Directed by: John Boorman
Premise: In the distant future, the world is
divided into two groups: Brutals, nomadic savages who kill for a floating stone
god called Zardoz, and Immortals, an isolated group of perpetually young
psychics who control the Brutals through Zardoz. One of the Brutals (Sean
Connery) penetrates the society of the Immortals and threatens their social
structure.
What Works: Zardoz is an attempt at very
thoughtful science fiction and the film’s strengths are found in its ideas and
images. Even when the story stagnates and the plot gets muddled, the potency of
the images and the concepts behind them are often enough to keep a viewer
interested. The opening sequence, in which the giant stone head of Zardoz
proclaims its gospel of obedience and violence, sets up a subversive agenda for
the film that is mostly seen through. What the film has to say about knowledge,
and how social structures control it to maintain hegemonistic power
relationships, mirrors similar themes in the original Planet
of the Apes and The
Matrix. The film also deals quite interestingly with life and death and
presents some ideas that are on par with such celebrated fare as The
Curious Case of Benjamin Button and Blade
Runner. Although it risks getting too abstract at times, the film uses
striking imagery to deal with these topics and themes and viewers who persevere
through the narrative weaknesses of Zardoz will likely find their
attention rewarded by some provocative ideas.
What Doesn’t: Zardoz is in many ways a
mess. The script would have benefited from another draft as the story spirals
out of control for most of its second act, although it does manage to partially
recover in the climax and denouement. While dealing with lots of big ideas, the
film sometimes struggles to develop them and merge intellectual inquiry with
narrative. In terms of production, this is a film whose ambitions are bigger
than its means and some of the costumes, sets, and special effects are quite
laughable, especially thirty-five years after the film’s initial release.
DVD extras: Commentary track, trailer, radio spots
and still gallery.
Bottom Line: Zardoz, despite its considerable faults, is nonetheless a fascinating film. At the very least it is an interesting footnote in pre-Star Wars science fiction that fans of the genre ought to take time to view.