THX 1138 (The George Lucas Director's Cut) [Blu-ray]

THX 1138 (The George Lucas Director's Cut) [Blu-ray] Review

Having been an avid Star Wars fan since I was a kid, I was always interested in checking out this George Lucas film. Now that I am able to collect a lot of my favorite sci-fi I finally added this DVD to my personal collection and watched it all the way through. While I only caught bits and pieces of it on TV over the years it was a revelation on DVD. I know George tinkered around with it to give us his definitive director's cut, and though I don't remember everything that was originally in it, I think whatever he did added tremendously to it by fleshing out a little more (à la Cloud City in The Empire Strikes Back special edition) thus giving it more of a sense of timelessness. Not necessarily a bad thing considering it is already 40 years old. It doesn't give you any sense of where you are (unless you're familiar with B.A.R.T.), just a consumer-driven dystopia in the vein of Brave New World and Logan's Run and probably countless other lesser known sci-fi stories. You almost feel as if you are seeing a working person's life on a Star Wars world under the cruel rule of the Galactic Empire. Perhaps this is what life was like for those who worked in the Death Star or on some other distant world on the edge of the Outer Rim. Oh and those cars are awesome, Lucas knows his cars and racing to be sure! Great to see legendary Robert Duvall (Apocalypse Now, Falling Down, The Road) and Donald Pleasance (Halloween) in this of course. Was also surprised by the appearance of an obviously much younger Sid Haig from the Rob Zombie horror films House of 1,000 Corpses and The Devil's Rejects, playing another sociopath of course.

I hope George applies this film style to a more mature Star Wars film. You'll be slightly shocked by what you see from the otherwise PG/PG-13 filmmaker in this one. Hopefully George will make or will allow someone else to make some Star Wars films in this style, I'm thinking a trilogy of films set between Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope. He mentions wanting to return to this earlier style of filmmaking in his commentary. Perhaps a smaller-budget more independent style Shadows of the Empire, Dark Forces, Force Unleashed trilogy or tweakquel if you will (between prequel and sequel) that would take the kid gloves off for the original fans and show more of a character study of the lives of lesser known anti-heroes in the Star Wars world such as Kyle Katarn or Starkiller. Anyways, this is a must have for any sci-fi or Star Wars fan but make sure you know what version you want. I don't think there are any real heinous changes like Greedo shooting at Han Solo first in the Star Wars special editions (unless you take issue with replacing most of the little people at the end with some digital space monkeys for a few seconds - I didn't mind it at all) but fans of whatever the original contained may wish to have both versions, which is what should have been packaged with the blu-ray because if it had I would have bought the newly released blu-ray instead of the much cheaper DVD.

THX 1138 (The George Lucas Director's Cut) [Blu-ray] Overview

A chilling exploration of the future is also a compelling examination of the present in George Lucas’s THX 1138, starring Robert Duvall as a man whose mind and body are controlled by the government. THX makes a harrowing attempt to escape from a world where thoughts are controlled, freedom is an impossibility and love is the ultimate crime.

THX 1138 (The George Lucas Director's Cut) [Blu-ray] Specifications

George Lucas's enigmatic feature film debut expands on a student film he made at USC. Created under the wing of producer Francis Ford Coppola, this movie is a bleak vision of a world in which technology, not man, is the ultimate dictator. Efficiency overrides every other aspect of human life, as people are reduced to code names and their lives are contained, monitored, and manipulated for the sake of the system. Featuring unsettling performances by Robert Duvall, Donald Pleasance, and Maggie McOmie, THX 1138 does not attempt to explain how things became this way; rather, it utilizes the alienation of its characters, the stifling white-on-white imagery of its sterilized society, and the claustrophobic, droning sound design to emphasize the dangers of a world reliant on soulless technology. Even though this is not a film one will want to take in repeatedly, THX 1138 merits attention because it is that rare film that uses images and sounds--rather than relying heavily on dialogue--to communicate its dark prophecy. --Bryan Reesman

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The Madness of King George

The Madness of King George Review

The Madness of King George tells the story of how King George III of England suffered from what appeared to be dementia; and the film explores the political effects, backstabbing and all, that occurred when he was unable to rule. The casting was very well done and the actors give outstanding performances that are convincing every step of the way. They could have cut a minute or two out of the film here and there to make the plot just a bit tighter but this is a minor quibble. The choreography and the cinematography were brilliantly done; the script was well written and the costumes and sets reflect great forethought.

When the action begins, we quickly meet King George III of England (Nigel Hawthorne) and Queen Charlotte (Helen Mirren). They are quite happy together; they have brought fifteen children into the world as well. We also meet the somewhat lazy, power-hungry and very greedy Prince of Wales (Rupert Everett) who can't wait to be King. Unfortunately for King George, he does begin to show signs of dementia with unusual, unpredictable behavior even in public, including rubbing his behind against a lady's behind and shoving a musician aside during a concert to play the harpsichord himself! The people in the King's inner circle are at first shocked and then increasingly convinced that he is truly not well--and unfit to rule the country if he is having so much trouble controlling and caring for himself as well.

The political jockeying for power is intense. The Prince of Wales can think of nothing more then becoming Regent, "King in all but name," even though he would be shoving his own father into what could be a most reclusive existence, something that horrifies Queen Charlotte. The Queen herself is not permitted to see the King; and in Parliament we see two rivals for power (and the job of Prime Minister), Mr. Pitt (Julian Wadham) and Mr. Fox (Jim Carter) quickly square off and it's isn't very pretty. Lady Pembroke (Amanda Donohoe) does what she can to try to get the Queen to see the King; and the poor King is under the "care" of what would be considered today the most sadistic Dr. Willis (Ian Holm).

Does King George ever get better or does his own son, the Prince of Wales become Regent? How does Dr. Willis try to cure the King? No spoilers here--watch and find out!

The DVD doesn't come with any bonus features; I wish it had but of course the movie itself is the attraction.

I highly recommend this film on DVD for fans of the actors in the movie; they give stunning performances. People interested in British royalty may also want to get this for their collections especially because King George really did suffer from serious health problems.

The Madness of King George Overview

Written by Alan Bennett from his stage play and featuring a towering performance by Nigel Hawthorne, and a stunning screen directorial debut (Variety) by Tony Award winner* Nicholas Hytner, this Academy AwardÂ(r)-winning** masterpiece of royal intrigue ispotent, engrossing and thrilling (Los Angeles Times). Just five years after losing the 'rebellious colonies, it appears that England's King George III (Hawthorne) is now losing his mind! Suddenly, the stately monarch is hallucinating, shouting obscenities, behaving lewdly towards the Queen's (Helen Mirren) comelylady-in-waiting and generally becoming a candidate for the lunatic asylum. The palace doctors are baffled, but the Prince of Wales (Rupert Everett), tired of playing the waiting game, conspires to take advantage of the situation. Will the King's supporters be able to restore their monarch's wits before he's stripped of his throne? *1994: Director (Musical), Carousel **1994: Art Direction

The Madness of King George Specifications

Nicholas Hytner had an international stage phenomenon with Alan Bennett's play The Madness of King George, starring Nigel Hawthorne as King George III, the British monarch who lost the American colonies. But in this film adaptation, Hytner unfortunately yields to the old temptation to "open up" the piece with lots of arbitrary exteriors, rushed set pieces, choppy editing, and so on, robbing Hawthorne's acclaimed stage performance of coherency and power on the big screen. Viewers are forced to fill in emotional gaps for themselves (and try to imagine what Bennett's work must have looked and felt like originally), and the whole enterprise has a pseudo-cinematic, self-congratulatory air. --Tom Keogh

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