THX 1138

Before "Star Wars," George Lucas had another vision of the future, particularly in a long time from now in a galaxy that happens to be our own. "THX 1138" is his Distopia film, his "1984" or "Brave New World." It's directly inspired from those works, borrowing the ideas of drugs to sedate human emotion (Brave New World) and sex being illegal (1984). It's a visionary work, not a revolutionary one, but for the early 70s, it impresses. Lucas manages to bring his concept to life, even if it's not exactly as thrilling or interesting as what the Star Wars saga would be.

THX 1139 (Robert Duvall) is an ideal member of this "utopian" community where religion means stay calm and do as you're told. When his roommate, LUH, begins to change out his sedatives with other pills, he begins to fall in love with her. Consequently, the "big brother" equivalent finds out, and THX is taken captive.

"THX" can be boring at times. Though you can tell Lucas has put a lot of thought into this world, he doesn't care to offer any help to those struggling to make sense of it. There is no clarification dialogue -- you have to pay close attention to the images and surroundings to understand it. This is admirable, but makes things difficult for most viewers. The film therefore drags at points not necessarily because what's going on isn't interesting, but the viewer is missing contextual help to illuminate the action on screen.

Fans of the genre will appreciate Lucas' contribution and his imagination, but probably not love it. The themes are light and the drama low. There's no sense of danger or incredibly sympathy for the main characters. One thing to note is not to watch the Special Edition. As Lucas loves to do, the SE goes back and adds CGI to the film, which is a travesty. Part of what makes these movies so great is that they offer a vision of the future from the perspective of 30 years ago and today's technology doesn't interfere. Do your best to get a non-remastered copy.

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)

After all these years this movie never gets old! They did add some extra CGI stuff in the later releases but it really was not necessary.

===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...

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.