I saw the Disney movie Black Hole last night for the first time. I was looking forward to it as its part of that golden seam of space operas which lit up the late Seventies. I didn't see it when it came out Christmas 1979 [too busy turning 19!] and for some reason it's passed me by ever since; a true movie black hole!
Alas, I have to admit that I was disappointed. Despite Disney's best efforts and some iconic design, I thought it was a bit of a mess. The action began almost immediately with very little build-up and the musical score went into dramatic overdrive almost straight away. In fact I don't think the orchestra took their foot off the gas for the rest of the film, leaving me unsure what the score was telling me. Its similarity to the soundtrack of the modern comedy Austin Power's Goldmember was an unfortunate coincidence.
As for the robots, watching them for the first time, I found them somewhat lacklustre. Clearly an attempt by Disney to mimic Star Wars, which in a time-bending twist they now own, Maximillian, VINCENT and BOB seemed half-baked and ungainly. The most interesting thing for me was recognising the voices of Roddy McDowell and Slim Pickens who go uncredited for some reason.
There are, however, clearly some interesting themes in the film, which I hope to get a better feel for after a second helping. I should have seen it in '79, when I was still a 'kid'.
What do you think readers and have you got any Black Hole toys, games and other stuff?
I had Vincent as an action figure. Think I still do off in a box with my original R2D2. I had the Vincent and Maximillian model kits which were ok, Max was super fragile and his arms broke easily.
ReplyDeleteI snagged a bag of "Buck Rogers" figures from a comic book store recently because not only did it have Draco, Killer Kane, Tigerman and Ardella in it but also had Dr Reinhardt, Capt Holland, Pizer and Kate McCrae in it. Not a bad score for $20 US.