Several months back, Arrow released HD/Blu-ray box sets of one of the most prophetic, science fiction films of all time: Michael Crichton's Westworld (see March post). Now, Arrow has unleashed its popular sequel, Futureworld, also on HD/Blu-ray.
Directed by Arthur Hill and scripted by Mayo Simon and George Schneck, Futureworld was an anticipated hit in 1976. However, it swerved in a different direction than its 1973 foundation. Indeed, it acknowledged the cowboy calamity of the prior movie, but this time implanted a conspiracy motif, in which world leaders are to be replaced by androids.
As Woodward and Bernstein stand-ins, Peter Fonda's Chuck Browning and Blythe Danner's Tracy Ballard investigate the company behind the world-dominating plot: Delos. This occurs after an employee (Michael Podwell) blows the whistle on the insidious scheme and ends up murdered.
This troubling turn is conducted by the cordial but crafty Dr. Duffy, portrayed by director Hill. To expose his plans, layers are probed, along with Delos' Space Age/NASA-inspired attraction and its clandestine lairs, where a faceless robot named Clark (James M. Connor) makes an appearance, along with cooperating mechanic Harry Croft (Stuart Margolin). As a satisfying perk, Yul Brynner's Gunslinger even cameos in an electric dream. (Now, how about that!)
Along with Futureworld's stunning transfer, the Arrow release contains such spectacular supplements as an audio track by filmmaker/historian Daniel Kremer; an interview with producer Paul N. Lazarus III; a 1976, NASA fact-and-fiction documentary; a reversible sleeve featuring original, poster artwork and a revisionist take by Jeff Marshall; a collector's booklet, written by David Michael Brown, Barry Forshaw and James Rose; an image gallery; theatrical and TV trailers and radio spots.
Futureworld holds up well in light of the A.I. debate, incorporating Watergate worries with techno fears.
One can order either the HD or Blu-ray editions of Futureworld through Arrow, Amazon or any number of physical-media vendors. Like Arrow's Westworld, it's worth the pursuit.
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