Stars: James Caan, John Houseman, Maud Adams, John Beck, Moses Gunn
Genre: Action, Sci-Fi, Sport
Rating: R (Restricted)
Runtime: 125 minutes
In the year 2018, violence and crime have been totally eliminated from society and given outlet in the brutal blood sport of rollerball, a high-velocity blend of football, hockey, and motor-cross racing sponsored by the multinational corporations that now control the world following the collapse of traditional politics. James Caan plays Jonathan E., the reigning superstar of rollerball, whose corporate controllers fear that Jonathan's popularity has endowed him with too much power. They begin to pressure him according to their own ruthless set of rules, but Jonathan has rules of his own--the rules of a man determined to retain his soul in a world gone mad. As directed by Norman Jewison (who was enjoying a peak of success during the early and mid-1970s), Rollerball creates a believable society that's been rendered passive and compliant by the homogenization of corporate dictatorships, where the control and flow of information is the only currency of any importance. It's a world in which natural human aggressions have been sublimated and vented through the religious fervor toward rollerball and its players. Rollerball now looks like one of those 1970s science fiction films (another example being Logan's Run) that seems a bit dated and quaint, but its ideas are still provocative and fascinating, and the production is visually impressive. The DVD includes full-screen and widescreen versions of the film, audio commentary by director Norman Jewison, a behind-the-scenes featurette, an interactive "rollergame," trivia, and production notes. --Jeff Shannon
What channel did you say you gave us in your territory?
109. I see. 1-freaking-09. They do origami on Channel 6 of your silly hairball network! You ungrateful cretin!
I will kill you myself! I will disappear your whole family! Tell your people, you want to do business with us, we are on channels 1 through 5! Got it?
You got that?
You see Yevgeny over there, so full of himself now. He used to work in the post office. I introduced him to the proper financing, and now he owns the mines. Yeah, making a fortune. Keeps the miners in line. Good business. You might wonder why I'm not in it myself. I don't need to own the mines, Jonathan. Do you know why? Because I own the man who owns the mines. All he has, I have. Same with the supermarkets, the TV station, locomotive plant. I don't need a political position, because I own the men who do.