The Final Programme

I saw the ads for "The Last Days Of Man On Earth" well before I could watch "R" films, but I was always wanting to see it. It dropped into a bit of obscurity stateside, and it was years before I found a copy. Shortly after I saw it, Anchor Bay issued the uncut original in limited quantities, and I managed to grab one.

well, the book is better. But Jon Finch is the perfect Jerry Cornelius, and this may be his best work. Jenny Runacre is every bit as good as "Miss Brunner", though her character doesn't quite embody the written character to the degree of Finch. Ron Lacey also shines, in a brief turn as the sun glassed assassin, "Shades", walking straight out of the books pages.

The low budget is disguised well, but the film needed a bit more for effects, relying on a lot of color tinting, sound effects, and old style inflatable "sculptures", to fill the screen.

Moorcock hates it, but this embodies the spirit that fueled "New Worlds", the science fiction magazine that brought Moorcock to the worlds attention, rather well, invoking much classic British entertainment of the recent past. The original cut is preferable, but "The Last Days Of Man On Earth" is a completely different edit of the film, not just a retitling. The differences aren't major, but the US removes everything that even borders on superfluous, with much minor trimming being done to almost every scene. In an odd parallel with "A Boy And His Dog", it follows the overall story arc acceptably, but adds a joke in poor taste to the conclusion, and many have found that alone, was enough to sour their perceptions.

It comes close to bringing Moorcocks world to the cinema, but isn't quite there. Here's hoping that someone might make another attempt.

The novel from which this movie was taken, The Final Programme, by Michael Moorcock, is structurally identical in plot and character to another Moorcock novel... Elric of Melnibone, the first of the Elric series.

This is not a coincidence; both books are part of the Champion Eternal cycle... a series of interconnected series about the Champion Eternal, who exists in every time and every universe, condemned always to fight -- and never know why he is fighting. He goes by many names -- Elric of Melnibone, Jerry Cornelius, Count Urlik, Prince Corum, each with his own series. In some incarnations he knows who he is, in others he thinks he's a normal man (occasionally, a particular incarnation is female). Sometimes two (or even three) incarnations meet each other.

The cycle, which makes up about a third of all Moorcock's ouevre (probably dozens of novels), is one of the most monumental achievements of meta-fiction ever written... but I think this is the only book of Moorcock's made into a movie, though he did contribute to the adaptation of the Edgar Rice Burroughs novel The Land That Time Forgot (dinosaurs on an island).

Now that Fritz Leiber is dead, Moorcock can lay claim to being the greatest living fantasy writer.

The movie The Final Programme (a.k.a. The Last Days of Man On Earth) does an incredible job of capturing the Jerry Cornelius character, much better than I would have expected. But the ending is changed from that of the book, and not for the better. Still definitely worth a rental.

Dafydd ab Hugh

This was indeed a strange one. If you read the story synopsis here and then watch the film you will likely be very confused.

I do like many movies made around this time and a few years earlier. They were rather experimental, especially in not following a classic narrative but more like throwing various scenes and images at you like a kaleidoscope. And, many of them around that time and a little earlier were intriguing snapshots of the rapidly changing social order, especially in the UK. But, in order to pull something kind of 'Trippy' like they are trying to do here, you really need to assemble the visuals, sounds, and mood in an effective way. And, sadly, this one falls a little short.

It Is rather intriguing... for a while. But, although you have a rough outline about what's going on with the 'Family', the more Science Fiction elements are extremely vague. There are indeed some nice visuals and scenes scattered throughout the film that are interesting, but it honestly isn't held together very well. I particularly liked the character he went to for the 'Napalm' I think it was. The guy was intriguingly very odd and intense and the surrounding set was kind of creative.

At first, the main guy came across like the usual spoiled, arrogant, unlikeable person of the time. But, I will admit that after his dialog with his (Handyman, Butler?) and his discussions with some of the others, he then seemed to come across as a bit more genuinely 'Cool' and likeable.

I think the main thing holding this movie back is that, again, if you are going to try to make one of these visually 'Hip' (for the time) and kind of Trippy films, you really have to invest a lot more thought into creating a truly involving mood, look, or whatever to engage the audience. And, that to me anyway is where this movie falls down.

So, for a few, scattered scenes that were kind of interesting looking, and some of the slightly Trippy mood, and what turns out to be a bit more of a likeable leading man, I gave this a '5' But, honestly, unless you're someone who is intensely interested in the time period, and even then, there really isn't much of a truly engaging story here to keep one's interest.

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What I try to do in my reviews is do my best to explain whether I think it is a Good film, or if I think that it is an Entertaining movie and what I feel it's strengths and weaknesses are. I don't waste your time on just restating the plot which you can get from a lot of other places.

Hopefully, that way it will be of more benefit and be of real help to you as to whether I feel the movie is worth watching (and also perhaps what 'Type' of film it is and what type of people may enjoy it)

My Particular Way of Rating:

5 - Flawed, but perhaps with a little entertainment value here and there for some.

6. A decently passable story maybe worth a watch.

7. A solid film, well made, effective, and entertaining.

And, obviously, you can probably figure out what above and below these would mean... : )

I first saw this film when it came out in 1973, and just watched it for the second time on DVD. Excellent production values and camera work. Stars Jon Finch as androgynous (but heterosexual) dandy-dressing Jerry Cornelius, with black nail polish; looks a bit like a cross between an older Johnny Depp and Billy Zane. Also stars Sterling Hayden, Julie Ege and the evil (duh) Nazi guy from "Raiders of the Lost Ark". The film itself is a cult science fiction fantasy in the best tradition of the late '60's - early '70's, with similarities in style to The Prisoner, early James Bond (slightly), Clockwork Orange, The Abominable Dr. Phibes, and The Avengers (the director worked on the last two of those also). It is years ahead of its time in theme and science, but lapses into camp several times, especially as it progresses. It is rather disjointed, but the acting and sets are both good. Based on a story by Michael Moorcock.

The early-to-mid '70's saw a glut of movies predicting a pessimistic future for Mankind; 'Soylent Green', 'No Blade Of Grass', 'A Clockwork Orange', 'Logan's Run', the 'Planet Of The Apes' sequels and this, based on a Michael Moorcock novel. Jon Finch stars as Jerry Cornelius, Nobel Prize winner, rock star and secret agent, who embarks on a quest to free his beloved sister from the clutches of his evil brother Frank. The world Cornelius inhabits is the Swinging Sixties writ large; recreational drug use, rampant sexual promiscuity, and lack of respect for authority are rife. Writer, set designer and director Robert Fuest had worked on the 'Avengers' television series, and it shows. The sets are dazzling, the supporting cast good, and despite its pessimistic theme the film manages to be fun. Jenny Runacre steals the show as the bizarre 'Miss Brunner', a freakish mutation who absorbs the bodies of her lovers. You really need to watch this to believe it. Funny, stylish and erotic, its a genuine cult oddity.