The 1975 version was an insightful, darkly prophetic cautionary tale about corporate fascism. The 2002 remake had no fucking idea what the 1975 version was even about.
The final game was never about the score. Those two teams were gonna kill one another. Jonathan had a target on his back for defying 'the system,' since the game was supposed to show that there were no heroes. One man couldn't make a difference. But one man could, and he showed the world. Jonathan! Jonathan! Jonathan! When the music kicks in, it's so awesome.
and remember, at the ending, after he knocked "Toughie" off of his motorcycle (who was on NY team after washing out with Houston!) , he could have bashed his head in with the ball, but saw the look on Toughie's face and decided to spare him, showing the world he was not an animal who would indiscrimanantly kill helpless creatures.
@@vikramparmar8093 BS! New York wuz robbed!!! The Refs were in Houston's pocket! I actually remember a MAD magazine parody of this.... Jonathan asked who are we playing....and you saw a team surrounded by garbage and rats and holding we are on strike signs...and Jonathan goes oh, new York....
I saw this movie when I was a teenager and the physical violence scared the hell out of me but even worse was the corporate that push buttons in the back of my head which are coming to fruition today
AS an 8 year old whose father dragged him to this movie only because the baby sitter didn't show up.....Not only did it give me chills but it also made me a sci fi lover for life
@mr bungle ....Not sure what AA means. I'm in the USA and back in the 70's parents could take their kids anywhere. I dont think the "NC17" rating (nobody under 17) came about til the 2000's....But thanks for calling me Sunshine.
It's such a great movie. I mean, this movie is next level greatness. It's such a shame that the remake was _so bad._ I've never seen a remake so completely miss the mark.
I wish to extend my most heart-felt feelings of condolences to James Caan's Family and relatives. He surely was one of the greatest actors in history, with plenty of charisma and for-the-role looks ever. I first saw him in "Rollerball" and then it was a "crescendo" of recognition for his immense sense of acting ( and humour, like in "Mickey blue eyes"). I will miss him so profoundly, as part of my own generational heroes. May You Rest In Peace and Than You so deeply for all You gave us a average people. Grazie, James!!!
MY LOVE TO CAAN AND HIS FAMILY ED,, CONNECTICUT! THE REMAKE ONE SUCKED! SAW HIM ON CHAPTER TWO! IN 1979 MAY JESUS TAKE HIM IN OPEN ARMS AND WIPE AWAY ALL TEARS IN THIS SORROW
@@antonboludo8886 I did not know he died, either. Though with years passing, that was to be expected. Rollerball is one of my favorite movies. I grew up in munich, so some sites from that movie, BMW buildings, are familiar to me. My father worked at BMW for 25 years. However, I think James Caan became known to me in his role as the crippled but recovering Agent in the Killer Elite. There was a very unique "west vs east" showdown. That movie is a classic imo. Ofc, there is his role in the Godfather. RIP Caan!
There are three movies that were a yearly ritual for me as a kid. "Rollerball", "Logan's Run" and "Westworld" were something to look forward to. That was the days of only a few channels and no on-demand capabilities.
One scene that always grabbed my attention was at one point, despite all the drama that had taken place, the scoreboard reflected HOU 00 NY 00 ... A real feeling of futility
Every post season should end this way. Movies from the 1970s like Rollerball and Network foretold of the corporate controlled dystopia we now reside in. Beautiful prescient storytelling.
Fuckin aye right it does. Just checked it out while cleaning up from Thanksgiving. Had to stop an watch the last gladiatorial game of the film. That last few seconds. The last two zoom ins. You can feel the pride welling with every “JON NA THON”!! Just like the end of the ‘300 films. James Caan is secured in the history of film for all time. ROLLERBALL. One of the greatest of the earliest dystopian films.
Still one of the best ending in cinema history. The VERY worrisome state our world is in today makes the movie even MORE compelling. It's not "just" a truly GRAND movie ; it's also one of the best dystopias Americans made in the 70s. The rating it gets on IMDb is a farce.
The one thing the corporate establishment overlooked in their efforts to have the game eliminate Jonathan. The more difficult you make the game, the more likely the most talented individual will win. And that's exactly what happened. The triumph of the individual spirit.
That was a gamble that their experts probably told them to take. The Jonathan phenomenan was unexpected. (Notice that he insisted to a personal flight to a game...) Jonathan is a curious character to look into. On the one hand, he is not particularly intelligent. He is intelligent and curious enough to go to switzerland to get some information, because "redacted and summarized" books were not good enough for him. Otoh: Evereyrbody nowadays would scoff at redacted and summarized books. But apparently it is a good approach for even the intelligentia. On the other hand, he is curious to investigate the reasons of "the game". If you actually look for his reasons to continue the game, it is inspite. He realized that he was played with his "wife" that he actually loved, and saw through the mechanisations thrown at him. It stands to reason, how intelligent the decisionmakers actually were. They should have foreseen that Jonathan was a wildcard and should have been eliminated before the end. All the indications would have strongly suggested to such an action. But it´s a nice SF story where corporate establishment fails. They don´t.
Tomtom34b: your statement is accurate but one thing I might clarify. He actually insisted on not taking a personal flight to the game. He usually always took personal flights but it would been easier for them to kill him. He insisted that this time he would fly with the whole team. They’re not gonna go have a whole team be killed
I could be wrong - but apart from Bach at the beginning and end of the movie, and the "Corporate Anthem" ... I don't think there's any music in this movie Oh, and the legendary Andre Previn made the Future Disco music that they dance to in the party scene :) Just like real sports - there's no music when the game is being played out, no "dramatic music as Johnathan shapes up to score the winning goal - followed by a triumphant C major chord!" crap. Don't get me wrong - the Rocky movies have terrific music that makes you root for the hero (the music in Creed was absolutely astonishing!) ... they enhance the fantasy version of boxing that you're watching. But Rollerball goes in the other direction - you are actually watching a REAL sport being played out, with no music at all. My goodness, every time I watch this movie - with every passing year - it gets even better ... even prophetic given the dystopia we all now live in.
This movie brilliantly portrays the struggle of the individual against the collective, and it has one of my favorite film scores. I love the music selection.
I watched this movie with my dad when I was 10 years old and I was shocked and goosebumps. I was afraid, precisely that ending with this music. I spent years looking for her name, which for me was simply the music that played at the end of Rollerball... And nobody knew. Today, I noticed that it made me love classical music and I realize that it was one of the best marriages between sound and image in a 20th century film, only comparable to the opening of 2001... By the way the name of the music is "Toccata and fugue in D minor" by Johann Sebastian Bach.
Classic ending to one of my all time favourite films. I got sneaked into the cinema to see it by my older brother. 😄 The other kids at school were very jealous.
I first saw this movie on TV when I was still in high school. I don't remember which network, but I'd seen ads for it and mentioned that I wanted to watch it. My parents were going to be out of town that night and my mother said I wasn't allowed to watch it, I'm sure because of the violence and because it was going to run late, but she didn't say why at the time. I disobeyed and stayed up to watch it anyway. It made a significant impression on me and NOT because of the violence but because of the message that it carried underneath everything else. My sister tattled on me and my mom was pretty peeved, but I received no punishment. It sort of reinforced the meaning of the movie about exercising individual choice and disobedience of authority in the face of blind demands and pressure for compliance. :) Always loved this movie. RIP James Caan; a fantastic actor with a wide range. The remake was ABSOLUTE trash and had no conception or appreciation whatever of the intent of the original.
About the Rollerball remake being absolute trash is correct. The only thing good you can do with the remake is use it on how not to tell a story as compared to the original. Watch the movie from the start to the end of the first game, and then explain how the works, what are it's rules, how is the playfield laid out, what are some of the positions for the players, and were you able to follow the gameplay. In the original, you would be able to answer most of those questions. For the remake, you wouldn't have a clue for the answers for all or most of those questions. When I saw the remake, I had zero idea of what the playfield (track) looked like, the game play left me confused, and I had seen the original Rollerball countless times for a foundation.
One of the best final scenes ever. If you get it, it hits like a tidal wave. I occasionally still wonder about what the end result after the revolution that had to follow this might have looked like.
They tried to kill Jonathan E when he refused to retire, but the sport that was meant to show "the futility of the individual effort" only proved the opposite. "Jon-a-than!"
The scene when Johnathan's regular pilot was changed at the last minute and he realized he was being set up to be killed and his smart decision to travel with the team for his own safety...
@@escrapplem9454 It is subtle and often NOT noticed, but is my favorite scene in the movie. This should prove to the viewer that Jonathan is not the king of the meatheads, who always will manage to survive, but rather, is reflective of his surroundings and is able to sense the big picture that is occurring.
Another one of the greatest endings of all time. I still get chills watching this one over and over. If you liked this there's the original The Longest Yard (1972) final play ending with Burt Reynolds, The final speech that Roddy McDowall as Caesar gives in the final scene of Conquest of the Planet of the Apes, Bruce Lee vs Chuck Norris in the final fight scene in The Return of the Dragon (Way of the Dragon), the final showdown scene in Westworld with Yul Brynner as the Gunslinger vs Richard Benjamin, Charlton Heston in ending in the original Planet of the Apes and Beneath Planet of the Apes with James Franciscus. And so many more.....
This movie was about a future where there were no more governments or countries, just corporations... personally, the most accurate depiction of a dystopian future ever made when compared to any other dystopia out there.
1984 still remains the most intellectually observant and realistic dystopian work ever created. Corporations are based entirely on profits. They can corrupt governments and societies, but they can never wield the same kind of totalitarian powers that governments can. I do not find it realistic to assume that where even communist countries gained their legitimacy by supposedly serve the interests of the masses, even when they never have. That somehow a corporation would ever be so successful or all-encompassing that people would willingly or unwillingly give or allow them to take complete control over their lives. At least nations and governments have the pretense of being able to manage the lives of people. Profit based corporations never could.
@retrobeats Look what Disney did with the Mulan remake. All the CCP has to do is wave access to the Chinese theatre release market under Disney's nose and Disney will make the changes the CCP wants.
A memorable ending. The silence of the scene captures both the tension and disgust of the carnage - until the end. That is when the Jonathan triumphs and transcends the game and the corporatist system. He won....
When Jonathan brutally kills the other player in from of John Houseman’s character... probably the most dramatic moment of the film. The look they share... and Jonathan’s “this is what you wanted” look... both men are/were (Houseman long since dead) truly powerful actors... the look on their faces... their eye movements...
Nope. By far the most affecting moment is Jonathan's sidekick getting hit into a braindead vegetable. Not a week goes by when I don't think about this scene. A REALISTIC death and its obscenity! Beats every worthless boring Marvel (who cares about any character) and Too-Fast-Too-Dull sequel designed for 12-year-old boys.
@@EconAdviser Not sure how old you are but I'm curious as to why that scene has affected you. The movie was one of the future in more ways than one. There are many aspects of the move that I think about for many reasons. When Johnathan is with Moonpie before the New York game, he's resolved at the fact that he will probably die and his brain dead friend will keep living. He knows this but he doesn't cower away, he goes to the game knowing his faite is in his own skill set, he, is on his own. This is shown as he skates past his team mates, not a word spoken, they are all know their fate too. Looking at the way the world is now, the move wasn't so far off. Johnathan represents all the people fighting today for the right to survive against the corporate tech-world. Zero, is Google.
As Jonathan spared the rival who would of killed him, he had already won the crowd and as they chanted his name the individual mattered once more not the game...
RIP James Caan. July 7, 2022. This scene... No Fouls Called. No Replacements. No Time Limit. The Game was designed to teach the world that one could win. As Jonathan Eee keeps winning he becomes a threat to "The Corporation," so they keep changing the Rules.
Fantastic film one of my all time favourites and they don't make them like that anymore. I grew up in the 70s, when every boy wanted to be Johnathan E...
Growing up in the the 80s there were a few films that impacted me in a big way making me think about the world around us as well as the film, then as i got older the conditions of which we are required to live. Ever since Rollerball has been a personal favourite of mine and i do not know the number of times i have watched it. A true classic and perhaps a foreshadowing.
Got this on Bluray a few weeks ago and finally had a chance to watch it with a couple friends. Still a really great example of the 70's somewhat dim view of corporate culture and our future. There are too many in politics who instead of taking stories such as this as a warning instead see them as a playbook.
The early 1970s were really the best for bleak films. _Rollerball_ , _Network_ , _Three Days of the Condor_ , _The Kremlin Letter_ ... so many good ones.
Nixon, Watergate, Vietnam...it is no wonder there was so many great movies with an anti authoritarian theme. Even The Godfather has Kate trying to mock Michael when he meets her again after being in Sicily, I can't remember the line exactly, but Michael says he wants to be like any great man, to which Kates say 'senators don't have people killed'. Michael's answer is so 70's...'don't they? Now who's being naive Kate?'
+ghbutler Because we can't have anyone get their feelings hurt anymore. That's why. Everything has to be watered down, computer animated, and soft as a limp dick, so everyone can have a safe entertainment experience.
moon, looper, chappie, fury road, ex machina, pacific rim, the purge, promethius, chronicle, dredd, seeking a friend for the end of the world(okay, rom com, but the way it deals with peoples coming demise is pretty dark), source code, in time. all decently gritty movies, either in concept or excecution, that were made in the last 5 years.
This movie was made to help Dick Lane, a celebrity in his own right, to overcome bankruptcy after loosing to his “pal”, the builder, who talked him into tearing down his Beverly Hills home and building a high rise apartment on the property. Thank God for the SAG and others who Made it possible for Dick to live out his amazing life in relative comfort after being swindled out of a life rime of earnings. God bless you all.
As a kid, that last climactic match was as breathtaking as the first twenty minutes of Saving Private Ryan decades later. The cheers of the crowd slowly fading away as the carnage in the arena increases, until there is silent respect for the last man standing. Powerful stuff.
Yeah I love this film. Norman Jewison makes Fiddler on the Roof then he makes this jewel. James Caan! One of my favorites. This ending thrills and disturbs me always. The final 3 shots show the devolution and ascension of Jonathon E...That final gnarled and brutal take on the true face of Mankind ..the soldiers face..promising dark retribution. Oooooh..I shiver:)))
I watched this danger-packed death-defying roller derby movie - of course, "Rollerball", in 1987. I remember what happens before you see the video. I heard the voice-over in the arena say.... "Attention - new rules for tonight's championship game. NO PENALTIES! - NO SUBSTITUTIONS - AND....NOOOOOOOOOOOOO TIME LIMIT!"
And then the game is over in minutes with carnage all around the track. And you get the feeling that, for the first time, the fans are repulsed by what their favorite sport had evolved into.
In addition to its other innovations, Rollerball also sounded different, being one of the early analog films to use Dolby A-Type noise reduction applied to the optical soundtrack. With Dolby-encoded prints played in properly-equipped cinemas, the effect of dropoff in background noise and dynamic range increase was immediately and strikingly noticeable, especially in quieter passages. R.I.P. James Caan.
I love the movie ROLLERBALL. The original movie, with James Caan. A great classic masterpiece. I'm going to watch it this week.. Johnathon E, that's the name, A few players come and go, but the champion plays on. " It's a game a mans not to be strong in. They're afraid of you Johnathon, all the way to the top. The game was created to test the futility of individual effort. Let the game do its work. "GAME? THIS WAS NEVER MEANT TO BA A GAME,--NEVER!" :)
Such an amazing film when add the under current of the real story and what it’s saying about society. RIP to all of the great actors, stuntmen, writers, cameramen, and crew that have passed away.
Wow - just read this: The game of Rollerball was so realistic that the cast, extras, and stunt personnel played it between takes on the set. At the time of the film's release, Howard Cosell interviewed Norman Jewison and James Caan on ABC's Wide World of Sports, showing clips from the film and with the two of them explaining the rules of the game. Audiences who saw the film so loved the action of the game that Jewison was contacted multiple times by promoters, requesting that the "rights to the game" be sold so that real Rollerball leagues might be formed. Jewison was outraged, as the entire point of the movie was to show the "sickness and insanity of contact sports and their allure."
I remember the urban myth surrounding this movie. Supposedly the stunt men had so much fun filming the movie that they were playing it even after the end of the days shoot, at night. Security found out of course, and they had to stop for fear of injury or equipment damage. I like to believe this one.
RIP to James Caan's family. He brought us so much good, not just in the Godfather, but LOVED him in Rollerball. And also in Alien Nation as Sykes. We'll miss you.
The remake was a tragic money grab. I couldn't get enough of this movie when I was 17 in 1975. It did poorly at the box office largely because audiences were not ready for the message of corporate dominance of civil life. It is too bad because this film really speaks to our situation today.
It pains me to announce it here, but #JamesCaan actually died on this day: July 7th, 2022. I feel that this scene best symbolizes not only his sudden departure, but also his long and successful career. God rest him.
@@the_red_barron1002 I'm not him, but the way I see it is collectivism vs individualism. The example would be corporates trying to perpetuate corporate image through trumpling wrongthinking individuals. All that cancel culture and wokeness. This also achieves political moderation - nobody is ever allowed to have a different opinion, helping to homogenise the field and manipulate it whichever way they want to. Any disagreeing element shall be ostracised and die off. However, the result is usually the companies going broke, as they should, or at least getting damaged financially. After all, it's the people that matter, not the company. And, the ending just shows the triumph of individualism aganst collectivism.
This is when film making was an artform. The younger generation today could never have the attention span to make it through the film's opening 5 minutes...
I remember seeing this at the old drive in Movies it was tge 1st of two movies Rocky3 was the other. We actually went yo see tge Rocky movie but all came home talking about Rollerball Awesome movie
Rollerball's original release predated the first Rocky by a year. You got lucky to see it a couple years later after missing it when it first came out.
The 1975 version was an insightful, darkly prophetic cautionary tale about corporate fascism. The 2002 remake had no fucking idea what the 1975 version was even about.
yes it did, u jus didnt pay ##attention
@@heyyjit Ok cool. I’d love hear your analysis, show me where I was wrong
That ending. Good lord it just never gets old. What a masterpiece. RIP James Caan.
th-cam.com/video/BB1LuCUovW4/w-d-xo.html
@@jimkaml virtually most of them dead within 4 minutes
The final game was never about the score. Those two teams were gonna kill one another. Jonathan had a target on his back for defying 'the system,' since the game was supposed to show that there were no heroes. One man couldn't make a difference.
But one man could, and he showed the world.
Jonathan! Jonathan! Jonathan!
When the music kicks in, it's so awesome.
So True!!!!
and remember, at the ending, after he knocked "Toughie" off of his motorcycle (who was on NY team after washing out with Houston!) , he could have bashed his head in with the ball, but saw the look on Toughie's face and decided to spare him, showing the world he was not an animal who would indiscrimanantly kill helpless creatures.
@@vikramparmar8093 BS! New York wuz robbed!!! The Refs were in Houston's pocket! I actually remember a MAD magazine parody of this.... Jonathan asked who are we playing....and you saw a team surrounded by garbage and rats and holding we are on strike signs...and Jonathan goes oh, new York....
Vikram top level defiance
Insanely under-rated and intelligent film that's disturbingly relevant today...and you wish it wasn't. Some of the best stunt work ever filmed.
I saw this movie when I was a teenager and the physical violence scared the hell out of me but even worse was the corporate that push buttons in the back of my head which are coming to fruition today
@@glennbeadshaw727 I was 12. RIP James
And with the late, great John Houseman as the CEO…awesome. 😎
Saw it when it first came out in a theater with surround sound, it was great and scary at the same time. A glimpse into the future.
I remember seeing that at the end of the film the stunt performers played the game for real and it only lasted a few minutes as so many got injured
AS an 8 year old whose father dragged him to this movie only because the baby sitter didn't show up.....Not only did it give me chills but it also made me a sci fi lover for life
@mr bungle ....Not sure what AA means. I'm in the USA and back in the 70's parents could take their kids anywhere. I dont think the "NC17" rating (nobody under 17) came about til the 2000's....But thanks for calling me Sunshine.
Your dad served you well.
@@dougnbodie The same in Spain. I watched the film with my father when I was 12.
My first time with rollerball was at 10.
All hail the baby sitter!
James Caan passed today. I'm here out of respect for his work. Always loved this film.
It's such a great movie.
I mean, this movie is next level greatness.
It's such a shame that the remake was _so bad._ I've never seen a remake so completely miss the mark.
Legend
Rollerball and Soylent Green are far more disturbing when viewed today.
R.I.P. James Caan.
2 brilliant films, another couple of decades and both will be real 🥺
Two great movies.
Soylent Green, aka "Bill and Melinda Gates (aka "Mel") vision for the world".
I wish to extend my most heart-felt feelings of condolences to James Caan's Family and relatives. He surely was one of the greatest actors in history, with plenty of charisma and for-the-role looks ever. I first saw him in "Rollerball" and then it was a "crescendo" of recognition for his immense sense of acting ( and humour, like in "Mickey blue eyes"). I will miss him so profoundly, as part of my own generational heroes.
May You Rest In Peace and
Than You so deeply for all You gave us a average people.
Grazie, James!!!
MY LOVE TO CAAN AND HIS FAMILY
ED,, CONNECTICUT!
THE REMAKE ONE SUCKED!
SAW HIM ON CHAPTER TWO! IN 1979
MAY JESUS TAKE HIM IN OPEN ARMS AND WIPE AWAY ALL TEARS IN THIS SORROW
Sad to hear of his passing, RIP James Caan, you will be missed...
To me his best film will always be The Way of the Gun. Until that day.
I did not know he had died.
He was an excellent actor.
@@antonboludo8886 I did not know he died, either. Though with years passing, that was to be expected.
Rollerball is one of my favorite movies. I grew up in munich, so some sites from that movie, BMW buildings, are familiar to me. My father worked at BMW for 25 years.
However, I think James Caan became known to me in his role as the crippled but recovering Agent in the Killer Elite. There was a very unique "west vs east" showdown. That movie is a classic imo.
Ofc, there is his role in the Godfather.
RIP Caan!
There are three movies that were a yearly ritual for me as a kid. "Rollerball", "Logan's Run" and "Westworld" were something to look forward to. That was the days of only a few channels and no on-demand capabilities.
Oh my god I love Logan's Run.
You're on the right track there, add Soylent Green. Great movies that really put the future as a mystery.
The Holy Trilogy of '70's films for me
Add Soylent Green to that.
Silent running
One scene that always grabbed my attention was at one point, despite all the drama that had taken place, the scoreboard reflected HOU 00 NY 00 ... A real feeling of futility
Lotta those. My favorite is the sillhouette as they come out of the dressing room out into the arena.
when he scores and the silence throughout the stadium...beautiful
Just like when Arsenal score.
I believe he spared the last man ( motorcycle guy) to stick it to the man
Yeah, completely deafening the silence was.
Every post season should end this way.
Movies from the 1970s like Rollerball and Network foretold of the corporate controlled dystopia we now reside in. Beautiful prescient storytelling.
"Johnathan! Johnathan! Johnathan! Johnathan!" Holy shit...that still gives me chills....
Yeah me to James caan is the man.
Peregrine C same bro
He became bigger than the game. Roll credits!
Born in 1990 one of my favourite movies. Hail Jonathan!
Fuckin aye right it does. Just checked it out while cleaning up from Thanksgiving. Had to stop an watch the last gladiatorial game of the film. That last few seconds. The last two zoom ins. You can feel the pride welling with every “JON NA THON”!! Just like the end of the ‘300 films. James Caan is secured in the history of film for all time. ROLLERBALL. One of the greatest of the earliest dystopian films.
This movie, with its sheer brutality, simply had to have the stuntmen listed in the credits. Thus Rollerball became the first movie to do this.
Yes and the great Nick Dimitri was the biker that got Jonathan up off the floor in the last game.Remember "Hard Times"?
Was that the guy who fought Bronson at the end?
Yes.
D Minor, bro. D Minor.
The freeze frame of his face at the end is chilling. He defeats the corporations, but will he do better?
no grand speech, no lecture, no bs, no words are spoken, its pure tension and it finally breaks when the ball is slammed into the goal
Still one of the best ending in cinema history. The VERY worrisome state our world is in today makes the movie even MORE compelling. It's not "just" a truly GRAND movie ; it's also one of the best dystopias Americans made in the 70s. The rating it gets on IMDb is a farce.
Hey Norman Jewison is no fool. The sad thing is it's treated as an action movie, it isn't.
A James Caan treasure!
I grew up on Roller Derby Saturdays.
The one thing the corporate establishment overlooked in their efforts to have the game eliminate Jonathan. The more difficult you make the game, the more likely the most talented individual will win. And that's exactly what happened. The triumph of the individual spirit.
That was a gamble that their experts probably told them to take. The Jonathan phenomenan was unexpected. (Notice that he insisted to a personal flight to a game...)
Jonathan is a curious character to look into. On the one hand, he is not particularly intelligent. He is intelligent and curious enough to go to switzerland to get some information, because "redacted and summarized" books were not good enough for him. Otoh: Evereyrbody nowadays would scoff at redacted and summarized books. But apparently it is a good approach for even the intelligentia.
On the other hand, he is curious to investigate the reasons of "the game". If you actually look for his reasons to continue the game, it is inspite. He realized that he was played with his "wife" that he actually loved, and saw through the mechanisations thrown at him.
It stands to reason, how intelligent the decisionmakers actually were. They should have foreseen that Jonathan was a wildcard and should have been eliminated before the end. All the indications would have strongly suggested to such an action.
But it´s a nice SF story where corporate establishment fails.
They don´t.
Exactly...Cary
Tomtom34b: your statement is accurate but one thing I might clarify. He actually insisted on not taking a personal flight to the game. He usually always took personal flights but it would been easier for them to kill him. He insisted that this time he would fly with the whole team. They’re not gonna go have a whole team be killed
Or, raising the skill level favors the skilled.
@@NormAppleton Yes. That's another way of looking at it.
when they start chanting his name it gave me the creeps then and 40 years later it still does. But it is one of the coolest endings. :-)
The freaky thing is that it seems like they are going to replace the corporations with Jonathan as dictator. He is triumphant, but what will he be?
Notice how the fire reflection burns under John Houseman’s face at 1:14. The corporation is on fire.
Such a brutal yet subtle movie, the triumph and impotence of the individual, the glory and irrelevance of existence.
So many movies think you have to fill every single frame with dialog and sound when the greatest weight is sometimes the silence.
I could be wrong - but apart from Bach at the beginning and end of the movie, and the "Corporate Anthem" ... I don't think there's any music in this movie
Oh, and the legendary Andre Previn made the Future Disco music that they dance to in the party scene :)
Just like real sports - there's no music when the game is being played out, no "dramatic music as Johnathan shapes up to score the winning goal - followed by a triumphant C major chord!" crap.
Don't get me wrong - the Rocky movies have terrific music that makes you root for the hero (the music in Creed was absolutely astonishing!) ... they enhance the fantasy version of boxing that you're watching.
But Rollerball goes in the other direction - you are actually watching a REAL sport being played out, with no music at all.
My goodness, every time I watch this movie - with every passing year - it gets even better ... even prophetic given the dystopia we all now live in.
This movie brilliantly portrays the struggle of the individual against the collective, and it has one of my favorite film scores. I love the music selection.
I think the score was inspired by Interstellar
@@JavMacHer you mean the other way around. The piece is called Tocatta and Fugue in D minor by Bach.
This movie is riveting to the core. The tree burning scene and the ending are haunting.
100% The most important and disturbing scene of the film.
@@Generalfund Unforgettable cinematic moment.
As someone who is significantly dumb when it comes to subtle commentary in movies, what is the tree burning scene trying to say?
@@redsabreanakin Excess.
I remember this from my youth. Tough. Gritty. The ending was the best. Salute to James Caan for being a Great Actor.
This film is so relevant for today , more so than ever.
Outstanding performances from all 👏
I watched this movie with my dad when I was 10 years old and I was shocked and goosebumps. I was afraid, precisely that ending with this music. I spent years looking for her name, which for me was simply the music that played at the end of Rollerball... And nobody knew.
Today, I noticed that it made me love classical music and I realize that it was one of the best marriages between sound and image in a 20th century film, only comparable to the opening of 2001...
By the way the name of the music is "Toccata and fugue in D minor" by Johann Sebastian Bach.
Solid movie with a solid actor. RIP. Johnathan, Johnathan, Johnathan!!!!
Classic ending to one of my all time favourite films. I got sneaked into the cinema to see it by my older brother. 😄 The other kids at school were very jealous.
I first saw this movie on TV when I was still in high school. I don't remember which network, but I'd seen ads for it and mentioned that I wanted to watch it. My parents were going to be out of town that night and my mother said I wasn't allowed to watch it, I'm sure because of the violence and because it was going to run late, but she didn't say why at the time. I disobeyed and stayed up to watch it anyway. It made a significant impression on me and NOT because of the violence but because of the message that it carried underneath everything else. My sister tattled on me and my mom was pretty peeved, but I received no punishment. It sort of reinforced the meaning of the movie about exercising individual choice and disobedience of authority in the face of blind demands and pressure for compliance. :) Always loved this movie. RIP James Caan; a fantastic actor with a wide range.
The remake was ABSOLUTE trash and had no conception or appreciation whatever of the intent of the original.
About the Rollerball remake being absolute trash is correct. The only thing good you can do with the remake is use it on how not to tell a story as compared to the original.
Watch the movie from the start to the end of the first game, and then explain how the works, what are it's rules, how is the playfield laid out, what are some of the positions for the players, and were you able to follow the gameplay.
In the original, you would be able to answer most of those questions.
For the remake, you wouldn't have a clue for the answers for all or most of those questions.
When I saw the remake, I had zero idea of what the playfield (track) looked like, the game play left me confused, and I had seen the original Rollerball countless times for a foundation.
I think I saw it on TV first. Then I saw it on a HUGE screen and that was it.
I saw it on TV back then too! It’s all we talked about the next day in school.
Rest in peace James Cann, 7/7/2022
A most unique dystopian future tale and still with a great deal to say. R.I.P., Norman.
One of the best movies ever.
So true a 70s master6
Of all his movies, this is my favorite by far. I have watched Roller ball probably more than 10 times over the years. I'm a cult fan.
Yes, after all these years, that ending and the cut to Bach remains the single best ending to any film, ever.
👏 👏 👏
RIP JOHNATHAN E - JAMES CAAN. See you on the other side one of a kind actor and person you will be missed
When the crowd grabs the fence as Jonathan skates by, I still get chills.
Next day Johnathan makes a commercial for Prune Candy.
God bless you, James Caan, Rest In Peace, magnificent actor and man.
One of the best final scenes ever. If you get it, it hits like a tidal wave. I occasionally still wonder about what the end result after the revolution that had to follow this might have looked like.
They tried to kill Jonathan E when he refused to retire, but the sport that was meant to show "the futility of the individual effort" only proved the opposite. "Jon-a-than!"
rd711 a past warning for a future time we are living in now
The scene when Johnathan's regular pilot was changed at the last minute and he realized he was being set up to be killed and his smart decision to travel with the team for his own safety...
Indeed the hero lives!
Oh?
@@escrapplem9454 It is subtle and often NOT noticed, but is my favorite scene in the movie. This should prove to the viewer that Jonathan is not the king of the meatheads, who always will manage to survive, but rather, is reflective of his surroundings and is able to sense the big picture that is occurring.
Another one of the greatest endings of all time. I still get chills watching this one over and over. If you liked this there's the original The Longest Yard (1972) final play ending with Burt Reynolds, The final speech that Roddy McDowall as Caesar gives in the final scene of Conquest of the Planet of the Apes, Bruce Lee vs Chuck Norris in the final fight scene in The Return of the Dragon (Way of the Dragon), the final showdown scene in Westworld with Yul Brynner as the Gunslinger vs Richard Benjamin, Charlton Heston in ending in the original Planet of the Apes and Beneath Planet of the Apes with James Franciscus. And so many more.....
the Longest Yard? classic!
Agreed !!
RIP James Caan. Your forever in our hearts.😇
Loved that movie. Rest in peace James Caan.
This movie was about a future where there were no more governments or countries, just corporations... personally, the most accurate depiction of a dystopian future ever made when compared to any other dystopia out there.
1984 still remains the most intellectually observant and realistic dystopian work ever created. Corporations are based entirely on profits. They can corrupt governments and societies, but they can never wield the same kind of totalitarian powers that governments can. I do not find it realistic to assume that where even communist countries gained their legitimacy by supposedly serve the interests of the masses, even when they never have. That somehow a corporation would ever be so successful or all-encompassing that people would willingly or unwillingly give or allow them to take complete control over their lives. At least nations and governments have the pretense of being able to manage the lives of people. Profit based corporations never could.
@@sirissac234
Read your critique, and appreciate your views,
@@sirissac234 governments are now also based on profits.
Dystopian future coming to a town near you next week
@retrobeats Look what Disney did with the Mulan remake. All the CCP has to do is wave access to the Chinese theatre release market under Disney's nose and Disney will make the changes the CCP wants.
I love it when he makes his point, literal and figurative. Jonathon!
The freeze-frame of Jonathan's eyes and Bach's music is truly chilling. His eyes are like that of a demon, or even worse...
A memorable ending. The silence of the scene captures both the tension and disgust of the carnage - until the end. That is when the Jonathan triumphs and transcends the game and the corporatist system. He won....
When Jonathan brutally kills the other player in from of John Houseman’s character... probably the most dramatic moment of the film. The look they share... and Jonathan’s “this is what you wanted” look... both men are/were (Houseman long since dead) truly powerful actors... the look on their faces... their eye movements...
Yes, the move relied on actual acting and sounds or lack thereof for the full effect. No CGI at all.
Nope. By far the most affecting moment is Jonathan's sidekick getting hit into a braindead vegetable. Not a week goes by when I don't think about this scene. A REALISTIC death and its obscenity! Beats every worthless boring Marvel (who cares about any character) and Too-Fast-Too-Dull sequel designed for 12-year-old boys.
@@EconAdviser Not sure how old you are but I'm curious as to why that scene has affected you. The movie was one of the future in more ways than one. There are many aspects of the move that I think about for many reasons. When Johnathan is with Moonpie before the New York game, he's resolved at the fact that he will probably die and his brain dead friend will keep living. He knows this but he doesn't cower away, he goes to the game knowing his faite is in his own skill set, he, is on his own. This is shown as he skates past his team mates, not a word spoken, they are all know their fate too.
Looking at the way the world is now, the move wasn't so far off. Johnathan represents all the people fighting today for the right to survive against the corporate tech-world.
Zero, is Google.
@@joewaldner6986 Bartholomew is Klaus Schwab
If you watched the whole movie, it's certainly not a: “this is what you wanted” look.
The best anticipation film ever !!!
A blazed society .. Nostalgic of a bygone era: ours !!!
Loved this movie so much as a young boy in the 70's that my friends and I created our own version of the Rollerball game.
R.I.P James Caan...
RIP, James Caan. A tough memorable actor, and tough memorable man.
One of my favorites of all times.
My condolences to the CAAN family, and close friends. His work lives on!
Saw this when I was a kid and always loved it. A pure story about individual triumph.
As Jonathan spared the rival who would of killed him, he had already won the crowd and as they chanted his name the individual mattered once more not the game...
"They shoot horses don't they " and Rollerball are cinematic masterpieces of our past and the future.
They shoot Horses dont they absolutely blew my head off. Stone cold classic that nobody has seen
RIP James Caan. July 7, 2022.
This scene... No Fouls Called. No Replacements. No Time Limit. The Game was designed to teach the world that one could win. As Jonathan Eee keeps winning he becomes a threat to "The Corporation," so they keep changing the Rules.
A lot like politics today, both in the US, and elsewhere. ='[.]'=
Gladiator has nothing on this. This is an original gladiator.
Fantastic film one of my all time favourites and they don't make them like that anymore.
I grew up in the 70s, when every boy wanted to be Johnathan E...
People understand this movie far less than in 1975....even then, this has always been a slave culture. Great movie. James Caan s best role by far.
Misery?
naah ... Roillerball all the way
Sonny in the godfather is his best role
An individual triumphs over corporate oligarchy!
it was the movie is about, among other things, and its awesome
It doesn't matter. Jonathan already disrupted corporate socialist order by defeating the game itself. The dominoes will continue to fall.
ShoyuTao That’s why they call it, “Fiction.”
Hodges compares Johnathan with Trump who is fighting the deep state and globalism.
@CankerousBooch Arís Ah, I see you're also a Morgoth viewer
RIP James Caan
This is your iconic role.
Not Sonny Corleone in Godfather?
The scoreboard at 0-0, with 3.27 left in the first period - and most of the two teams are already dead or incapacitated - just brutal...
If modern MLB baseball was this exciting I'd return to the park
This scene gives me goosebumps even today.
RIP Jonathan E.
Growing up in the the 80s there were a few films that impacted me in a big way making me think about the world around us as well as the film, then as i got older the conditions of which we are required to live. Ever since Rollerball has been a personal favourite of mine and i do not know the number of times i have watched it. A true classic and perhaps a foreshadowing.
Got this on Bluray a few weeks ago and finally had a chance to watch it with a couple friends. Still a really great example of the 70's somewhat dim view of corporate culture and our future. There are too many in politics who instead of taking stories such as this as a warning instead see them as a playbook.
The early 1970s were really the best for bleak films. _Rollerball_ , _Network_ , _Three Days of the Condor_ , _The Kremlin Letter_ ... so many good ones.
Deathrace 2000
thedungeondelver
70s were a gritty time in the US.
soilent green a boy and his dog etc...
Nixon, Watergate, Vietnam...it is no wonder there was so many great movies with an anti authoritarian theme. Even The Godfather has Kate trying to mock Michael when he meets her again after being in Sicily, I can't remember the line exactly, but Michael says he wants to be like any great man, to which Kates say 'senators don't have people killed'. Michael's answer is so 70's...'don't they? Now who's being naive Kate?'
Clockwork Orange
They just don't make gritty Sci fi movies like they used to anymore
+ghbutler Because we can't have anyone get their feelings hurt anymore. That's why. Everything has to be watered down, computer animated, and soft as a limp dick, so everyone can have a safe entertainment experience.
+ghbutler Moon, Inception, Predestination, Looper were all good. This is great though.
moon, looper, chappie, fury road, ex machina, pacific rim, the purge, promethius, chronicle, dredd, seeking a friend for the end of the world(okay, rom com, but the way it deals with peoples coming demise is pretty dark), source code, in time. all decently gritty movies, either in concept or excecution, that were made in the last 5 years.
Fury Road , grity Sci Fi? Maybe if you're 10 years old.
Have you seen Dredd? These type of film have increased and moved to high budget tv, hello Westworld, if anything.
Decades have passed and I still love this movie!
One person defeats the whole system.
This was never planned as game!
NEVER!!!
Goosebumps....
I miss you Mr James Caan. 😔
(1940 - 2022 )
This movie was made to help Dick Lane, a celebrity in his own right, to overcome bankruptcy after loosing to his “pal”, the builder, who talked him into tearing down his Beverly Hills home and building a high rise apartment on the property. Thank God for the SAG and others who
Made it possible for Dick to live out his amazing life in relative comfort after being swindled out of a life rime of earnings. God bless you all.
As a kid, that last climactic match was as breathtaking as the first twenty minutes of Saving Private Ryan decades later. The cheers of the crowd slowly fading away as the carnage in the arena increases, until there is silent respect for the last man standing. Powerful stuff.
RIP Mr Caan. Thank you for the performances.
Please rise for your corporate sponsor!.
I think it was years ahead of its time
Yeah I love this film. Norman Jewison makes Fiddler on the Roof then he makes this jewel. James Caan! One of my favorites. This ending thrills and disturbs me always. The final 3 shots show the devolution and ascension of Jonathon E...That final gnarled and brutal take on the true face of Mankind ..the soldiers face..promising dark retribution. Oooooh..I shiver:)))
Rest In Peace James Caan
I watched this danger-packed death-defying roller derby movie - of course, "Rollerball", in 1987. I remember what happens before you see the video. I heard the voice-over in the arena say....
"Attention - new rules for tonight's championship game. NO PENALTIES! - NO SUBSTITUTIONS - AND....NOOOOOOOOOOOOO TIME LIMIT!"
And then the game is over in minutes with carnage all around the track. And you get the feeling that, for the first time, the fans are repulsed by what their favorite sport had evolved into.
In addition to its other innovations, Rollerball also sounded different, being one of the early analog films to use Dolby A-Type noise reduction applied to the optical soundtrack. With Dolby-encoded prints played in properly-equipped cinemas, the effect of dropoff in background noise and dynamic range increase was immediately and strikingly noticeable, especially in quieter passages. R.I.P. James Caan.
RIP James Caan!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Late 60's /early 70's dystopian films are the best.
it still infuriates me they "remade" this movie and gutted it off all of it's meaning and depth. Arrrg. The classic is PERFECT.
My favourite James Caan film. Thanks Jimmy.R.I.P
I love the movie ROLLERBALL. The original movie, with James Caan. A great classic masterpiece. I'm going to watch it this week..
Johnathon E, that's the name, A few players come and go, but the champion plays on. " It's a game a mans not to be strong in. They're afraid of you Johnathon, all the way to the top. The game was created to test the futility of individual effort. Let the game do its work.
"GAME? THIS WAS NEVER MEANT TO BA A GAME,--NEVER!" :)
Such an amazing film when add the under current of the real story and what it’s saying about society. RIP to all of the great actors, stuntmen, writers, cameramen, and crew that have passed away.
Wow - just read this:
The game of Rollerball was so realistic that the cast, extras, and stunt personnel played it between takes on the set. At the time of the film's release, Howard Cosell interviewed Norman Jewison and James Caan on ABC's Wide World of Sports, showing clips from the film and with the two of them explaining the rules of the game. Audiences who saw the film so loved the action of the game that Jewison was contacted multiple times by promoters, requesting that the "rights to the game" be sold so that real Rollerball leagues might be formed. Jewison was outraged, as the entire point of the movie was to show the "sickness and insanity of contact sports and their allure."
And now we have TH-cam celebrities holding semi-real versions of "Squid Game". Point utterly missed.
I remember the urban myth surrounding this movie.
Supposedly the stunt men had so much fun filming the movie that they were playing it even after the end of the days shoot, at night.
Security found out of course, and they had to stop for fear of injury or equipment damage.
I like to believe this one.
This is an absolutely brilliant movie.
Just saw it yesterday again for ages, best sports movie ever
RIP to James Caan's family. He brought us so much good, not just in the Godfather, but LOVED him in Rollerball. And also in Alien Nation as Sykes. We'll miss you.
johnaton,,,johnathon,,, JOHNATON,,,JOHNATON,,,JOHNATON!
I loved the way JSBach's Toccata and Fugue in D Minor was used in this film. It's one of my favorite pieces of classical music.
The remake was a tragic money grab. I couldn't get enough of this movie when I was 17 in 1975. It did poorly at the box office largely because audiences were not ready for the message of corporate dominance of civil life. It is too bad because this film really speaks to our situation today.
What is the art of cinema.... to trigger an emotional response... humanity itself. Timeless Masterpiece 🌹
It pains me to announce it here, but #JamesCaan actually died on this day: July 7th, 2022. I feel that this scene best symbolizes not only his sudden departure, but also his long and successful career. God rest him.
More relevant now than ever before.
Yes
Why
@@the_red_barron1002 I'm not him, but the way I see it is collectivism vs individualism. The example would be corporates trying to perpetuate corporate image through trumpling wrongthinking individuals. All that cancel culture and wokeness. This also achieves political moderation - nobody is ever allowed to have a different opinion, helping to homogenise the field and manipulate it whichever way they want to. Any disagreeing element shall be ostracised and die off. However, the result is usually the companies going broke, as they should, or at least getting damaged financially. After all, it's the people that matter, not the company. And, the ending just shows the triumph of individualism aganst collectivism.
4 years later after your comment and it's even more relevant than ever. Gina Carano could be seen as Jonathan E today.
This is when film making was an artform. The younger generation today could never have the attention span to make it through the film's opening 5 minutes...
Bach's masterpiece in the beginning and ending , doesn't get any better than this ! (3 September 2018 1200 hours)
I remember seeing this at the old drive in Movies it was tge 1st of two movies Rocky3 was the other. We actually went yo see tge Rocky movie but all came home talking about Rollerball Awesome movie
Rollerball's original release predated the first Rocky by a year. You got lucky to see it a couple years later after missing it when it first came out.
Caans best! Have loved this since it first came out. So well done in every aspect.