Although I’ve had a 7” read along book of this Disney movie since I was a child, this was the first time I can ever remember watching it. My wife couldn’t remember ever even hearing of the film before!
It’s an odd combination of German Expressionist cinematography and set design, vague “haunted castle” / foreboding “sinister mansion” / doomed “disaster ship” vibes, late 1970s Star Wars / post-_2001_ aesthetics, and an amazingly recognizable cast.
I wouldn’t exactly recommend it, especially as the film’s plot eventually just dissolves into “cinematic / psychedelic experience”. However, it is entertaining in a “wow, Disney in the 1970s was a different beast” way, as well as adding interesting differences between popular science fiction treatment of cyborgs and purely constructed automata.
Ever since some close friends lived in Toronto while we lived in Rochester, we’ve been in the habit of vaguely celebrating Canada Day, usually with homemade poutine (or our easier to make nacho/poutine concoction) and some CanCon media.
This film was recommended as a “dark comedy”, but very little of it amounts to laughing types of humor. It’s wry and interesting, but more of a vague apocalyptic art house film about humans making meaning of their lives than an actual comedy.
I’m glad to have seen it—especially as a reminder of all the times I’ve gone to see little art films, mostly when living in Riverside and Rochester—but I doubt I’ll watch it again. Seeing Sandra Oh and David Cronenberg was also quite fun.
We busted out a DVD/CD drive to watch this one, and I’m pleased to report that it mostly holds up to my memories of it.