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    The Black Hole

    • 19791979
    • PGPG
    • 1h 38min
    IMDb RATING
    6.0/10
    24K
    YOUR RATING
    • Cast & crew
    • User reviews
    • Trivia
    • IMDbPro
    The Black Hole (1979)
    Watch {VideoTitle}
    Play trailer3:22
    2 Videos
    99+ Photos
    ActionSci-Fi

    A research vessel finds a missing ship, commanded by a mysterious scientist, on the edge of a black hole.A research vessel finds a missing ship, commanded by a mysterious scientist, on the edge of a black hole.A research vessel finds a missing ship, commanded by a mysterious scientist, on the edge of a black hole.

    IMDb RATING
    6.0/10
    24K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Gary Nelson
    • Writers
      • Jeb Rosebrook(story by)
      • Bob Barbash(story by)
      • Richard H. Landau(story by)
    • Stars
      • Maximilian Schell
      • Anthony Perkins
      • Robert Forster
    Top credits
    • Director
      • Gary Nelson
    • Writers
      • Jeb Rosebrook(story by)
      • Bob Barbash(story by)
      • Richard H. Landau(story by)
    • Stars
      • Maximilian Schell
      • Anthony Perkins
      • Robert Forster
    • See more at IMDbPro
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 288User reviews
    • 117Critic reviews
    • 52Metascore
  • See production, box office & company info
    • Nominated for 2 Oscars
      • 8 nominations total

    Videos2

    Official Trailer
    Trailer 3:22
    Official Trailer
    Sneak Previews Season 2 Episode 15
    Video 28:45
    Sneak Previews Season 2 Episode 15

    Photos115

    Anthony Perkins in The Black Hole (1979)
    Robert Forster, Joseph Bottoms, and Yvette Mimieux in The Black Hole (1979)
    Robert Forster, Joseph Bottoms, and Yvette Mimieux in The Black Hole (1979)
    Maximilian Schell in The Black Hole (1979)
    Roddy McDowall and Slim Pickens in The Black Hole (1979)
    Ernest Borgnine, Anthony Perkins, Robert Forster, Roddy McDowall, and Yvette Mimieux in The Black Hole (1979)
    Original Disney prop displayed at D23 booth
    Advance, 1 sheet movie poster approx 27" x 40"
    14 x 22
    Advance with Album Promotion information, 26 x 39
    A1 movie poster -  59 x 84 cm or 23 x 33 inches
    Grande

    Top cast

    Edit
    Maximilian Schell
    Maximilian Schell
    • Dr. Hans Reinhardtas Dr. Hans Reinhardt
    Anthony Perkins
    Anthony Perkins
    • Dr. Alex Durantas Dr. Alex Durant
    Robert Forster
    Robert Forster
    • Captain Dan Hollandas Captain Dan Holland
    Joseph Bottoms
    Joseph Bottoms
    • Lieutenant Charles Pizeras Lieutenant Charles Pizer
    Yvette Mimieux
    Yvette Mimieux
    • Dr. Kate McCraeas Dr. Kate McCrae
    Ernest Borgnine
    Ernest Borgnine
    • Harry Boothas Harry Booth
    Tom McLoughlin
    Tom McLoughlin
    • Captain S.T.A.R.as Captain S.T.A.R.
    • (as Tommy McLoughlin)
    Roddy McDowall
    Roddy McDowall
    • V.I.N.CENT.as V.I.N.CENT.
    • (voice)
    • (uncredited)
    Gary Nelson
    • Drone with Mask Removedas Drone with Mask Removed
    • (uncredited)
    Slim Pickens
    Slim Pickens
    • B.O.B.as B.O.B.
    • (voice)
    • (uncredited)
    • Director
      • Gary Nelson
    • Writers
      • Jeb Rosebrook(story by) (screenplay by)
      • Bob Barbash(story by)
      • Richard H. Landau(story by)
    • All cast & crew
    See production, box office, & company info

    Storyline

    Edit
    An Earth exploratory ship, the USS Palomino, discovers a black hole with a lost ship, the USS Cygnus, just outside its event horizon. Deciding to solve the mystery of the Cygnus are: the Palomino's Captain, Dan Holland; his First Officer, Lieutenant Charlie Pizer; journalist Harry Booth; scientist and ESP-sensitive Dr. Kate McCrae, whose father was the Cygnus's First Officer; Dr. Alex Durant, the expedition's civilian leader; and the robot known as V.I.N.CENT. The Palomino attempts a dangerous fly-by of the darkened ship. As they come within close range of it, the buffeting they experience (due to the black hole's gravity) suddenly ceases. They bring more instruments to bear on the derelict, but do not even realize the gravity-free zone is artificial; slipping outside it, they are almost drawn into the black hole, an abyss from which no one can escape. Matters worsen when Reinhardt holds the crew captive, after realizing that they can help him reach his goal. The squad must now figure out a way to flee from Reinhardt -- before it's too late. —Anthony Pereyra {hypersonic91@yahoo.com}
    22nd centuryblack holespaceshipzombieattempted escape126 more
    • Plot summary
    • Plot synopsis
    • Taglines
      • There is an inexorable force in the cosmos, a place where time and space converge. A place beyond man's vision...but not beyond his reach.
    • Genres
      • Action
      • Sci-Fi
    • Certificate
      • PG
    • Parents guide

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      John Hughes of Tau Films (and formerly of Rhythm & Hues) created the "green grid" sequence that appears in the opening titles. It was the longest computer graphics sequence ever to appear in a film at that time.
    • Goofs
      At the very start of the movie, when Vincent announces, "The largest black hole I have ever seen, Mr. Pizer," and Pizer replies, "Hmm. Let's look at it on the holograph," the viewer can see someone's hand turning Vincent by his left foot. The hand stays there for a moment before pulling back off-camera.
    • Quotes

      Dr. Hans Reinhardt: The word "impossible", Mr. Booth, is only found in the dictionary of fools.

    • Alternate versions
      The Anchor Bay DVD includes a space background in the overture.
    • Connections
      Edited into The Devil and Max Devlin (1981)

    User reviews288

    Review
    Top review
    8/10
    An unfairly marginalised bit of sci-fi
    The Black Hole was one of many films that were released with the intention of cresting the sci-fi wave created by the huge success of Star Wars (1977). More specifically, this was Disney's attempt at the genre and I think it was the studio's first movie that didn't go for a U certificate. The film that it can best be compared to is Star Trek: The Motion Picture, which was also released the same year. Both movies sport fantastic special effects and production values, while both also are surprisingly - and pleasingly - slightly left-field in their approach. Neither really fall squarely into the action/adventure bracket that Star Wars so obviously did, they rely more on atmosphere, some psychological aspects and have some enigmatic qualities which seem to indicate the influence of the earlier hard sci-fi masterpiece 2001: A Space odyssey (1968). For these reasons, I find both these films to be decidedly under-appreciated and interesting. The Star Trek franchise of course went down a different, more comforting route, from the second feature The Wrath of Khan (1982) onwards, while The Black Hole remained a one off that has become more and more obscure as the years go by. So much so that it could reasonably be considered a cult movie on account of its selective appeal.

    From the off, this is visually a very interesting film. It has great sets and model work, which make the giant space craft where the majority of the action takes place an evocative setting. The special effects throughout are in general very impressive and still look good today. But the visuals have been constructed for more than mere spectacle as they combine to create a pretty interesting atmosphere on the whole; they ultimately are used also to set up the strange and ambiguous ending which involves visions of Hell and an alternate universe. This kind of oddness stands out these days, as most big budget sci-fi endeavours mostly avoid such ambiguity, but this is definitely a plus point for The Black Hole. Another serious asset is the really effective main theme from John Barry. This is in all honesty one of his best bits of individual music, its sweeping yet mysterious and complements events on screen extremely well.

    The story itself is pretty simple and boils down to a deep space crew discovering a mysterious spaceship near a black hole, they board it and events escalate. The story is perhaps oddly presented in some ways as there is material quite obviously aimed at kids, like the cartoonish robots (the main one, V.I.N.C.E.N.T., being voiced excellently by Roddy McDowell) but at the same time there are also some decidedly sinister aspects to this one too. So I guess it had a bit of a split focus in some ways, not that that is a terrible thing but it may have accounted for its marginalised position in the sci-fi cinematic pantheon. But whatever the case, I consider this to be one of the best that 70's science fiction has to offer. It's mysterious and left-of-centre nature mean that it is one of the more interesting entries in the genre to revisit.
    helpful•37
    13
    • Red-Barracuda
    • Jun 10, 2016

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • December 21, 1979 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Space Station One
    • Filming locations
      • Walt Disney Studios, 500 South Buena Vista Street, Burbank, California, USA
    • Production company
      • Walt Disney Productions
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $20,000,000 (estimated)
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $35,841,901
    • Gross worldwide
      • $35,841,901
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      • 1h 38min
    • Color
      • Color
    • Aspect ratio
      • 2.39 : 1

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