Rating: 
Summary: Boring movie with a rather suspect message
Review: Being a sci-fi buff, I gave this movie a try since it's considered "one of the best sci-fi movies of the 70's". Twice, I fell asleep and had to force myself to the ending.In my opinion, the only redeeming factor of this movie is watching the robots. It seems this movie places the value of plants over human life and says it's ok to kill people as long as you have Peter Frampton hair. Only tree-huggers need apply.
Rating: 
Summary: The worst movie I have ever seen
Review: Silent Running is the worst movie I have ever seen. It has a ridiculous plot with terrible acting. The movie has no point at all. It is about some lunatic man who has nothing better to do than be obsessed with plants. How can you make a good movie about a single man, 3 robots (one that flies off into space) and a dome full of trees. This movie is simply an hour and a half of garbage. If they are going to make a sci-fi movie at least make it worth while! Watching this movie was a waste of my time!!!
Rating: 
Summary: Save the Forest
Review: Set in the far future aboard the spaceship "Valley Forge", Bruce Dern and three fellow astronauts maintain the huge vessel and the forests that it contains with the help of three ingeniously rendered robots. The robots are so convincing that they steal the show, but they remain classic depictions that are on par with Robby from "Forbidden Planet" and the droids of "Star Wars". This is a sad story with a strong ecological message, "Silent Running" is a visual treat with outstanding special effects and a very realistically-depicted "Valley Forge" spaceship. A production note: Trumbull had use of the decommissioned naval aircraft carrier "Valley Forge" before it was scrapped and he was able to modify many of it's vast interiors for use in the movie, all to good effect.
Rating: 
Summary: Excellent, technically accurate film
Review: Silent Running takes the viewer on an exciting, but depressing journey into Earth's possible future, where the only remaining plants are maintained on three realistically rendered spacecraft. Bruce Dern does an outstanding job of portraying a crewmember who cannot face the destruction of the last surviving plant life, and does the 'unthinkable' in order to preserve his cargo. The spacecraft, equipment, and 'droids' are extremely believable, and technically accurate. This film will be well enjoyed by those who care deeply about the world's ecology. The music is sometimes haunting, and the manner in which events are presented allows the viewer to experience the loneliness of space, and the emotions felt by Freeman Lowell, Dern's character. A true classic, perhaps best understood by viewers who experienced the 60s and 70s. Not a shoot-em-up, but more of a thinking person's film. One of my favorites.
Rating:
Summary: Silent Running should be silenced
Review: I had such high hopes for this movie when I bought the DVD. I read it was directed by the man who was responsible for such wonderful special effects in 2001 and Close Encounters. What a boring, uneventful, uninteresting, badly acted, silly movie this is. I'm sure the message back in the early 70's was feelgood and all, but this was just toooooo lame for me to care about what was happening. It is plain to see that he did not have much in the budget for effects. Or even a script. Pretty amazing since Michael Cimino and Steven Bochco have their names attached to the screenplay. If you want to laugh at something that I would term "bad theater at its best", by all means, buy this movie. But you will be disappointed if expecting anything else.
Rating:
Summary: "Earth Day" spirit example
Review: This movie came out when I was 16, around the time of the first "Earth Day" at school. It is a wonderful example of how everyone felt at the time - that our resources were dwindling, being squandered, and that there might be nothing left for our childrens' children. The sound track by Joan Baez is WONDERFUL, and Bruce Dern plays his part quite well. I logged on tonight in the hopes that I could buy this movie, because of the strong nostalgic feelings I have for it. I can't believe the price, and will buy it as soon as I finish this line. Thanks.
Rating:
Summary: Tree Huggin' hippy crap
Review: There's no 0 stars option? Sup wit dat? I don't know why anyone in thier right mind considers this peice of dreck a Sci-Fi Classic. The box to this movie promises it to be "the lonliest adventure ever".. which in lamen's term means "A boring movie where absolutly nothing happens!" This is one of those movies that you only watch because you're thinking "Something really cool is about to happen.. any minute now", and it doesn't. In fact, this movie is the most uneventful thing I've ever seen. It's a guy planting trees and talking to cardboard box robots for 2hrs! Avoid this film like the plauge.
Rating:
Summary: A True Sci-Fi Masterpiece
Review: Brilliantly acted, masterfully staged along with the best possible effects for their day (1972), and well scored, this under-appreciated gem is hauntingly beautiful and terrifying, all at the same time. Whether or not it turns out to be prophetic remains to be seen, but a good case can be made today that we are certainly well on our way to being in the condition that inspired Earth's inhabitants in this movie to send out a fleet of spaceships that carried with them the last of their forests and wildlife. One of the biggest and best payoffs of watching this beauty is the absolutely stunning performance that Bruce Dern delivers. More often than not, Dern portrays conniving, sneaking pyschos and killers to an absolutely chilling degree, but not in this baby! Yes, there are those who would say that the character of Freeman Lowell does a slow descent into madness here, but it is ever-so slowly brought about by Dern's restrained acting that we barely notice. That is the mark of exceptional acting ability! This is by far Dern's best performance, and his supporting cast of Cliff Potts, Ron Rifkin and Jesse Vint as fellow crew members that bear varying degrees of contempt for Dern's Freeman Lowell are perfectly cast. Kudos to the exceptional actors/actresses who portray the loveable drones Huey, Dewey and Louie. Long before Star Wars and the rest, there was Silent Running, and it holds up extremely well, despite today's seemingly constant need for faster, harder, bloodier and more violent by the second. The message contained within this movie is as applicable today as it was the first day it was released. Watch it and see for yourself; you won't regret it for a second!
Rating:
Summary: An underappreciated gem.
Review: "Silent Running" hasn't taken a place in film history aside such science fiction classics as "Star Wars," "2001," or "Planet of the Apes." No great injustice is implied there; the movie probably doesn't deserve to be ranked as a classic. Still, "Silent Running" is visually gripping (even without benefit of today's state-of-the-art special effects),thought-provoking, and entertaining. Thanks to the efforts of Bruce Dern (who took a remarkably effective turn from his then usual role as a wild-eyed villan) and Douglas Trumbull, "Silent Running" endures as one of the key science fiction films of the 70's, one that brought increased credibility to the genre. Oh yeah, and the movie offered the only Joan Baez music I've ever really liked.
Rating:
Summary: You can tell the forest from the trees.
Review: Freeman Lowell (Bruce Derrn), and crew are in charge of taking care of the last remaining forests. These forests are a conservation project in space. Aside from my cat (some cats will eat the oddest things), Lowell seems to be the only one to enjoy fresh cantaloupe. There rest of mankind prefers ersatz food. The are three cuties Huey, Dewey, and Louie. They are robots; however you feel more sorry for them when they get hurt or worse, than you do for those insensitive humans who think that going home to their families is more important than watching unnecessary plants. So bury your personal problems like Lowell and get on with the important stuff like saving the forest. This message in a bottle is worth watching periodically to keep a perspective on what is important. Paper or plastic. Just bring a lot of Kleenex.
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