Futureworld (1976)

Upon uncovering the dirty secret of futuristic theme-park Futureworld, an ex-employee is killed after he tips off two other reporters who decide to do an undercover investigation.

Director:

Richard T. Heffron

Writers:

Mayo Simon, George Schenck

Stars:

Peter Fonda, Blythe Danner, Arthur Hill

1 win & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Peter Fonda	...	Chuck Browning
Blythe Danner	...	Tracy Ballard
Arthur Hill	...	Duffy
Yul Brynner	...	The Gunslinger
John P. Ryan	...	Dr. Schneider (as John Ryan)
Stuart Margolin	...	Harry
Allen Ludden	...	Game Show Host
Robert Cornthwaite	...	Mr. Reed
Angela Greene	...	Mrs. Reed
Darrell Larson	...	Eric
Nancy Bell	...	Erica
Burt Conroy	...	Mr. Karnovski
Dorothy Konrad	...	Mrs. Karnovski
John Fujioka	...	Mr. Takaguchi
Dana Lee	...	Mr. Takaguchi's Aide

Storyline

Two reporters, Tracy and Chuck, get a message from a third one who discovered something about "Futureworld" and was killed before he could tell anyone about it. They visit Futureworld to find out what he knew.

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Plot Keywords:

conspiracy | robot | sequel | theme park | laboratory | 

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Taglines:

Human Error destroyed Westworld. FUTUREWORLD has replaced all humans

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Genres:

Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

13 August 1976 (USA)

Also Known As:

Futureworld - Das Land von Übermorgen

Filming Locations:

16410 Larkfield Drive, Clear Lake, Texas, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$2,500,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

American International Pictures (AIP), The Aubrey Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

108 min (original)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The CGI hand which appears in the film is Pixar president Ed Catmull's. He had previously scanned a life cast of his hand as a short film.

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Goofs

When Harry and Chuck are at the grate before the big blue doors, Harry is wearing gloves when he grabs the grate bars to take it off. He climbs out in his bare hands then walks to the door with gloves on.

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Quotes

Arthur Holcombe: While you are a glamorous, and highly paid television personality, you are still an employee. In fact, you're my employee. So, unless you'd like to spend the next 3 years doing weather and fashion in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, you will now shut up and do as you're told.
Tracy Ballard: Oh, yes? Yes, Arthur? we'll see about that!

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Alternate Versions

For its initial television broadcast, an alternate version of the scene towards the end where Chuck Browning extends his middle finger to Dr. Schneider was shot. Instead of extending his middle finger, Browning performs a sanitized "Italian elbow gesture", where the right hand is placed in the elbow crook of the left arm, then the left arm is raised (fist clenched) in a smooth and continuous motion.

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Connections

Referenced in The Outsider (1997)

User Reviews

Stupidworld

In this infamously unnecessary (and inferior) sequel to "Westworld", Fonda and Danner play hotshot reporters invited to Delos, a fantastic (and fantastically expensive) amusement park. They are brought there, ostensibly, to relay to the public the vast changes made to the park since an unfortunate mishap a few years earlier (in which 50 people were killed!) In actuality, Fonda is there to look into the murder of a man who warned him about evil doings there, but there's still another reason that the duo was invited. The executives of the park have them in mind as part of a bigger master plan! The park is actually made up of four "worlds" with another one in the works. The reporters go to Futureworld where they are promised such exciting activities as skiing the Martian slopes (which turns out to be regular snow shot through a red gel) and riding an asteroid (?! How exactly would one do that and how could it be considered remotely entertaining?) There are a few neat gimmicky treats at Futureworld such as a chess game with holographic pieces that really move and actually take each other out of the game violently and a boxing game in which glove-like handles control the arms of two real-looking pugilists in satin shorts. However, Fonda and Danner aren't really there long enough to enjoy much more of it (and only fleeting - and boring - shots are ever shown of the other worlds.) The reporters wind up staying in a sort of dormitory, sneaking out and around whenever possible to find the real story behind the place. On one guided tour, Danner is induced into having a dream which can then be presented in video format. This is the low point of the film (or high point if one is a camp lover!) as Danner drifts around in chiffon and fake hair while Brynner (a memorable villain in the first film) pursues her all over the place. Eventually, he wards off other attackers and does a tacky, fog-shrouded dance with her and kisses her. Wow..... This is all there is to his appearance! What a rip off. Almost from the start, the film is mindless and tedious, but as it goes along, it gets more and more illogical. Just one of the many nagging questions is this: WHY, in a place where every single thing is monitored continually, are Fonda and Danner able to skulk around in highly restricted areas, flipping on lights and making noise THROUGHOUT the movie? It's ridiculous. There are two fairly decent supporting performances from Hill as an administrator and Margolin as a helpful repairman. Most of the other acting is abysmal. The leads are out of their element and share very limited chemistry. It matters little anyway because the film is so wrong-headed 90% of the time. Even though this cost more than "Westworld", it looks cheaper, with cruddy lighting, unimaginative direction and the space costuming being a particularly glaring miscalculation. Also, any potential surprise about the nature of Delos is completely spoiled during the opening credits. Skip it.