In a future where all flora is extinct on Earth, an astronaut is given orders to destroy the last of Earth's botany, kept in a greenhouse aboard a spacecraft.
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Title: Silent Running (1972)
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Edit
Cast
| Complete credited cast: | |||
| Bruce Dern | ... | Freeman Lowell | |
 |
Cliff Potts | ... | John Keenan |
| Ron Rifkin | ... | Marty Barker | |
| Jesse Vint | ... | Andy Wolf | |
|
|
Mark Persons | ... | the Drone |
|
|
Steven Brown | ... | the Drone |
|
|
Cheryl Sparks | ... | the Drone |
|
|
Larry Whisenhunt | ... | the Drone |
Edit
Plot Summary
|
Plot Synopsis
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Storyline
In a future Earth barren of all flora and fauna, the planet's ecosystems exist only in large pods attached to spacecraft. When word comes in that the pods are to be jettisoned into space and destroyed, most of the crew of the Valley Forge rejoice at the prospect of going home. Not so for botanist Freeman Lowell, who loves the forest and its creatures. He kills his colleagues taking the ship deep into space. Alone on the craft with his only companions being three small robots, Lowell revels in joys of nature. When colleagues appear to "rescue" him, he realizes he has only one option available to him. Written by garykmcd
Plot Keywords:
male protagonist | dying words | death | psychotronic film | greenhouse |Taglines:
Earth's last battle will be fought in space. See more »Parents Guide:
View content advisory »
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Details
Country:
USALanguage:
EnglishRelease Date:
10 March 1972 (USA) See more »Also Known As:
Running Silent See more »Filming Locations:
Aircraft Hanger, Southwest Aviation Center, Van Nuys Airport - 16425 Hart Street, Van Nuys, California, USA See more »Edit
Box Office
Budget:
$1,000,000 (estimated)Company Credits
Show more on
IMDbPro »
Technical Specs
Runtime:
Color:
Color (Technicolor)Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1
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Lyrics by Diane Lampert
Music by Peter Schickele
Performed by Joan Baez
See more »
Did You Know?
Trivia
The "Saturn sequence" was originally intended to be featured in Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), but the technology needed for the visual effects team to do such a sequence was not ready for use. See more »Goofs
When Lowell is driving the vehicle into the storage with the camera on the car, a cargo container on the left hand side is seen with the top lid open, but when the camera position changes, that same container is now closed. See more »Quotes
Anderson: On this first day of a new century we humbly beg forgiveness and dedicate these last forests of our once beautiful nation to the hope that they will one day return and grace our foul earth. Until that day may God bless these gardens and the brave men who care for them.See more »
Alternate Versions
In the Italian version, the three drones are named after "Paperino", "Paperone" and "Paperina" ("Donald Duck", "Uncle Scrooge" and "Daisy Duck") because calling them "Qui", "Quo" and "Qua" ("Huey", "Dewey", "Louie") would have been cacophonous: "Vieni qui, Qui!" ("Come here, Huey!"). See more »Soundtracks
Silent RunningLyrics by Diane Lampert
Music by Peter Schickele
Performed by Joan Baez
See more »
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Maybe one of the most moving things about this film is the fact that the drones (small droids) give such powerful performances without ever being able to utter a word. Maybe a "nod" in some ways to the days of the silent movie. The environmental message is as powerful today as it was in 1972.
An extremely good yet brief film that I felt I had to comment upon it. Enjoyed the hippy theme tune as well just because it fitted right in. These types of film are rare but precious. I remember watching this as a child and it had an impact on me then so I thought I should revisit the piece 20 years later. Absolutely not disappointed.