A film
review by Martin Liebman for blu-ray.com on 07 November 2009.
So what
does the world of Logan's Run really
look like, that is, beyond the flowing and revealing singularly-colored garb,
sterile indoor environments, and the ability to change faces on a whim? There's
little-to-no baldness. Not bad! There are no cutesy little Lordy, Lordy, Logan's 40! quips in the newspaper. A definite plus! Grumpy Old Men doesn't exist. Eh, take
it or leave it. There's the fiery ritual Carrousel
that kills everyone on their 30th Birthday. Excellent… oh, wait. Surely there
had to be a catch, and that's it. No longer does man live until his 11's are up (that's for all the Mel
Brooks fans); instead, the slate is wiped clean and room is made inside the
happy little dome (that's for all the Bob Ross fans) for the next generation of
hedonists to live it up until it's time for the ultimate trip up into the
blowing vortex of Carrousel, which is really a downer. And for those that
refuse the ride to eternity? The Four Aces will be sure to send someone to
"give [them] a dream"… permanently.
In the
23rd century, wary of the ravages of war and overpopulation, mankind now lives
in domed cities where hedonism rules. It's a life free of worry and filled with
pleasure, but there's one prerequisite: citizens will, on their 30th birthday,
be terminated in an event known as Carrousel.
Those who choose not to participate in the ritual -- known as runners -- are hunted down by a
specialized unit known as Sandmen who
dress in black and carry deadly weapons. One such Sandman, Logan 5 (Michael
York), becomes inquisitive when he kills a runner wearing an Ankh, and later sees the same symbol on
a young girl named Jessica 6 (Jenny
Agutter). Logan's inquiry of a central computer reveals the Ankh to be a
symbol of an underground movement that leads runners to the safety of Sanctuary. Logan is tasked with posing
as a runner, discovering Sanctuary, and destroying it. Gaining the trust of
Jessica, Logan begins his mission but soon finds himself sympathetic to the
runners' cause when his life clock -- a small crystal implanted in everyone's
palm that counts down the time to Carrousel -- skips ahead four years for the
purpose of the mission. With fellow Sandman and Logan's best friend Francis (Richard Jordan) in pursuit, can he
discover what lies beyond the dome's walls and once and for all terminate the
barbaric ritual of Carrousel?
Though not
an endearing, timeless classic of Science Fiction in the same vein as something
like Forbidden Planet, Logan's Run nevertheless enjoys a strong
following thanks to its ability to mesh action, special effects, and a quality
story into a singular, entertaining, and somewhat timeless picture that speaks
to the notion of personal liberty versus centrally-imposed tyranny. Of course,
those technical elements -- special effects, story, pacing, and action -- seem
tame by today's frenetic Michael Bay-inspired style, but Logan's Run has nevertheless maintained a welcome spot near the top
of many genre aficionados' best of
lists for the past several decades. One of Logan's
Run's best assets lies in its ability to juxtapose the cleanliness,
sterility, order, and security of the dome with the grim reality of Carrousel.
The hedonist lifestyle has won over the majority of the population, and
Carrousel is depicted as a sport of sorts that seem the highlight of every day
inside the dome. Citizens have become numb to reality. Cheering on the deaths
of their friends without consideration that their time will come soon enough,
life in the dome creates a citizenry of walking dead that seem no more clued
into the realities of life than the undead flesh eaters that have become
staples of cinema in recent years. Though Logan's
Run suffers through a few slow spots in its second and third acts, the
action and philosophical underpinnings are enough to keep viewers glued to the
film from beginning to end.
The
aforementioned special effects -- though winners of a Special Achievement Award at the 1977 Oscars -- just don't hold up
well, particularly when viewed under the scrutiny of high definition. The model
work remains impressive for its scope and somewhat natural look and flow, but
the problem is that there's no mistaking it for being just that -- a model. The
spartan interiors of the dome, too, add little visual flair to the picture, but
the minimalist set design allows for something of a less is more approach that fits in with the themes of the film
nicely. Acting isn't one of Logan's Run's
strong suits, either, but Jerry
Goldsmith's (Star Trek: First Contact)
score delivers a consistently pitch-perfect sound that's at once futuristic,
foreboding, and grand. One fault of the picture is its inability to adequately
explore the inner-workings of life in the dome and offer a more detailed
history that goes beyond the superficial explanation provided by a paragraph at
the beginning of the movie. Such specifics may be better left to the written
word, in this case the novel by William
F. Nolan and George Clayton Johnson
on which the film is based. While the film does a good enough job of capturing
the purpose and timeframe of its locations, many viewers may leave the film
with a curiosity to understand the social, political, and economical
infrastructure behind the world of Logan's
Run. Nevertheless, this filmed adaptation satisfies on several levels, and despite
several weak points and a terribly dated look, Logan's Run remains critical viewing for Science Fiction fans and
connoisseurs of exciting but at the same time morally and philosophically
challenging cinema. [Liebman’s rating: *** out of 5 stars]
Blogger’s
comment: While Logan’s Run (1976) was
created twenty years after Forbidden
Planet (1956) and sixteen years after The
Time Machine (1960), in terms of screenplay, acting, costumes, sets,
soundtrack and overall production values the three films are contemporaries, which
says volumes about the mediocrity and lack of sophistication of Logan’s Run. Said another way, Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope (1977)
was released a year after Logan’s Run,
and yet Star Wars is light years (pun
intended) ahead of Logan’s Run. The
plot holes in Logan’s Run require a
huge suspension of disbelief. For example, Logan and Jessica don’t eat anything
during the several days they are outside the city, yet there is no mention of
hunger or foraging for food. And when they return to the city and Logan goes
through an interrogation and then destroys the interrogation facility, the
whole city somehow is destroyed. Unbelievable!
Labels:
action, sci-fi
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