn't allowed to watch it, I'm sure because of the violence and because it was going to run late, but she didn't say why at the time. I disobeyed and stayed up to watch it anyway. It made a significant impression on me and NOT because of the violence but because of the message that it carried underneath everything else. My sister tattled on me and my mom was pretty peeved, but I received no punishment. It sort of reinforced the meaning of the movie about exercising individual choice and disobedience of authority in the face of blind demands and pressure for compliance. :) Always loved this movie. RIP James Caan; a fantastic actor with a wide range. The remake was ABSOLUTE trash and had no conception or appreciation whatever of the intent of the original.
About the Rollerball remake being absolute trash is correct. The only thing good you can do with the remake is use it on how not to tell a story as compared to the original. Watch the movie from the start to the end of the first game, and then explain how the works, what are it's rules, how is the playfield laid out, what are some of the positions for the players, and were you able to follow the gameplay. In the original, you would be able to answer most of those questions. For the remake, you wouldn't have a clue for the answers for all or most of those questions. When I saw the remake, I had zero idea of what the playfield (track) looked like, the game play left me confused, and I had seen the original Rollerball countless times for a foundation.
This movie brilliantly portrays the struggle of the individual against the collective, and it has one of my favorite film scores. I love the music selection.
One of the best final scenes ever. If you get it, it hits like a tidal wave. I occasionally still wonder about what the end result after the revolution that had to follow this might have looked like.
@ It was actually at some point in the previous decade on Turner Classic Movies. I first knew about the remake which I didn’t see. But the original had a nice 70s sci-fi style that I really enjoyed before Star Wars and Alien changed so much.
I could be wrong - but apart from Bach at the beginning and end of the movie, and the "Corporate Anthem" ... I don't think there's any music in this movie Oh, and the legendary Andre Previn made the Future Disco music that they dance to in the party scene :) Just like real sports - there's no music when the game is being played out, no "dramatic music as Johnathan shapes up to score the winning goal - followed by a triumphant C major chord!" crap. Don't get me wrong - the Rocky movies have terrific music that makes you root for the hero (the music in Creed was absolutely astonishing!) ... they enhance the fantasy version of boxing that you're watching. But Rollerball goes in the other direction - you are actually watching a REAL sport being played out, with no music at all. My goodness, every time I watch this movie - with every passing year - it gets even better ... even prophetic given the dystopia we all now live in.
Classic ending to one of my all time favourite films. I got sneaked into the cinema to see it by my older brother. 😄 The other kids at school were very jealous.
Another one of the greatest endings of all time. I still get chills watching this one over and over. If you liked this there's the original The Longest Yard (1972) final play ending with Burt Reynolds, The final speech that Roddy McDowall as Caesar gives in the final scene of Conquest of the Planet of the Apes, Bruce Lee vs Chuck Norris in the final fight scene in The Return of the Dragon (Way of the Dragon), the final showdown scene in Westworld with Yul Brynner as the Gunslinger vs Richard Benjamin, Charlton Heston in ending in the original Planet of the Apes and Beneath Planet of the Apes with James Franciscus. And so many more.....
Such an amazing film when add the under current of the real story and what it’s saying about society. RIP to all of the great actors, stuntmen, writers, cameramen, and crew that have passed away.
They tried to kill Jonathan E when he refused to retire, but the sport that was meant to show "the futility of the individual effort" only proved the opposite. "Jon-a-than!"
The scene when Johnathan's regular pilot was changed at the last minute and he realized he was being set up to be killed and his smart decision to travel with the team for his own safety...
@@escrapplem9454 It is subtle and often NOT noticed, but is my favorite scene in the movie. This should prove to the viewer that Jonathan is not the king of the meatheads, who always will manage to survive, but rather, is reflective of his surroundings and is able to sense the big picture that is occurring.
A memorable ending. The silence of the scene captures both the tension and disgust of the carnage - until the end. That is when the Jonathan triumphs and transcends the game and the corporatist system. He won....
+ghbutler Because we can't have anyone get their feelings hurt anymore. That's why. Everything has to be watered down, computer animated, and soft as a limp dick, so everyone can have a safe entertainment experience.
moon, looper, chappie, fury road, ex machina, pacific rim, the purge, promethius, chronicle, dredd, seeking a friend for the end of the world(okay, rom com, but the way it deals with peoples coming demise is pretty dark), source code, in time. all decently gritty movies, either in concept or excecution, that were made in the last 5 years.
This movie was about a future where there were no more governments or countries, just corporations... personally, the most accurate depiction of a dystopian future ever made when compared to any other dystopia out there.
1984 still remains the most intellectually observant and realistic dystopian work ever created. Corporations are based entirely on profits. They can corrupt governments and societies, but they can never wield the same kind of totalitarian powers that governments can. I do not find it realistic to assume that where even communist countries gained their legitimacy by supposedly serve the interests of the masses, even when they never have. That somehow a corporation would ever be so successful or all-encompassing that people would willingly or unwillingly give or allow them to take complete control over their lives. At least nations and governments have the pretense of being able to manage the lives of people. Profit based corporations never could.
@retrobeats Look what Disney did with the Mulan remake. All the CCP has to do is wave access to the Chinese theatre release market under Disney's nose and Disney will make the changes the CCP wants.
Fantastic film one of my all time favourites and they don't make them like that anymore. I grew up in the 70s, when every boy wanted to be Johnathan E...
When Jonathan brutally kills the other player in from of John Houseman’s character... probably the most dramatic moment of the film. The look they share... and Jonathan’s “this is what you wanted” look... both men are/were (Houseman long since dead) truly powerful actors... the look on their faces... their eye movements...
Nope. By far the most affecting moment is Jonathan's sidekick getting hit into a braindead vegetable. Not a week goes by when I don't think about this scene. A REALISTIC death and its obscenity! Beats every worthless boring Marvel (who cares about any character) and Too-Fast-Too-Dull sequel designed for 12-year-old boys.
@@EconAdviser Not sure how old you are but I'm curious as to why that scene has affected you. The movie was one of the future in more ways than one. There are many aspects of the move that I think about for many reasons. When Johnathan is with Moonpie before the New York game, he's resolved at the fact that he will probably die and his brain dead friend will keep living. He knows this but he doesn't cower away, he goes to the game knowing his faite is in his own skill set, he, is on his own. This is shown as he skates past his team mates, not a word spoken, they are all know their fate too. Looking at the way the world is now, the move wasn't so far off. Johnathan represents all the people fighting today for the right to survive against the corporate tech-world. Zero, is Google.
One of the most striking things about this scene is the complete lack of sound, except for what's happening on the rink. No sound from the audience, no music, nothing. Not until he puts the ball in the hole. Stunning.
It's brilliantly chilling as it should be. I fear kf you recreated this today, people would want to turn the last match into an action movie montage with music blaring and a bloodthirsty crowd going nuts a la Death Race remake. The "match" is a funeral, and they treat it as such. An artistic masterpiece.
The early 1970s were really the best for bleak films. _Rollerball_ , _Network_ , _Three Days of the Condor_ , _The Kremlin Letter_ ... so many good ones.
Nixon, Watergate, Vietnam...it is no wonder there was so many great movies with an anti authoritarian theme. Even The Godfather has Kate trying to mock Michael when he meets her again after being in Sicily, I can't remember the line exactly, but Michael says he wants to be like any great man, to which Kates say 'senators don't have people killed'. Michael's answer is so 70's...'don't they? Now who's being naive Kate?'
Got this on Bluray a few weeks ago and finally had a chance to watch it with a couple friends. Still a really great example of the 70's somewhat dim view of corporate culture and our future. There are too many in politics who instead of taking stories such as this as a warning instead see them as a playbook.
As Jonathan spared the rival who would of killed him, he had already won the crowd and as they chanted his name the individual mattered once more not the game...
Growing up in the the 80s there were a few films that impacted me in a big way making me think about the world around us as well as the film, then as i got older the conditions of which we are required to live. Ever since Rollerball has been a personal favourite of mine and i do not know the number of times i have watched it. A true classic and perhaps a foreshadowing.
RIP James Caan. July 7, 2022. This scene... No Fouls Called. No Replacements. No Time Limit. The Game was designed to teach the world that one could win. As Jonathan Eee keeps winning he becomes a threat to "The Corporation," so they keep changing the Rules.
@@the_red_barron1002 I'm not him, but the way I see it is collectivism vs individualism. The example would be corporates trying to perpetuate corporate image through trumpling wrongthinking individuals. All that cancel culture and wokeness. This also achieves political moderation - nobody is ever allowed to have a different opinion, helping to homogenise the field and manipulate it whichever way they want to. Any disagreeing element shall be ostracised and die off. However, the result is usually the companies going broke, as they should, or at least getting damaged financially. After all, it's the people that matter, not the company. And, the ending just shows the triumph of individualism aganst collectivism.
The individual rises above the corporate collective! Jonathan! Jonathan! Jonathan!
one man can still change the future
That ending. Good lord it just never gets old. What a masterpiece. RIP James Caan.
ua-cam.com/video/BB1LuCUovW4/v-deo.html
@@jimkaml virtually most of them dead within 4 minutes
Rollerball and Soylent Green are far more disturbing when viewed today.
R.I.P. James Caan.
2 brilliant films, another couple of decades and both will be real 🥺
Two great movies.
Soylent Green, aka "Bill and Melinda Gates (aka "Mel") vision for the world".
They weren't supposed to be a blueprint.
@@joedow6180 They were already real 30 years ago.
Insanely under-rated and intelligent film that's disturbingly relevant today...and you wish it wasn't. Some of the best stunt work ever filmed.
I saw this movie when I was a teenager and the physical violence scared the hell out of me but even worse was the corporate that push buttons in the back of my head which are coming to fruition today
@@glennbeadshaw727 I was 12. RIP James
And with the late, great John Houseman as the CEO…awesome. 😎
Saw it when it first came out in a theater with surround sound, it was great and scary at the same time. A glimpse into the future.
I remember seeing that at the end of the film the stunt performers played the game for real and it only lasted a few minutes as so many got injured
The final game was never about the score. Those two teams were gonna kill one another. Jonathan had a target on his back for defying 'the system,' since the game was supposed to show that there were no heroes. One man couldn't make a difference.
But one man could, and he showed the world.
Jonathan! Jonathan! Jonathan!
When the music kicks in, it's so awesome.
So True!!!!
and remember, at the ending, after he knocked "Toughie" off of his motorcycle (who was on NY team after washing out with Houston!) , he could have bashed his head in with the ball, but saw the look on Toughie's face and decided to spare him, showing the world he was not an animal who would indiscrimanantly kill helpless creatures.
@@vikramparmar8093 BS! New York wuz robbed!!! The Refs were in Houston's pocket! I actually remember a MAD magazine parody of this.... Jonathan asked who are we playing....and you saw a team surrounded by garbage and rats and holding we are on strike signs...and Jonathan goes oh, new York....
Vikram top level defiance
@@vikramparmar8093 Thanks for that. I kept looking at New York's last surviving biker and thinking "Is that the same guy who Jonathan E humiliated during the coaching session for newcomers to the team?" I wasn't sure as in the training session he was skating while here he's biking.
Rest in peace James Cann, 7/7/2022
AS an 8 year old whose father dragged him to this movie only because the baby sitter didn't show up.....Not only did it give me chills but it also made me a sci fi lover for life
@mr bungle ....Not sure what AA means. I'm in the USA and back in the 70's parents could take their kids anywhere. I dont think the "NC17" rating (nobody under 17) came about til the 2000's....But thanks for calling me Sunshine.
Your dad served you well.
@@dougnbodie The same in Spain. I watched the film with my father when I was 12.
My first time with rollerball was at 10.
All hail the baby sitter!
James Caan passed today. I'm here out of respect for his work. Always loved this film.
It's such a great movie.
I mean, this movie is next level greatness.
It's such a shame that the remake was _so bad._ I've never seen a remake so completely miss the mark.
Legend
@@JohnSmith-mk1rj What does "next level" mean?
By the same token, what does "Ahead of its time" mean?
"Johnathan! Johnathan! Johnathan! Johnathan!" Holy shit...that still gives me chills....
Yeah me to James caan is the man.
Peregrine C same bro
He became bigger than the game. Roll credits!
Born in 1990 one of my favourite movies. Hail Jonathan!
Fuckin aye right it does. Just checked it out while cleaning up from Thanksgiving. Had to stop an watch the last gladiatorial game of the film. That last few seconds. The last two zoom ins. You can feel the pride welling with every “JON NA THON”!! Just like the end of the ‘300 films. James Caan is secured in the history of film for all time. ROLLERBALL. One of the greatest of the earliest dystopian films.
One scene that always grabbed my attention was at one point, despite all the drama that had taken place, the scoreboard reflected HOU 00 NY 00 ... A real feeling of futility
Lotta those. My favorite is the sillhouette as they come out of the dressing room out into the arena.
@@NormAppleton My favourite is the tree killing scene.
A James Caan treasure!
I grew up on Roller Derby Saturdays.
There are three movies that were a yearly ritual for me as a kid. "Rollerball", "Logan's Run" and "Westworld" were something to look forward to. That was the days of only a few channels and no on-demand capabilities.
Oh my god I love Logan's Run.
You're on the right track there, add Soylent Green. Great movies that really put the future as a mystery.
The Holy Trilogy of '70's films for me
Add Soylent Green to that.
Silent running
when he scores and the silence throughout the stadium...beautiful
Just like when Arsenal score.
I believe he spared the last man ( motorcycle guy) to stick it to the man
Yeah, completely deafening the silence was.
I wish to extend my most heart-felt feelings of condolences to James Caan's Family and relatives. He surely was one of the greatest actors in history, with plenty of charisma and for-the-role looks ever. I first saw him in "Rollerball" and then it was a "crescendo" of recognition for his immense sense of acting ( and humour, like in "Mickey blue eyes"). I will miss him so profoundly, as part of my own generational heroes.
May You Rest In Peace and
Than You so deeply for all You gave us a average people.
Grazie, James!!!
MY LOVE TO CAAN AND HIS FAMILY
ED,, CONNECTICUT!
THE REMAKE ONE SUCKED!
SAW HIM ON CHAPTER TWO! IN 1979
MAY JESUS TAKE HIM IN OPEN ARMS AND WIPE AWAY ALL TEARS IN THIS SORROW
Sad to hear of his passing, RIP James Caan, you will be missed...
To me his best film will always be The Way of the Gun. Until that day.
I did not know he had died.
He was an excellent actor.
@@antonboludo8886 I did not know he died, either. Though with years passing, that was to be expected.
Rollerball is one of my favorite movies. I grew up in munich, so some sites from that movie, BMW buildings, are familiar to me. My father worked at BMW for 25 years.
However, I think James Caan became known to me in his role as the crippled but recovering Agent in the Killer Elite. There was a very unique "west vs east" showdown. That movie is a classic imo.
Ofc, there is his role in the Godfather.
RIP Caan!
The 1975 version was an insightful, darkly prophetic cautionary tale about corporate fascism. The 2002 remake had no fucking idea what the 1975 version was even about.
yes it did, u jus didnt pay ##attention
@@svntythrtyfrty Ok cool. I’d love hear your analysis, show me where I was wrong
Yeah, it cheated with "clever" editing. -_-
How old were you in 1975?
You are right. The 2002 remake has nothing to do with it.
I had a girlfriend who showed her ass in the 2002 version, without knowing what the movie she was in was about, LOOOOOL! xD
Still one of the best ending in cinema history. The VERY worrisome state our world is in today makes the movie even MORE compelling. It's not "just" a truly GRAND movie ; it's also one of the best dystopias Americans made in the 70s. The rating it gets on IMDb is a farce.
Hey Norman Jewison is no fool. The sad thing is it's treated as an action movie, it isn't.
We have been saying this for thousands of years, though.
Notice how the fire reflection burns under John Houseman’s face at 1:14. The corporation is on fire.
Every post season should end this way.
Movies from the 1970s like Rollerball and Network foretold of the corporate controlled dystopia we now reside in. Beautiful prescient storytelling.
what we gonna do about it?
One of the best movies ever.
So true a 70s master6
The one thing the corporate establishment overlooked in their efforts to have the game eliminate Jonathan. The more difficult you make the game, the more likely the most talented individual will win. And that's exactly what happened. The triumph of the individual spirit.
That was a gamble that their experts probably told them to take. The Jonathan phenomenan was unexpected. (Notice that he insisted to a personal flight to a game...)
Jonathan is a curious character to look into. On the one hand, he is not particularly intelligent. He is intelligent and curious enough to go to switzerland to get some information, because "redacted and summarized" books were not good enough for him. Otoh: Evereyrbody nowadays would scoff at redacted and summarized books. But apparently it is a good approach for even the intelligentia.
On the other hand, he is curious to investigate the reasons of "the game". If you actually look for his reasons to continue the game, it is inspite. He realized that he was played with his "wife" that he actually loved, and saw through the mechanisations thrown at him.
It stands to reason, how intelligent the decisionmakers actually were. They should have foreseen that Jonathan was a wildcard and should have been eliminated before the end. All the indications would have strongly suggested to such an action.
But it´s a nice SF story where corporate establishment fails.
They don´t.
Exactly...Cary
Tomtom34b: your statement is accurate but one thing I might clarify. He actually insisted on not taking a personal flight to the game. He usually always took personal flights but it would been easier for them to kill him. He insisted that this time he would fly with the whole team. They’re not gonna go have a whole team be killed
Or, raising the skill level favors the skilled.
@@NormAppleton Yes. That's another way of looking at it.
I watched this movie with my dad when I was 10 years old and I was shocked and goosebumps. I was afraid, precisely that ending with this music. I spent years looking for her name, which for me was simply the music that played at the end of Rollerball... And nobody knew.
Today, I noticed that it made me love classical music and I realize that it was one of the best marriages between sound and image in a 20th century film, only comparable to the opening of 2001...
By the way the name of the music is "Toccata and fugue in D minor" by Johann Sebastian Bach.
Holy Christ,nobody knew the music!?!!
This movie, with its sheer brutality, simply had to have the stuntmen listed in the credits. Thus Rollerball became the first movie to do this.
Yes and the great Nick Dimitri was the biker that got Jonathan up off the floor in the last game.Remember "Hard Times"?
Was that the guy who fought Bronson at the end?
Yes.
D Minor, bro. D Minor.
The freeze frame of his face at the end is chilling. He defeats the corporations, but will he do better?
when they start chanting his name it gave me the creeps then and 40 years later it still does. But it is one of the coolest endings. :-)
The freaky thing is that it seems like they are going to replace the corporations with Jonathan as dictator. He is triumphant, but what will he be?
This movie is riveting to the core. The tree burning scene and the ending are haunting.
100% The most important and disturbing scene of the film.
@@Generalfund Unforgettable cinematic moment.
As someone who is significantly dumb when it comes to subtle commentary in movies, what is the tree burning scene trying to say?
@@redsabreanakin Excess.
@@redsabreanakin There are a few ways to interpret it. But I interpret it this way: people in that world feel so impotent because they can't make any real decisions about anything in their lives. But! They can exert control over things like trees! "Look at my power! I can destroy things, isn't it wonderful! See nature fall with just a wave of my hand! I AM POWERFUL!" While at the same time, they know that they're not. They've been neutered, as has most of the human race in this film.
Solid movie with a solid actor. RIP. Johnathan, Johnathan, Johnathan!!!!
Yes, after all these years, that ending and the cut to Bach remains the single best ending to any film, ever.
👏 👏 👏
I first saw this movie on TV when I was still in high school. I don't remember which network, but I'd seen ads for it and mentioned that I wanted to watch it. My parents were going to be out of town that night and my mother said I wasn't allowed to watch it, I'm sure because of the violence and because it was going to run late, but she didn't say why at the time. I disobeyed and stayed up to watch it anyway. It made a significant impression on me and NOT because of the violence but because of the message that it carried underneath everything else. My sister tattled on me and my mom was pretty peeved, but I received no punishment. It sort of reinforced the meaning of the movie about exercising individual choice and disobedience of authority in the face of blind demands and pressure for compliance. :) Always loved this movie. RIP James Caan; a fantastic actor with a wide range.
The remake was ABSOLUTE trash and had no conception or appreciation whatever of the intent of the original.
About the Rollerball remake being absolute trash is correct. The only thing good you can do with the remake is use it on how not to tell a story as compared to the original.
Watch the movie from the start to the end of the first game, and then explain how the works, what are it's rules, how is the playfield laid out, what are some of the positions for the players, and were you able to follow the gameplay.
In the original, you would be able to answer most of those questions.
For the remake, you wouldn't have a clue for the answers for all or most of those questions.
When I saw the remake, I had zero idea of what the playfield (track) looked like, the game play left me confused, and I had seen the original Rollerball countless times for a foundation.
I think I saw it on TV first. Then I saw it on a HUGE screen and that was it.
I saw it on TV back then too! It’s all we talked about the next day in school.
This movie brilliantly portrays the struggle of the individual against the collective, and it has one of my favorite film scores. I love the music selection.
I think the score was inspired by Interstellar
@@JavMacHer you mean the other way around. The piece is called Tocatta and Fugue in D minor by Bach.
One of the best final scenes ever. If you get it, it hits like a tidal wave. I occasionally still wonder about what the end result after the revolution that had to follow this might have looked like.
A most unique dystopian future tale and still with a great deal to say. R.I.P., Norman.
Where you when you first saw it?
@ It was actually at some point in the previous decade on Turner Classic Movies. I first knew about the remake which I didn’t see. But the original had a nice 70s sci-fi style that I really enjoyed before Star Wars and Alien changed so much.
So many movies think you have to fill every single frame with dialog and sound when the greatest weight is sometimes the silence.
I could be wrong - but apart from Bach at the beginning and end of the movie, and the "Corporate Anthem" ... I don't think there's any music in this movie
Oh, and the legendary Andre Previn made the Future Disco music that they dance to in the party scene :)
Just like real sports - there's no music when the game is being played out, no "dramatic music as Johnathan shapes up to score the winning goal - followed by a triumphant C major chord!" crap.
Don't get me wrong - the Rocky movies have terrific music that makes you root for the hero (the music in Creed was absolutely astonishing!) ... they enhance the fantasy version of boxing that you're watching.
But Rollerball goes in the other direction - you are actually watching a REAL sport being played out, with no music at all.
My goodness, every time I watch this movie - with every passing year - it gets even better ... even prophetic given the dystopia we all now live in.
Classic ending to one of my all time favourite films. I got sneaked into the cinema to see it by my older brother. 😄 The other kids at school were very jealous.
Loved this movie when I was a kid and teen.
Another one of the greatest endings of all time. I still get chills watching this one over and over. If you liked this there's the original The Longest Yard (1972) final play ending with Burt Reynolds, The final speech that Roddy McDowall as Caesar gives in the final scene of Conquest of the Planet of the Apes, Bruce Lee vs Chuck Norris in the final fight scene in The Return of the Dragon (Way of the Dragon), the final showdown scene in Westworld with Yul Brynner as the Gunslinger vs Richard Benjamin, Charlton Heston in ending in the original Planet of the Apes and Beneath Planet of the Apes with James Franciscus. And so many more.....
the Longest Yard? classic!
Agreed !!
It's a beautifull movie with so much feeling and foresight and amazing performances.
Such an amazing film when add the under current of the real story and what it’s saying about society. RIP to all of the great actors, stuntmen, writers, cameramen, and crew that have passed away.
JOHN-A-THAN!
JOHN-A-THAN!
JOHN-A-THAN!
The best & will never be bested, period.
This film is so relevant for today , more so than ever.
Outstanding performances from all 👏
It was relevant 2000 years ago.
RIP James Caan. Your forever in our hearts.😇
When the crowd grabs the fence as Jonathan skates by, I still get chills.
Next day Johnathan makes a commercial for Prune Candy.
What is the art of cinema.... to trigger an emotional response... humanity itself. Timeless Masterpiece 🌹
I remember this from my youth. Tough. Gritty. The ending was the best. Salute to James Caan for being a Great Actor.
How old were you in 1975?
Loved that movie. Rest in peace James Caan.
One of my favorites of all times.
My favourite James Caan film. Thanks Jimmy.R.I.P
no grand speech, no lecture, no bs, no words are spoken, its pure tension and it finally breaks when the ball is slammed into the goal
Haven’t seen it in years one of James caans best roles,brilliant
rip james caan
God bless you, James Caan, Rest In Peace, magnificent actor and man.
I agree.
I love it when he makes his point, literal and figurative. Jonathon!
Of all his movies, this is my favorite by far. I have watched Roller ball probably more than 10 times over the years. I'm a cult fan.
Rest in peace, Norman Jewison.
RIP Jonathan E.
RIP JOHNATHAN E - JAMES CAAN. See you on the other side one of a kind actor and person you will be missed
Jonathan, Jonathan, Jonathan.
They tried to kill Jonathan E when he refused to retire, but the sport that was meant to show "the futility of the individual effort" only proved the opposite. "Jon-a-than!"
rd711 a past warning for a future time we are living in now
The scene when Johnathan's regular pilot was changed at the last minute and he realized he was being set up to be killed and his smart decision to travel with the team for his own safety...
Indeed the hero lives!
Oh?
@@escrapplem9454 It is subtle and often NOT noticed, but is my favorite scene in the movie. This should prove to the viewer that Jonathan is not the king of the meatheads, who always will manage to survive, but rather, is reflective of his surroundings and is able to sense the big picture that is occurring.
A memorable ending. The silence of the scene captures both the tension and disgust of the carnage - until the end. That is when the Jonathan triumphs and transcends the game and the corporatist system. He won....
Decades have passed and I still love this movie!
One person defeats the whole system.
This was never planned as game!
NEVER!!!
Goosebumps....
This is an absolutely brilliant movie.
Such a brutal yet subtle movie, the triumph and impotence of the individual, the glory and irrelevance of existence.
The individual triumphed, though.
This scene gives me goosebumps even today.
I miss you Mr James Caan. 😔
(1940 - 2022 )
Gladiator has nothing on this. This is an original gladiator.
Saw this when I was a kid and always loved it. A pure story about individual triumph.
Just saw it yesterday again for ages, best sports movie ever
The freeze-frame of Jonathan's eyes and Bach's music is truly chilling. His eyes are like that of a demon, or even worse...
An individual triumphs over corporate oligarchy!
it was the movie is about, among other things, and its awesome
It doesn't matter. Jonathan already disrupted corporate socialist order by defeating the game itself. The dominoes will continue to fall.
ShoyuTao That’s why they call it, “Fiction.”
Hodges compares Johnathan with Trump who is fighting the deep state and globalism.
@CankerousBooch Arís Ah, I see you're also a Morgoth viewer
My condolences to the CAAN family, and close friends. His work lives on!
RIP, James Caan. A tough memorable actor, and tough memorable man.
The best anticipation film ever !!!
A blazed society .. Nostalgic of a bygone era: ours !!!
They just don't make gritty Sci fi movies like they used to anymore
+ghbutler Because we can't have anyone get their feelings hurt anymore. That's why. Everything has to be watered down, computer animated, and soft as a limp dick, so everyone can have a safe entertainment experience.
+ghbutler Moon, Inception, Predestination, Looper were all good. This is great though.
moon, looper, chappie, fury road, ex machina, pacific rim, the purge, promethius, chronicle, dredd, seeking a friend for the end of the world(okay, rom com, but the way it deals with peoples coming demise is pretty dark), source code, in time. all decently gritty movies, either in concept or excecution, that were made in the last 5 years.
Fury Road , grity Sci Fi? Maybe if you're 10 years old.
Have you seen Dredd? These type of film have increased and moved to high budget tv, hello Westworld, if anything.
This movie was about a future where there were no more governments or countries, just corporations... personally, the most accurate depiction of a dystopian future ever made when compared to any other dystopia out there.
1984 still remains the most intellectually observant and realistic dystopian work ever created. Corporations are based entirely on profits. They can corrupt governments and societies, but they can never wield the same kind of totalitarian powers that governments can. I do not find it realistic to assume that where even communist countries gained their legitimacy by supposedly serve the interests of the masses, even when they never have. That somehow a corporation would ever be so successful or all-encompassing that people would willingly or unwillingly give or allow them to take complete control over their lives. At least nations and governments have the pretense of being able to manage the lives of people. Profit based corporations never could.
@@sirissac234
Read your critique, and appreciate your views,
@@sirissac234 governments are now also based on profits.
Dystopian future coming to a town near you next week
@retrobeats Look what Disney did with the Mulan remake. All the CCP has to do is wave access to the Chinese theatre release market under Disney's nose and Disney will make the changes the CCP wants.
RIP James Caan ... on this day 07/07/2022
"They shoot horses don't they " and Rollerball are cinematic masterpieces of our past and the future.
They shoot Horses dont they absolutely blew my head off. Stone cold classic that nobody has seen
RIP Jonathan E
Best opening and closing music for any film.
Loved this movie so much as a young boy in the 70's that my friends and I created our own version of the Rollerball game.
R.I.P James Caan...
Fantastic film one of my all time favourites and they don't make them like that anymore.
I grew up in the 70s, when every boy wanted to be Johnathan E...
RIP James Caan.
When Jonathan brutally kills the other player in from of John Houseman’s character... probably the most dramatic moment of the film. The look they share... and Jonathan’s “this is what you wanted” look... both men are/were (Houseman long since dead) truly powerful actors... the look on their faces... their eye movements...
Yes, the move relied on actual acting and sounds or lack thereof for the full effect. No CGI at all.
Nope. By far the most affecting moment is Jonathan's sidekick getting hit into a braindead vegetable. Not a week goes by when I don't think about this scene. A REALISTIC death and its obscenity! Beats every worthless boring Marvel (who cares about any character) and Too-Fast-Too-Dull sequel designed for 12-year-old boys.
@@EconAdviser Not sure how old you are but I'm curious as to why that scene has affected you. The movie was one of the future in more ways than one. There are many aspects of the move that I think about for many reasons. When Johnathan is with Moonpie before the New York game, he's resolved at the fact that he will probably die and his brain dead friend will keep living. He knows this but he doesn't cower away, he goes to the game knowing his faite is in his own skill set, he, is on his own. This is shown as he skates past his team mates, not a word spoken, they are all know their fate too.
Looking at the way the world is now, the move wasn't so far off. Johnathan represents all the people fighting today for the right to survive against the corporate tech-world.
Zero, is Google.
@@joewaldner6986 Bartholomew is Klaus Schwab
If you watched the whole movie, it's certainly not a: “this is what you wanted” look.
Fantastic
RIP James Caan!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
One of the most striking things about this scene is the complete lack of sound, except for what's happening on the rink. No sound from the audience, no music, nothing. Not until he puts the ball in the hole. Stunning.
It's brilliantly chilling as it should be. I fear kf you recreated this today, people would want to turn the last match into an action movie montage with music blaring and a bloodthirsty crowd going nuts a la Death Race remake.
The "match" is a funeral, and they treat it as such. An artistic masterpiece.
People understand this movie far less than in 1975....even then, this has always been a slave culture. Great movie. James Caan s best role by far.
Misery?
naah ... Roillerball all the way
Sonny in the godfather is his best role
The early 1970s were really the best for bleak films. _Rollerball_ , _Network_ , _Three Days of the Condor_ , _The Kremlin Letter_ ... so many good ones.
Deathrace 2000
thedungeondelver
70s were a gritty time in the US.
soilent green a boy and his dog etc...
Nixon, Watergate, Vietnam...it is no wonder there was so many great movies with an anti authoritarian theme. Even The Godfather has Kate trying to mock Michael when he meets her again after being in Sicily, I can't remember the line exactly, but Michael says he wants to be like any great man, to which Kates say 'senators don't have people killed'. Michael's answer is so 70's...'don't they? Now who's being naive Kate?'
Clockwork Orange
Talk about a “body bag game”! 😱
Please rise for your corporate sponsor!.
RIP James Caan
This is your iconic role.
Not Sonny Corleone in Godfather?
Rest In Peace James Caan
RIP Mr Caan. Thank you for the performances.
Got this on Bluray a few weeks ago and finally had a chance to watch it with a couple friends. Still a really great example of the 70's somewhat dim view of corporate culture and our future. There are too many in politics who instead of taking stories such as this as a warning instead see them as a playbook.
As Jonathan spared the rival who would of killed him, he had already won the crowd and as they chanted his name the individual mattered once more not the game...
I think it was years ahead of its time
Growing up in the the 80s there were a few films that impacted me in a big way making me think about the world around us as well as the film, then as i got older the conditions of which we are required to live. Ever since Rollerball has been a personal favourite of mine and i do not know the number of times i have watched it. A true classic and perhaps a foreshadowing.
RIP Jonathan E... James Caan..
RIP James Caan. July 7, 2022.
This scene... No Fouls Called. No Replacements. No Time Limit. The Game was designed to teach the world that one could win. As Jonathan Eee keeps winning he becomes a threat to "The Corporation," so they keep changing the Rules.
A lot like politics today, both in the US, and elsewhere. ='[.]'=
More relevant now than ever before.
Yes
Why
@@the_red_barron1002 I'm not him, but the way I see it is collectivism vs individualism. The example would be corporates trying to perpetuate corporate image through trumpling wrongthinking individuals. All that cancel culture and wokeness. This also achieves political moderation - nobody is ever allowed to have a different opinion, helping to homogenise the field and manipulate it whichever way they want to. Any disagreeing element shall be ostracised and die off. However, the result is usually the companies going broke, as they should, or at least getting damaged financially. After all, it's the people that matter, not the company. And, the ending just shows the triumph of individualism aganst collectivism.
4 years later after your comment and it's even more relevant than ever. Gina Carano could be seen as Jonathan E today.
Very relevant for corporate run world events we seeing taking place today!