Review: Zardoz
Blu-ray: Zardoz (1974)
I sat down to watch infamous 70’s sci fi Zardoz for the first time ever and….. hang on…
I’m 40 minutes in and I feel like I need to start over….
Right. I’ve now seen Zardoz. It really is crazier than a shithouse rat.
I could well leave my review there. You can then decide to go in head first like me, or if you are already a fan, nothing I say will affect your decision either way to purchase this wonderfully bizarre cult classic.
Zardoz is that film where Sean Connery is wearing a red loincloth, pony tail and porno tash for the entire duration…YES that film.
As a newcomer I literally had no idea what to expect and after taking it in 100% sober I still don’t know what is really going on. Written and directed by British film royalty John Boorman (Deliverance, Point Blank) in 1974. Zardoz is a wonderful mess of a film. Somewhere in here are metaphors for class divides, sex, sexism, war and love but I struggle to nail any of these themes down. They are there but the psychedelic lunacy pastes over most of the commentary on British culture.
Sean Connery is a ‘Brutal’ one of a breed of exterminators who roam the beautiful British countryside raping and pillaging in the name of Zardoz who flies around in a big stone head that spews out guns and tells them that the penis is bad. From here on in we are transported to another world that is ruled by immortals that rediscover sexuality and humanity through various encounters with Connery and his sex drive. Throw in lots of nudity (mostly the ever generous Charlotte Rampling) futuristic yet shockingly accurate (Zardoz has the internet in a ring!) technology and an icky sense of molestation around every corner and you have Zardoz. All the fun of taking LSD without the comedown.
Connery’s performance is borderline atrocious but the film still somehow ticks over, mostly because you are too afraid to look away in case you miss more of the unpredictable mayhem! If it was made by Ken Russell then I’m sure all would be forgiven. As an example of British eccentricity, Zardoz stands head and shoulders above most and for all its strange quirks it’s a film to be treasured and rediscovered. Arrow Films have presented a brilliant Blu-ray for the Zardoz hardcore and the newcomer with beautiful package as usual. The transfer and sound are typically excellent here.
Special Features:
- New 4K digital restoration by Twentieth Century Fox, supervised and approved by John Boorman
- High Definition (1080p) Blu-ray presentation
- Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
- Audio commentary with writer-producer-director John Boorman: A nice commentary from the director, reminiscing about the film’s production and themes, John Boorman is firing on all cylinders. Eloquent and sharp throughout. A real treat for seasoned fans and bewildered newbies like myself.
- Brand new interviews with Boorman, actor Sara Kestelman, production designer Anthony Pratt, special effects creator Gerry Johnston, camera operator Peter MacDonald, assistant director Simon Relph, hair stylist Colin Jamison, production manager Seamus Byrne, and assistant editor Alan Jones
- Newly filmed appreciation with director Ben Wheately (Kill List, Sightseers, A Field in England) : The brilliant British filmmaker is interviewed about his appreciation for Zardoz.
- Theatrical trailer
- Radio spots
- More to be announced!
- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Matthew Griffin
- Collector’s booklet containing new writing on the film by Julian Upton and Adrian Smith, plus archive interviews, illustrated by original production stills.
Review by Ramrod (co-host of 60 Minutes With) from a disc kindly supplied by Arrow Films.