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Flash Gordon (1980) -also Flash Gordon (1936)
Both worthy of discussion.
For some mysterious reason, I've been thinking about Flash in both incarnations this week; the old one was the inspiration for Star Wars,
and you don't really know your SW w/o having watched the old Buster (get it? I didn't until now) Crabbe serials. For those who never heard, George Lucas wanted to make a Flash Gordon movie - but Dino DeLaurentis had the rights sewn up. -So Lucas came up with a story about, essentially-but-disguised Son of Flash - Ming had hit Flash with an Evil Ray...
Forgetting that is at the heart of how/why Lucas blew it with the prequels; he didn't star and awesome square-jawed all-wholesome hero we could get behind and forget for a second he was going to turn into Space Hitler.
Now, the funny thing is, Flash Gordon '80 obviously owed its very existenceto Star Wars and the mad success of that movie totally inspired by Flash. Pretty circular. -And it came close to sucking hard, too, despite magnificent performances by Max Von Sydow and BRIAN BLESSED! The difference was one Freddy Mercury, who later also rescued Highlander.
Now, the 30's serial - wow, deliciously cheesy. If you've never seen, that's, for example, where the intro scrolling up/back into infinity came from. Seek it out; you'll plotz.
Plenty to talk about here...
For some mysterious reason, I've been thinking about Flash in both incarnations this week; the old one was the inspiration for Star Wars,
and you don't really know your SW w/o having watched the old Buster (get it? I didn't until now) Crabbe serials. For those who never heard, George Lucas wanted to make a Flash Gordon movie - but Dino DeLaurentis had the rights sewn up. -So Lucas came up with a story about, essentially-but-disguised Son of Flash - Ming had hit Flash with an Evil Ray...Forgetting that is at the heart of how/why Lucas blew it with the prequels; he didn't star and awesome square-jawed all-wholesome hero we could get behind and forget for a second he was going to turn into Space Hitler.
Now, the funny thing is, Flash Gordon '80 obviously owed its very existenceto Star Wars and the mad success of that movie totally inspired by Flash. Pretty circular. -And it came close to sucking hard, too, despite magnificent performances by Max Von Sydow and BRIAN BLESSED! The difference was one Freddy Mercury, who later also rescued Highlander.
Now, the 30's serial - wow, deliciously cheesy. If you've never seen, that's, for example, where the intro scrolling up/back into infinity came from. Seek it out; you'll plotz.
Plenty to talk about here...
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