Dark Star [Blu-ray]

Director: John Carpenter John Carpenter

Overview

John Carpenter directed this wigged-out spoof of 2001: A Space Odyssey. The film originally began as a 45-minute U.S.C. student film project by Carpenter and Dan O'Bannon that was eventually expanded into a feature length production. The sstory takes place on the deep-space cruiser Dark Star, where a crew of laid-back astronauts are assigned the task of blowing up planets with unsuitable life forms in order to make the universe safe for the human race. The leader is Commander Powell (Joe Sanders), who is cryogenically frozen after being killed in a freak accident. Next in line is Doolittle (Brian Narelle) who tries to keep the rest of the crew in check. However, there is a lot of down time between planetary explosions and the tediousness is starting to get to everyone. However, after a series of accidents, a smart bomb --i.e. a bomb that can talk and think on its own-- does not detach itself from the ship as planned and will explode within 24 minutes unless it can be cajoled into disarming itself.

Product Details

Release Date:	11/06/2012
UPC:	0089859901027
Original Release:	1974
Rating:	G
Source:	VCI VIDEO
Region Code:	A
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[stereo, Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround]
Language:	English
Time:	1:23:00

Special Features

Let there by light: the odyssey of "Dark Star" - the extended version - includes clips from a rare student film directed by Dan O'Bannon. Featuring exclusive interviews with actor Brian Narelle, cnematographer Doug Knapp, art director Tommy Lee Wallace, visual effects artists Greg Jein, voice artist Cookie Knapp, film distributor Jack Harris, Diane O'Bannon, and more! Also includes an archival interview with John Carpenter, as well as the fonal interview of Dan O'Bannon. Produced and directed by Daniel Griffith; Interview with sci-fi author Alan Dean Foster; Interview with Brian Narelle; 3D guide to the dark star ship; Full-length audio commentary by 'super-fan' Andrew Gilchrist; Written intro by Dan O'Bannon; Trivia

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Brian Narelle	Doolittle
Andreijah Pahich	Talby
Carl Kuniholm	Boiler,Actor
Dan O'Bannon	Pinback
Joe Sanders	Powell
Carl Duniholm	Actor
Joe Saunders	Powell
Miles Watkins	Mission Control
Pahici-Cal Kunholme	Actor
John Carpenter	Composer

Technical Credits

John Carpenter

Dan O'Bannon

John Carpenter	Director,Screenwriter,Producer,Executive Producer
Dan O'Bannon	Screenwriter,Special Effects
Jack H. Harris	Executive Producer,Producer
Bill Taylor	Special Effects
J. Stein Kaplan	Producer
Harry Walton	Special Effects
Gregory Jein	Special Effects
Ron Cobb	Special Effects
Bob Greenberg	Special Effects
John Wash	Special Effects
Nina Kleinberg	Sound/Sound Designer

Editorial Reviews

As the directorial debut of John Carpenter, Dark Star has achieved a degree of cult status over the years. It's no masterpiece by any stretch and the acting, dialogue, and pace are a bit stale, but this spacey 1974 parody of Stanley Kubrick's classics, 2001: A Space Odyssey and Dr. Strangelove, is intriguing in that it features many of the elements that became staples of Carpenter films: a simple but effective score, anti-establishment sentiments, blue-collar characters, and a downbeat ending. Taking inspiration from 1958's It! The Terror from Beyond Space, Carpenter began the film while attending USC in 1970 and later expanded it to feature length. He was assisted significantly by future screenwriter Dan O'Bannon (who later wrote the very similar Alien), whose multiple credits on the film include a starring role. One scene featuring O'Bannon's character Pinback playing a game in which he stabs an ice pick between his fingers was later used by James Cameron in Aliens. O'Bannon's most impressive contribution to the film, however, were his special effects, which are startling for a film with such a low budget.

The most astonishingly impudent, ingenious and altogether successful mystery story since The Murder of Roger Ackroyd.

Daily Herald (UK)

One of the very best, most genuinely bewildering Christies.

The Observer (UK)

There is no cheating; the reader is just bamboozled in a straightforward way from first to last….The most colossal achievement of a colossal career. The book must rank with Mrs. Christie’s previous best—on the top notch of detection.

New Statesman (UK)

One of the most ingenious thrillers in many a day.

Time magazine

The whole thing is utterly impossible and utterly fascinating. It is the most baffling mystery Agatha Christie has ever written.

New York Times