THX 1138

The first big screen commercial film of George Lucas 'THX 1138' is now back in a re-made production. I did not yet form a clear opinion about directors re-visiting their films decades after the original production. It's certainly their right to do it, but I cannot refrain from suspecting that this shows some sort of dilution of their creative force. In other words, I would rather prefer George Lucas doing something completely new, rather then re-doing old films of his.

However, 'THX 1138' is a visionary movie, almost a masterpiece. I liked it. It is one of the first Orwellian films in describing a world of the future controlled by an omni-present mind-control machine. These theme means a lot of me, and for many people who have spent part of their lives in a system that tried to create 'a new man' by using a system of control and repression that was targeting towards suppression of individual freedom and personality. What is however very strong in 'THX 1138' is the visual quality of the world created by Lucas. This is what cinema is for, this is what real art is about - creating a new world from existing materials, transporting the viewers in an alternate world of the future using the cinema art means. Although realized about 20 years before computer graphics in films, the vision is fresh and impressing.

An ageless Robert Duvall does here one of the best roles of his career. Donald Pleasance is a very good counter-part. I liked very much Maggie McOmie, how does it come that this film did not launch her in a star career? It actually looks like this is the only film she did, according to IMDb.

The extra features on the DVD are interesting and bring a lot of new information for fans of science fiction, of the 70s films and of Lucas. The film itself gets 9 out of 10 on my personal scale.

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.

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...".

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.