FLASH GORDON (1980)

He'll Save Every One Of Us....

Yes it's the story of Flash Gordon (Sam Jones), the fictitious quarterback of the New York Jets who inadverdently travels into deep space with intrepid travel agent Dale Arden (Melody Anderson) and crazy-but-misunderstood scientest Dr. Hans Zarkov).  They land on the mysterious planet of Mongo which is ruled by the vicious Emperor Ming (Max von Sydow) who intends to destroy Earth. :o And together, they embark on a crazy sci-fi adventure to try to save their home planet while also encountering various local leaders who may OR may not be able to help them including Prince Barin (Timothy Dalton), Princess Aura (Ornella Muti), and the boisterous Prince Vultan (Brian Blessed).  Forty-five years ago, this comic book adaptation was released into theaters with much fanfare by famous producer Dino DeLaurentis (Serpico, Blue Velvet, Conan the Barbarian, Hannibal) who was hoping that this big budget enterprise would duplicate the success of Star Wars which had come out just three years prior.  Disappointingly, the film received weak box office and weak reviews upon initial release but eventually would grow to be a beloved cult classic on cable and video.....with much of its success due to a slam-bang soundtrack by the band Queen!  And now its legacy lives on very much due to some VERY catchy music featured throughout including the now iconic main theme song perfomed by the band.  Directed by the late, great Mike Hodges (Get Carter, Croupier), it's time to head back to Ming City on our rocket cycle and.......DIIIIIIVE!!!!!

Host: Geoff Gershon
Edited By Ella Gershon
Producer: Marlene Gershon

Transcript

FLASH GORDON - 1980

Directed by Mike Hodges

Starring Sam J. Jones, Melody Anderson, Max Von Sydow, Chaim Topol, Ornella Muti, Timothy Dalton, Brian Blessed, Peter Wyngarde, Mariangela Melato, John Osborne, Richard O’Brien, John Hallam, Philip Stone, Suzanne Danielle, and William Hootkins

Genre: Superhero Sci-Fi Adventure (Audio clip)

It's always a kick revisit a childhood favorite which is NOT particularly appropriate for young children. 🙂 But that's a big reason why it has endured...even before Seth McFarland tried to make it cool again.

Ten Things I Love About Flash Gordon:

1) That whiz-bang opening title sequence featuring imagery from the original comic all set to what MIGHT be the greatest hero theme EVER from Queen. (Audio clip) 

2) Truly gonzo costume and set design from Italian legend Two-Time Oscar-winner Danilo Donati (1968’s Romeo and Juliet) which is WAY kinkier than I remember it...all restraints are modeled as hands!
 
 

3) Max Von Sydow's delicious performance as Emperor Ming including his overall LOOK – the eye make-up, the long devil-beard and that RING of course. He is just having SO much fun here! (Audio clip)

 4) The underrated synth-based orchestral score from classical British composer Howard Blake which is SO raucous that it blends in perfectly with iconic original music from Queen…..especially when those synth notes kick in. (Audio clip)  

5) "Gordon's ALIVE?" and just about anything else uttered by Brian Blessed as Prince Vultan.  Despite being clad in an outrageous get-up, he delivers a performance which is jocular AND joyous….including that laugh! (Audio clip)
 6) Ornela Muti throwing nothing but heat as the sexually liberated Princess Aura. (Audio clip)  😮
7) The Wood Beast Challenge on Arboria...showing your hand into the holes of a giant tree bark….with a poisonous monsters inside delivering bites that are FATAL?  That s@#t STILL creeps me out.
8) The late-great Oscar-nominated TOPOL (not for this movie of course) as Dr. Hans Zarkov chewing the scenery as only HE could. (Audio clip)
9) The creepy and horny exploits of Klytus (played by Peter Wyngarde) and his golden jawline...you can just feel the passion between him and Kala (Mariangela Melato) through their limited screentime together. (Audio clip) 

10) Future Bond Timothy Dalton – T-DAL - playing it 100% straight unlike pretty much everyone else around him and still rocking it in his bright green Robin Hood get-up as Prince Barin. (Audio clip) 

Best Needledrop (best song cue or score used throughout runtime of film):

Now it should go without saying that this is coming from Queen….but up until their Oscar-winning (and kinda lame) biopic Bohemian Rhapsody KIND of ruined the idea of utilizing Queen in movies about seven years ago…..their pop songs were featured in TONS of films.  HOW many exactly?  Well according to Google, needle-drops by Queen have been prominently used in about 69 different movies….so taking that as inspiration, I thought I would have some fun with this category…..ranking….

The TOP FIVE QUEENS NEEDLE-DROPS and even though I’m not a huge fan of the band, it was actually pretty easy for me to rattle off at least FOUR of these off the bat…..

First an Honorable Mention as this was the movie which introduced me to Queen and it’s not a movie which has aged particularly well but still…..kind of inspiring, that would be “We Are the Champions” which plays at the end of Revenge of the Nerds. (Audio clip)   

NUMBER FIVE – Gotta go a bit more obscure here as this is a documentary but it’s just such a playful way to open what is quite the entertaining doc…..the opening credits of Super Size Me from 2003…..the song is “Fat-Bottom Girls.” (Audio clip) 

NUMBER FOUR – Now this was an original song performed by the band for the film’s soundtrack – I believe the only other soundtrack BESIDES this one which they have worked on.  I’m referring to ‘80’s cult classic AND future episode HIGHLANDER….a lovely montage of Connor remembering his life with his wife Heather hundreds of years prior in Scotland….and watching her age, the song is the lovely “Who Wants to Live Forever?” (Audio clip) 

NUMBER THREE – This song has been used in SO many movies but never better than in the ever-rewatchable Grosse Point Blank from ’97….their ICONIC collaboration with the late, great David Bowie which plays during a critical moment at his high school reunion as John Cusack’s Martin is staring into the eyes of the infant child of one of his former classmates…..and apparently finding his humanity. It’s “Under Pressure.” (Audio clip) 

NUMBER TWO – VERY tough call here but yes, the Flash theme for this movie. (Audio clip) 

NUMBER ONE – Yeah you can call this one kind of obvious but it’s obvious for a REASON…..the opening cruising sing-along around Aurora by way of Chicago by Wayne, Garth, and friends in previous episode Wayne’s World….yes of course it’s “Bohemian Rhapsody.” (Audio clip) 

Wasted Talent (most under-utilized talent involved with film):

Ok this is going to seem strange at first but it’s really not….as much as he looks the part and we enjoy his physicality and that winning smile, it’s OK to admit that Sam Jones is NOT delivering a good performance as the titular Flash Gordon, quarterback for the New York Jets.  Sorry he’s just not…..and yes, this movie MIGHT have been better in retrospect with a better actor here.  That said….considering the actor didn’t even make through the end of the production, there IS surprisingly good looping/ADR of Sam dialogue by someone STILL unknown after all of these years - it actually adds to the goofiness of his performance. 🙂 (Audio clip) 

Trailer Moment (scene or moment that best describes this movie):

Now back to Brian Blessed, that distinct look AND voice pretty much drives what remains one of THE most EPIC…..BAD-ASS….FIST-PUMPING action set-pieces you’re ever likely to see on any screen, big or small.  This scene is where ALL of the pieces come together from several top-flight collaborators: Donati’s aforementioned costume design resulting in a stark contrast between the earthy metallic-winged garb of the hawkmen facing off en-masse against the eye-popping bright-red uniforms – with black pith helmets with gold plating - of Ming’s army….and that rip-roaring music Howard Blake.  This is critical to the FIRST of several money shots as we see the long nose of Ming’s AJAX warship creep through these swirls of clouds….with a wide shot of THE full army of Hawkman waiting, wings flapping….when suddenly when Vultan lets out his iconic war cry to signal their descent on to the ship…. DIIIIIIVVEEEE! (Audio clip) 

And speaking of those clouds…..we are talking about a crazy swirl of SO many colors oranges, yellows, purples…..in lesser hands, shooting complicated action against such a backdrop might be incomprehensible but thanks  to sharp cinematography guiding you through all of this aerial chaos from DP Gil Taylor, we can see everything clearly.  Yes the SAME Gil Taylor who worked as cinematographer on Star Wars just four years prior….hmmmm.  And it’s all well-coordinated by the late, great journeyman British director Mike Hodges who HAD directed some classics along the lines of Croupier and the original Get Carter…..more low-key crime dramas though, NOTHING approaching this insanity…. (Audio clip)  

What’s great about this sequence is not only how rousing it is but just how straightforward a climax it amounts to…..Flash is now working with Vulcan’s Hawkman to take the war rocket AJAX warship so that they can reroute it back to Ming City….THAT’S it!  And the great moment which caps all of this?  One last wave of hawkman to hit that ship SO they can overwhelm the enemy when an outer door is blown open…..Flash himself LEADS that wave but a BIT too soon according to Vultan who then responds with ANOTHER great line! (Audio clip) 

MVP (person or people most responsible for the success of this film):

Sorry to sound like a broken record here – pun intended – but this film’s lasting legacy as a beloved cult hit from the ‘80’s – one of several big budget films from around this time period which was TRYING to emulate the success of Star Wars – is pretty much entirely derived from its soundtrack with original songs performed by the groundbreaking progressive/glam rock quartet of Freddie Mercury, Brian May, Roger Taylor, and John Deacon.  The band formed in London in 1970 and ten years later, they were courted by mega-producer Dino DeLaurentis to deliver some genuinely pulse-pounding hummable music for his latest big budget production….and they MORE than delivered.  Bottom line, no one would still be referring to this film nor rewatching it if not for their lasting contributions….and DON’T sleep on that final medley track which plays over the closing credits titled, “The Hero.” For creating one of the best soundtracks EVER and what I believe REMAINS the best big screen representation of their enduring catalogue, the band Queen is the MVP. (Audio clip) 

Final Rating: 4.3 stars out of 5 

Happy 45th Anniversary to A Miracle….King of the Impossible…..Savior of the Universe! 

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And that ends another PRETTY SENSATIONAL review!