Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
Michael York | ... | Logan | |
Richard Jordan | ... | Francis | |
Jenny Agutter | ... | Jessica | |
Roscoe Lee Browne | ... | Box | |
Farrah Fawcett | ... | Holly (as Farrah Fawcett-Majors) | |
Michael Anderson Jr. | ... | Doc | |
Peter Ustinov | ... | Old Man | |
Randolph Roberts | ... | 2nd Sanctuary Man | |
Lara Lindsay | ... | The Woman Runner | |
Gary Morgan | ... | Billy | |
Michelle Stacy | ... | Mary 2 | |
Laura Hippe | ... | Woman Customer | |
David Westberg | ... | Sandman | |
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Camilla Carr | ... | Sanctuary Woman |
Greg Lewis | ... | Cub (as Gregg Lewis) |
It's 2274, and on the surface, it all seems to be an idyllic society. Living in a city within an enclosed dome, there is little or no work for humans to perform, and inhabitants are free to pursue all of the pleasures of life. There is one catch however: your life is limited and when you reach thirty, it is terminated in a quasi-religious ceremony known as "carrousel". Some, known as "runners", try to escape their fate when the time comes, and it's the job of Sandmen to track them down and kill them. Logan (Michael York) is such a man, and with several years before his own termination date, thinks nothing of the job he does. Soon after meeting a young woman, Jessica-6 (Jenny Agutter), he is ordered to become a runner and infiltrate a community outside the dome known as "Sanctuary" and to destroy it. Pursued by his friend Francis (Richard Jordan), also a Sandman, Logan and Jessica find their way to the outside. There, they discover a beautiful, virtually uninhabited world. Logan ... Written by garykmcd
I must admit that I should be ashamed as a sci-fi fan: I hadn't seen this film until recently, and I wanted to better understand the parody from "Free Enterprise".
But I enjoyed the film.
Watching this film against the more recent glut of sci-fi films, I have to say that they made them a little more original back in the 70's-80's, instead of everything being techno-computer-CG-spaceship fights. A grim look at the downside of maintaining an "ideal", utopian society. When you hit 30, you either have the option of willingly submitting yourself to be killed under a pretense of renewal, or having the Sandmen play with you before they go in for the kill. Neither option seems really appealing. But the idea of one of the killers having to face their mortality is an interesting idea.
A little slow in places (but I did keep wanting to see what would happen next), and some of the special effects look really dated (even to '77's "Star Wars"), but the story holds up well, and it's an entertaining ride overall.
It's truly a classic of the genre, and I wish I had seen it sooner.