Fantastic film. A terrifying technocratic nightmare. Hard to believe George Lucas directed it. Shame he never developed his ideas further with the resources he generated from Star Wars.
He keeps saying in interviews how he only wants to make small, experimental films for himself to view. I don't know if he is. But being able to personally fund all Star Wars films from Empire onwards, he could easily have made experimental ones with the craft services budget.
He’s said many times and other directors have also said, he hates directing. Shame really because he always seemed more of an experimental kind of film maker but never really tapped into it.
@@JeffCfreeradiorevolution Look up "behavioral sink". They know exactly what it is, and they know urban centers cause this effect, yet the shekels must flow, so everyone pretends like paying $2k a month for a closet in NYC is totally worth it, because who'd want to own their own land in a rural or epi-rural town, paying the same price for a 4-bedroom home with lawns, right?
@@BoozyBeggar I for one am glad they don't move out here. Let them destroy themselves with their delusional ideologies. Feces and needles in the streets. Rampant crime and socialist controls. It's so peaceful out here in the country, away from all that nonsense. Out here you can build your own home for pennies on the dollar. No building codes and expensive contractors required. I can piss off my front porch without going to jail, and be free of their need for conformity.
The ending of this movie brought me to absolute tears when I first watched it. I didn't see it coming. I saw it years ago for the first time on the US cable station Bravo back when they were an amazing movie channel that showed tons of great obscure movies commercial free and then NBC Universal bought the channel and destroyed it. I'll never forgive the person that was responsible for that but I digress. This is a great movie don't spoil it for yourself.
You're right, "A New Hope" is the better film but I view that one as more of a group effort. Without the help of Lucas' friends and colleagues, it never would have become as great as it is.
As much as I love Star Wars and American Graffiti, in some ways yes, THX-1138 was his peak. I also really like his student films, including the original THX short that was the basis for the feature film. Those were days before Lucas the filmmaker turned into Lucas the toymaker.
This was one of the first scifi films that impressed me as a youth. It did not have to be wall to wall action. The feel of the film did it for me. Everything from the conformity, automated religion, and style. Thanks for the retrospective.
I feel like the tech stuff is mostly a metaphor, Lucas himself said he intended it to appear as an artifact from the future but that it was about the current day. As to what the metaphor means? Its very similar to the metaphor of the combine in "One Flew Over a Mockingbird" (the book). Society has grown beyond the original purpose of its behavior and instead focuses on trying to make everyone an ideal robot, which in the case of THX is 0000, OHM. To work, to have a family even if its loveless, to not enjoy sex, to consume merely for the purpose of consuming, to dull your emotions and only live for social validation, Its the American ideal the counter culture in the 70s was pushing back against. Like the way so many American Christians use Jesus as a reflection of their own ideals and political aspirations. OHM, the evolution of Jesus in the world of THX, merely exists to spout pre-recorded messages about how consumption is good, work is good, obedience is good. The original meaning is lost through cultural evolution, and when in distress, THX tries to seek solace in OHM, and in the absence of the solace once he realizes that even OHM has been corrupted by society, vomits. It makes me think about how Reagan turned being a Christian into being specifically a fundamentalist protestant, which was turned into a demos (bloc) to allow him and his faction to easily remain in office. The more odious the american right becomes, the more Jesus will seem like OHM, and lose all meaning beyond pre-recorded messages designed by demagogues that can't soothe real pain when you fall outside the system, because they are shallow and baseless. (I'm not a Christian btw, I just think religious metaphor is really important to understand in a work that has it, in order to see the true meaning of said work).
@@alexquinn2390 Good point. I am Christian and I think that politicizing Jesus is wrong and will be exposed in the end. The wisdom of men is but foolishness. Better to have the faith of a child. Don't know if I would call the authority in the movie as technocratic. I would call it consumerist socialism though. The mandatory drug use is definitely Brave New World - verbatim, and the disallowed sexual contact is 1984. I love the budgetary restrictions on the pursuit of 1138. Really caps off the faux morality of the society, which is very survivalist in nature. Obviously there was some catastrophe that drove these people underground. Probably a nuclear holocaust - which is likely, and why the robots warn 1138 that he can't survive outside - though probably the radiation has diminished long since. Violence, racism, and sexism have been minimized or obliterated in this society along with free will. Even the prisons are only just "clean rooms" that the patients/inmates, in their drug-induced and distorted, brain-washed states can't find the exit to. Also wonder if the hologram guy was an actual hologram (AI) or he just thought he was because he was part of the media show. He obviously died a real death when his McLaren/Jaguar(?) hit the concrete column. Really good movie to me. Kind of defies anything H-wood would have put out willingly. 'Cause we all know that there is nothing but tripe that comes from that well of despair.
An absolute masterpiece of a film. Much underrated. I remember watching this when a teenager and was wow, also, Alex Cox on the BBC used to host Moviedrome and he did a very nice introduction/overview. Fantastic film
Raider of the Lost Ark, when Indy is sneaking aboard the submarine you can hear the PA system saying "Ein, Ein, Drei, Acht". And in American Graffiti, the license plate on the protagonist's car is 'THX 138'.
I think you're misremembering/conflating the novelization with the film. In the book the line is "THX-1138, why aren't you at your post?", but in the movie it's "TK-421, why aren't you at your post?". This is not an example of George Lucas "special edition" tinkering with the movie (or the book). The line was always "TK-421..." in the film and "THX-1138..." in the novelization. There are indeed a handful of actual, deliberate references to THX-1138 scattered throughout the Star Wars films, but the example you cite isn't one of them. Judging by the upvotes you've gotten so far, I think the THX-1138 vs. TK-421 confusion is an example of the Mandela Effect (i.e., the same false memory shared by multiple people). Another example of this phenomenon; around the time the special editions were first released, a commenter on a Star Wars message board complained that in the Episode V special edition Lucas had edited out a line of dialogue from Luke when he's hanging in the Wampa cave. The commenter distinctly (mis)remembered that in the original cut of Empire, Luke says "The force calls my lightsaber to me!". What this person was actually remembering was a line from the radio series, not the movie. An easy enough mistake to make, considering Mark Hamill played Luke in both versions. I tried to convince this person that they were misremembering, but they wouldn't believe me and to this day they're probably still convinced that that line of dialogue was in the original cut of the movie. Human memory is fragile, fungible and imperfect. No Jedi hand-waving is required for us to play "mind tricks" on ourselves. This fragility doesn't necessarily mean we're weak-minded... unless that is we dig in our heels and continue to insist that our false memories are real, after we're shown compelling evidence to the contrary.
@@SurlyInsomniac Bonus fact: The (absolutely horrible) French dub of Star Wars uses different names, acronyms and numbers. In this case, the Stromtrooper's ID in French is DK-821. Chewie was called Chico, Han Solo was Yan Solo, C-3P0 was Z-6P0, R2-D2 was D2-R2 (go figure)...And the Millenium Falcon was the Millenium Condor...until Empire when they gave it its proper name back...and it was the only thing that did :)
I preferred the claustrophobic feel of the original cut. It works to focus on the isolation of the characters and culminates in the big, white room. I feel the expansion of the city with VFX takes away from this feeling of claustrophobia and isolation.
Got a lot of respect for George, this might be a bit of a polarizing film for some, but I enjoyed it. Such a difference between this, American Graffiti and Star Wars. I think Star Wars broke him as a director and it really affected him and he did actually ask Zemekis, Howard and Spielberg to direct the prequels, but they insisted that he did them. After the vitriol and negative reaction to those movies (which of course weren't perfect, but that's probably why George asked his pals to direct) who could blame him for selling the IP and the company to Disney. Bad idea though, imho, Star Wars has now become a soulless cash-grabbing exercise. I hope history remembers him as an innovator and servant to cinema.
@@matthewpaine6908 I didn't think he had anything to do with The Last Jedi? If you mean The Return of the Jedi, I still don't agree. He's sold toy lines since A New Hope as he's always maintained that they're kids films. Some people hate the Ewoks, but if the rebels were helped by a load of seven foot tall Wookies, as was originally intended, the victory of the good guys wouldn't have had as much impact and would've been much more expected.
I want to go to the alternate universe where Zemeckis, Howard and Spielberg directed the prequels. With George's ideas + their directing it would been so incredible and special.
@r33mote can you post those interview sources? I've never heard of that. George wrote Star Wars because he couldn't make a new version of Flash Gordon, and it was all self funded. Toys and merchandising were fairly new but proved so successful that other films followed. Maybe you're thinking of Transformers, He-Man, Thundercats, GI Joe whiche were toys first and everything second. I enjoy The Mandalorian since my original comment, a character like Grogu is how you do merchandising right, it's obvious they can make sellable toys from him but he's integral to the story and a pretty decent character.. Something the sequel trilogy producers should take note of.
I think THX was George's main contribution to cinema. Yes, I liked the original Star Wars (1977 or so), and kind of liked 2 and 3, just to cap the story, but have never watched the reboots. CGI kills what would otherwise be classics - ala LOTR trilogy. First one was good, then Jackson's next ventures started to be hard on the eyes. His Hobbit series was unwatchable, which is a shame. And I will also say that Lucas kind of introduced the sequel upon sequel, which is very tiresome. Make a movie then make a different movie about something else. Quit making stuff just to hype the merchandise or drain all the blood out of something cause you can't come up with a new idea.
That's how you separate the kids you USED to be friends with from the adults who you ARE friends with. If you can't watch and enjoy films like this, we have no common ground. I used to love odd and thought-provoking movies when I was young too.
At the University of Arizona, I was a member of the committee to honor young filmakers, we voted George Lucas' film as the best of all the movies made by young directors. 'He has a great future' I said back then. George was very self depreciating and was happy we loved his director abilities. He was a true visionary back then! BTW, he filmed some of the scenes at Pima College which opened in 1970 and had 'futuristic' buildings that were white.
Having only ever seen the 2004 director's cut, I could tell that some shots had CGI added. I didn't know just how much was CGI, so I appreciate that most of the additions were really seamless.
I've always liked this movie, but the original student film version is the one to see. It's the one that's brilliant. Both are included in the DVD release.
THX is an ammazingly engaging movie. Through its visuals and superb acting, as well as the amazing music, it is a very emotional film and strangly beautiful.
@@Edax_Royeaux Lucas had spoken years before about selling to Disney one day, as he believed they were the studio most in tune with Star Wars films (aesthetically), and he liked collaborating with them on Star Tours. I guess he saw the Walt magic as being akin to Star Wars fable innocence.
Such an underrated movie...when the picture was showed at Cannes, it was highly praised. However, George Lucas and his wife Martha did not remain for the Q&A, he was not aware there was one. The couple just left! And till this day he has been labelled as arrogant by the French!
@@michasz4297 *Actually, **_Logans Run_** was a commentary on several 60's memes, most notably "Don't trust anybody over 30". And it was a brilliant one at that.*
@@measl The Logan's Run movie was entirely different from the book. The themes of the book were actually closer to Lord of the Flies with kids running a nightmare world, whereas the movie changed it all into a kind of critique of Hippy culture (don't trust anyone over 30).
Strange. Before he added all the changes I already knew what it was "supposed" to be from the original. Not everybody needs cgi shoved down their throat. Some of us have imaginations.
I agree completely. I saw the original several times years ago. When I watched the modified version recently, the cgi ruined it for me. My son and I were watching it, and I told him the new version had been “Lucased”, aka ruined.
@@davek5027 Seems like every time they get new "toys" (software etc.) rather than make new stuff with it, they have to "what if we had this back then?" everything. If you know what I mean. Do you think Rembrandt would be re-creating everything he'd painted before if he discovered Photoshop and ink-jet printers?
@@yourhandlehere1 On point, IcantSignIn! I'll have to use that analogy in the future because it's spot on. I could see the additions a mile away in this review and am SO GLAD I didn't see that cut. They all stick out like sore thumbs. Stark, white prison then cut to bustling city with towering buildings and lights. wut?
"Drugs", "medicine", "vaccines" call it whatever you want. Mandatory chemicals enforced by the government. And if you don't take them, you are an outlaw. But don't worry, they say... "We only want to help you. Do not resist, citizen."
@@AtticussAtticuss Vaccines save lives and to hear someone bitch about the fact that a government is saving lives is really sad. Your just pushing a slippery slope fallacy. Vaccines are not drugs, they are not addictive and they do not have any psychological effects. Instead they save lives by the billions. You might as well bitch about taxes and how they keep the troops fed.
(Please do) for future retrospectives: -The Warriors -The Green Mile -The Great Escape -It's a Wonderfull Life If anyone has any other idea, comment so that Oliver can see.
had been hoping you'd eventually review this amazing film...first viewing of this film was haunting ...many of the lines still linger in my brain waiting to be said once more
Why does Lucas always feel the need to add unnecessary or unfitting things afterwards? Just scale up the visual quality and maybe add some atmospherical details but other than that, just keep it true to the original!
Grachtnakk It’s his movie. He can do whatever he wants with it. Besides, he was under budgetary constraints, so how do we know this wasn’t what he always wanted to do?
Grachtnakk Probably because he wanted to add to his world after the budget and tech of the time wouldn’t have allowed. Bespin from empire is a great example of the special edition being vastly superior
I actually fine with most of the additional effects, especially those used to make the City appear larger. The only two parts I could have done without are the Car Chase-Bit and the CGI-Monkeys.
Love your series Oliver! They're even better than the extra you find on their official DVD releases! Please do some more 1970s science fiction, fantasy, and horror film retrospectives!
This film had the most striking emotional effect on me of almost any I'd ever seen, I saw it when I was 11 but only while rewatching it more than 10 years later I realized how much it shaped my personality and worldview after only seeing it once and never even realized it.
This Film needs to be brought into the public consciousness of today's era, especially with just how consumer obsessed the young generations are today, and regarding all this reality Tv. I think THX 1138 is a truly great film, some of the greatest films make you think, and won't always be entirely "entertaining" and thats not a bad thing.
@@johnchrysler5122 Hmm i dont know about that, George Lucas made his Star Wars films outside of the Hollywood system and retained all the rights. The only real way he was able to do this was by making revenue through selling Toys and Merchandise. This enabled Lucas to use the large profits from box-office success as well as toy sales to establish his own studios, Skywalker Sound/THX, his own graphics department which would eventually become Pixar, and his "Skywalker Ranch" which was where he would make his movies his way. Now the huge difference between consumer obsessed zombies and people buying George's Star Wars toys and merch is that Lucas's "Star Wars" Original Trilogy was a huge phenomenon. There's a scene in this film where Rob Duvall's THX-1138 character walks into a store and picks up an item, leaves and takes that item home where he simply stores it away. This i think is George Lucas's way of making a subtle commentary on how people in a heavily controlled and "conditioned" society can become slaves to Consumerism especially in the Western world; He just buys the item and does'nt even know what he needs it for, he has just been conditioned to buy it. And i have to point out it really does feel like that's where people are headed slowly today. Also notice the store had no clerks, he just walked in grabbed the item and took it home, very similar to these "Amazon Stores" they're trying to get set up now today.
@@johnchrysler5122 Sorry bout the essay but i just want to give you my argument as to the big difference here. Now with George Lucas all the toys and merch he sold off of his Star Wars films and later his prequels; Star Wars had captured the imaginations of millions of kids (i was one of them). Those films impacted children and people in general in very positive way, you've only got to go on forums and ask fans what Starwars did for them and they will all tell you how Starwars inspired them to get into a particular field. So children were getting their parents to buy them the starwars toys not out of consumer obsession but for positive reasons. I remember as a kid playing with my friend in the backgarden for hours with our Star Wars figures; and we would make our own little space stations, where the millenium falcon would land. We would use little parts of the garden in our minds to create different locations of planets. I think that's one of the main reasons why i love creating dioramas today. Starwars blew our minds and expanded our imaginations. Today Kim Kardashian sells perfumes of her own brand, and millions of impressionable teenage girls buy them; Kim K also influences many young girls and young women in general to go and have Breast Implants, or botox, filler injections to go and have their lips enlarged. Or to pull thier hair back and tie it tightly up into that Topknot/bun hairstyle always used to have; thus causing girl's root's of their hair to weaken over time, also through overuse of bleaching their hair different colors. All to keep up with and emulate Kim K's many different styles. Kim Kardashian has been the main cause and negative influence of most of this young generation today; perpetuating a culture of extreme Vanity and self entitlement. And that's all most these young girls and women will be interested in doing for the majority of their lives, just keep buying hair and beauty products being obsessed with their looks, and eventually weakening their hair and their skin buy keep having nip-tucs and botox injections. Kim Kardashian has influenced and created this toxic culture in young people over the past Twenty years now. She is the embodiment of obsessive consumerism and just quite plainly a narcissist and has bred narcissism in young people today. I argue that George Lucas (despite some of his flaws) has contributed to inspiring children to actually be somebody in their life. Through the characters he created in his Star Wars films - Han Solo, Leia Organa, Lando and especially Luke Skywalker.
Great review, but I have to disagree with Oliver's claim that there is "no humour" in the film. There is a lot of sly, wry subtle dark humour throughout and even a couple of straight-up slapstick moments. Maybe not necessarily laugh-out-loud funny, but genuinely humourous, nonetheless. I also think the special edition changes, while generally well-executed, are at best unnecessary and at worst deeply distracting to those of us who are familiar with the original cut.
I agree. Why does everything now have to have 'laugh out loud' moments to be considered good? I found Donald Pleasance's character funny, the people in the prison and their lack of reaction to the drama going on around them etc. "That was very funny" delivered in the flattest way by Duvall made me and my friends laugh. On another note, I found some of the modern SFX to work, but things like the chase were a bit jarring.
Maybe the “monkey people” attacking THX at the end are a bit unnecessary. I did however think the “pleasure machine” in the holo entertainment scene was interesting as addition.
Well said. The film is suppose to be disorienting and hard to understand. It's oppressing like your drowning. It's not easy to view because it not suppose to be; that was the director's "intent". It reminds me in a sense of Midnight Express that to this day i won't watch. With THX while it's very clean very Japanese the message it leaves you with is very powerful.
The scene with the malfunctioning elevator and the 4 workers just standing there in a drug induced stupor while they're being told on an intercom that it's not functioning was funny. But you won't catch it right away. It's subtle.
The beauty of THX-1138 is that it became true. The only core difference between current reality and THX-1138 is that the state, big tech and the masses have hidden mediative/third party control over us and our communication with those whom we care for, while in the movie, Duvall had direct communication with said big tech/state/mass civilian expectation. We’re literally living this every day, and most of us don’t even know it.
There's such a PASSION for the way Lucas not only did THX-1138, but American Graffiti as well. George had this vivid vision of the future AND the past that was either so dystopian, or overly romantic. And hate to say, by the time Star Wars came to be - George wanted to rival Kubrick with special effects and rejuvenate the old Flash Gordon and Buck Rogers serials in a more palpable and realistic climate. BUT - his passion wasn't quite as invested as his previous two films. And I think it developed the more Star Wars continued. And as sacrilegious as it may sound to Star Wars fans, I thought Lucas was wasting his time trying to better himself with a somewhat confining space serial. And I think success, ILM, age, and demand really robbed George of any true passion he may have had left in him. More American Graffiti and Red Tails seem to be proof of that. And even subsequent Star Wars films seem to reflect more of George's personal and business dealings than anything truly inventive and with passion. A shame in one way. But with THX-1138 - it's easy to see how committed Lucas was, and with going back to it in 2004 - still is. And I think that's what George realized finally - when Kubrick took on 2001; he didn't know what to expect. He had a vision, wanted a mature and intelligent film, to 'change the form' of science fiction, and have the total freedom to do so - much to MGM's chagrin. And ironically - that's EXACTLY what Lucas was up against with THX-1138. And thankfully George was as undeterred as Kubrick was to 'get the job done' the way he wanted it - regardless.
Like a certain other George Lucas project this really needs an original theatrical cut blu-ray. The director's cut is fine but the option to watch it without the cgi would be great.
Like a certain other Stanley Kubrick project this really needs an original theatrical cut home release. The directors cut is fine but the option to see the cut half-hour would be great. (I'm referring to 2001 if you couldn't tell)
Oh, wow! I would never have guessed in a million years that Oliver would do this retrospective! I'm so happy right now! Thanks for brightening my day, buddy! And now...on with the video! :D
Kubrick changed his movies drastically too, 2001 had 20 minutes cut out of it and The Shining's ending is completely different. Except unlike Lucas, he NEVER released the original cuts to home releases.
Not needing a baseball bat storyline to smash me over the head, I find THX-1138 to be one of the finer sci-fi movies ever made. Understanding that massive CGI explosions are now required to engage most current audiences, I would suggest that not all drug-stimulants are necessarily chemical. I find the sustained low-level tension that Lucas provides to be, ultimately, quite effective, and actually more resonant. But, I'm from a different time (I saw this as a young man when it first came out), and so have a different standard of appreciation. Thank you for the background details of the film, and all the other hard work in putting this together.
Remember seen this in the 70s when I was a kid. It looks as good and convincing as it looks nowadays. You see, that's the problem with CGI it gets old quickly and tent to disconnect the audiences.
(19:41) Yeah, that "used"/"lived in" look translated well to the Star Wars universe where everything the rebels used was all beat up and scratched while the Empire's equipment was squeaky clean.
This is one of my favourite films. I first saw it on a 10 inch black and white TV when I was about 8 years old and loved it then, but it took me until I was all grown up to realise why. The sparse story matches then overall theme. There is an emptiness in the aesthetic and characters too, in some ways the film is _about_ emptiness, soullessness, disconnection. It's as powerful a critique of civilised modernity as I've even seen. For me it bares repeated watching, there's a depth to the ideas and the presentation of them that rewards deeper contemplation. I do wonder what might have happened if THX 1138 had been more of a success.Would George Lucas have gone on to be a great director rather than squander his talent making lucrative childrens' movies?
I saw it the first time on ARD1 (German television) in the late seventies. ARD1 used to broadcast the better sci-fi every saturday night in those days. I must have been around 10 and because it was at such a late hour (I think around 23.00) I only got to see part of most of them. But it got me motivated to look 'em up at a later age. I used to explain very often - this was before the internet - to friends that THX soundsystems was named after this movie. I appreciate your reviews and this effort in particular strongly, Sincerely
Thanks for the retrospective on this. I had heard its name in passing over the years but had zero idea what it actually was. Looks like my cup of tea honestly (I like dystopian films), so I think I will check it out. Visually it seems like it has aged pretty well too.
Another great video with lots of fascinating information. Thanks Oliver. I'd like to make one small suggestion: a little more pause between sentences, and a longer one when changing topics. Your delivery is excellent in general.
One of my favorite movies as a kid....it was rare to find someone I could share it with and they enjoyed it as much as I did...this and legend fortified my love of cinema
So pleased you did this one Oliver. Always loved this movie and yes I agree, Lucas special edition makes it better. George is a great story teller and here in this movie a great director
Oh yes. I saw this movie in the 1980s. I do not have a laser disk player so I have not seen it since, but I found it interesting enough to remember. The ending is rather depressing. Reminded me a lot of 1984. Depressing book.
...And then, he sold everything to Disney. 😡😪 But seriously, I’d heard Lucas say on several occasions that he intends to make more movies like THX someday. I hope it happens. He deserves to do his own thing without worrying about paying the bills.
Moviedrome great reference to Alex cox ! I’m happy to say I got to see Thx at a very young age and it stuck with me I had no idea it was a Lucas movie until later ! As my love of film developed ! Great stuff Oliver 👍😎
Suggestions for future retrospectives (to name a few): 28 Days Later Casino Royale (2006) Iron Man Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels The Secret Of NIMH
Everyone who discounts the artistry and intent of Lucas' work on Star Wars needs to look no further than THX 1138 to understand that YES, he does have an artistic drive, vision and style pushing many of his creative choices...he isn't doing things mindlessly and arbitrarily.
This is the type of film-making I hope he'll go back to directing, now that the Star Wars burden is off his shoulders... But I'm not sure we'll ever see another film by him
Slow burn sci fi by Mister Lucas. I must say I am okay with the added f/x - I feel they blended the new elements in really well. Overall, a cool, stylized film.
Yeah, that's how I came to watch this movie for the first time. I was a pretty obsessive fan of NIN in the '90s, so I would go out of my way to look for the sources of samples and so on. For those unfamiliar, it's the sound of one of the robot officers beating a prisoner.
Oh, it has actually been shown on U.K. TV twice(unless anyone knows otherwise), once on Moviedrome with Alex Cox on BBC 2(as you mentioned in this video), but also a few years earlier on Film Club with Derek Malcolm(The Guardian’s film critic) on BBC 2. Both of the introductions are up on UA-cam if you want to see them.
Fantastic film. A terrifying technocratic nightmare. Hard to believe George Lucas directed it. Shame he never developed his ideas further with the resources he generated from Star Wars.
Indeed !
He keeps saying in interviews how he only wants to make small, experimental films for himself to view. I don't know if he is. But being able to personally fund all Star Wars films from Empire onwards, he could easily have made experimental ones with the craft services budget.
Same! It's really dark and horrific.
He’s said many times and other directors have also said, he hates directing. Shame really because he always seemed more of an experimental kind of film maker but never really tapped into it.
yeah like how does the same guy make this movie AND Jar-Jar? proof that serotonin re-uptake inhibitors were the cocaine of the 90's.
This movie is a warning, much like 1984 and Idiocracy.
as is Brazil and Blade Runner
God help us all
So was The Terminator but google trips over its dick to fabricate an indestructible automaton. Cautionary tales only resonate with the cautious.
@@JeffCfreeradiorevolution Look up "behavioral sink". They know exactly what it is, and they know urban centers cause this effect, yet the shekels must flow, so everyone pretends like paying $2k a month for a closet in NYC is totally worth it, because who'd want to own their own land in a rural or epi-rural town, paying the same price for a 4-bedroom home with lawns, right?
@@BoozyBeggar I for one am glad they don't move out here. Let them destroy themselves with their delusional ideologies. Feces and needles in the streets. Rampant crime and socialist controls. It's so peaceful out here in the country, away from all that nonsense. Out here you can build your own home for pennies on the dollar. No building codes and expensive contractors required. I can piss off my front porch without going to jail, and be free of their need for conformity.
The ending of this movie brought me to absolute tears when I first watched it. I didn't see it coming. I saw it years ago for the first time on the US cable station Bravo back when they were an amazing movie channel that showed tons of great obscure movies commercial free and then NBC Universal bought the channel and destroyed it. I'll never forgive the person that was responsible for that but I digress. This is a great movie don't spoil it for yourself.
You could actually make a case that this is Lucas's finest effort as a director.
I've always said this. It definitely is.
You're right, "A New Hope" is the better film but I view that one as more of a group effort. Without the help of Lucas' friends and colleagues, it never would have become as great as it is.
@@kuribayashi84 Could not agree more.
Alazoom76, if the actors could have robots as well, he’d do it.
As much as I love Star Wars and American Graffiti, in some ways yes, THX-1138 was his peak. I also really like his student films, including the original THX short that was the basis for the feature film. Those were days before Lucas the filmmaker turned into Lucas the toymaker.
This was one of the first scifi films that impressed me as a youth. It did not have to be wall to wall action. The feel of the film did it for me. Everything from the conformity, automated religion, and style. Thanks for the retrospective.
Truly a movie ahead of its time, we eerily seem to be on a trajectory for a real life THX 1138. A technocratic Hellscape
Atomization + Deracination. Uncle Ted was right even if his methods were abominable.
That has started in the 1980s. Your worries are 40 years behind schedule.
I feel like the tech stuff is mostly a metaphor, Lucas himself said he intended it to appear as an artifact from the future but that it was about the current day. As to what the metaphor means? Its very similar to the metaphor of the combine in "One Flew Over a Mockingbird" (the book). Society has grown beyond the original purpose of its behavior and instead focuses on trying to make everyone an ideal robot, which in the case of THX is 0000, OHM. To work, to have a family even if its loveless, to not enjoy sex, to consume merely for the purpose of consuming, to dull your emotions and only live for social validation, Its the American ideal the counter culture in the 70s was pushing back against.
Like the way so many American Christians use Jesus as a reflection of their own ideals and political aspirations. OHM, the evolution of Jesus in the world of THX, merely exists to spout pre-recorded messages about how consumption is good, work is good, obedience is good. The original meaning is lost through cultural evolution, and when in distress, THX tries to seek solace in OHM, and in the absence of the solace once he realizes that even OHM has been corrupted by society, vomits.
It makes me think about how Reagan turned being a Christian into being specifically a fundamentalist protestant, which was turned into a demos (bloc) to allow him and his faction to easily remain in office. The more odious the american right becomes, the more Jesus will seem like OHM, and lose all meaning beyond pre-recorded messages designed by demagogues that can't soothe real pain when you fall outside the system, because they are shallow and baseless. (I'm not a Christian btw, I just think religious metaphor is really important to understand in a work that has it, in order to see the true meaning of said work).
@@alexquinn2390 Good point. I am Christian and I think that politicizing Jesus is wrong and will be exposed in the end. The wisdom of men is but foolishness. Better to have the faith of a child. Don't know if I would call the authority in the movie as technocratic. I would call it consumerist socialism though. The mandatory drug use is definitely Brave New World - verbatim, and the disallowed sexual contact is 1984. I love the budgetary restrictions on the pursuit of 1138. Really caps off the faux morality of the society, which is very survivalist in nature. Obviously there was some catastrophe that drove these people underground. Probably a nuclear holocaust - which is likely, and why the robots warn 1138 that he can't survive outside - though probably the radiation has diminished long since. Violence, racism, and sexism have been minimized or obliterated in this society along with free will. Even the prisons are only just "clean rooms" that the patients/inmates, in their drug-induced and distorted, brain-washed states can't find the exit to. Also wonder if the hologram guy was an actual hologram (AI) or he just thought he was because he was part of the media show. He obviously died a real death when his McLaren/Jaguar(?) hit the concrete column. Really good movie to me. Kind of defies anything H-wood would have put out willingly. 'Cause we all know that there is nothing but tripe that comes from that well of despair.
Long term survival after an atomic war. They forgot to check to see if it is clear.
It's still ahead of it's time even now.
?
I agree. He had a small tight budget requiring him and the team to be extremely focused and creative. I love this movie.
Sorry to hear that Don Pedro Colley is no more. Met him at a convention years ago. Really cool and engaging guy...
An absolute masterpiece of a film. Much underrated. I remember watching this when a teenager and was wow, also, Alex Cox on the BBC used to host Moviedrome and he did a very nice introduction/overview. Fantastic film
One of my favorites, brilliant movie. And I laughed in Star Wars when you hear "THX 1138, why aren't you at your post?"....nice Easter egg.
Raider of the Lost Ark, when Indy is sneaking aboard the submarine you can hear the PA system saying "Ein, Ein, Drei, Acht".
And in American Graffiti, the license plate on the protagonist's car is 'THX 138'.
I think you're misremembering/conflating the novelization with the film. In the book the line is "THX-1138, why aren't you at your post?", but in the movie it's "TK-421, why aren't you at your post?". This is not an example of George Lucas "special edition" tinkering with the movie (or the book). The line was always "TK-421..." in the film and "THX-1138..." in the novelization. There are indeed a handful of actual, deliberate references to THX-1138 scattered throughout the Star Wars films, but the example you cite isn't one of them. Judging by the upvotes you've gotten so far, I think the THX-1138 vs. TK-421 confusion is an example of the Mandela Effect (i.e., the same false memory shared by multiple people).
Another example of this phenomenon; around the time the special editions were first released, a commenter on a Star Wars message board complained that in the Episode V special edition Lucas had edited out a line of dialogue from Luke when he's hanging in the Wampa cave. The commenter distinctly (mis)remembered that in the original cut of Empire, Luke says "The force calls my lightsaber to me!". What this person was actually remembering was a line from the radio series, not the movie. An easy enough mistake to make, considering Mark Hamill played Luke in both versions. I tried to convince this person that they were misremembering, but they wouldn't believe me and to this day they're probably still convinced that that line of dialogue was in the original cut of the movie.
Human memory is fragile, fungible and imperfect. No Jedi hand-waving is required for us to play "mind tricks" on ourselves. This fragility doesn't necessarily mean we're weak-minded... unless that is we dig in our heels and continue to insist that our false memories are real, after we're shown compelling evidence to the contrary.
@William Halter Ah, thanks, brother, you are correct!
@@Stand_By_For_Mind_Control HA! I missed those two...very cool!
@@SurlyInsomniac Bonus fact: The (absolutely horrible) French dub of Star Wars uses different names, acronyms and numbers. In this case, the Stromtrooper's ID in French is DK-821.
Chewie was called Chico, Han Solo was Yan Solo, C-3P0 was Z-6P0, R2-D2 was D2-R2 (go figure)...And the Millenium Falcon was the Millenium Condor...until Empire when they gave it its proper name back...and it was the only thing that did :)
andromeda strain next? massively underrated film with almost no coverage.
Agreed !! Bloody brilliant film !
An absolutely fantastic book, but a mediocre film, and was even worse as a TV mini-series.
Do IT Oliver
no human has ever watched a double feature of THX-1138 and The Andromeda Strain without going comatose.
Another favorite film!
The intro to NIN The Downward Spiral is a sample of the hologram beating scene.
Mr self destruct🤘🤘🤘
I preferred the claustrophobic feel of the original cut. It works to focus on the isolation of the characters and culminates in the big, white room. I feel the expansion of the city with VFX takes away from this feeling of claustrophobia and isolation.
One of the most underrated sci-fi films of all time.
You mean unknown?
@@Johnconno It reminds me of Logan's Run somewhat, although I've never seen THX 1138.
Got a lot of respect for George, this might be a bit of a polarizing film for some, but I enjoyed it. Such a difference between this, American Graffiti and Star Wars. I think Star Wars broke him as a director and it really affected him and he did actually ask Zemekis, Howard and Spielberg to direct the prequels, but they insisted that he did them. After the vitriol and negative reaction to those movies (which of course weren't perfect, but that's probably why George asked his pals to direct) who could blame him for selling the IP and the company to Disney. Bad idea though, imho, Star Wars has now become a soulless cash-grabbing exercise. I hope history remembers him as an innovator and servant to cinema.
What broke George was selling out the story of the last Jedi inorder to sell more toys. He became the monster he thought he was fighting against.
@@matthewpaine6908 I didn't think he had anything to do with The Last Jedi? If you mean The Return of the Jedi, I still don't agree. He's sold toy lines since A New Hope as he's always maintained that they're kids films.
Some people hate the Ewoks, but if the rebels were helped by a load of seven foot tall Wookies, as was originally intended, the victory of the good guys wouldn't have had as much impact and would've been much more expected.
I want to go to the alternate universe where Zemeckis, Howard and Spielberg directed the prequels. With George's ideas + their directing it would been so incredible and special.
@r33mote can you post those interview sources? I've never heard of that. George wrote Star Wars because he couldn't make a new version of Flash Gordon, and it was all self funded. Toys and merchandising were fairly new but proved so successful that other films followed.
Maybe you're thinking of Transformers, He-Man, Thundercats, GI Joe whiche were toys first and everything second.
I enjoy The Mandalorian since my original comment, a character like Grogu is how you do merchandising right, it's obvious they can make sellable toys from him but he's integral to the story and a pretty decent character.. Something the sequel trilogy producers should take note of.
I think THX was George's main contribution to cinema. Yes, I liked the original Star Wars (1977 or so), and kind of liked 2 and 3, just to cap the story, but have never watched the reboots. CGI kills what would otherwise be classics - ala LOTR trilogy. First one was good, then Jackson's next ventures started to be hard on the eyes. His Hobbit series was unwatchable, which is a shame. And I will also say that Lucas kind of introduced the sequel upon sequel, which is very tiresome. Make a movie then make a different movie about something else. Quit making stuff just to hype the merchandise or drain all the blood out of something cause you can't come up with a new idea.
Thx was the first movie I watched as a kid that my child-self would have described as "weird"..... And I loved it!
... And yes it was on moveidrome,i was a kid and I stayed up! #noregrets
That's how you separate the kids you USED to be friends with from the adults who you ARE friends with. If you can't watch and enjoy films like this, we have no common ground. I used to love odd and thought-provoking movies when I was young too.
22:14 encouraging people to buy useless things...surely George would never stand for that in real life.........hahahahaha
Sure, don't mention the fleshlight after a hard days work at the factory.
That's the future Model, FL- 0069 - XX
At the University of Arizona, I was a member of the committee to honor young filmakers, we voted George Lucas' film as the best of all the movies made by young directors. 'He has a great future' I said back then. George was very self depreciating and was happy we loved his director abilities. He was a true visionary back then! BTW, he filmed some of the scenes at Pima College which opened in 1970 and had 'futuristic' buildings that were white.
Having only ever seen the 2004 director's cut, I could tell that some shots had CGI added. I didn't know just how much was CGI, so I appreciate that most of the additions were really seamless.
I've always liked this movie, but the original student film version is the one to see. It's the one that's brilliant. Both are included in the DVD release.
THX is an ammazingly engaging movie. Through its visuals and superb acting, as well as the amazing music, it is a very emotional film and strangly beautiful.
Ironic that Disney now owns Lucasfilm because their corporate motto easily is:
Buy more.
Buy more now.
Buy!
And.....be happy.
Like in Wall-E. Produced by.......
Lucas regrets that quite deeply. I believe what motivated the sale was because he didn't want his legacy to be a Redlettermedia meme.
@@Edax_Royeaux Lucas had spoken years before about selling to Disney one day, as he believed they were the studio most in tune with Star Wars films (aesthetically), and he liked collaborating with them on Star Tours. I guess he saw the Walt magic as being akin to Star Wars fable innocence.
I disagree. The Dit$ney motto is;
1. Buy it
2. Buy it now
3. Buy them all
4. Raise prices at parks and on toys
5. Lawsuits, Lawsuits, Lawsuits.
If only Disney understood that art is not a monopoly.
Such an underrated movie...when the picture was showed at Cannes, it was highly praised. However, George Lucas and his wife Martha did not remain for the Q&A, he was not aware there was one. The couple just left! And till this day he has been labelled as arrogant by the French!
Truthseeker1515 wow. Never heard that.
being labelled as arrogant by the french is an acheivement all of its own
I think the social commentary of the movie speaks more now than ever
"We're all in this together."
I always thought of it as an art house version of Logan's Run.
*Logans run is ok, but it came LONG after THX-1138!*
@measl What I was going to say. I loved both of them but for different reasons.
@@thebeststooge Logan's Run is more of a fairy tale and THX-1138 is like a nightmare that wakes you up soaking wet from sweat at 3:00 am.
@@michasz4297
*Actually, **_Logans Run_** was a commentary on several 60's memes, most notably "Don't trust anybody over 30". And it was a brilliant one at that.*
@@measl The Logan's Run movie was entirely different from the book. The themes of the book were actually closer to Lord of the Flies with kids running a nightmare world, whereas the movie changed it all into a kind of critique of Hippy culture (don't trust anyone over 30).
Strange. Before he added all the changes I already knew what it was "supposed" to be from the original. Not everybody needs cgi shoved down their throat. Some of us have imaginations.
I agree completely. I saw the original several times years ago. When I watched the modified version recently, the cgi ruined it for me.
My son and I were watching it, and I told him the new version had been “Lucased”, aka ruined.
It's garbage, looks awful
@@davek5027 Seems like every time they get new "toys" (software etc.) rather than make new stuff with it, they have to "what if we had this back then?" everything. If you know what I mean. Do you think Rembrandt would be re-creating everything he'd painted before if he discovered Photoshop and ink-jet printers?
IcantSignIn I agree!
@@yourhandlehere1 On point, IcantSignIn! I'll have to use that analogy in the future because it's spot on. I could see the additions a mile away in this review and am SO GLAD I didn't see that cut. They all stick out like sore thumbs. Stark, white prison then cut to bustling city with towering buildings and lights. wut?
Hey Ollie, your review for *Assault on Precinct 13* is long overdue!
These retrospectives/reviews are among my favorite and most looked-forward-to on UA-cam. Wish they were more frequent!
Drug evasion as a crime....we're getting there. LOL
THX is a great movie.
I never even heard of it
@@onlyplayaseattacoswiththei9433 its called vaccines
@@AtticussAtticuss Vaccines aren't drugs. They're doses of dead diseases that give your immune system and idea of what to prepare for.
"Drugs", "medicine", "vaccines" call it whatever you want. Mandatory chemicals enforced by the government. And if you don't take them, you are an outlaw. But don't worry, they say... "We only want to help you. Do not resist, citizen."
@@AtticussAtticuss Vaccines save lives and to hear someone bitch about the fact that a government is saving lives is really sad. Your just pushing a slippery slope fallacy. Vaccines are not drugs, they are not addictive and they do not have any psychological effects. Instead they save lives by the billions. You might as well bitch about taxes and how they keep the troops fed.
(Please do) for future retrospectives:
-The Warriors
-The Green Mile
-The Great Escape
-It's a Wonderfull Life
If anyone has any other idea, comment so that Oliver can see.
I'd be interested in Oliver's take on the 1977 film Martin or Repo Men.
I second Threads.
That, or The War Game.
for me it would be:
- Rocky
- Brazil (interesting production story)
- The Shining
- Star Trek 2009
Maybe do Moonlight, and the rest of the Mission Impossible Movies.
Nothing to add but +1 for Warriors, and Threads, which scared the living shit out of me when i first saw it on vhs around 10 years old
had been hoping you'd eventually review this amazing film...first viewing of this film was haunting ...many of the lines still linger in my brain waiting to be said once more
Why does Lucas always feel the need to add unnecessary or unfitting things afterwards? Just scale up the visual quality and maybe add some atmospherical details but other than that, just keep it true to the original!
Grachtnakk It’s his movie. He can do whatever he wants with it. Besides, he was under budgetary constraints, so how do we know this wasn’t what he always wanted to do?
Grachtnakk Probably because he wanted to add to his world after the budget and tech of the time wouldn’t have allowed. Bespin from empire is a great example of the special edition being vastly superior
Always remember that Star Wars was good because of the editors, if it was for Lucas the original movie would had tanked
I actually fine with most of the additional effects, especially those used to make the City appear larger. The only two parts I could have done without are the Car Chase-Bit and the CGI-Monkeys.
ForceMaximus84 A shame he never bothers to release the original cuts of the films.
Love your series Oliver! They're even better than the extra you find on their official DVD releases! Please do some more 1970s science fiction, fantasy, and horror film retrospectives!
And more art driven films from that period. I love Oliver Harper, but I think he needs to review more movies besides blockbusters.
This film had the most striking emotional effect on me of almost any I'd ever seen, I saw it when I was 11 but only while rewatching it more than 10 years later I realized how much it shaped my personality and worldview after only seeing it once and never even realized it.
This Film needs to be brought into the public consciousness of today's era, especially with just how consumer obsessed the young generations are today, and regarding all this reality Tv. I think THX 1138 is a truly great film, some of the greatest films make you think, and won't always be entirely "entertaining" and thats not a bad thing.
I think George Lucas had a hand into making the consumer obsessed generations starting with Star Wars.
@@johnchrysler5122 Hmm i dont know about that, George Lucas made his Star Wars films outside of the Hollywood system and retained all the rights. The only real way he was able to do this was by making revenue through selling Toys and Merchandise.
This enabled Lucas to use the large profits from box-office success as well as toy sales to establish his own studios, Skywalker Sound/THX, his own graphics department which would eventually become Pixar, and his "Skywalker Ranch" which was where he would make his movies his way.
Now the huge difference between consumer obsessed zombies and people buying George's Star Wars toys and merch is that Lucas's "Star Wars" Original Trilogy was a huge phenomenon.
There's a scene in this film where Rob Duvall's THX-1138 character walks into a store and picks up an item, leaves and takes that item home where he simply stores it away.
This i think is George Lucas's way of making a subtle commentary on how people in a heavily controlled and "conditioned" society can become slaves to Consumerism especially in the Western world; He just buys the item and does'nt even know what he needs it for, he has just been conditioned to buy it.
And i have to point out it really does feel like that's where people are headed slowly today. Also notice the store had no clerks, he just walked in grabbed the item and took it home, very similar to these "Amazon Stores" they're trying to get set up now today.
@@johnchrysler5122 Sorry bout the essay but i just want to give you my argument as to the big difference here.
Now with George Lucas all the toys and merch he sold off of his Star Wars films and later his prequels; Star Wars had captured the imaginations of millions of kids (i was one of them).
Those films impacted children and people in general in very positive way, you've only got to go on forums and ask fans what Starwars did for them and they will all tell you how Starwars inspired them to get into a particular field.
So children were getting their parents to buy them the starwars toys not out of consumer obsession but for positive reasons. I remember as a kid playing with my friend in the backgarden for hours with our Star Wars figures; and we would make our own little space stations, where the millenium falcon would land. We would use little parts of the garden in our minds to create different locations of planets.
I think that's one of the main reasons why i love creating dioramas today. Starwars blew our minds and expanded our imaginations.
Today Kim Kardashian sells perfumes of her own brand, and millions of impressionable teenage girls buy them; Kim K also influences many young girls and young women in general to go and have Breast Implants, or botox, filler injections to go and have their lips enlarged. Or to pull thier hair back and tie it tightly up into that Topknot/bun hairstyle always used to have; thus causing girl's root's of their hair to weaken over time, also through overuse of bleaching their hair different colors.
All to keep up with and emulate Kim K's many different styles.
Kim Kardashian has been the main cause and negative influence of most of this young generation today; perpetuating a culture of extreme Vanity and self entitlement.
And that's all most these young girls and women will be interested in doing for the majority of their lives, just keep buying hair and beauty products being obsessed with their looks, and eventually weakening their hair and their skin buy keep having nip-tucs and botox injections.
Kim Kardashian has influenced and created this toxic culture in young people over the past Twenty years now. She is the embodiment of obsessive consumerism and just quite plainly a narcissist and has bred narcissism in young people today.
I argue that George Lucas (despite some of his flaws) has contributed to inspiring children to actually be somebody in their life. Through the characters he created in his Star Wars films - Han Solo, Leia Organa, Lando and especially Luke Skywalker.
15:45, too many CGI renderings. Bravo George!!
Just watch the original cut on Archive.org
Great review, but I have to disagree with Oliver's claim that there is "no humour" in the film. There is a lot of sly, wry subtle dark humour throughout and even a couple of straight-up slapstick moments. Maybe not necessarily laugh-out-loud funny, but genuinely humourous, nonetheless.
I also think the special edition changes, while generally well-executed, are at best unnecessary and at worst deeply distracting to those of us who are familiar with the original cut.
I agree. Why does everything now have to have 'laugh out loud' moments to be considered good? I found Donald Pleasance's character funny, the people in the prison and their lack of reaction to the drama going on around them etc. "That was very funny" delivered in the flattest way by Duvall made me and my friends laugh.
On another note, I found some of the modern SFX to work, but things like the chase were a bit jarring.
Maybe the “monkey people” attacking THX at the end are a bit unnecessary. I did however think the “pleasure machine” in the holo entertainment scene was interesting as addition.
Well said. The film is suppose to be disorienting and hard to understand. It's oppressing like your drowning. It's not easy to view because it not suppose to be; that was the director's "intent".
It reminds me in a sense of Midnight Express that to this day i won't watch. With THX while it's very clean very Japanese the message it leaves you with is very powerful.
The scene with the malfunctioning elevator and the 4 workers just standing there in a drug induced stupor while they're being told on an intercom that it's not functioning was funny. But you won't catch it right away. It's subtle.
The beauty of THX-1138 is that it became true. The only core difference between current reality and THX-1138 is that the state, big tech and the masses have hidden mediative/third party control over us and our communication with those whom we care for, while in the movie, Duvall had direct communication with said big tech/state/mass civilian expectation.
We’re literally living this every day, and most of us don’t even know it.
Oof I'm gonna have to go back and rewatch this one!
I did back in the 99s precursor to the Matrix
There's such a PASSION for the way Lucas not only did THX-1138, but American Graffiti as well. George had this vivid vision of the future AND the past that was either so dystopian, or overly romantic. And hate to say, by the time Star Wars came to be - George wanted to rival Kubrick with special effects and rejuvenate the old Flash Gordon and Buck Rogers serials in a more palpable and realistic climate. BUT - his passion wasn't quite as invested as his previous two films. And I think it developed the more Star Wars continued. And as sacrilegious as it may sound to Star Wars fans, I thought Lucas was wasting his time trying to better himself with a somewhat confining space serial. And I think success, ILM, age, and demand really robbed George of any true passion he may have had left in him. More American Graffiti and Red Tails seem to be proof of that. And even subsequent Star Wars films seem to reflect more of George's personal and business dealings than anything truly inventive and with passion. A shame in one way. But with THX-1138 - it's easy to see how committed Lucas was, and with going back to it in 2004 - still is. And I think that's what George realized finally - when Kubrick took on 2001; he didn't know what to expect. He had a vision, wanted a mature and intelligent film, to 'change the form' of science fiction, and have the total freedom to do so - much to MGM's chagrin. And ironically - that's EXACTLY what Lucas was up against with THX-1138. And thankfully George was as undeterred as Kubrick was to 'get the job done' the way he wanted it - regardless.
Queen were quite inspired by THX 1138 for their 1982 music video, "Calling All Girls."
I love how thorough your retrospectives are. So many great details!
Like a certain other George Lucas project this really needs an original theatrical cut blu-ray. The director's cut is fine but the option to watch it without the cgi would be great.
To me, most of the CGI is a distraction & looks cheesy.
Like a certain other Stanley Kubrick project this really needs an original theatrical cut home release. The directors cut is fine but the option to see the cut half-hour would be great.
(I'm referring to 2001 if you couldn't tell)
Oh, wow! I would never have guessed in a million years that Oliver would do this retrospective! I'm so happy right now! Thanks for brightening my day, buddy! And now...on with the video! :D
George Lucas night not be a perfect director but damn it does he push the boudaries
Lucas just can't stop meddling. It's hard to imagine that the director of THX and today's George Lucas are the same person.
He became the fat old curmudgeon that young Lucas probably hated.
Kubrick changed his movies drastically too, 2001 had 20 minutes cut out of it and The Shining's ending is completely different. Except unlike Lucas, he NEVER released the original cuts to home releases.
@@VinVonVoom in fact he did the complete opposite
he lit them on fire
amen.
George Lucas movies always had themes against authoritarianism
Well he hated Hollywood for understandable reasons
Thanks for taking the time to add new retrospectives. I imagine you are busy on the documentary at the same time.
Remember the little robot guy in some variants of the THX logo? Well he became Bigweld!
You're refering to Tex right?
It's so wonderful to see another retrospective from you. I'm definitely looking forward to this. 😊
What a terribly accurate prediction of modern times
so is Star Wars
Star Wars is set in the past.
Predictive programming
Pharmaceutical drugs with very bad side effects being sold on all the top networks. And no one seems to blink because of the $$$.
It would seem that Klaus Schwab spent too much time in the confession booth.
“You will own nothing, and you will be happy.”
The cinematography is so much like Star Wars : A New Hope
Looks great
Not needing a baseball bat storyline to smash me over the head, I find THX-1138 to be one of the finer sci-fi movies ever made.
Understanding that massive CGI explosions are now required to engage most current audiences, I would suggest that not all drug-stimulants are necessarily chemical.
I find the sustained low-level tension that Lucas provides to be, ultimately, quite effective, and actually more resonant.
But, I'm from a different time (I saw this as a young man when it first came out), and so have a different standard of appreciation.
Thank you for the background details of the film, and all the other hard work in putting this together.
Lalo Schifrin is also good friends with Clint Eastwood and did more than one of his scores
I would have mentioned Dirty Harry before Rush Hour.
Still a solid retrospective.
Still have my VHS copy of this film. Don’t have a player, dangit, but it’s one of the few tapes I still have. Pre-cgi insertions.
Remember seen this in the 70s when I was a kid. It looks as good and convincing as it looks nowadays. You see, that's the problem with CGI it gets old quickly and tent to disconnect the audiences.
(19:41) Yeah, that "used"/"lived in" look translated well to the Star Wars universe where everything the rebels used was all beat up and scratched while the Empire's equipment was squeaky clean.
Seems similar to the movie equilibrium
It's called being influenced by 1984.
I was more thinking of Beyond the Black Rainbow, at least from a visual standpoint.
It’s not equilibrium. It’s equibriliant.
Equilibrium is a mix of THX 1138, Fahrenheit 456 and 1984 except for the gun kata part.
@@zaltmanbleroze the gun kata was a really cool concept
Your reviews are always interesting, whether I like the film or not. Thanks very much for all your hard work, Ollie.
This is one of my favourite films. I first saw it on a 10 inch black and white TV when I was about 8 years old and loved it then, but it took me until I was all grown up to realise why. The sparse story matches then overall theme. There is an emptiness in the aesthetic and characters too, in some ways the film is _about_ emptiness, soullessness, disconnection. It's as powerful a critique of civilised modernity as I've even seen. For me it bares repeated watching, there's a depth to the ideas and the presentation of them that rewards deeper contemplation.
I do wonder what might have happened if THX 1138 had been more of a success.Would George Lucas have gone on to be a great director rather than squander his talent making lucrative childrens' movies?
Haven't seen it in over 20 years, and then it was on VHS. Thanks for the reminder to check this out!
Omg one of my all time favorite films.
Love this film. Lucas covers all the bases. Also, the tall black man is beautiful.
The plot of the film reminds me a lot like the Aldous Hickey novel, Brave New World.
Shaine White lmao you mean Aldous HUXLEY
@@Randystudio217 Aldous Hickey sounds like a character from Porky's.
Aldous Hickey lmao
Now that you mention it, it is kind of Brave New World and 1984 mash-up. The only thing it is missing is the death positive stuff.
It reminds me of The Sound of Music
This film was ahead of its time. Fantastic.
@OliverHarper please also do a retrospective of Miracle Mile, it's an amazing movie I think you'd really love.
1st time I watched this movie was on British TV waaay back in the 80's pre post editing with the CGI, never seen the CGI version. Great movie.
Now you need to do American Grafitti
I saw it the first time on ARD1 (German television) in the late seventies. ARD1 used to broadcast the better sci-fi every saturday night in those days. I must have been around 10 and because it was at such a late hour (I think around 23.00) I only got to see part of most of them. But it got me motivated to look 'em up at a later age. I used to explain very often - this was before the internet - to friends that THX soundsystems was named after this movie.
I appreciate your reviews and this effort in particular strongly,
Sincerely
another spot-on retrospective, informative as always. but...
may we have Short Circuit and/or Innerspace next please?
Thanks for the retrospective on this. I had heard its name in passing over the years but had zero idea what it actually was. Looks like my cup of tea honestly (I like dystopian films), so I think I will check it out. Visually it seems like it has aged pretty well too.
I remember buying the 04 dvd release and enjoyed the special features a lot.
*They looked very out of place to me (but then I have seenit on big screen as well).*
Awesome Oliver!! The DAY this was released on DVD, i absolutely fell in love with it.
The Truth is, we are already living in this type of society.
Incredible movie
No, we don't.
we are almost there...
Another great video with lots of fascinating information. Thanks Oliver. I'd like to make one small suggestion: a little more pause between sentences, and a longer one when changing topics. Your delivery is excellent in general.
The Buck Rogers trailer was always in front of the film. It was most definitely NOT a special edition change
This message in THX 1138 is still relevant also 50 years later.
2001, Blade Runner and THX
One of my favorite movies as a kid....it was rare to find someone I could share it with and they enjoyed it as much as I did...this and legend fortified my love of cinema
The first minute of this video sure sums up society and work these days.
So pleased you did this one Oliver. Always loved this movie and yes I agree, Lucas special edition makes it better. George is a great story teller and here in this movie a great director
Great film, doesn't get mentioned much, what do you expect when Star Wars exist
Oh yes. I saw this movie in the 1980s. I do not have a laser disk player so I have not seen it since, but I found it interesting enough to remember. The ending is rather depressing. Reminded me a lot of 1984. Depressing book.
...And then, he sold everything to Disney. 😡😪
But seriously, I’d heard Lucas say on several occasions that he intends to make more movies like THX someday. I hope it happens. He deserves to do his own thing without worrying about paying the bills.
Moviedrome great reference to Alex cox ! I’m happy to say I got to see Thx at a very young age and it stuck with me I had no idea it was a Lucas movie until later ! As my love of film developed ! Great stuff Oliver 👍😎
Suggestions for future retrospectives (to name a few):
28 Days Later
Casino Royale (2006)
Iron Man
Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels
The Secret Of NIMH
Have had a copy of this since I started a video collection. Love this movie.
11:13: Could *Gattaca* be a "prequel" to *THX 1138* ?
No
Everyone who discounts the artistry and intent of Lucas' work on Star Wars needs to look no further than THX 1138 to understand that YES, he does have an artistic drive, vision and style pushing many of his creative choices...he isn't doing things mindlessly and arbitrarily.
This is the type of film-making I hope he'll go back to directing, now that the Star Wars burden is off his shoulders... But I'm not sure we'll ever see another film by him
how long is he planning on living?
Thank you Oliver, this was quite the surprise, not everyone has such good taste in movies.
Slow burn sci fi by Mister Lucas. I must say I am okay with the added f/x - I feel they blended the new elements in really well. Overall, a cool, stylized film.
Nice to see that I'm not the only one out there who discovered this film.
Fun fact: Trent Reznor, the frontman of Nine Inch Nails, used a sample from this movie in his song, Mr. Self Destruct.
Yeah, that's how I came to watch this movie for the first time. I was a pretty obsessive fan of NIN in the '90s, so I would go out of my way to look for the sources of samples and so on. For those unfamiliar, it's the sound of one of the robot officers beating a prisoner.
Oliver Harper!!! You're the man! This film really does deserve more attention. Reminds me of Anthem by Ayn Rand.
No mention of how THX's expenses to the collective are constantly being summed up ?
That's a major aspect indeed.
Oh, it has actually been shown on U.K. TV twice(unless anyone knows otherwise), once on Moviedrome with Alex Cox on BBC 2(as you mentioned in this video), but also a few years earlier on Film Club with Derek Malcolm(The Guardian’s film critic) on BBC 2. Both of the introductions are up on UA-cam if you want to see them.