The Black Hole

Rating:
Summary: My Guiltiest Of Pleasures
Review: People would kill me if they read what I'm writing about "The Black Hole". However that's the way I feel about it. This movie was a flop at the box office and most critics weren't so gentle with it. But I really enjoyed this campy sci-fi flick from the Walt Disney Studios for many reasons:
1. I was overwhelmed by the teaser trailer (too bad it's not included on this DVD) where the green grid is moving all over the screen, ending with the Black Hole logo swifting and twisting in black. Awesome!!
2. The black and yellow logo in some of the posters, the one shown on the DVD case.
3. The U.S.S. Cygnus. WOW!!! What a beautiful ship.
4. The robots. Maximillian truly looks menacing. And V.I.N.CENT and Old B.O.B.; the cutest robots since "Star Wars"'s R2-D2.
5. The cast of outstanding performers: Maximilian Schell, Anthony Perkins, Robert Forster, Joseph Bottoms, Yvette Mimieux, Ernest Borgnine, and Roddy McDowell as the voice of V.I.N.CENT.
6. John Barry's majestic score.
7. The final scene, inside the black hole. Those images. Those visual effects. John Barry's music.

This movie might have had some flaws at describing a space version of "20,000 Leagues Under The Sea", but this is my most cherished guilty pleasure of all time.

Rating:
Summary: The time I spent watching....
Review: ..was forever sucked into a Black Hole, never to return! ArrrRRrr! This movie is Cheese pure and simple. Disney kitsch. Early eighties flop that is trying to be a more kid friendly "Star Wars" and failed miserable. But it achieves the strange paradoxical effect that sometimes happens with really bad movies; it's so bad it's kind of charming and amusing.

But anyways, what makes it bad...The dialogue is awful, the acting is stiff, the costumes are ridiculous, the musical score is terrible, alternating between overwhelmingly bombastic and completly inappropiate. Listen close during the big battle scene near the end and the score and mood that the music conveys is way out of whack with what is happening on the screen. Imagine playing Tchaikovsky's "Nutcracked Suite" during the shower scene in "Psycho"....doesn't work. Well, neither does this.

And the ending...The ending is this weird, discombulated, surreal attempt at symbolism. What type of symbolism? I'm not sure. Symbolic of a screenplay gone awry maybe or a director who went cookoo, or a writer who quit before the story was finished. ... was it supposed to represent the cheesy space opreas of the 50's merging with the bad outfits from the 70's and tumbling into the dark chasm of bad movies. Never to return...until video, of course.

Rating:
Summary: Tough to Find DVD is Worth a Look
Review: Disney's "The Black Hole" spelled the end of an era, as the studio's films moved finally from the more genuine, kid-friendly formula that had fueled its movies since the 1950s to the crass, plasticky and forgettable marketing-based fare that has dominated big studio films since the 1980s. In that respect, "The Black Hole" deserves a look simply for its historical value, but the film offers more. Though many viewers incorrectly compare it to "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea" (somebody first made that comparison years ago, and now people seem determined to keep repeating the flawed opinion), the film has more in common with "Forbidden Planet" than anything else, as it tells the story of a deep space expedition's crew discovering a lost scientist's egocentric empire 20 years later. The once-dashing Maximillian Schell plays that villainous scientist, Dr. Hans Reinhart, with the brooding menace of Boris Karloff in his prime, while the underrated Robert Forster (so likable in cult films like "Alligator"), is the stand-up, if stiff, starship captain (think "Captain Kirk" without the humor and swagger). But as with so many sci-fi films of the 1970s and 1980s, the major attractions are the production design and special effects, and "The Black Hole" delivers on both fronts, with a pseudo-gothic look and feel that distinguish it from any other fantasy film (supported by John Barry's magnificent score). Still, even as a bridge between eras, "The Black Hole" ultimately compromises too much to succeed, as it lacks both the technobabble and self-importance that appeals to sci-fi nerds and the spirited action and shoot-em-up flair that pulls in the thinking-challenged, despite a few scenes of grim violence (and the lovely Yvette Mimieux, largely wasted as a psychic along to find her missing father). Worse, the DVD is pretty scarce, meaning finding a widescreen version to view may be more of an obstacle than escaping the clutches of Reinhart's robot army.

Rating:
Summary: all right, let's get this straight:
Review: Okay, people, let us please understand something. The Black Hole started production before Star Wars was released. It was not a Star Wars rip off or something that was rushed out to capitalize on the Lucas craze. It's a completely different film. It has lots of problems, obviously, but you know what? It's *still* better than the Star Wars films. I'll let you figure out why.

Rating:
Summary: Worst Sci-Fi film ever!
Review: How can anyone claim this film has any redeeming value? There are so many problems with it that it would be impossible to enumerate in less than a 1,000 words!

The ending is utterly unbelievable and contains Christian symbolism evoking the Dark Ages! Ewwwwww! I'm scared!!

Disney is about to release this film themselves in August, 2004. Two things: it should definitely be an anamorphic transfer in order to attain much better picture quality than this release and it should have the symbols of "hell" etc. edited out!

Rating:
Summary: GREAT POTENTIAL, SADLY IT IS NEVER FULLY REALIZED
Review: This movie is truly one of the forgotten, yet flawed classics of the late 1970's. Nobody seemed to remember this movie except for those of us who truly loved it when we were children. What kid could forget the menacing presence of the robot Maximillian or the creepiness of the mysterious humanoids, not to mention the swirling black hole itself.

The only problem that I have with this movie now that I'm an adult is that it never seems to decide whether or not to be sophisticated adult sci-fi or shoot'em up kiddie-fare. It tends to flip flop back and forth with slightly irritating results. The movie presents us with very dark themes about life, death and the nature of the universe, but then turns into a robotic western style shoot out complete with a cowboy sounding robot named Old B.O.B. Religious themes are explored here as well, especially during the conclusion of the film, which add a much needed breath of fresh air. In the end, the film is a mixture of things that really should not have shared the same story, but we have the massive success of STAR WARS at the time to thank for that.

Science is yet another area in the film that is handled rather flippantly. While attempts are made at realism down to the smallest detail in some areas, others simply don't hold up well at all. Most sequences onboard the Palomino are well done, but many on the Cygnus ruin any sense of realism that was being attempted beforehand. One scene shows the main characters exposed to the outside area of the Cygnus as the spacecraft enters the black hole. Several minutes later, when a meteor rips the roof off a section of the ship's agricultural garden, the vacuum of space kicks in and threatens everyone! Moments later, the characters are again crawling around on the outside of the ship, where the vacuum of space should exist! Furthermore, the intense gravity seems to affect no one at all, even though they are all directly exposed up close to this awesome force of nature. Go figure!

The film repeatedly fails in the area of dialogue and plot several times over too. The reason for this is the simple fact that there were many writers who served up revisions and changes to Jeff Rosenbrook's original story. This ultimately led to several convoluted plot devices being introduced through the dialogue that seem to appear out of nowhere, then in turn lead to nothing at all. A perfect example of this is when Maximillian kills a character and Dr. Reinhardt, the man who controls the evil robot, suddenly asks for protection from it! The whole scene just came straight out of left field! There are other moments of babbling dialogue that makes one scratch their head in sheer disbelief, but regardless of these rather hilarious flaws the film still has plenty to offer.

The special-effects and cinematography are what really steal the show here, both having earned the film Oscar nominations. The ghostly Cygnus lingering on the event horizon of a black hole and the Palomino's subsequent exploration are superbly rendered. The matte paintings of space itself are beautiful, adding lots of blues and greens instead of the same old black that many other films have given us before and since. The ship designs are beautiful, as are the awesome sets. Also worth noting is the journey into the black hole and the visually impressive renditions of Heaven and Hell, which features some of composer John Barry's most memorable and eerie music.

This long awaited remastered DVD edition is really breath-taking. The picture is so clear and crisp that you can see the wires that the robots are suspended on. I only wish that Disney would learn to release DVDs with more bonus features (audio commentary, interviews, TV spots, etc.). If you are interested in bonus material, I would suggest that you track down the Limited Collector's Edition which features the wide-screen video, 9 movie lobby cards, a 44 page booklet, and a really cool looking tin featuring a scene of the Cygnus spacecraft on the lid. The booklet is packed with all sorts of interesting things such as interviews with director Gary Nelson and matte artist Harrison Ellenshaw, tons of pictures and artwork, the script for the abandoned alternate ending, a reprint of the original Pressbook, and more. It answers any and all questions that one could have about what went into the making of this movie, from its inception to the final print! This DVD edition only gets three stars due to its failure to include any of these truly informative extras!

All in all, the film is beautiful to look at, even compared to today's visual effects. The film may sport some flawed writing and lapses in physics, but ultimately it is a fun adventure which does manage to present some interesting possibilities. One does have to wonder what could have been done with this material in different hands, but I guess that is something we will never know!

Rating:
Summary: Nostalgic About the Future
Review: 1979 was a watershed year for cinema sci fi. In that 12 months, audiences were treated to "Alien", "Star Trek the Motion Picture", and Disney's "The Black Hole". The fate of the first two examples are widely known: "Alien" became a pop-culture phenomenon, and "Star Trek" was a disappointing flop, relying on sequels to resurrect the franchise.

Yet surprisingly, it was "The Black Hole" that drilled itself into my consciousness and refused to leave. The details of the spare plot are well-explained in the Amazon editorial review, so I won't bother re-hashing it. Instead, I'll attempt to explain just WHY the film has stuck with me for so long.

1) Production design and overall tone: This is the first Gothic sci-fi movie that I can recall seeing, and it may be the darkest movie ever released under the Disney banner (and it earned Disney's first-ever PG rating). An evil killer robot? The mysterious crew? The fate of Anthony Perkins' character? This CAN'T be a Disney picture! Of course, when people refer to the production design of "The Black Hole", they are usually talking about one thing, which deserves a whole separate topic below:

2) The USS Cygnus: Most sci-fi fans have their favorite cinematic spacecraft, and for me the all-time greatest, hands down, is the Cygnus. While the interior design is more Gothic Cathedral, the exterior is basically Gothic Industrial Revolution. It resembles an interstellar Eiffel Tower, and in its own way is quite (intentionally?) reminiscent of the Nautilus from Disney's "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea". And yet, it looks like a spaceworthy and plausible design. Perhaps named in honor of the (then-suspected) black hole in the constellation Cygnus X1, both the ship model and interior sets were designed by Peter Ellenshaw, son of the great Disney effects artisan Harrison Ellenshaw ("Mary Poppins").

3) Visual Effects: It really steams me that some have called the VFX in this movie "cheap"! By 1979 standards, they were magnificent (and Oscar-nominated), yet thanks to some unconventional methods, they largely hold up today. Supposedly, the Cygnus model was so finely detailed that it couldn't be shot against a blue screen; so Ellenshaw photographed it live against a starfield painted on glass. As a result, the space scenes still look good even on a bad video transfer (not the case with bluescreen movies like the original "Star Wars" trilogy, where the travelling matte is now visible on some versions).

4) Weirdness: Come on, what the hell is up with that ending? Fantastic.

Of course, there were also several not-so-great things about this movie, namely some cheesy dialogue, and the disappointing abandonment of physics towards the end. These aspects prevent it from being a four-star picture, but "The Black Hole" is absolutely worth a look from sci-fi and design fans, which were the original target audience anyway.

"There are old pilots and there are bold pilots, but there are no old, bold pilots!"

Rating:
Summary: Bad Dialogue and VINCENT Taint This Would Be Masterpiece
Review: Despite all the problems, a lot was going for this sci-fi thriller. Good special-effects, good production design and excellent art direction were all ahead of its time (1979). Yet, despite the 20+ million budget the whole movie collapses upon itself with the absolute dumbest dialogue of all time and the most annoying bunch of robotic characters that one cannot help but wonder - what the hell happened?

The prominent area of blame is the screen writers. These folks should have had the reins pulled in on them during the editing phase. The plot has holes, the ending is ambiguous, rules of physics have been ignored and most of the robotic characters (VINCENT and the sentry-'bots) grate on the nerves of the viewer. However, that's not the most glaring eye sore. While the Black Hole still has plenty to offer in visual splendor, even for today's standards, the one thing that keeps me from referring it to a friend (for fear that I will be scorned and ridiculed for ages to come) is the cardboard performances of a talented cast that didn't have anything interesting to say.

Rating:
Summary: Not a great sci-fi flick, but still worth catching
Review: The crew of the deep-space exploration vehicle "Palomino" is returning to earth after a fruitless search for alien civilizations when they stumble across a once lost ship hovering at the edge of a huge black hole in this 1980 flick that Starlog magazine billed as Disney's $25 million gamble. The gamble did not pay off for reasons that become quickly clear and are reinforced throughout the flick - dated special effects and a thin plot that's an obvious pastiche of "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea", "Frankenstein" and "Moby Dick".

The ship turns out to be the "Cygnus" a one of a kind mammoth wonder designed by the equally enigmatic Hans Rheinhardt (Maximillian Schell). Though a huge ship, Rheinhardt is mysteriously the only surviving member of the crew - never a good sign in sci-fi. In place of the crew, Rheinhardt appears to have built an army of androids - militant sentries, faceless androids who give the ship the air of a medieval abbey, and Maximillian (no relation) a silent, floating enforcer with whirring blades where his hands should be and a single unblinking eye that seems fixed in an evil stare. Rheinhardt fetes the Palomino crew (which quickly gets over its apprehensions of the reclusive master of the Cygnus) and invites them to witness his planned entry into the nearby black hole. Rheinhardt has pioneered a type of gravity engine which he believes will allow him to enter the black hole safely and learn of its mysteries. As they poke around however, our heroes of the Palomino only find disturbing clues as to what Rheinhardt has been doing all those missing years (the most ominous appears to be an elaborate funeral held by the androids) and even begin to wonder if they will be allowed to escape the Cygnus.

"The Black Hole" doesn't turn up on cable that often, so it's worth at least a rental. The effects are so dated, it's pointless to even try comparing them to anything of our CGI age. Instead, they have their own unique quality which keeps you from dismissing it. The look of the Cygnus seems very un-spaceship like (wide halls and sweeping spaces, unlike the claustrophobic corridors and cloistered nooks of Nostromo) which makes the flick look even more interesting, but only as an extremely expensive episode of "Dr. Who". The problem with the look is that the film has no frame of reference for the state of technology in the future age in which the story occurs. How much of the Cygnus and its robot crew is supposed to amaze us? Are hordes of monkish androids an unsurprising thing to find? Who knows. They could have handled that better by making Roddy Macdowell's character V.I.N.CENT an android, which would have given the Palomino (and us) a better frame of reference. The dialog won't win any awards, but it's not the hokum that others have called it (though with the talent available, the script was bound to fall short). The flick's biggest hurdle is that it's unclear who its for - too violent and ambiguous (especially at the end) for kids, but not exciting enough for adults or teens (like the lasergun battles - no teen would buy robot-sentries who manage to stand still while humans blast them). Schell is great as the sinister Rheinhardt (I don't think he's that overplayed) while Tim Bottoms is also great as the Palomino's resident hot-head. Anthony Perkins seems underplayed as the Palomino crewman who actually buys into Rheinhardt's fantasies, while Ernest Borgnine gets some laughs as the Palomino's journalist who alternates between snooping and cowering (but always thinks of himself). Though it's easy to see what went wrong, I still like to catch this flick when its on. When it came to decide between financing either this flick on one hand or 2 more Herby movies, a sequel to "The Apple Dumpling Gang" and, another remake of "Parent Trap", "The Black Hole" was still the better idea.

Rating:
Summary: A really great movie if you're not too picky. 3 1/2 stars.
Review: Ok, so this sci fi movie isn't great. But, on the good side, it isn't too bad either.

I like the concept of Disney writing this movie where Ernest Borgnine,Yvette Mimeux,Anthony Perkins are on a mission to chart a black hole in 2130.

Personally, I like the whole idea of the scientist Max Schnell, wanting to take the crew into the black hole.

The ending was great. Some people don't get it. Too cereberal for them I suppose. Ok, it isn't 2001. It isn't supposed to be.
This movie needs to be judged on its own. And when it is, it's pretty good.

Aside from the dialog, and the cute robots, the story is good.