The Black Hole

Rating:
Summary: The Hole is Dated
Review: Given the fact this was WALT DISNEY PRODUCTIONS answer to STAR WARS, I remember seeing it when it came out in 79. Yes, it's corny, yeah the robots are silly, YESSIREE, Anthony Perkins and Maximillian Schell are vying for the Golden Ham award. But you have to give the folks at Disney a B- for the effort. There is a anamorphic version of this film out there. The DVD box is RED.
Anchor Bay did the best they could given the print that was acquired by Disney. If you want a heavy handed soap space opera then this is it.....and who can forget that shot of the huge hemmoroid heading towards our heroes?????

Rating:
Summary: Did they even TRY to put any science in this Sci-Fi movie???
Review: I am really bugged by how hard "The Black Hole" (and most sci-fi) apparently TRIES to be an earnest hard scifi movie and utterly disheartened by it's failure to do so. Ok, robots with ESP I can swallow; it's even kinda cool.

Though I found the atmospheric style and special effects appealing, I had to give a negative counterpoint to all the glowing reviews I see here. And please don't say "it's just a movie" - there's no excuse for grossly poorly thought out stories; suspension of disbelief can't work when premises are patently stupid. Reasons to laugh at this movie:

- What are chemical rocket based ships more suited to flying to the moon doing searching deep space? It would literally take them 1000's of years to get to even the nearest star. (they should've used some sort of warp/hyperdrive premise)

- OK what's with the heaven/hell stuff? Did the ending make any sense to anyone? Were the script writers on acid the whole time?

- Why was the scientist suddenly INSIDE Maximillian at the end?

- Why was Maximillian triumphantly standing over some kind of hellish domain at the end?

- What's with robots with tempers and egos... OK so maybe artificial intelligence is really really advanced in the future... but would a robot really have such a bad tantrum that it would blow it's own circuits and die (the STAR sharp shooter)?

- Why would robots need to practice target shooting? Once they perfect their skills, they shouldn't degrade any more than our 20th century car-building robots would.

- Why was everyone so impressed with the Cygnus' "gravity" system? Humans on Earth had obviously already conquered gravity theory since the little robots had "anti-gravity" floating abilities.

- Why was there a scene that implied that Maximillian was the real boss on the ship; they never expanded on that hint.

- Why was Maximillian ever given chopping blades? What purpose would that have served on a ship full of soulless, mindless automatons that never disobey. And even if some kind of weapon was needed, why not simply give him laser-cannon hands? The guard robots don't have chopping blades, they all have guns.

- Why didn't Maximillian have real hands? The guard robots did. It would seem a more useful design.

- How could BOB "permanently charge" the other little robot's lasers? If "permanant charge" technology exists, why isn't he already permanently charged straight out of the factory where he was built?

- For advanced deep space ships, don't they even have simple RADAR to detect things, like, oh, say KILLER METEOR SHOWERS before they hit?

- Why were the hallways and rooms so cavernous on the Cygnus? None of the space seemed to serve a purpose. On a real future Earth, the Cygnus designers would be fired for budget overruns. It would be a waste of space and would never be designed thus. The Palomino was a realistic ship design; the Cygnus was laughable, though beautifully rendered cinematically.

Rating:
Summary: The Whack Hole
Review: The last time I viewed this film was probably about a two years ago. I am still seeing a therapist and having violent dreams of confusion more than anything. Old Bob, the Southern robot friend of the heroes, still haunts me to this day. By the way, why the SOUTHERN accent? Screenplay: ENTER OLD BOB, A LOVABLE, FLOATING, BEAT-UP GARBAGE CAN WITH A SOUTHERN ACCENT-Clearly written after a night of heavy drinking. I still can't decide if that was used to make him more likable or so when he finally dies the viewer is supposed to feel a sense of relief. The other robot is very well spoken and articulate, so in order to make Old Bob appear more inferior, what does one do? PUT A FEW DENTS ON HIM AND GIVE HIM A SOUTHERN ACCENT. Works for me. At least they're not implying anything by doing that. A special guest appearence by Howard the Duck would have given that movie more science-fiction merit. Finally, Maximillian...c'mon now. Is it me or were we supposed to get the impression that he was banging the robot? Listen for the sounds of the spinning blades that come out of his hands, when it wakes you out of your slumber that's your cue to take it out of the VCR and unrinate on it. Not a bad movie though I must say. Really held my interest. Any word on a sequel?

Rating:
Summary: Where's the Soundtrack?
Review: I don't know why I like this movie so much, maybe because of the Cygnus which looks like a haunted house in space, the overall dark feel of the movie, the creepy thought provoking ending...and most important, the mood setting soundtrack. COMPLETELY AWESOME!!! But why hasn't ever been released? It's absolutley one of the best I have ever heard. Tell me you don't feel anything when Capt Holland is walking thru the empty crew quarters and your probably dead. The awesome "we're cut off" theme with its heavy electronic bass beat and more. One of Barry's best to be sure. Please! Somebody release this soundtrack!

Rating:
Summary: Excruciating
Review: Of all the things in my life I'd like to change the one that tops the list has got to be the last 2 hours. For some reason I decided to rent The Black Hole. Oh my god, it is so darn dull. I feel like my soul has been sun dried then eroded to dust by the wind. I'm near tears for wanting the time back. I had thought the movie was dull when I was a kid yet some evil force conspired to make me watch it again. Now my body feels like I'm in the middle of a life threatening flu.

Rating:
Summary: Prepare To Take A Journey "In, Through and Beyond"...
Review: ...the realms of your deepest imagination as you come face to face with the most destructive force in the known galaxy...THE BLACK HOLE!!
Join Captain Holland and the crew of the space exploration vessel, U.S.S. Palomino, as they discover the "Flying Dutchman" of deepest, darkest space, the U.S.S. Cygnus!!
Along with the crew of the Palomino, you will begin to unravel the mystery behind the Cygnus, its maddened captain Dr. Reinhardt, and its ominous crew comprised entirely of robots and zombie-like "humanoids"!!
You'll be there as our heroes fight head on with the Cygnus' army of menacing robots, escape the wreckage of the Cygnus and eventually take the ultimate plunge...straight through the ever-present Black Hole!!
Highlighted by an all-star cast including Robert Forster, Yvette Mimieux, Anthony Perkins, Ernest Borgnine, Maximilian Schell and featuring Roddy McDowall as the voice of heroic robot "V.I.N.CENT", astounding sets and special effects, and an amazing musical score by master composer John Barry, "THE BLACK HOLE" is a cinematic/Sci-Fi masterpiece that is not to be missed!!
THE BLACK HOLE..."A Journey That Begins Where Everything Ends"...

Rating:
Summary: The Black Hole: A very good try from Uncle Walt!
Review: Oh, the Black Hole...what can I say about this film. I have real love/hate relationship with the film. I first saw it in '79, at age 15, and at the time it both thrilled and embarassed me. Kudos goes to Elleshaw and his production design. The U.S.S. CYGNUS is probably the most beautiful (if not exotic and impropable) space craft design ever put on film. The acting in the film was a strange cross between wooden (Robert Forster) to well overblown (Max Schell), the rest of the cast seems to fall somewhere in the middle. Ironically, the robot most reviewers disliked the most, VINC.E.N.T.(Roddy McDowell), steals the show in my opinion. The writers gave him the best lines in the picture. It is unfortunate that the filmmakers and Disney chose to do a Star Wars retread, instead of really putting out a great and unique story. Too bad. What saves The Black Hole from becoming one of those films that you soon forget existed after you've seen it once is the score. John Barry is the single most reason I have fond memories of watching this film. He gives this "little" popcorn picture such a sweeping grand score that sometimes I feel he meant it for a bigger, better motion picture. I still love this film in many ways, it can be very funny and well thought out in small areas of the story. It fails terribly in science though. The dipiction of the black hole is inaccurate (at least to current theories), that "drain" hole look to it would only take place if the hole was syphoning material from a nearby star, it would form a ring around the black hole called an Accretion disk. Another flop in the science within the film is a scene near the end, when a crushed Cygnus is falling towards the black hole, the Palomino's surviving crewmembers actually crawl along the outside of the ship--WITHOUT WEARING PROTECTIVE SPACE GEAR!! I think that scene may have came from a weird theory that I recall reading about black hole's that may contain some sort of atmosphere around them or something to that effect. Still, despite the convoluted screenplay, dull acting and bizarre ending (was that Earth our heroes were heading to after emerging back to normal space or another unexplored planet?), the movie will alway possess a warm, comfortable spot in my heart and memories.

Rating:
Summary: No plot device can escape "The Black Hole"
Review: A caveat before I begin. The Black Hole came out when I was four years old. For the next few years, I had Black Hole wallpaper in my bedroom. Until it got too beat up for use, I had a Black Hole lunchbox and sitting in my old desk in my parent's house are my Vincent and Maxmillian toys that somehow have survived from 1979.

So, suffice to say, "The Black Hole" was a big part of my childhood. Having seen the film a number of times, and purchasing it on vhs upon rerelease a couple of years ago, I came to the revelation that it was (at best) an average sci-fi film. The four-star rating derives from gratitude more than anything else. Some aspects of the film do stand out.

One of the notable achievements of the film is John Barry's score, which in one-third brooding, one-third hyperkinetic, and one-third heroic march. In a way, the great variance in Barry's scoring highlights the fundamental flaw of "The Black Hole". To use a cliche, the plot is painted with wide strokes and alternates between a number of science fiction film norms, never staying for too long in any one type of groove. At moments, the film plays like a vintage '50's morality tale a la "Day the Earth Stood Still" or "Forbidden Planet". Just as quickly, the film becomes a "Star Wars" redux with the heroes in white facing off against faceless villains. Finally, in small portions through and dominating at the end, there are streaks of existentialist pretention that would have made Kubrick blush (or at least feel flattered).

In short, the film itself never amounts to anything too deep because it never develops one theme or plays on one tone for too long for anything to come of it. However, the film still gets a four-star rating. Partially on nostalga, yes, but like so many films that transcend their plot loopholes and work, "The Black Hole" has a number of positives going for it.

As is often the case with many cult films or popcorn movies, "The Black Hole" has a distinguished cast of actors who lend the film more weight than it ought to have. The special effects also give "The Black Hole" an intensity that carrys the audience through the film. In fact, even by todays standards, the set design and FX execution hold up remarkably well. Whereas the thematic tone of the film never seems to ring true or consistently, the mood of the film is carried and maintained by the sets and special effects. In short, the film is an enjoyable romp on the sum of its parts if not its whole.

Ultimately, though, I imagine this film will fall into the same hole as other films (to use Disney as an example) such as "Pete's Dragon" or "Old Yeller" that will remain special to those who saw it in their youth, but be lost to newer generations of film watchers with countless more current popcorn genre flicks to choose from. Alas.

Still, for any fan of science fiction and any fan of a good popcorn film, don't be afraid to get sucked into "The Black Hole".

And, when you go, please take that terrible pun with you.

Rating:
Summary: Has its moments
Review: As many have mentioned, this is truely a mixed bag. Good -- special effects, music (the music during the shootout with the century robots excepted. That part sounds like it was dubbed in at the last minute), and both Max's (Maximilian Snell, and Maximillian the robot). The not-so-good -- Vincent and Bob (1/2 R2D2 and 1/2 C3PO), the century robots who are clumsy and stupid looking, and the ridiculous lapses in basic science. This was fun to watch again; I loved it when it came out in 1979, but I doubt I would like it now without seeing it in my childhood...

The ending was ambigious, but cool, IMHO. When Dr. Reinhardt goes to hell and he "merges" with Max, he's being encased in a robotic form similar to what he did with the original crew (the humaniod robots). This seems to imply a view of a God which punishes the wicked after death in a way suitable to the person's trangressions during their physical life. Notice the Doctor didn't merely perish in a fiery hell; he was punished in a manner similar to the way he murdered the crew. At least that's what the movie seemed to be saying to me.

BTW, my dvd didn't come with the widescreen format, even though the keep-case indicates it has the widescreen and the full screen formats...

Rating:
Summary: Don't Let Nostalgia Fool You
Review: I too bought the Black Hole thinking of my younger years, and watching this film now makes me laugh out loud, as well as see what it COULD have been. Granted, the film has GREAT SFX... but GREAT SFX does not make a GREAT film. And it pays MORE than homage to Star Wars. V.I.N.CENT is tin can shaped like R2 and as effeminite as C-3PO. For goodness sakes, the sentry robots have Darth Vader's FACE! A saving grace is the evil robot Maximillian. What a dark, ominous menace it was. What kills this film when you get down to it is the writing. I have a whole list, but I'll focus on one point as an example....For the entire film, Dr. Reinhardt is a mad genius... but then for seemingly NO reason, towards the end, he tells Kate McCrae "Save me from Maximillian." Where did that come from? It's like the story just made a sharp left into an oak tree. You can't start a new story thread at the end of a film. I didn't even mind the "Fantasia" ending, Dr. Reinhardt and Maximillian togther in a "Dante-esque" hell. But in the end, you are left with a story that had too many things going on at once, rather than it being one thing or another and a movie that isn't really sure of exactly what it wants to be.