THX 1138

Nameless man lives in an oppressive future society where behavior is controlled by mandatory drugs. Minimal budget, acting, dialog and special effects more than compensated by astute direction and soundtrack integration. Superior to "ZPG" (1972) and "Logan's Run" (1976). Viewers may also enjoy "Gattaca" (1997). (Rating: A-minus)

George Lucas has a fairly small body of work, as a director; and most of it is fairly simplistic, except this film. Lucas' first feature is steeped in the French New Wave mode of philosophical musings and strange visuals. Unfortunately, that doesn't necessarily make for an exciting film. However, there are enough intriguing ideas to sustain some interest, although you do have to fight off the boredom factor.

Lucas is, and has always been, a visual filmmaker. He is not great with actors and his films aren't noted for their performances, except American Graffiti. That was a more personal film, and Lucas probably had a clearer idea of the characters thoughts and emotions. Here, emotions are stifled by drugs and the wooden performances reinforce this.

According to Lucas, the film is the story of escape, told in three different forms: an escape from the drugs that keep people in check, an escape from a prison with no visible barriers, and an escape from the city itself. The final sequence contains most of the action, but is marred by the budget constraints.

Robert Duvall commands attention when he is on screen, but you never really feel like you get to know THX. Donald Pleasance, as SEN, provides a nice turn as the antagonist, of sorts. The rest of the cast is fairly forgettable, with only minor moments. The philosophical underpinnings of the film are often lost in pretension, the same flaw which hit the Matrix in its sequels. Lucas could have delivered his message in a far simpler fashion, probably with greater result. Still, the film does have its interesting moments and memorable ideas and images. The robot police are quite chilling, although they are used sparingly. The white prison is quite unsettling as well. The final escape is the most riveting sequence of the film.

The new DVD has Lucas' trademark tinkering. Only this time, the alterations help to add scope to the film. The city scenes are expanded to add complexity to the environment that was missing in the original. There are no fundamental story changes, as in the Star Wars Special Edition (Greedo shoots first). The commentary and featurettes help the viewer to understand the intent of the story and help to establish the context in which it was made. Lucas makes a statement that he would like to return to this kind of film. Given the disappointing nature of the Star Wars prequels, I wouldn't mind seeing Lucas take another crack at a more cerebral sci-fi story. My only request is that he works with a great scriptwriter.

This is simply a solid, well-made film, produced on a low budget and directed by George Lucas based on his early student film of (roughly) the same title. (Which is included on the Director's Cut edition of the DVD.) Fans of "A Clockwork Orange," "1984," "Brazil," and similar films about oppressive bureaucracies will love this. It's a grim and gritty vision of the future in which people are controlled and monitored (think Big Brother on a large scale). Robert Duvall (THX 1138 being his "assigned name") breaks the laws of the world by falling in love, engaging in sex and therefore rebelling, placing him and his love in danger.

This is a very clear moral story and allusion to politics and so on and so forth. It excels as both story and study. Duvall gives a good performance (his breakthrough role in "The Godfather" would come next year) but the real surprise here is Lucas, who goes for a Kubrick-like edge to his film that really separates it from his later work. You won't believe this is from the guy who created Jar-Jar Binks.

If anyone accuses George Lucas of being the schmaltzy sell-out he has now become, direct them to this film in order to prove that, at one point in his life, he really did have a bleak outlook on life and the future, and it didn't start with the words "A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away...".

Set in the futuristic 25th century in the ¨1984¨ moody vein , it describes the automatism and slavery of a robotic future whose terrifying vision comes to life . Mankind lives under the surface of Earth where lifelike androids carry out survey and control of slaved people with drugs used to limit their will and they confess at confessional booths . The story centers around a man and a woman who rebel against their rigidly controlled society under command of robotlike where sex is prohibited and love is the ultimate crime . There in a totalitarian future society in which everything looks the same , a man whose daily work is a mechanical routine attempts to rebel by falling in love . As a valiant who handles radioactive materials in a factory begins to have thoughts of rebellion and love for a fellow member . Who controls the present controls the past .

Dystopian as well as imaginative story which a futuristic , state-run society controlled by a superior robotized intelligence and it packs a polemic denounce to totalitarianism . "THX 1138" is a workmanlike rendition based on an interesting screenplay from George Lucas and Walter Murch that captures the desolation and misery within a terrible future world . This thought-provoking as well as visually breathtaking film boasts vicious robots , intelligent but submitted humans who attempt to flee and a trick ending that is intriguing and unique . George Lucas has worked the title of this film , or parts of it, in some of his other film ; in American Graffiti (1973), the license plate of one car is "THX 138". In Star Wars (1977), a reference is made to "prison cell 1138" ; the cinema sound certification his company developed is called "THX". Impressive as well as evocatively atmospheric production design has been rendered with meticulous attention to period detail , the underground chase near the end was shot in a not-yet-completed segment of the subway system in San Francisco ; in addition , numerous scenes were inspired by Japanese theater, design and graphics . Very good acting by Robert Duvall as a human slave who finds himself stuck in a rebellion of the Earth of the future , he is a tragic figure who dares to fall in love within a totalitarian society where emotions are outlawed . Supported by Donald Pleasence who is perfect , as usual . Furthermore , brief appearances from Sid Haig , Ian Wolfe , Don Pedro Colley , Johnny Wissmuller Jr and David Ogden Stiers's film debut . The picture is rated : ¨PG¨, Parents Guide , for violence , nudism and some strong scenes .

George Lucas's original plan was to shoot the film in Japan , but Francis Ford Coppola did not give Lucas enough money in the film's budget to take the entire production to Japan , the feature was shot in San Francisco and Los Angeles . Adequate as well as strange musical score by Lalo Schifrin , usual composer of the seventies , and the music playing during the end credits is the first movement from Johann Sebastian Bach's St. Matthew Passion, BWV 244 . And many of the electronic sound effects heard throughout the film are derived from telephone dial tones, pitch-shifted and electronically modified . The motion picture was well produced by Francis Ford Coppola , his first film for American Zoetrope , and compellingly directed by George Lucas , pre-Star Wars , and he considers to be one of the greatest achievements of his career . This film was made as a result of George Lucas's student film short project at USC, being an expanded of a prize-winning featurette . George Lucas , subsequently , would go on with big successes such as American Graffiti and many others . This is a superior science-fiction movie that will appeal to cinema buffs and interested in to watch an example of the kind of work filmmaker Lucas was doing at the beginning .

===EDIT: The following review was written before I knew the extent of the cgi doctoring that Lucas added recently. These are the "cheap action scenes" I'm talking about below. If you can find a copy of the original undoctored THX-1138, that's the one to watch.===

Aw man. This film had so much promise. It starts out abstract, minimalist, challenging and poetic. It gets deeper, more bizarre and artistic. But then it suddenly degenerates into a cheap action flick with hi-tech car chases, and it ends with the most simplistic, meaningless resolution. Total letdown.

It's as if Hamlet's famous soliloquy went:

"To be, or not to be: that is the question. Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows... and CARS! and MOTORCYCLES! and fast whizzy things BAM!! The End!!!!"

I suspect that Lucas began this film with a fantastic premise & with artistic intent, but then he suddenly realized "hey wait, I don't know what I'm doing. How do I end this damn thing?" True, it's an interesting dystopian drama. George must've been reading a lot of Kurt Vonnegut when he filmed this. Yes, it's very much in the style of 2001: A Space Odyssey. George must've been watching a lot of Kubrick. But that's where it ends. George fails to present anything original. And as it unravels into a simplistic action flick in the last 20 minutes, you realize that George has been fooling you for the last hour and a half. Literally, it ended, and I said out loud, "Uh... is this where Lucas got bored and stopped filming?"

Still, I have to give him an "A" for effort. Like most of the other reviewers, I was blown away by the fact that George Lucas was capable of this type of abstract poetry. With the exception of those cheezy action scenes (which I'm sure Lucas added ex post facto, like he did with Star Wars + CGI) it is reminiscent of the old Michael Crichton films (Andromeda Strain, Westworld) with maybe a dash of Rollerball.

The early 70s was a wonderful time for scifi, because all the directors were scrambling to emulate Kubrick's masterpiece. But like this film, the effort ran out of gas and eventually slumped into plot-driven cheese. What is so frustrating is that Lucas could have made something truly great if he had just followed up on Donald Pleasence's cryptic ramblings midway. Unfortunately, he chose to go in the other direction, and the film ends with no dialogue for the last 20 minutes. Instead we get a lot of (ex post facto CGI) special effects and chase scenes. What a shame. We literally see before our eyes the unfortunate turning point of Lucas' career.

In space, sometimes a nebula--for all its swirling promise--never quite consolidates itself into a star. This movie, like Lucas, like the failed nebula, is the big one that got away.

P.S. George, if you're listening, please stop adding "new" special effects to the old films! You're not impressing anyone. You & Ted Turner both...