Zardoz
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Zardoz is a 1974 science fiction film directed by John Boorman and starring Sean Connery in one of his first post-James Bond roles. Filmed on a small budget of US$1 million, Zardoz mixture of cerebral, philosophical sci-fi was in complete contrast to Boorman's previous film, the brutal thriller Deliverance.
It is considered a cult film, with its mix of mythology, a bizarre, sprawling plot filled with twists and incongruities, and wide-ranging satirical and allegorical stabs. Although its 1970s aesthetic has dated badly, the film is nonetheless visually impressive, filmed in a perpetually soft focus haze by cinematographer Geoffrey Unsworth. Boorman's studio, 20th Century Fox, was dismayed at the uncommercial mess he presented to them and forced the addition of a misleading prologue and trailers that were at odds with the film. An attempt to market the film to the post- audience was unsuccessful, although the film retains enough of a cult following to have justified a release on DVD with a commentary track by John Boorman.
In 2004 the magazine Total Film described Connery's costume (consisting of a ponytail wig, leather knee boots, and a loincloth which bears a strong resemblance to a giant orange nappy or diaper) as the number 1 "dumbest decision in movie history".
Plot
In a future post-apocalypse Earth (2293) the human population is divided into the immortal 'Eternals' and mortal 'Brutals'. The Brutals live in a wasteland, growing food for the Eternals, who live apart in 'the Vortex', leading a luxurious but aimless existence on the grounds of a country estate. The connection between the two groups is through the 'Exterminators', who kill and terrorize other Brutals at the orders of a huge flying stone head called Zardoz, which supplies them with weapons and ideology in exchange for the food they collect. Zed (Connery), an Exterminator, hides aboard Zardoz during one trip, "killing" its Eternal operator-creator Arthur Frayn (Niall Buggy).Arriving in the Vortex, Zed meets two Eternals — Consuella (Charlotte Rampling) and May (Sara Kestelman) — and is experimented upon by one of them before being made to work for another Eternal, a troublemaker called Friend (John Alderton). The Eternals are overseen and protected from death by an AI called the Tabernacle (a large crystal mass in appearance) and have problems themselves, falling into catatonia through an odd illness or being deliberately aged into senility for violating a complex set of social rules.
Zed has previously uncovered the lie of Zardoz, having been led to an old book, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz - the origin of the name Zardoz. It is then revealed that Zed was created by Arthur Frayn to destroy the Vortex and restore death to the bored Eternals. Zed finds a flaw in the Tabernacle and destroys it, after which the Brutals bring death to the majority of Eternals. A few Eternals escape to make a new life outside the Vortex. The bitter-sweet ending shows Zed and Consuella producing a child, growing old and dying naturally, whilst the sound of the second movement of Beethoven's Seventh Symphony swells in the soundtrack.
Cultural references
The DC Comics character Vartox is a near-carbon copy of Zed. He has an exact replica of Zed's clothing, brown hair, and receding hairline. The character's name is even close to sounding like the film's title.The video game Time Bandit, which has several science fiction references, mentions the "spirits of Zardoz".
Quotes
Zardoz: The gun is good. The penis is evil. The penis shoots seeds, and makes new life to poison the earth with a plague of men, as once it was. But the gun shoots death, and purifies the earth of the filth of brutals. Go forth... and kill!
Friend: We've all been used.
Arthur Frayn: And reused.
Friend: And abused.
Arthur Frayn: And amused!
Friend: We want to do die. What's the trick?
See also
External links
- [Zardoz: Out of Vortex] Yahoo group featuring a compelling database, a timeline, special files, infos, pics and much more
- [Zardoz review, screencaps, soundclips, and a short video clip]
- [Zardoz: Boorman’s metaphysical western]; review by Stephanie Goldberg
- [Zardoz] A recap by Albert Walker
- [Zardoz - The Game] A recent retro-spirited freeware PC arcade game loosely based on the film.
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