Review of Silent Running (1972) by Hector J — 25 Jun 2009

I saw an old write up that mentioned they shot this movie on a shoe-string budget and a 1:1 film ratio, on an aircraft carrier that was about to be decommissioned. It didn't have the advantage of a decent advertising budget, and bombed at the box office.

The model of the valley forge was also used in many subsequent movies and TV series (like Battlestar Galactica), easily recognized by it's geodesic dome structures.

Judging it by standards of it's time, it was underrated by far in many ways. While not quite the same calibre as high-budget films like Blade Runner, it represented a prophetic view of technology and ecology that earned my respect right up there with Hackers, The Matrix, and other movies that used allegory and ground breaking special effects.

Even the music in the closing credits contributed to the theme in ways that were not popular for the early 70's. But if you got it, you *got it*, and if not, well, there are plenty of mindless action movies for you to enjoy.