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One of my favorite all-time scores. And while I own it on LP, and can listen to it digitally, this is definitely one I'd love to own in my CD collection. Is there any hope for a re-release of this masterpiece, or am I stuck with second-hand market? That all depends on how well it sold. I suspect Disney, the John Barry estate, musicians who performed the music, etc., would need to be part of any future re-release but I have not heard of any potential project from Intrada. Still if you can find it on eBay, or somewhere where they don't require an arm or a leg, you would be better off.
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Posted: |
Jul 12, 2023 - 12:32 PM
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Thor
(Member)
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So I finally got around to seeing this "cult classic" on Disney+. I've been obsessed with spaceship-centered films all my life, but never got around to THE BLACK HOLE because everyone said it was so bad, I didn't feel particularly encouraged. Well, it isn't THAT bad, is it? I mean, it's hokey as hell, of course, and has a number of issues, but by golly -- those special effects and the awesome, Jules Verne-ian ship design are worth the ticket all on their own. I felt like I wanted to be on that ship forever and explore its many nooks and crannies. And that totally impressionistic ending between heaven and hell! I've seen far worse sci fi films from the 50s and 60s (heck, even the 80s), so I was positively surprised. Mind you, it's still not getting more than 2 stars (of 5) on MUBI. Anything else would be disingenous. But those redeeming qualities are worth celebrating.
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So I finally got around to seeing this "cult classic" on Disney+. I've been obsessed with spaceship-centered films all my life, but never got around to THE BLACK HOLE because everyone said it was so bad, I didn't feel particularly encouraged. Well, it isn't THAT bad, is it? I mean, it's hokey as hell, of course, and has a number of issues, but by golly -- those special effects and the awesome, Jules Verne-ian ship design is worth the ticket all on their own. I felt like I wanted to be on that ship forever and explore its many nooks and crannies. And that totally impressionistic ending between heaven and hell! I've seen far worse sci fi films from the 50s and 60s (heck, even the 80s), so I was positively surprised. Mind you, it's still not getting more than 2 stars (of 5) on MUBI. Anything else would be disingenous. But those redeeming qualities are worth celebrating. I love this movie. It was the first film I ran when I subscribed to D+. It's fun. It's nonsense, but it's really not that bad. Great score, incredible effects for the day and some powerful imagery. It appeals to the kid in me.
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Posted: |
Jul 12, 2023 - 1:34 PM
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Solium
(Member)
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So I finally got around to seeing this "cult classic" on Disney+. I've been obsessed with spaceship-centered films all my life, but never got around to THE BLACK HOLE because everyone said it was so bad, I didn't feel particularly encouraged. Well, it isn't THAT bad, is it? I mean, it's hokey as hell, of course, and has a number of issues, but by golly -- those special effects and the awesome, Jules Verne-ian ship design is worth the ticket all on their own. I felt like I wanted to be on that ship forever and explore its many nooks and crannies. And that totally impressionistic ending between heaven and hell! I've seen far worse sci fi films from the 50s and 60s (heck, even the 80s), so I was positively surprised. Mind you, it's still not getting more than 2 stars (of 5) on MUBI. Anything else would be disingenous. But those redeeming qualities are worth celebrating. I love this movie. It was the first film I ran when I subscribed to D+. It's fun. It's nonsense, but it's really not that bad. Great score, incredible effects for the day and some powerful imagery. It appeals to the kid in me. I love this movie. Its a video/audio treat. I enjoy it a million times more than the last ten Marvel movies, or the last three Star Wars movies, etc. They don't hold a candle to it. I agree some of the robot stuff was handled in a really silly manner. The rest of it is solid.
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Posted: |
Jul 12, 2023 - 1:35 PM
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TominAtl
(Member)
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So I finally got around to seeing this "cult classic" on Disney+. I've been obsessed with spaceship-centered films all my life, but never got around to THE BLACK HOLE because everyone said it was so bad, I didn't feel particularly encouraged. Well, it isn't THAT bad, is it? I mean, it's hokey as hell, of course, and has a number of issues, but by golly -- those special effects and the awesome, Jules Verne-ian ship design are worth the ticket all on their own. I felt like I wanted to be on that ship forever and explore its many nooks and crannies. And that totally impressionistic ending between heaven and hell! I've seen far worse sci fi films from the 50s and 60s (heck, even the 80s), so I was positively surprised. Mind you, it's still not getting more than 2 stars (of 5) on MUBI. Anything else would be disingenous. But those redeeming qualities are worth celebrating. I saw it on its release and enjoyed it and have seen it again. Yes, plenty of issues, including the soft spoken redubbing of lines by Yvette and the overall heavy Star Wars influence of course. But the practical effects and ship design is spectacular. And as hokey as the realism was, the "money shot" of the meteor barreling down the ship and our hero's barely getting out of the way while running on the catwalk, is freaking awesome to me, and not to mention the score by Barry. And I do love Maximilian, the bad ass robot. Fun and hokey but not bad by any means
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Posted: |
Jul 12, 2023 - 1:45 PM
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By: |
Solium
(Member)
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So I finally got around to seeing this "cult classic" on Disney+. I've been obsessed with spaceship-centered films all my life, but never got around to THE BLACK HOLE because everyone said it was so bad, I didn't feel particularly encouraged. Well, it isn't THAT bad, is it? I mean, it's hokey as hell, of course, and has a number of issues, but by golly -- those special effects and the awesome, Jules Verne-ian ship design are worth the ticket all on their own. I felt like I wanted to be on that ship forever and explore its many nooks and crannies. And that totally impressionistic ending between heaven and hell! I've seen far worse sci fi films from the 50s and 60s (heck, even the 80s), so I was positively surprised. Mind you, it's still not getting more than 2 stars (of 5) on MUBI. Anything else would be disingenous. But those redeeming qualities are worth celebrating. I saw it on its release and enjoyed it and have seen it again. Yes, plenty of issues, including the soft spoken redubbing of lines by Yvette and the overall heavy Star Wars influence of course. But the practical effects and ship design is spectacular. And as hokey as the realism was, the "money shot" of the meteor barreling down the ship and our hero's barely getting out of the way while running on the catwalk, is freaking awesome to me, and not to mention the score by Barry. And I do love Maximilian, the bad ass robot. Fun and hokey but not bad by any means Maximilian was a bad ass and one of the greatest "villains" in cinematic history. The Centurion robots were silly, they walked and moved like "Tin Soldiers".
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Posted: |
Jul 12, 2023 - 1:56 PM
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TominAtl
(Member)
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So I finally got around to seeing this "cult classic" on Disney+. I've been obsessed with spaceship-centered films all my life, but never got around to THE BLACK HOLE because everyone said it was so bad, I didn't feel particularly encouraged. Well, it isn't THAT bad, is it? I mean, it's hokey as hell, of course, and has a number of issues, but by golly -- those special effects and the awesome, Jules Verne-ian ship design are worth the ticket all on their own. I felt like I wanted to be on that ship forever and explore its many nooks and crannies. And that totally impressionistic ending between heaven and hell! I've seen far worse sci fi films from the 50s and 60s (heck, even the 80s), so I was positively surprised. Mind you, it's still not getting more than 2 stars (of 5) on MUBI. Anything else would be disingenous. But those redeeming qualities are worth celebrating. I saw it on its release and enjoyed it and have seen it again. Yes, plenty of issues, including the soft spoken redubbing of lines by Yvette and the overall heavy Star Wars influence of course. But the practical effects and ship design is spectacular. And as hokey as the realism was, the "money shot" of the meteor barreling down the ship and our hero's barely getting out of the way while running on the catwalk, is freaking awesome to me, and not to mention the score by Barry. And I do love Maximilian, the bad ass robot. Fun and hokey but not bad by any means Maximilian was a bad ass and one of the greatest "villains" in cinematic history. The Centurion robots were silly, they walked and moved like "Tin Soldiers". Yes he was badass. Dont forget about that surprisingly violent end he gave a major character...
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Posted: |
Jul 12, 2023 - 1:59 PM
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Solium
(Member)
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So I finally got around to seeing this "cult classic" on Disney+. I've been obsessed with spaceship-centered films all my life, but never got around to THE BLACK HOLE because everyone said it was so bad, I didn't feel particularly encouraged. Well, it isn't THAT bad, is it? I mean, it's hokey as hell, of course, and has a number of issues, but by golly -- those special effects and the awesome, Jules Verne-ian ship design are worth the ticket all on their own. I felt like I wanted to be on that ship forever and explore its many nooks and crannies. And that totally impressionistic ending between heaven and hell! I've seen far worse sci fi films from the 50s and 60s (heck, even the 80s), so I was positively surprised. Mind you, it's still not getting more than 2 stars (of 5) on MUBI. Anything else would be disingenous. But those redeeming qualities are worth celebrating. I saw it on its release and enjoyed it and have seen it again. Yes, plenty of issues, including the soft spoken redubbing of lines by Yvette and the overall heavy Star Wars influence of course. But the practical effects and ship design is spectacular. And as hokey as the realism was, the "money shot" of the meteor barreling down the ship and our hero's barely getting out of the way while running on the catwalk, is freaking awesome to me, and not to mention the score by Barry. And I do love Maximilian, the bad ass robot. Fun and hokey but not bad by any means Maximilian was a bad ass and one of the greatest "villains" in cinematic history. The Centurion robots were silly, they walked and moved like "Tin Soldiers". Yes he was badass. Dont forget about that surprisingly violent end he gave a major character... And it was all done with no voice and minimum movement. It was clever camera work and sound effects that brought him to life. The film making was brilliant in some respects.
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I saw it when it came out and thought it was just dreadful. However, when I saw this thread pop up I kicked myself for not mentioning The Black Hole in the great score/bad movie thread, because it's got the credentials for that.
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So I finally got around to seeing this "cult classic" on Disney+. I've been obsessed with spaceship-centered films all my life, but never got around to THE BLACK HOLE because everyone said it was so bad, I didn't feel particularly encouraged. Well, it isn't THAT bad, is it? I mean, it's hokey as hell, of course, and has a number of issues, but by golly -- those special effects and the awesome, Jules Verne-ian ship design are worth the ticket all on their own. I felt like I wanted to be on that ship forever and explore its many nooks and crannies. And that totally impressionistic ending between heaven and hell! I've seen far worse sci fi films from the 50s and 60s (heck, even the 80s), so I was positively surprised. Mind you, it's still not getting more than 2 stars (of 5) on MUBI. Anything else would be disingenous. But those redeeming qualities are worth celebrating. Yes, I agree. While the movie has its issues, there are also many things I like about it.
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I always felt this would have made a great "Lost in Space" movie. Some of the characters were similar and the casting was spot on. Robert Forster as John Robinson Yevette as Maureen Joseph Bottoms as Don Borgnine and Perkins were like the more serious aspects of Dr. Smith split in two And V.I.N.C.E.N.T.'s wisecracking with Charlie Pizer was very LIS.
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Wow, guess I'm the odd man out. IMO, "The Black Hole" is AWFUL. I thought it was bad when it came out, and a recent re-watch was torturous - it was even worse than I remembered. The usual caveats about exempting the FX and visual design from the above assessment apply, of course. And I do like the score, outside of what I'm sure was the studio mandated "space march." But the pacing, dialogue and performances are just embarrassingly bad. In my humble opinion, of course. I begrudge no one their enjoyment. I do hope the Palomino was ultimately successful in its search for "habitable life." I guess the cast was made up of fleas and ticks. Or maybe such a term makes sense on the other side of a black hole.
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Yes, THE BLACK HOLE has many problems, no doubt, but it also has a lot of things going for it. I love Maximillan Schell's scenery chewing take as Hans Reinhard, he is just a wonderful "bad guy". The robot Maximillian is also quite terrifying (for kids, and of course this movie is meant to be seen by kids). John Barry's score is fantastic, and I love the retro production design. The Cygnus, with it's vast empty spaces, corridors, pipes, and what not, does not seem realistic (what is all the empty space for?), but it sure looks fantastic, it's a cathedral in space. I think the opening scenes have some real "mystery" to them, and the fact that (SPOILER AHEAD) Reinhard basically turned his entire crew into zombie-robots to operate the ship is quite a horrific revelation. (Maybe not so horrific for regular viewers of WALKING DEAD, but we're talking a 1970 Walt Disney movie here.) Oh, yes... that line... search for "habitable life"... as if the astronauts were ticks and lice, LOL... I think there was even a contemporary review (by Frederik Pohl? Been a long time) that made fun of that.
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