THX 1138

1971, American Zoetrope

While attending the University of Southern California's film school, George Lucas made a student film entitled Electronic Labyrinth: THX 1138 4EB. Four years later, with the help of Francis Ford Coppola, Lucas turned it into his first feature film. Its borderline avant-garde style, deliberately sterile performances and stream-of-consciousness sound design (created by co-writer Walter Murch) proved challenging to audiences, eliciting a decidedly cool reception and barely breaking even. But after Lucas' runaway hit Star Wars, THX 1138 developed a cult following, and more recent reviews have been quite favorable, suggesting perhaps it was ahead of its time. Much as he'd done with his Star Wars trilogy, Lucas tinkered with it and released a director's cut in 2004. Yes, everyone appearing in the film had to shave their heads. Also, Lucas is said to be obsessed with speed, and the cars in the chase scenes reached speeds of 140 mph. And while the motorcycle stunt went wrong—you'll notice the rider crashing into the cycle—the stuntman suffered no injury.

DKS 12/17/17
Rev 4/6/22

GRUMPY OLD FART-O-METER® Rating:

Almost Nice

 

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