Zardoz

It seems that there's two different ages of the science fiction film. Ones that are pre Star Wars, and ones that are post Star Wars. The post seems mostly to be geared towards family friendly. The pre, especially in the late 60's and early 70's, seem to be more deep and grown up. There's exceptions to the rule on both sides, but it seemed less and less that films like Logan's Run and Planet Of The Apes were made post Star Wars. Today, I revisited one of those pre films, 1974's Zardoz, and here's my thoughts.

Zardoz is a giant, God like, stone head that floats in the sky. This entity has a band of warriors that he instructs to fight, telling them that violence is good and that love is bad. He spits out guns and ammunition out of his mouth for his warriors to use. One of those warriors, Zed, Sean Connery, begins to question his existence and climbs into Zardoz's mouth. There he finds "The Vortex," a peace loving society that is intrigued by this warrior's arrival. Zed begins to understand there ways, but his arrival also brings out the savagery in them.

This is a trippy movie that won't be everyone's cup of tea. Connery and the supporting cast, which includes Charlotte Rampling, do a good job with the material. This was written and directed by John Boorman, who also did Excalibur and Deliverance, and I have to say this is his most ambitious film to date. Boorman's Deliverance star Burt Reynolds was originally going to star, but he had to back out due to scheduling conflicts.

Zardoz is a strange, but very original, film that should be listed amongst the sci fi classics.

It's available on dvd and blu ray.