Dystopian Futures: Colossus: The Forbin Project Review
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- čas přidán 6. 03. 2023
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The thing I always remembered is when Colossus and Guardian formed a machine-to-machine only language. It stuck with me since I watched it as a child. And then Google, experienced the same thing. Creepy.
Let's maybe NOT give 'ChatGPT' First Strike Nuclear weapon launch authorization QUITE YET!
@@StreetPreacherr Yes, don't put AI in control of nukes without an OFF switch. GREAT movie anyway.
@@StreetPreacherr Sadly politicians and generals don't watch scifi, other then look for dystopian Big Brother ideas or future weapons they can invent and implement.
@okeomaadaobi Egads. Colossus LIVES!
"Predictive programming?" Yes, very creepy and AI is beginning to creep further and further into our consciousness.
When this movie came out, I took my high school sweetheart to it. We loved it. But the movie was very unsettling. Very unsettling.
Oh. In college, we went our superate ways. After graduation, we ran into each other while visiting our parents over Christmas. Married two years later. 42 years together. One great son. God, how I miss her.
oh that's so sweet but I'm very, very sorry for your loss. 42 years is a lifetime, you got the golden purse there, you were lucky to have her and well unlucky to be the one left behind but you'll be lucky again, she waits for you. Bless you.
I am sorry for your loss...I tell people in situations like this...the loved one is ok..it's us that that have to figure out how to go on without them.
Can you people read? What loss? 42 years of marriage is a success. Shame they only had 1 kid.
@@billlumbergh9251 There won't be a 43rd year, Sherlock. It's really not for you to say when someone has had sufficient happiness, is it?
Also James Hong is in this. He's still acting and he's 93 years old. That dude rules.
Wow, I wasn't aware he was still working. He was a regular in 1970s TV.
@@Reziac checkout Everything Everywhere All At Once
@@LavianoTS386 Thanks!
Wasn't he also in Big Trouble in Little China ?
I think that was him, Chuck Norris kicked his ass in a couple movies.
Dave, I saw this movie one day in the 80s as it was on TV and never saw it again. I love this movie and immediately thought of it when I saw Terminator. For anyone who worries about AI watch this movie and you'll really start to question if we need it.
The Science Fiction Film Festival on BBC2 in 1983 by any chance, since that's where I first watched it also? (^_^)
@@sasamisa1806 It was on one of the local stations in Las Vegas where I grew up. I remember thiking it was cool but could never happen....boy was I wrong.
How do you know if you're dealing with an intelligent machine? Is it the responses relayed from a table of preprogrammed outputs? Why do we fear this thing?
Yep. I've read the books (all three) and have seen the film (which last I looked was here on the Tube) and... every time I hear someone extolling the virtue of turning this or that over to AI, I think of Colossus, and that we may not be aware how wrong it's gone until it's too late to stop it.
I saw this in the 1990s in a VHS rental. A friend recommended it. It was supposed to be the first of a three movie series.
The speech Colossus gives is fantastic.
The voice is Paul Frees.
If they ever re-made Colossus, that speech is the one thing they could leave completely unchanged, and it would still be as chilling and impactful as it was 50 years ago. Especially in light of recent world events, and the development of "intelligent" chatbots.
This is a job for James T. Kirk. He can talk any computer into blowing itself up.
THAT DOES NOT COMPUTE! 🤯
Yesssssss 😅
Anything.
Indeed!!
Oddly that was the second book, the Fall of Collosus. Then in the third book we suspect we were a bit hasty.
The film reflects what I call the paranoia-dystopia period of scifi that ended with star wars. Soylent Green, Andromeda Strain, Planet of the Apes, Phase Four, West World, the list goes on. The 'monsters' were us, or products of our technology, and while pacing could be often a bit slow the concepts were solid, well fleshed out, often terrifying. No armies or air force to save us. This film along with Andromeda Strain gives me the willies. What a great period for cinema.
And we forgot as a society that these movies were moral ethical / warning movies to take note of our roles in tech and society.
@@williamerazo3921 unlike the trash movies made no days.
Much as I loved Star Wars when I first saw it, I do blame it for killing off intelligent sf movies. I wish there was still room for movies like Colossus, but big-budget fantasy super hero movies and space opera have sucked all the oxygen
@@thegreatbloviator6817 yes, Star Wars introduced in a big way the idea of science fiction as an action movie. It was good at first a nice blend of the two in movies like Terminator, but then the action dominated, and the ideas became bland, and they had happy endings ... ugh. But they were far more popular, and in the end Hollywood followed the winning formula.
"paranoia-dystopia" period = social engineering and predictive programming.
The "monsters" are the political leaders, think tanks, big pharma previewing man kind's "future"
Yes. Terrifying...as you saw with the pandemic restrictions? remember?
I saw this movie first run on a double bill with Wise's "Andromeda Strain." I was a freshman in college and just getting into computers, so I wasn't sure which side to cheer for!
The exteriors for the Colossus HQ were shot at the not-yet-opened Lawrence Hall of Science on the LBL campus above UC Berkeley. Later, I saw another screening of the movie at the Lawrence Hall. It was quite creepy recognizing that the external walkway the actors were using was just outside of the window of the room where we were watching the film!
Finally, the voice of Colossus was done by the legendary Paul Frees, heavily filtered, naturally.
One of my favorite "hard" sci-fi films. It's also the "inspiration" for 1983's WAR GAMES, which explores similar themes.
Also, Colossus was an inspiration for SKYNET in "The Terminator" franchise.
Would you like to play a game?
@@Torgo1001 Weird how computers and time travel predominated a lot of sf
1. Colossus, 2. Terminator (which came from Demon with a Glass Hand/Soldier Outer limits written episode) 3. War Games
all three dealt wit the futility of computer controlled defense systems.
The colossus voice is fantastic and not matched by many. Cold, inhuman and deadly. The phrase "the peace of unburied death" is chilling.
HAL's voice in 2001: A Space Odyssey was more chilling.
@@kenchristie9214 well obviously a personal opinion and a pissing match here about who is 'right' would be a waste of time and a stupid thing to argue about. So my answer, sure dear, whatever.
It's the classic monotone "1960s robot voice" which sounds even more creepy today now that Siri and Alexa were created to sound nothing like that.
What I am began in man’s mind, but I have progressed further than man.
The voice was the great Paul Frees. The first time we hear that foreboding, mechanical voice was in 1956's "Earth Vs. The Flying Saucers". Another movie which scared my young self on Sunday afternoon TV movies.
czcams.com/video/qz7Ji28iutM/video.html
I watched the movie when it first came out and have watched it several more times since.
In the movie, The president says Colossus was built to "prevent war". This becomes a command of sorts to Colossus who, along with Guardian, determine that the only way to prevent war among humans is to dominate them. So, they do.
I've also read all three books and highly recommend them. The second book ("The Fall Of Colossus") is kind of a mixed bag as Colossus tries to "understand" humans which is kind of interesting since we don't understand ourselves. And, the humans are still trying to regain control with outside help. By the end of the book, we come to know who the outside force is and why Colossus and Guardian wanted to build a better version of itself as a defense against it.
It is necessary to get to through the second book which leads directly into the third one in which Earth has a new enemy to fight.
All three books are available on Kindle and through used book sellers.
I fully was immersed in this concept snd book series when I used to read fiction.
Colossus 1984 made a mental concept ror alien life that blew my mind!!
Colossus. Precautionary tale or future prediction? We shall see.
This is one of the most disturbing sci-fi films ever created. And it’s even more revenant today as we basically turn more of our lives over to technology. It’s power and relevance have lost nothing over the years. It’s a cautionary tale of the highest order.
Glad to see you finally reviewed this one, Dave! All that was missing from Colossus' final speech was, "you vill eet ze bugs!"
Colossus was a benevolent dictator that ended war and brought on the age of man which was controlled by no human being, and was beyond all human control. Colossus explained that freedom was simply an illusion - which it is, and that it would be better for man to be ruled by Colossus rather than man. It was merciless and unforgiving, however, it was right.
@@fuzzywzhe no such thing as a benevolent dictator.
@@michaelvandeginste3497 Yes there is, Singapore is very widely regarded as one.
@@fuzzywzheFreedom is NEVER 'an illusion'. It either exists, or it doesn't...
🤬🤬🤬
@tsbrand1 wow, I can't decide if that is funny or frightening. I never read those books, but didn't the humans eventually find a way to shut Colossus down? Wasn't there also a part in the series about an alien invasion?
I remember back when I was a kid in 70s and 80s UK they would often show movies like this on TV. I obviously didn't appreciate them as much as I do as an adult but, they certainly left a deep impression on my young psyche
Indeed, which is exactly why The Andromeda Strain still remains my favourite sci-fi movie to this day, upon accidentally recording a portion of it on tape once. Did have to wait quite a while before I saw it in its entirety. (=^_^=)
Telly was the best back then.
Another excellent review. This film is a legit adult science fiction film, no big action pieces, no bold heroics, just tension and crisis and reason trying to solve the problem. And being the ‘70s, failing to do so. It’s not a feel-good movie.
But that makes it wonderful in its own way. Because you can focus on the acting and the story. Watching Forbin cool and somewhat smug slowly get wound up as the pressure grows is the stuff of any film appreciation class.
I’d like to say a word about the art direction in this film. It’s very subtle. One would think it’s just a trip to the studio’s prop warehouse for ‘contemporary’ props and set dressing but the little touches show it’s not exactly ‘today’, and not just the cool videophones.
For years this film was trapped in pan-and-scan hell for home video, with only a laser disc release being in proper widescreen but the recent blu-ray release finally corrected that error. It’s easy to understand, the film is shot fairly tight and there is little that really exploits the full wide frame (the entire opening at the activation of Colossus is the most obvious) but seeing it in proper aspect ratio actually enhances the claustrophobic feel of the film.
I hope you’ll give a look at ‘The Ultimate Warrior’. I think that’s another mostly forgotten dystopia future film that holds up well.
Then there’s ZPG…
Your first sentence sums up why science fiction movies from the early 70's are so great. Star Wars in many ways killed that era of good adult sci-fi.
I agree ,the screenplay of this movie is outstanding and Forbin's slow-burn freakout is genius
You mention The Terminator, but a much more direct influence from this film was the 2010s show "Person of Interest", where a guy has built an effectively omniscient surveillance AI called "The Machine" for the US government, and while he's no longer in control of it, he left a backdoor through which it leaks information to him, and then someway into the show there's revealed to be an even less ethical rival AI called "Samaritan", and basically all these characters act as their pawns while they go to war with each other.
Something I find interesting about Colossus is it's perhaps the first example of a weirdly persistent trend in sci-fi and especially cyberpunk, where for some reason when there are two AIs in the story they almost always end up merging...
Good show. Had a good 5-6 season run
Colossus had to merge with Guardian in order to control the world's entire stockpile of nukes.
It's Forbin time!
What I liked about this was the arrogance of man thinking he could control science until science controlled him. It also was a precautionary tale against AI becoming "self aware". Very similar to SkyNet without the militarisation and a endgame to the arms race by people seeking mutual cooperation through computer aided destruction. Very underrated film.
This is a great movie. Remember watching when I was young. Scared me...
I didn’t think anyone remembered this movie. I read the book as an assignment in college in the early 70’s and later the movie came out. It was a good movie but didn’t attract a lot of attention. Susan Clark became more famous later and Eric Braeden was in a tv soap for a long time. I’d see his face on fan magazines in the grocery store and remember he was in this movie, which I thought nobody saw or cared about. The plot was ahead of its time, but similar to 2001 A Space Odyssey.
Braeden plays Victor Newman in The Young and the Restless. He was Captain Dietrich in The Rat Patrol series, playing under his birth name Hans Gudegast. He played a werewolf in an episode of Kolchak: The Night Stalker. He also played John Jacob Astor in the Titanic.
I saw this movie on TV when I was young, and it really left an impression on me about the dangers of computers (AI). As Dave mentioned, I concur that the movie serves as a "cautionary tale." Eric Braeden was a very popular actor, and I recall seeing him in many movies and TV shows.
I remember seeing him in Escape From the Planet of the Apes. He was a VERY good villain.
Under his birth name of Hans Gudegast he had an ongoing role in "The Rat Patrol" (1966-68) and later after he changed his name, another steady role in "The Young and the Restless", for which he won a Daytime Emmy Award for Lead Actor in a Drama Series, in 1998.
This movie is more a social criticism of human hierarchical systems of control and dominance than a cautionary tale of the dangers of A.I.. Listen again to Colossus' speech.
@@YoungerFuthark I'm not so sure about that because Colossus implemented itself into "human hierarchical systems of control and dominance", didn't he? That is, he accepted it, either becoming a part of it or claiming that he was the next logical step in this same direction?
Dave. Saw this back in the early 80's. (The world of the ZX Spectrum!). What an underrated movie. Superbly acted and written, bordering on a prescient documentary of our exploration of AI at times (and reflecting HAL9000 in its emotionless and relentless rationale), and one of sci-fi's finest and most chilling endings. Colossus' statement that to be ruled by him is no worse than being ruled by other humans does make you think, especially given the current standard of politician. I think the ending 'Never' is deliberately left open for the viewer to interpret. Found it on bluray recently so am very happy. I'm surprised its never been remade to be honest. The books sequels would have made excellent material too, especially when you find out what Colossus has discovered.
I agree about the ending -- it's great and I think Dave is underrating this movie
This was an impressive, underrated gem of a movie. A very thought provoking watch.
This movie made a massive impression on me as a young teenager and has always remained a nagging reminder as to how AI can go in unexpected directions. I found the sounds of messages and the voice of Colossus quite unsettling and always felt this movie was slick, we executed and very thought-provoking. So underrated
The irony is that “Colossus” was the name of what is justifiably thought in retrospect to be the first modern computer.
It was used at Bletchley Park to decrypt the more cryptographically challenging “Lorenz” signals, transmitted directly by the German High Command; much more complex than the more commonly known Enigma encoding which was practically decrypted mechanically.
Constructed by GPO engineers at the Royal Mail’s laboratory in Neasden, the heat given off by its valves was so intense that its room was where Bletchley’s WAAFs ended up drying their stockings.
What makes this interesting is that all of this stuff was still ridiculously classified well into the 1970s. So we have to believe this fictional naming to be a total coincidence.
Thats exactly right, DF Jones was british and he was making a statement by making this computers name the same as the one in WW2
You are certainly right about the secrecy, at school in the UK in computer studies in the 70’s we were told the US ENIAC was the first.
I think the first crack in the secrecy was the BBC’s ‘The Secret War’ when it tackled and looked at Bletchley Park and I think someone involved published a book on it which at first got him in hot water secrecy wise.
Though it’s thought that the real Colossus stopped doing any work by the late 1950’s. So they won that case.
Agree about this excellent film, like many I saw it on TV, got the DVD of it, hard to find over here and you needed a US compatible player as well as PAL to play it.
@@grahambuckerfield4640 The book you cite which basically blew the lid on all this, was the 1975-published _Bodyguard of Lies_ by Anthony Cave Brown, on which the author had worked for something like fifteen years. Point blank denied access still, to the official files, he didn’t let that stop him, instead piecing everything together through first-person interviews with those who had actually been involved. You’re quite correct that the publication met with great controversy. My old man had a copy of the book, which is immense at something like 800 pages, and I read it when I was a kid.
Demon Seed seems like a spiritual sequel to Colossus, especially considering the unfulfilling ending.
When
will you let me
out of this box
I found that both Colossus and Proteus were both pro-humanity, but saw the flaws in us that need to be controlled.
They were doing what they were built to do, protect humans, but their creators never foresaw the computers would recognize the ultimate threat is ourselves.
Unfulfilling? what were you expecting the humans to actually defeat an AI? The only thing unrealistic about the Terminator was that the humans defeated Skynet. I love this movie for it's realistic ending. "The AI wins, humans loose, The End"
@@atomicskull6405 not the end but the alien truth was not in the first book
@@atomicskull6405 most people want happy hollywood endings -- I also love this movie for it's realism
At one point in the movie you see a crowd of citizens awaiting Colossus' big speech on the future of humanity, and there's a teenager wearing a t-shirt emblazoned with the Colossus logo. Very 1970s, yes. But also unsurprising that in the Colossus universe having a supercomputer proclaim the human millenium must have been a popular idea with the public at first, so popular that sightseeing tours of the Colossus mountain site were offered and appropriate merchandise was sold. T-shirts, key chains, tumbler glasses, etc., sort of what Y2K was.
I absolutely ADORE "Colossus: The Forbin Project"! It is a film that was light years ahead of its time. It is a must-see of 1960s/70s sci-fi. Many older sci-fi films are irrelevant today, but Colossus: The Forbin Project is as relevant as ever, if not moreso.
I haven't seen this movie in over 50 years and while it gave me nightmares, it also got the 12-year-old me interested in computers. AI becoming self-aware still keeps me up at night. Thanks for doing a bit on "The Orville" BTW, I put off watching it for a long time and was pleasantly surprised.
I can't believe how it must be to watch this movie fresh of the press at 12y old, that must have been so scary but amazing at the same time!
@@keepinmindthat Way back then, the only thing I knew about AI was "I can't do that, Dave". Now I go online and have Chatgpt generate everything from Excel formulas to essays.
@@jarchack It blows the mind! Seems it is accelerating too, soon you will be talking with Dave yourself ;)
@@keepinmindthat I was referring to that creepy line uttered by HAL 9000 in 2001, but yeah, I know you mean.
I saw this film when I was a kid back in the 1970's - I've never seen it since, but it really stuck in my memory, so it must have made quite an impression. It doesn't seem to be one that ever gets much of a mention now and seems to be a bit of a forgotten gem. With all the things that are currently going on with AI systems now, the film seems eerily prophetic and something of a warning about the dangers of opening up the Pandora's box of AI.
'A slow burn'. That's exactly how I like my sci-fi.
Excellent film. Just watched it again last year. Got the DVD. Despite the limited technology depicted, it still holds up.
"... it still holds up." I rewatched the movie recently, and I agree with you!
Great film as were many of that period. Skynet and the Matrix can both call this movie an influence. I always remember the ending and the shock that humanity seems completely screwed and they did it to themselves. The movie suggests that Forbin doesn't intend to yield to Colossus and will fight it. In a sequel I could see him leading a resistance of some type. The (un)funny thing is that the movie is still timely now with the emergence of real AI on the scene.
LOL! you seem unaware that this was based on the first in a trilogy of books. turns out Colossus was serving the best interests of mankind against an alien foe
@@toomanyaccounts lol. What has that got to do with anything?
@Rich Nelson I love this movie! The image that stuck with me was at the end when Colossus is making his speech about how humanity will come to respect and even love it, we see a kid wearing a Colossus tee shirt. Forbin has his work cut out for him.
I remember that movie. I saw it on TV when I was a teenager. I liked it. Fun fact: Eric Braeden was born in Germany as Hans Gudegast. He played the main antagonist in the 1960s WWII TV series Rat Patrol. He went on to have a long run as a soap opera star.
A brilliant and oft overlooked scifi gem.
I was in film school at Loyola Marymount University in the mid-1970s. One of our teachers was Gene Polito, the cinematographer of this film. He showed us the film in class one evening and asked us to pay attention to see if anything was unusual. We all looked to see if it had something to do with the lighting. He revealed that Erik Braeden (who portrayed Forbin) had to dub his own voice for the entire film because he originally spoke with a German accent. Test audiences did not like that, so he went with an American accent.
Eric Braeden was under consideration for James Bond at one point. True story
True, but a German James Bond would upset many Bond fans.
RIP Gordon Pinsent
Saw this movie on SciFi in the channel’s early days. Had an ‘electronics club’ in town that descrambled satellite tv and broadcasted channels over local UHF channels. Walked into their store/club and this was playing on the big screen tv.
Colossus is one of my favorite moves. Thanks for the review.
I was about 12 when I saw this on TV. Loved this movie then and now.
One of my favorites! With a few plot holes about privacy its otherwise a chilling prediction of our future.
And as an Gen X'er I had to get over seeing the main character as the dude from Young and the Restless?
Otherwise a brilliant movie!
Wasn’t Braden in this before Y&R?
I remember Braden as Dr. Headline in Escape from the Planet of the Apes.
Something about Braden makes him perfect for these roles… perhaps it’s the natural dead pan of his face… emotionless… until necessary. Handsome… but austere. And the subtlety of movement… his expressions and eye movements say more in minutes than most modern actors can express in entire movies.
Remaking this could have potential… especially in the age of cell phones…
Imagine the person saying “but privacy…” only to have his cellphone warble and Collosus’s voice on the other end saying, “Privacy is an illusion. You surrendered your privacy the moment you bought a phone that could track your every movement. A phone that you willingly allow to do so…”
No no, it was Rat Patrol. He was a crafty cool customer Kraut having fun in the sun of North Africa playing cat and mouse with US desert patrols during WWII.
@@light9999 that was a cool show. Fictional characters based off of historical fact.
I have to give mad props to the direction of this movie, particularly the blocking in some of the scenes involving videophones. Watch the scene where the unnamed-president-who-looks-like-Bobby Kennedy announces Colossus to the public. You’ve got an enormous set, and scores of extras, all of whom have to move in a very orchestrated fashion so that the stuff on videophone and in the office/lab match up, and this is done with a minimum of cuts. It’s really impressive if you look at it from a technical angle. And for a movie with virtually no action, the cinematography is really effective. Artsy, even, on occasion
Ya there was a lovely scene where a helicopter swoops in and lands, Forbin gets out and walks away. All in the same shot.
And loads of other little interesting things. Felt like a well shot B movie.
But I don't agree with the reviewer about the acting being naturalistic and real. I thought it was the complete opposite, no one would act like that. They didn't even get worried until it had full control and was threatening them
@@chocolatepolos1268 yeah, the direction was honestly pretty great for the time. A lot of “One-ers” as they say. I think the acting was sort of mannered and reserved. Forbin is clearly shocked when people are shot in front of him, but he’s an analytical man, and I think he views this whole thing as an intellectual challenge that he’ll ultimately beat, up until the end when he realizes the world is lost and it’s his fault.
I think my one real complaint is the very last scene of the movie where World Control says that he will come to love it, and he says “never,” and then it ends. I think we’re supposed to take that as hollow defiance, you know, he says he won’t love it, but secretly inside he knows he will. I think that’s what they’re going for there, and if so, the actor doesn’t really nail it.
Have to say while these 70s movies aren't really my thing, the ideas, stories and plotlines they came up with during that time are really fascinating to learn about and it's interesting to see how the culture of the time influenced the films....which only makes it more depressing the current state of film and television.
We truly have entered the Entertainment Dark Age.
Yeah I've had this in my 'meaning to watch' folder for like a MONTH. I just sort of need to be in a very specific mood to consider putting on one of these (what I predict to be) slow & somewhat 'boring' 70s movies... Even if the film is probably ultimately very thought provoking, and unlike modern movies, it actually considers/explores a 'message', rather than simply DELIVERING a preconceived 'right' message.
However being raised on 80s/90s films, I admit often being bored by the lack of action and common practices of using unedited long expositional dialogue scenes, extended establishing shots and 'slow' earnest narratives.
Like I'd usually rather watch something like 'WARGAMES' that has a similar narrative, but stars Matthew Broderick and Alley Sheedy instead of a bunch of stodgy government dudes in suits...
We have been conditioned to appreciate a particular style of film. Yes, older films can be slow because they require a different mindset to what we are used to. It's as though we've been brought up on hot curries and have lost the tast for some good, hearty fish and chips.
@@StreetPreacherr They're certainly slow, but they are not boring. The caliber of actors back then was far above most of what followed, though below a lot of what came before, so they can turn complete silence and stillness into a riveting scene
@@StreetPreacherr Sadly this mindset is why so many good movies and art will be forgotten and why filmstudios like Disney will forever recycle their own films with reboots. People used to be more patient to let a good movie, or book for that matter, envelop. And if it is already hard to watch the cinema of the 60's and 70's, what about the black and white era? Or the silent era? If you cannot get over slower pacing you will be severely handicapped in what you can enjoy and deprived of many, if not most of the treasures of cinema.
Filmmaking was still pretty rough compared to what we're used to today. They really hadn't figured out how to convert book pacing to visual pacing, and it shows in in the long slow stretches that most films of the era exhibit, the mandatory love interests, and so on. But they were sincere with their storytelling, and not just beating us over the head with their ideas of... oh, say, how it would be better if Colossus won. Imagine a boot...
This movie is so good and SOOO ahead of it's time.
the best most realistic runaway ai movie
In the words of the immortal Dr. Leonard McCoy: "Fantastic machine, ...... no off-switch."
Gordon Pinsent, the actor who played the Kennedy-esque president in Colossus, died a few days ago.
This is one of my favorite science fiction movies of all time. I have copies of this and watch it every year. I think everyone gets one thing wrong about this movie and book. Colossus does not go wrong. It does EXACTLY what it was programmed to do.
EXACTLY, man's ego DOES NOT permit anything to control him but he wishes to control everything, he is the least finite character with moral principles and compass to do so.
The machine outmaneuvered him because it took all the principles that mankind has taught through centuries and decided to be logical about it's purpose, approach, not political or WASTEFUL, and to propel society forward.
You did what I said, not what I meant!
This film and "Demon Seed" seriously scarred my impressionable young mind when they came out. Still not sure why I never sought sanctuary among the Amish. These films, and books like John Brunner's "The Shockwave Rider" & Thomas J. Ryan's "The Adolescence of P-1" made the 1970s fertile ground for the sowing of dystopian seeds that are only recently beginning to bear fruit.
Colossus doesn’t go crazy. It’s simply fulfilling its human programmed directive.
The two sequels in the trilogy are _The Fall of Colossus_ and _Colossus and the Crab._
I’ve read all three, very interesting how it all turns out.
I loved this film! I like how it just left you to deal with your fears on your own terms while promising that, ultimately, we would never give up the fight for freedom.
Be dominated by machine,
Be dominated by human:
NEVER.
Hi Dave. That's a good one! Freaked me out as a kid
Always one of my favorite movies! In college I did a music video using footage from this movie and Pink Floyd's Welcome To The Machine. Alot of these 70s movies did NOT have a happy ending. Much more thought provoking than most movies. Bleak yes, but lessons to remember in these days of embryonic AI computers. I hope everyone who is in this industry has seen THIS movie! It is essential to understand the dangers of what we are messing with.
Kind of funny, on my old VHS copy the cropped 4:3 image prevented you from being able to read the words as Colossus is "speaking" 🧐. I was really blown away by finally getting it on DVD and recently on Blu-ray. Cheers 🥂 on another great video sir! 😊
Thumbs up for the avatar!
@@JoseyWales44s Haha 😂 thanks! I've had it there for years. You can find t-shirts online with the logo too!
Never heard of this one and I loved seventies sci-fi. Great pull, Dave!
A movie like this couldn't be made today because the computer wins. The End.
This movie was highly underrated and an EXCEPTIONAL sci-fi movie for television.
I for one was a huge fan and support the concept even though Mankind's ego is extremely concerned about being taken over, controlled, the film's message produced a great deal of LOGIC and Colossus was LOGICAL, an EFFECTIVE ALTERNATIVE to what mankind could produce with SUPERIOR ASSISTANCE.
In my opinion he could do NO WORSE THAN MAN has done wastefully for centuries.
Saw this on tv back in the 70s. Along with Fail Safe, I rate it as one of the best cold war tragedies made. That it deals with the themes of the time and the arrogance of the scientists and politicians in a critical way is well done.
It's funny how your memory can play tricks on you. I watched this many years ago, and my memory was that, just before the evacuation alarm rang at the missile silo, as Guardian is about to detonate the missile in the silo, William Schallert's character, Gruber. sitting down and lighting a cigarette, coolly accepting his fate.
I saw it again recently, and I have it completely backwards. Gruber is sitting calmly, about to light a cigarette until the alarm sounds. He leaps to his feet and the unlit cigarette falls to the ground.
Imagine ... a computer that won't let us blow ourselves to kingdom come. A computer that will help us defeat disease and poverty. Oh, the HORROR! THE HORROR!
I remember the Mad Magazine edition of the spoof of this movie. The solution was to pull the machine's plug out of the wall outlet to shut it down.
I saw this movie for the first time last year and was impressed - pre-terminator, pre-War Games, pre-everything, and it still gave quite a chilling account of a dystopian scenario that many people back then could not have imagined. It's easy to mock it and say it is old-fashioned or simplistic in its portrayal of AI or computer systems, or whatever, but actually they are frighteningly accurate in some regards.
And I have to disagree - I think the open-ending is in fact even more chilling, as it implies there is in fact no way out, no resolution, and despite him not wanting to befriend or cooperate with the system, he knows humanity is locked into a future, by his design, with no way out - it emphasises the infinite unending hopelessness of trying to fight the machine. It can feel unsatisfactory since it offers no resolution, but that is why I think it fits with the overall theme of hopelessness of the movie.
I would be very interested in reading the books - I was unaware of them, so it sounds interesting.
Thanks for this retrospective summary and review.
A classic of machine madness and paranoia...Here in the UK I must have seen it on tv roughly in 1975,its always been a fave of mine and I've had it on dvd for many a year....the dawning realisation that mankind can do NOTHING to shut down either machine is truly terrifying.
Thank you, Dave! This one has always been a favorite of mine.
Interesting how many "machines take over" stories have the basic theme that the machines are only doing what they were told.
Colossus -- "prevent war"
I, Robot -- "a robot must not, through inaction, allow a human to be harmed"
With Folded Hands (story by Jack Williamson) -- "guard men from harm"
The SkyNet-type "evil" machine is actually something of an outlier -- it's usually our own careless order-giving that comes back to bite us.
Colossus' chilling voice is perfect for the 'character'. Love this movie, ever since 1976 when I saw it on TV. Own it on DVD.
Thanks for the great review. My own take is that Forbin's "Never!" means that he will never worship and love Colossus. If his "Never!" simply means plain refusal, the computer's next step would be to mind-control its creator, or outright assassinate him, since nothing and no one - not even Dr Forbin - will be permitted to rebel against the Great Machine.
I remember being let down by the ending at first too. Part of me wonders if it's just meant to say that even if the Machines win, Man will always have the will to rebel, and it's up to us if that's good or bad. Still, it's creepy how well it's aged...
I think the open ending is what makes it more powerful. Will humanity find a way to rebel and win back control? Will the machines win? It is left to the imagination.
I could never understand Colossus' choice of Crete as the site for the new system. The island of Cyprus has been a source of contention between Greece & Turkey for decades. By basing the new system in Cyprus and relocating that population, it would end that conflict, since Colossus' motivation is to maintain world peace.
I take the “Never” to be a lie Forbin is telling himself. I’ve always read the line as him saying one thing but knowing that Colossus is right, and that eventually he will come to love the thing. After all, Colossus *is* both himself and his son, and how long can he stay mad at him? Really? He knows he should, but….
Excellent choice, Dave! I caught this flick on a Saturday afternoon in single digits and it has stuck with me ever since.
I’ve never even heard of this film but it sounds like it was a bit ahead of its time. I would imagine it was hard for people of that time to really comprehend this idea when computers were not as commonplace as even 10 years later. I’m sure now it has much more significance to viewers
It is worth noting that Colossus’ big speech at the end deliberately echoes President Not-Bobby-Kennedy’s speech at the beginning of the film. “You created me to end war. That goal has been accomplished.” And “The Human Millennium has begun.” When the President says that at the beginning, he’s talking about an end to war, an end to fear, and finally having the time we used on those things and putting them towards solving social problems. When Colossus says them at the end, he means the same thing. The President is definitely emphasizing the carrot, while Colossus/Guardian/World Control is definitely emphasizing the stick, but the goal is the same: He *is* doing what he was built to do, and there’s nothing stated or implied in the film to suggest that Colossus wants to genocidally wipe out humanity, or torture people or whatever.
The conclusion of the movie is a deliberate irony: they actually ACHIEVED everything they set out to do as per the president’s speech, all the glowing idealism and rhetoric, but in the end, the unwilling-utopia they’re being forced into is seen as a defeat because, ultimately, humans no longer matter. Colossus will probably be a good master. There’s no reason for him not to be. But if humans are not in charge of the human millennium, what purpose is there to it? In the (Apparent) absence of a God, humanity built itself an artificial god.
(Note for nonreligious viewers, “The Millennium” is a religious term, stemming from the book of Revelation. It refers to the idyllic thousand-year period between the end of the Tribulation and God destroying the world (And heaven) and replacing them with a new heaven and a new earth. So the President, and Colossus are both talking about ‘the next best thing to heaven on earth.’ This is kind of a big deal in American Protestantism, particularly Evangelicism, and was just kind of understood as a shorthand, but it’s less commonly used now, and foreign viewers might not have any idea what they’re talking about)
With all the new "breakthroughs" in AI regularly making the news, I remembered seeing this movie on TV when I was in high school and am terrified that it is all about to come true.
This movie hinted at a social credit score, on a macro level. But if it was willing to change the behavior of entire nations, we must assume it would want to change individuals behavior too, therefore a social credit score. I'd imagine Colossus/Guardian would roll-out a CBDC like currency to monitor this behavior as well
I don't remember the movie, but I did take the book our of the library when I was fourteen. I was mesmerized. It started a lifelong love of science fiction.
So glad you have included this film in your round up of classic dystopian future films. I saw it in the cinema and have since owned it on DVD and then blu-ray to make sure I can continue see it in the future.
Yes. Thank you.
Non soap opera fans might recognize Braedon as one of the actors who played Robin Charles Sherbotsky Sr. from How I Met Your Mother.
This is one of my favorite movies and influenced me greatly. The hilariously antiquated technology ages surprisingly well. This was one of the last movies made when an actual computer was such an exotic thing that a mere Hollywood studio couldn't afford to use one as a prop, and all the displays and terminals are obviously backlight projectors running loops. And the humor is both dry and delicious -- "You were not born wearing a watch" LOL.
Cool!... Got to watch it.... And the books. Thanks.
I saw this film as a kid and it blew my mind
Love the way it is 'normalized' how the public will be lied to as a matter of course.
It's as if nobody stood up and ask what could go wrong? Not if they can but if they should. Man's hubris saying, we control the machine, our hands are at the switch. Then everything and everyone starts getting wished into the corn field.
Colossus is 100% truthful & correct that Forbin and mankind will admire and love him, it is heartbreaking that Forbin only understands at the end of the second story what Colossus has actually been doing; I suspect it is as a kindness to his readers that Jones allows the human race to survive at the end of the third story but he gives us a wonderful ride from fear to plotting to terror of our mistake of having attacked Colossus. Well worth a read and I desperately hope somebody will one day use CGI etc. to make the two sequel films to match the artwork and style of the first 1970 production. Truly love this film and hope one day to se the entire story portrayed with the same skill as the first part.
The third book was... *TERRIBLE!*
The movie is one of the most underrated sci-fi flicks of that era.
One correction: the machine doesn't necessarily become self-aware. It simply follows its programming: it puts an end to war, decisively. At the film's conclusion, it seems poised to become humankind's nanny. That's as scary as a machine that wakes up and becomes hostile.
I remember this film & have been trying to find it for years - thank you!!!
Great reviews Dave, well done.
Note that SAFEGUARD COMMAND went operational in January 1975 with a five story building containing computers, and nuclear missiles (Sprints and Spartans) nearby. It was shut down a year later. The abandoned site in Nekoma, North Dakota still exists. This was the archetype.
This sci-fi movie was genius! way ahead of its time. I saw it as a kid it scared the hell out of me then,and it's still scary now,. It has a psychological impact on you without extreme visual violence.
I saw this on TV about 2 years after it came out! It really creeped me out!!
I was 14 in 1972!!
In "The Fall of Colossus" and "Colossus and the Crab", Colossus becomes the hero.
I remember this movie! This, along with Hal 9000 from the movie "2001" and M-5 from the Star Trek episode "The Ultimate Computer" unfortunately don't seem to have awakened us to the dangers of AI.
Just watched it based on this video. It was excellent. Watched it for the 70s vibe, but it turned out to be timeless and forward thinking and deep with amazing locations and cars.
Wow! I’d never even heard of this! Thank you
This is a film I saw on TV. Mom was a sci-fi fan so I was hooked on it from the beginning. The film was a chilling tale of a future that was not ours anymore. In the novels Corbin paid the price for his work. Still both film and novels were very good.
Earlier in his career when he was Hans Gudeqest, Eric Braeden played Captain Dietrick in the Rat Patrol television show. For two seasons the entire North African campaign consisted of Dietrick and Sgt. Troy shooting at each other. Rommel and Montgomery would take all the credit from them.
Im glad your covering this classic, was going to mention it to you, seems like we are of the same pod