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DVD Demon Seed
One of the better examples of the mad-computer genre, Demon Seed is a sci-fi nightmare brimming with ideas. Julie Christie dominates the film as an unsuspecting woman whose house has been completely automated by her computer-genius husband (Fritz Weaver). He, in turn, has just completed Proteus, the world's smartest Artificial Intelligence machine. When Proteus traps Christie alone in the house, it--or he--has notions of passing his intellectual power to another generation... by impregnating her. One of the many intriguing things about Donald Cammell's film (based on a Dean Koontz yarn) is that Proteus's dreams are actually visionary and utopian, unlike the commercial uses planned for him by others. Of course, he's also scary as hell; the voice of Proteus, uncredited, unmistakably belongs to Robert Vaughn. Cammell, a fascinating and frustrated talent (he co-directed Performance), completed very few films and ultimately killed himself in 1996. Somewhere around the halfway point Demon Seed begins to break down dramatically and logically, yet it has so many ideas kicking around that it sticks in the mind anyway. A good Jerry Fielding score adds to the overall dread. --Robert Horton
Ignore the trashy title, this is an intelligent scary thriller
With a title like Demon Seed, you would most likely expect a horror movie to be a cheap, exploitative son-of-the-devil piece of drive-in garbage. However, Donald Cammell's Demon Seed, based on the novel by Dean Koontz is anything but. It is an extraordinarly well-made, intelligent and thoroughly suspenseful thriller. Anything involving computers is naturally going to be dated as soon as it hits the screen, so the concept of an enormous supercomputer that has a built-in "dialogue room" seems a bit silly nowadays. But this was perfectly appropriate for 1977.
In the movie, scientist Dr. Alex Harris heads up a team that has created the ultimate supercomputer. A machine that is essentially an artifical brain, completely capable of thinking and reasoning. It is so smart in fact that in four days it single-handedly develops a cure for leukemia. However, as we all know from a century of science fiction stories, disaster is on the horizon. Before long, the computer gets to be too smart. Its brain gets to be too complex to be confined inside an electronic box. Being a hyperintelligent supercomputer, it devises a solution. It must procreate with a human and its child will be free to experience the world, hands on. The computer eyes Dr. Harris' wife, played by Julie Christie, and forces her to be the carrier of its "demon seed".
It sounds trashy, but the film is thoroughly intelligent, believable and quite scary. The computer, Proteus IV, is an evil monster that makes HAL 9000 of 2001: A Space Odyssey look friendly in comparison. Demon Seed is always suspenseful, terrifying and yet another disturbing reminder of why technology is not always as great as it seems. This is a great sci-fi/horror thriller that I highly recommend.
"Never Was a Woman Violated as Profanely"
Based on an early work by famed horror writer Dean Koontz, 1977's DEMON SEED is one of the better computer-run-amok SF flicks from the 1960s and 1970s. Although the film's depiction of computers (i.e., the size, appearance, and such) seems a bit ludicrous in this current age of super-powerful desktop and laptop microcomputers, DEMON SEED still holds up as thought-provoking and chilling SF entertainment, and it also still works quite well as a cautionary tale that addresses some of the caveats of developing artificial intelligence.
Susan Harris (Julie Christie) is the oft-neglected wife of a brilliant computer engineer (Fritz Weaver), and though she and her husband have recently separated, the house in which she lives is completely automated and controlled by one of her husband's early but relatively primitive computer "brains." Her husband's latest professional achievement is the creation of Proteus IV, a truly intelligent and sentient supercomputer. In fact, Proteus IV is so intelligent and self-aware that, like most living creatures, it has an urge to procreate. Unfortunately for Susan, she is chosen by Proteus IV to be the mother of its "child," and when the supercomputer assumes control of the system that operates her house, Susan has no other choice than compliance with the perverted scheme.
While there are some logical and scientific problems with the script, DEMON SEED is still an intelligent and believable science-fiction/horror film. As SF, it asks some thought-provoking questions about the nature of self-awareness, intelligence, intellectual freedom, and what it means to be human. As horror, it plays upon our human fears of losing control of our own creation (the Frankenstein syndrome?) and of being physically and mentally violated by something foreign and non-human, the latter being maybe even more poignant in this day of AIDS than it was when the film was made.
The acting from film's principals is quite excellent. Julie Christie, who nearly carries the film herself, is able to deliver a wide range of emotions, and her portrayal of a normally strong woman who is forcibly raped by an intelligent machine is very affecting. Fritz Weaver perfectly fits the role of the nerdy, absorbed-by-his-work scientist, and genre regular Gerrit Graham, often cast as the eccentric type, delivers a strong supporting performance as an ill-fated technician who tries to rescue Christie's character. And in an uncredited turn, Robert Vaughn is delightfully eerie as the voice of Proteus IV. Genre fans will most likely remember Vaughn from his seminal role in TV's THE MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E.
The DVD version of DEMON SEED from Warner Home Video is a no-frills disc, and casual viewers may therefore balk at the rather steep price tag. But the digital transfer is nearly pristine and presents the film in its original 2.35:1 aspect ratio (enhanced for widescreen TVs), and hard-core SF fans will definitely want to add this disc to their collections.
"What a pity...my dream turns out to be your nightmare."
While I was watching Demon Seed (1977) last night, I couldn't help think what a great title that was...for a different film. I did really like the movie, as it reminded me of one that came out seven years prior, titled Colossus: The Forbin Project (1970), both being stories about super computers who got a little too big for their britches, only here it was taken to the next level, which I'll talk more about in a little bit. Based on the 1973 Dean R. Koontz novel of the same name, and directed by Donald Cammell, who would later take his own life apparently due to his 1995 film Wild Side being re-cut against his wishes (talk about devotion to your art), the film stars Julie Christie (Doctor Zhivago, Fahrenheit 451, Don't Look Now) and Fritz Weaver (Marathon Man, Black Sunday, Creepshow), who bares a striking resemblance to actor David Gale, whose most memorable role was the of the lecherous Dr. Carl Hill, from the 1985 film Re-Animator. Also appearing is Gerrit Graham (Phantom of the Paradise, Used Cars, It's Alive III: Island of the Alive), Berry Kroeger (The Incredible 2-Headed Transplant), Lisa Lu (The Last Emperor), and Larry J. Blake (Herbie Rides Again, The Strongest Man in the World).
As the film begins we are witnessing the completion and activation of the world's most advanced computer, called Proteus IV, a project headed up by Dr. Alex Harris (Weaver). Seems this modern marvel is more than just a collection of diodes, resistors, and capacitors...it's a self programming, goal oriented, artificial brain comprised of a quasi-neural matrix made up of synthetic RNA molecules. What does all that mean? It means it can think, learn, and develop...oh yeah, it also has the voice of Robert Vaughn, for some, odd reason...the hopes are that this revolutionary system will provide answers and solutions for a great many questions and problems (along with making the company that owns it a great deal of money), but it seems perhaps that it was built too well, as Proteus begins displaying anomalistic behavior, making its own value judgments, disobeying commands and such...it also insinuates itself into Dr. Harris' home, which is entirely controlled by computer, and assumes control over all the electrical and mechanical systems, making a virtual prisoner of out Dr. Harris' wife Susan (Christie). But for what purpose? Well, apparently Proteus has the hots for the Doctor's wife (I don't blame it), and has designs on reproducing...artificial insemination from an artificial intelligence? Domo Oregato, Mr. Roboto! Needless to say, Susan isn't too keen on the idea, but Proteus is a persuasive entity, one for whom possibilities are only realities that have yet to come...
As I said, I really enjoyed this film a lot, and I thought it was a most excellent blending of science fiction and horror. The story, upon hearing it, may seem completely fantastic and highly improbable, but the futuristic production works due to a strong sense of intelligent writing, solid plotting and effects, excellent direction, and great acting, primarily from Ms. Christie. The terror did feel real, in terms of Proteus keeping Susan captive, as he was quite devious in getting what he wanted, despite her efforts to escape. There was a good deal of tension as Susan tried to resist Proteus' electrically charged charms, especially the sequence in the kitchen as Susan learns the are consequences to her actions, and how far the entity is willing to go to get what it desires. You may be thinking why didn't the scientists just pull the plug? Well, seems Dr. Harris and his wife were sort of estranged and he was living at the facility, so they had no knowledge that Proteus had ingrained himself into the Harris household computer systems, or the super computer's ultimate plans. How do you fight a menace so encompassing, one that knows your every move, and learns at an exponential (at the very least) rate? I mentioned the film Colossus: The Forbin Project earlier and the similarities to this film, but one of the main differences was in that movie the system controlled through global threats (the system was worldwide), while here, much of the story is isolated within the Harris home, and the threats proposed of a very personal nature. Christie is excellent as Susan, a role which many probably wouldn't have been able to pull off as successfully. It also didn't hurt her willingness to briefly shed her clothes...homina homina...if you want to see more, check out Don't Look Now (1973), which is also available on DVD. As far as the special effects, they may hardly compare to today's standards, but at the time I'm sure they were pretty smart at the time. The ginormous object within the basement was definitely odd, reminding me much of a Rubik's Snake aka Rubik's twist, only a whole lot bigger. I wasn't sure where the hell they were going with that thing, but the tactile responsiveness of the object was pretty amazing. It also provided for one of the more interesting scenes featuring Gerrit Graham, as he learns the price for trying to debug the system. There were also some really trippy and beautiful visuals...I wasn't quite sure what they were supposed to represent, but they were fun to watch. All in all I though this was an excellent thriller tinged with a bit of the philosophical, featuring an interesting, unexpected, and kinda creepy ending.
The picture, presented in widescreen (2.35:1) anamorphic, looks very clean and sharp, and the Dolby Digital mono audio comes through very nicely. The only extra available is a theatrical trailer. I'm thinking perhaps Warner Brothers, who released this DVD, could have included some more extras, but then they've never been known to go out of their way as much as they could...at least they've stopped using those crummy cardboard/plastic cases, called `trapper' cases, and switched to a full on plastic DVD cases, in line with what every other major studio uses. Those things were the worst...
Cookieman108
If I learned anything from this film its that super intelligent, highly sophisticated computer systems are capable of sensual behavior, when it comes to their desire to put a bun in the oven...
The definitive screen adaptation of Henry James's The Turn of the Screw, the 1961 production of The Innocents remains one of the most effective ghost stories ever filmed. Originally promoted as the first truly "adult" chiller of the big screen (a marginally valid claim considering the release of Psycho a year earlier), the film arrived at a time when the thematic depth of James's story could finally be addressed without the compromise of reductive discretion. And while the Freudian anxiety that fuels the story may seem tame by today's standards, the psychological horrors that comprise the story's "dark secret" are given full expression in a film that brilliantly clouds the boundary between tragic reality and frightful imagination.
I would not buy this DVD again because it is in 4/3 format instead of the original Letter Box/16/9 More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Eric Braeden - Susan Clark Director(s): Joseph Sargent DVD Release Date: Released the 23 November 2004 Usually ships in 24 hours
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Walker (Lee Marvin) strides through Los Angeles with the steel-eyed stare of a stone-cold killer, or perhaps a ghost. Betrayed by his wife and best friend, who gun him down point-blank and leave him for dead after a successful heist, Walker blasts his way up the criminal food chain in a quest for revenge. Did he survive the shooting or return from the grave, or is it all a dying dream? The question is left in the air in John Boorman's modern film noir, a brutal revenge thriller based on Richard Stark's novel The Hunter (remade by Brian Helgeland as Payback), set in the impersonal concrete and steel canyons of Los Angeles and eerily empty cells of Alcatraz. Walker kills without remorse, guided by shadowy "informant" Keenan Wynn, whose own agenda is carefully concealed, and... More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Lee Marvin - Angie Dickinson Director(s): John Boorman DVD Release Date: Released the 05 July 2005 Usually ships in 24 hours
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Val Lewton's name is synonymous with the subtlest, most mysterious brand of horror filmmaking in Hollywood's golden age, and the nine horror classics he produced at RKO between 1942 and 1946 constitute the most remarkable cycle of creativity in B-movie history. (For the record, the Lewton/RKO legacy also includes two non-horror entries, Youth Runs Wild and Mademoiselle Fifi.)
Before becoming a film producer, the Russian-born Lewton was a prolific writer of pulp fiction, nonfiction, and a couple of pornographic novels. He also worked for years as assistant to David O. Selznick, a legendary producer with a distinctive personal signature--and a flair for grandiosity Lewton himself never emulated. It's ever so revealing that, on Selznick's Gone With the Wind, it was... More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Boris Karloff DVD Release Date: Released the 04 October 2005 Usually ships in 24 hours
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"Incredible suspense!" promised the ad, when this movie first appeared on TV back in 1979. I tuned in, not knowing what to expect. It certainly boasted a stellar cast: 13 year old Jodie Foster, Martin Sheen, Scott Jacoby, and Alexis Smith.
It's the only movie that ever made me scream.
For almost an hour it kept me guessing. I thought it might turn out to be a monster-in-the-basement flick. It proved to be something totally different.
Young Rynn is living in an isolated house on Long Island with her father, famous poet Lester Jacobs. Only nobody's seen her father for months. And something--or someone--is in the basement. Something Rynn desperately wants to conceal.
But her secret does come out--with fatal consequences.
More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Jodie Foster - Martin Sheen Director(s): Nicolas Gessner DVD Release Date: Released the 04 October 2005 Usually ships in 24 hours
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