Silent Running (1972) Part 1

After creating many of the innovative special effects for 2001: A Space Odyssey, Douglas Trumbull tried his hand at directing, and 1972's Silent Running marked an impressive debut. (In addition to creating the visual effects for Close Encounters of the Third Kind and directing 1983's Brainstorm, Trumbull later turned to the creation of high-tech cinematic amusement park rides.) One of the best science fiction films of the 1970s, Silent Running stars Bruce Dern as Freeman Lowell, a nature-loving astrobotanist aboard the Valley Forge, a gigantic spaceship in a small fleet that carries the last surviving forests of the Earth, which has fallen victim to overpopulation and ecological neglect.

Freeman's name reflects his nonconformist philosophy, which runs counter to the prevailing recklessness of his three ill-fated crewmates, who are eager to jettison their precious payload and return to the bleakness of Earth. Before they can sabotage the forests, Freeman does what he must, and spends the remainder of his mission with three robotic "drones" as his only companions, struggling to maintain his sanity in the vastness of space. Dern is superb in this memorable role, representing the lost soul of humankind as well as the back-to-nature youth movement of the 1960s and the pre-Watergate era. (Appropriately, Joan Baez sings the film's theme song.) A rare science fiction film that combines bold adventure with passionate social conscience, Silent Running will remain relevant as long as the Earth is threatened by the ravages of human carelessness.

Category:

Film & Animation

Tags:

• Silent
• Running
• Bruce
• Dern

[walter0bz]

we should implement silent running in reverse..

earth should be preserved and humans kept in orbit

[ghostmanlostsoul]

If you aren't moved by this film, then you have a heart of stone.

[planeguy52]

I have never cared for Joan Baez, but her music seems perfectly matched to this film.

This flick is haunting and extremely sad.

It is 39 years old, but incredibly relevent to today.

[mike196212]

We used to have the paperback of this at my parents' house,just after the film came out. I t used to play a lot on tv back then. Until A and E brought it back a few years ago, I hadn't seen it in decades. Interesting movie.

[thelaughingman79]

@walter0bz hell yeah it'll be just like cowboy bebop star wars star trek the last star fighter and battlestar galactica all rolled into one lol and deadspace 2

[METRO2033Artjom]

*sigh* if seen this movie the first time today and I have to say that hollywood no longer makes as beautiful movies as this one. Only the usual money maker ...

[SiegmundHildebrand]

Yeah,the soundtrack is really something,that theme at the begining is godlike,however in my opinion it would sound even cooler on a synthesizer ,because synths are perfect for science fiction movies.I remember how schocked i was when i heard main music for Clockwork Orange (1971)

or Blade Runner.

Great soundtrack nevertheless.

[Malocosa]

Wow, Ron Rifkin and Sam Rockwell really resemble one another.

[happymike44]

Guess you missed the point mankind had overpolluted and over populated the planet.

These are the last forests and species to survive and in mankinds idiotcy what does he want to do blow them up.

Sad in this era it was to serve as a warning to perserve our planet.

This year congress want to alway mining in the grand canyon for minerals.

We have the wind and the sun and yet our country can't build the machines to generate an unexhaystible suplly of electricity without burning fossil fuels.

[sr633]

A great movie

[MithrilDwarf81]

We simply arent prepared enough for that far fetched idea. Sending all humanity to space might better preserve Earth, but would also kill a majority of humanity. We are here, because we need Earth to live.

[PrivateAckbar]

The opening reminds me of Danny riding his tricycle in The Shining.