Film Review
George Lucas's off-the-wall debut feature made next to no impact when
it was first released in 1971, and was subsequently overshadowed by his
far more successful sci-fi movie
Star Wars (1977). Whilst
not a mainstream hit,
THX 1138
has always enjoyed a cult status, but recently the film has experienced
something of a reappraisal, thanks in part to Lucas's decision to issue
a new cut of the film in 2004, with new digital effects and a few
additional scenes. Many critics have come round to the view that
this is probably Lucas's best work to date. It is certainly his
most daring.
THX 1138 originated as a
15-minute short that George Lucas made as a film student in 1967. This
short, a dystopian vision of the future in which a man escapes from a
tightly controlled underground society, won several awards and drew the
attention of film director Francis Ford Coppola. It was Coppola
who encouraged the 24-year-old Lucas to remake this film as a commercial feature and
who used his influence with Warner Brothers to help secure a 0.7 million dollar
budget, a tidy sum for a rookie filmmaker.
In expanding the original screenplay, Lucas and his co-screenwriter
Walter Murch were very much influenced by contemporary issues, such as
increased use of surveillance by the state (as a means of crushing
opposition to the Vietnam War) and burgeoning consumerism.
THX 3118 became as much a statement
on life in America in the late 1960s as it was a dark vision of the
future, a vision in which mankind has been robbed of his humanity and
lives a pointless zombie-like existence in a sterile subterranean
world. The central story concept, of a man heroically driven to
escape from the world he knows in pursuit of a better world, is one of
the recurring themes in Lucas's oeuvre. This would be an
essential plot driver in his next two films,
American Graffiti (1973) and
Star Wars (1977).
THX 1138 is by far the most
experimental and ambiguous of George Lucas's films, and this could
explain why it provides a far richer viewing experience than his
subsequent
Star Wars
films. The influence of Lucas's idols, the filmmakers Jean-Luc
Godard and Akira Kurosawa, is felt in the construction and design of
the film, with Godard's Brechtian approach to character effectively
combined with Kurosawa's striking stylisation.
Those familiar with Godard's work will notice the plot similarities
with his 1965 film
Alphaville, which also portrays
a regimented society where love has been abolished.
The literary influences - George Orwell's
1984,
Aldous Huxley's
Brave New World
and Samuel Beckett's
Waiting for
Godot - are so glaringly obvious that their authors almost
deserve a writer's credit, but Lucas and Murch effectively build on
these ideas and create a work that is both profound and dazzlingly
original. A compelling performance from Robert Duvall (in his
first leading role,
his head shaved along with every other member of the cast) adds to the
film's authenticity and humanity.
It is possible that
THX 1138
may well stand the test of time much better than
Star Wars, which is already
beginning to look dated and slightly corny. In contrast to the
comic book fantasy of
Star Wars,
THX 1138 has a chilling
reality to it. The future it portrays is so disturbingly close to
our own present Hell-on-Earth that we believe it could be true.
Certainly, the film's depiction of a society that is constantly under
surveillance, and where people are driven like cattle into mindless
consumption (buy and be happy) has a much greater resonance today than it
did when the film was made. Unsettling yet also humorous (in a
very black sense),
THX 1138
is assuredly George Lucas's most inspired and substantial film to
date. Had this film been a hit on its first release, Lucas's career may have
taken a completely different course...
© James Travers 2010
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.
Next George Lucas film:
American Graffiti (1973)
Film Synopsis
The inhabitants of a futuristic underground city live a highly
regimented existence, kept in a docile state by compulsory drug
consumption. Their activities are constantly monitored and they
are policed by androids with blank metal faces. They are
encouraged to work hard so that they can earn the credits to buy
functionless items which they incinerate as soon as they get back home,
home being a characterless room equipped with the latest in holographic
entertainment. Reproduction has been entirely
mechanised, so there is no need for sexual intercourse, which is now an
illegal activity. Faith, by contrast, is encouraged, and everyone
is expected to worship regularly at the little uni-chapels that are
scattered around the city. THX 1138 works in android
construction, a highly skilled job. He shares a room with LUH
3417 who, unbeknown to him, has stopped taking her drugs and has been
replacing his pills with an inactive substitute. As the effect of
the drugs wears off, THX begins to experience unfamiliar feelings and
feels compelled to engage in illicit sexual congress with his
roommate. Realising that they have broken the law, THX and
LUH decide that they must escape from the city before their crimes are
detected. Before they do so, THX is told by LUH's work
supervisor, SEN 5241, that he intends to replace LUH as his
roommate. THX betrays SEN to the city authorities for abusing his
position but is himself arrested when he fails to perform his job to an
adequate standard, revealing that he has stopped taking the
nerve-stabilising drugs. THX, SEN and LUH find themselves in a
limbo prison, from which there is no apparent means of escape...
© James Travers
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.