The Omega man will always be my favorite adaptation of the I Am Legend novel. Heston, Ron Grainer's score, the action and the time period it was made all make it a standout to me.
A true cult classic & very much a guilty pleasure of mine...just a lot of fun to watch, every time. Very 70s & "Solid" soundtrack. The Omega Man is "Groovy Baby!!".
Dad took me and my younger brother to see this when it opened. Still one of my favorites, and in many ways really influenced my life. Being self reliant was a major theme in my mind.
I can relate to your thoughts re: self reliance. You might like the book "Earth Abides" by George Stewart. It begins in the 1950s and follows the life of the main character, who for a while is alone and then helps form a community. This was the book that got me thinking, "What do I do, if..."
Too bad he didn't live to play Nick Fury. Watch him in "True Lies" as the spy boss. Sam Jackson was good, but Heston was the comic book character come to life.
Minty mentioned the significance of the book's title, yet none of the three authorized film adaptations used it. I liked both the Vincent Price version and the Charlton Heston one, here. The Will Smith film was a big disappointment, because it used the title, but did not deliver the book's ending. The realization that the protagonist would become the bogeyman of legend for killing off earth's new inhabitants was so deliciously ironic. Why did no director use it?
There was also an unofficial adaptation of I Am Legend produced by The Asylum titled I Am Omega. It's basically a combination of the Heston and Smith versions. After the Will Smith version was released in theaters I decided to buy the Richard Matheson book and actually found a first edition in a used book store that Matheson had signed with the date of the signature marked as 1964 when "The Last Man on Earth" was released.
The Omega Man goes down as the ONLY movie ever to creep me out as a small child. Granted, I was only 6 or 7 or so at the time I saw it, but it made an impression. I was allowed to stay up and watch the midnight showing of it on television. It was New Years eve, and there was a special broadcast of it. I wanted to see it, because I'd already loved the Planet of the Apes movies, and both had Charleton Heston in them. My grandmother allowed it, because apparently I had been pretty well behaved, and that was kinda rare. I guess she wanted to reinforce the fact that "good behavior = you get what you want" more often. Still, my age, combined with my imagination, actually kinda traumatized me when I saw this. However, with that said, no other movie since has done that. Not even The Exorcist or The Omen, and those movies send some people to therapy. I do love the movie, although I have spotted the "random cars and people" in the background. But that happens when you've seen a movie hundreds of times. I've bought it on several formats, DVD, Blu-Ray, and Digital. It's got that 70s charm about it, and nothing will ever replace that.
I’ve watched it over the years, since it’s release. Yet I didn’t see any of those cars or people - - but I will pay close attention, the next time that I watch it.
Love this film.🥰 It changes a lot but the last man vibe an the amazing score make up for that. The Vincent price version IS the book. The less said about the Will Smith version the better.
That score had younger me holding a cassette player up to the speaker on the TV, just to get some of it! The cd release was magnificently mixed and I play that more often than I even watch the dvd! Anyway, Matheson also wrote "Bid Time Return" which was a massive hit when changed to "Somewhere In Time." Now THAT'S literary range right there!
Thanks for this Minty. Like Soylent Green, this is another of my favorite “end of civilization “ movies that seemed to be really popular back in my teenage days. And like Soylent Green, this movie also made an impression on my teenage years. Ha, made me kinda cynical and skeptical of government and big business, that I still carry with me today. Here’s another one from that time, “Silent Running”. Thanks for posting.
Soylent Green was a very important film, it is relevant to everything that has happened since it was made. Very prophetic film, even though we're not eating people, it deals with food engineering and climate change and even inflation and over population. Terrific film
Ron Grainer may have written the Dr Who theme song, but it was actually produced and recorded by a woman named Delia Derbyshire, one of the pioneers of synth music. It’s actually a fascinating story of how she made the sounds and textures for the theme, which was quite revolutionary for the time.
The BBC produced a very interesting documentary about Delia Derbyshire, "An Adventure in Time and Space", several years ago. Of course it included her time in the BBC Radiophonic Workshop when she produced the Dr Who theme tune. I always think that, although Ron Grainer wrote the piece, it was the strange sounds effects that Delia employed that made it sound so amazing and otherworldly.
Grainer composed the soundtrack for The Prisoner. It's his emphasis upon weighty brass which makes his compositions stand out and rock. Nothing else sounds like him; it's my belief that it's his unique use of heavy, heavy, but well-arranged bass horn sections which set him apart from his contemporaries and put his works in big demand for both small and large screen projects.
It's like hearing nails on a chalkboard when "fiction" gets incorrectly inserted into "Mystery Science Theater 3000". I don't even think this is a "Teenage Mutant Hero Turtles" thing where a show gets a slight name change in a different region of the world. I think Minty just got the name wrong. At least he's consistent in using the same incorrect title.
Literally stopped the playback in yelled out loud "fiction??" Love his work, but LOL he literally said it as he showed the graphic that said mystery science theater 3000😂
@@SMDoktorPepper Nope. There's always been guns in America. Something happened to society starting in the late 90s. The rise of the incel and the simp and Democrats are desperate to disarm their political enemies. Every tragedy that happens, is an opportunity for them to push their agenda.
I really like the Omega Man. Always thought it was really great and has some really good themes for it's time! Yes, I'll agree it's stuck in a particular time, and has not aged as well as other movies, but is a great classic.
Charleston Heston made indeed quite a shift from heroic Biblical figures in the 50s to tragic figures in the dystopian 70s scifi. And he's awesome and iconic in them all. Truly underrated. I'm amazed he didn't make a shift to self-aware camp, but I'm not complaining.
@@gregbors8364 I never cared for him in contemporary roles as he could come across as rather mannered. In historical epics, however, he was unmatched. No one else had such authority and presence.
@@pp312 I consider films like “The Ten Commandments” and “Ben Hur” to be high camp, so that probably also influences my opinion of Chuck’s career as an actor
As an Angelino, the barren streets downtown are because it's the financial district and there were no shopping centers back then. It's changed a bit as more residential high rises have emerged but even 10 years ago that area was dead on weekends. But other parts of LA were as busy as ever
I have always loved this movie, I dunno why, you can't tell it was directed by a TV director because it looks like a TV show. Great musical score, good message
Oh, Lordy! I remember my friend and I going from theatre to theatre following the Omega Man in its showings! In 1971, VCRs were still unknown, and the only way to watch a favorite film again and again was to do exactly that: scan the newspaper listings to find where it was playing and then go see it. We did that with Omega Man, then again in 1975 with Phantom of the Paradise. I have several Omega Man scripts, early and late versions. We were huge fans.
There was also an adaptation starring Mark Dacascos called "I Am Omega" in 2007 that I believe went straight to video. . Also, the show you referenced being inspired by the movie was "Mystery Science Theater 3000", (aka MST3K) not "Mystery Science Fiction Theater 3000"
@@powerbadpowerbad Honestly I haven't seen it in years but I remember telling my Hubs that I liked parts of it better than "I Am Legend". I found a link for it online and will be watching again soon. th-cam.com/video/mYH9dDorono/w-d-xo.html
I remember seeing this movie in a theater when I was a kid. I found it very frightening, especially the idea of the world, as was known, being totally wiped out. At that time we lived under the threat of a nuclear war hanging over our lives- at least here in the USA, so world ending threats were real to us. I can recall bombing drills we practiced in school. Yeah, like hiding under our desks would be of the slightest protection in event that a nuclear bomb was dropped. The Christ reference at the end did not go unnoticed either, I just never realized that Nevel died in the "Friends" fountain. Lol Ty for another fun look back at the entertainment of my youth.
As a child growing up in Los Angeles area, I remember the "Drop Drills" vividly. Actually, the fountain is different because in the center of it, is a concrete abstract sculpture. The crucifixion reference is shown also in the stadium where Neville is tied to a framework. After being rescued, Lisa frisks Neville for weapons, saying something like "Arms out! Like they're gonna crucify you!" and Neville replies "As a matter of fact, they were gonna roast me."
12:00 that's true, back in the 70's and 80's sundays everything was still closed and about the only things open were variety stores and gas stations. it was kind of nice actually.
@@gunfighterzero There WAS the issue though of if you're building a deck or whatever and you needed another box of deck screws and you were fubar because all the stores were closed. I remember I was repairing something on my boat and I needed ONE 1/4 20 nut. Do you think I could find one in my tool box? Nope. I was screwed. Couldn't finish the repair because all the hardware stores were closed. That's why now? I have like 2 boxes of 100 lol and boxes of 1/4 x 20 bolts in various lengths.....and 12 different wood screw lengths and and and...lol
@@muskokamike127 yea my dad stocked up material for 2 years before he retired from maintenance at GE, he died in 97 I stil have 90% of it but I don't make many trips to home depot 😁
It's been a favorite of mine for years - in fact, pretty much any of Chuck Heston's films are worth watching. The 10 Commandments is a staple around Easter.... Ben-Hur, Planet of the Apes, Soylent.... they are all just really good, enjoyable movies. Chuck was such a great actor that even here, in a bit of low-budget schlock; he still manages to turn in a good performance and helps elevate the movies' credibility.
"Dungeons and Dragons" (2000) was TOTAL CRAP.... But Jeremy Irons, I felt, REALLY put himself into the part. It was STILL CRAP because they gave him CRAP, but he would have been GREAT in a REAL "Dungeons and Dragons" movie. Only HE was trying to make a GREAT MOVIE. Everything in that movie should be thrown away except for keeping him in it, if it was possible to travel to back then and make that movie again.
Unfortunately that exterior set is being torn this year as the Warner's Ranch lot was sold to developers redeveloping the lot. I was lucky enough to have worked on the lot in the early 2000's when WB animation was still using the old writers shacks. I got to walk around Neville's house and sat on the fountain he died in. On the lot there were loads of iconic TV building fronts, like the Walton's homestead and Samantha Steven's house from Bewitched. Quite magical standing in and near those places that I remembered from my childhood favorite TV shows. I was sad to hear that they were going to redevelop the lot.
I first saw The Omega Man on TV when I was about 12. I found it interesting, thought provoking, and scary in places. While not the biggest zombie or science fiction fan, I have always regarded this movie as quite good. I don't think it has aged well, but that doesn't bother me from recommending it to someone or seeing again myself. Charlton Heston was great in any movie of his that I have ever seen. He was one of the greatest actors of the 20th century.
Minty you need to do more of these videos on the "old" movies, the ones you have already done are great ! Am sure the research takes longer but we appreciate your effort a lot. Also I would suggest small series of videos, like on leading character, director, theme or genre. Am sure you have a good start already on a lot of those type of categories with your large catalogue of videos.
I remember when I first got into film, and I rented The Omega Man, Planet of the Apes & The Last Man on Earth on one weekend. That made for a very surreal experience. All 3 about a man lost, searching for remnants of humanity. 2 of them based on Richard Matheson’s “I Am Legend.”
Thanks for this. I’m really enjoying your Charlton Heston retrospective. This is one of my all time favorite movies. I was too young to see it in the theater but not by much. I remember the TV spots for it though, back when they used to actually advertise movies on television. The spot focused on Heston driving through the stadium tunnels chased by torch wielding mutants. I was enthralled. When I saw it a few years later on late night TV it was a revelation. It’s one of the first movies I bought on VHS. I still have it. The 70’s was a great time for movies like this with Rollerball and Silent Running being favorites also.
Love..love..LOVE this movie as an all-time classic Sci-Fi as well as the music score...and thank YOU Minty for the great homage review of it. Learned several things.
'The Last man on Earth' with Vincent price is IMO the best version of this book ever made. Vincent price just brought a level of class to the role that has not been seen since. No insult to Charlton Heston, it is just his style was to bring that overly masculine 'a man's man' style, but for sheer class it is next to impossible to outdo Vincent Price. Even when he did Muppet show guest appearances, he couldn't help but bring that classy style with him.
When I first saw "The Omega Man" back in 1971, I fell in love with Ron Grainer's score, up there with Jerry Goldsmith's "Planet of the Apes" and Akira Ifukube's "Godzilla vs. the Thing". When I discovered that there was a CD in 2001, I became obsessed until I got it. Audio ambrosia...
This is a classic film and deserves more credit. Any film where you can refer to it in your life must be good. In lockdown in my part of the world when I was out with my dogs it was like the Omega man, just no one around and each time I would say this. Just one thing while watching your video it seems that in a world without people roof gardens still remain and are perfectly manicured.
I grew up watching this awesome movie, we used to play omega man in our backyard!! Charlton Heston is just badass in this movie!! He has the ultimate set up, cars,bikes,jeeps,guns,guns, guns, whiskey n food !! He is a real man, tells it how it is, not afraid to go out n fight, jokes, and uses the language a real man would!!! I am legend was a fucking joke compared to this awesome classic movie!!
I love this movie especially the opening scenes when he's driving around the deserted streets of L.A.. I've wondered over the years how they were able to film those scenes. Who knew downtown L.A. was so deserted on weekends back in the 70s?
Anthony Zerbe was also in the campy Kiss Meets The Phantom of the Park (1978) he played the mad scientist/Amuzement Park owner Abner Deveraux. You should do a 10 things on that movie. lol
This is is my favorite Charlton Heston SciFi movie. Is this how it starts? A trip to the laughing academy? No, you silly bastard, it starts with you asking yourself silly questions
I saw this film when it first came out (same with Planet of the Apes and Soylent Green). And I'm thrilled to have learned new things from you about a film that's one of my guilty pleasures. Tim Burton loves it? So cool! Deleted scene probably filmed? Amazing! Neville's house is still on the back lot? I'd love to see it! Also... Ron Granier's score ... especially the theme... is one of my favorite motion picture themes ever. I first heard his work when watching The Prisoner on TV. All around great video. I'm a new subscriber now!
The original version of the Doctor Who theme was a combined effort from Delia Derbyshire and Dick Mills at the BBC Radiophonic Workshop. The compositional basis for the Doctor Who theme music was delivered to the Radiophonic Workshop in mid-1963 by composer Ron Grainer on a single sheet of A4 manuscript paper containing the basic melody and bassline parts of the theme.
I saw the appropriately edited television version of this in the mid 1970s when I was but a wee child. Oddly, when I saw the full version as an adult, I didn't think it gained all that much. The real impact of this movie comes from the concept and the look.
@@martinvegas1327 I know matey!! 🤣 I've just got a daft sense of humour... The full movie is on TH-cam, it's on my to watch list... Secret of the Incas is on here too!! 👍
Star Trek's interracial kiss was in 1968. This was for TV. Omega Man was a movie with an interracial kiss released in 1971, but shot sometime earlier. Still great history and great job from Minty.
There was also an Asylum production called I AM OMEGA (get it?) released around the time of I AM LEGEND. It even rips off the "There. Are. No. Phones. Ringing!" line from THE OMEGA MAN.
I was so hoping this was going to be your next video! One of my all time favourite movies and movie scores! And all of the Brits out there will also know another famous TV show Grainer did the theme for, Tales Of The Unexpected
Great review of one of my favorites! Thank you for including bits of the score, which works very well for this film. Your reviews are always well worth watching, and I look forward to new videos. Thanks!
BIG fan of this film! I always had to make sure to catch the opening, whenever it showed up on the 4pm Saturday Movie, with the empty Downtown LA and Heston cruizing in his boss Mustang gunning down mutants! ! Rob Zombie's song "Creature of the Wheel" is also about THE OMEGA MAN, even featuring snippets of dialogue. Oh, and to be the 685th person to say, there's no "Fiction" in Mystery Science Theater 3000.
Dude, I have been loving some of your movie selections lately. I'm such a fan of the older sci-fi movies. My favorites of this series in order: Last Man on Earth, Omega Man then I Am Legend. All really good.
The interracial composition of the film was important because, when the film was made, the United States was beginning the process of transitioning away from being an Apartheid nation. Interracial marriage was illegal in many places, interracial dating was scorned, and interracial children were scandalous. Understanding the historical context gives you better insight into why certain choices were made
Thank You Minty for coverage of both films, Soylent Green & The Omega Man. These 2 films were the BEST ( & still are) when I was a young dude! Appreciate all that you do.... keep up the good work!
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The Omega man will always be my favorite adaptation of the I Am Legend novel. Heston, Ron Grainer's score, the action and the time period it was made all make it a standout to me.
A true cult classic & very much a guilty pleasure of mine...just a lot of fun to watch, every time. Very 70s & "Solid" soundtrack. The Omega Man is "Groovy Baby!!".
This entire film is a LEGEND to me. What a memorable Charlton Heston film it is.
Rip Charlton Heston ❤️
Dad took me and my younger brother to see this when it opened. Still one of my favorites, and in many ways really influenced my life. Being self reliant was a major theme in my mind.
Neville was a scavenger ...
I can relate to your thoughts re: self reliance. You might like the book "Earth Abides" by George Stewart. It begins in the 1950s and follows the life of the main character, who for a while is alone and then helps form a community. This was the book that got me thinking, "What do I do, if..."
Charlton Heston has portrayed many characters who are usually survivors of a conflict in a movie...he is a legend,indeed!
Hes a right wing gun toting madman.
I noticed that Charlton Heston was in alot of these apocalypse type movies in the early 1970's
Too bad he didn't live to play Nick Fury. Watch him in "True Lies" as the spy boss. Sam Jackson was good, but Heston was the comic book character come to life.
He usually dies at the end!
Minty mentioned the significance of the book's title, yet none of the three authorized film adaptations used it. I liked both the Vincent Price version and the Charlton Heston one, here. The Will Smith film was a big disappointment, because it used the title, but did not deliver the book's ending. The realization that the protagonist would become the bogeyman of legend for killing off earth's new inhabitants was so deliciously ironic. Why did no director use it?
There was also an unofficial adaptation of I Am Legend produced by The Asylum titled I Am Omega. It's basically a combination of the Heston and Smith versions.
After the Will Smith version was released in theaters I decided to buy the Richard Matheson book and actually found a first edition in a used book store that Matheson had signed with the date of the signature marked as 1964 when "The Last Man on Earth" was released.
Sure I Am Legend and 28 day later borrowed from this
That is so cool.
@@eclark3849 you didn't pay close attention to this video did you sport?
Good on ya mate! Been looking for a first print copy of the movie for projector 📽 with syncing sound for Samhain here in Ireland.
Gods damn it!!
Now I'm going to have to dig through my bookshelf to see what edition my book is...
The Omega Man goes down as the ONLY movie ever to creep me out as a small child. Granted, I was only 6 or 7 or so at the time I saw it, but it made an impression. I was allowed to stay up and watch the midnight showing of it on television. It was New Years eve, and there was a special broadcast of it. I wanted to see it, because I'd already loved the Planet of the Apes movies, and both had Charleton Heston in them. My grandmother allowed it, because apparently I had been pretty well behaved, and that was kinda rare. I guess she wanted to reinforce the fact that "good behavior = you get what you want" more often. Still, my age, combined with my imagination, actually kinda traumatized me when I saw this. However, with that said, no other movie since has done that. Not even The Exorcist or The Omen, and those movies send some people to therapy.
I do love the movie, although I have spotted the "random cars and people" in the background. But that happens when you've seen a movie hundreds of times. I've bought it on several formats, DVD, Blu-Ray, and Digital. It's got that 70s charm about it, and nothing will ever replace that.
I used it as a bedtime story. Years later my kids said it freaked them out, but I still love it.
I’ve watched it over the years, since it’s release. Yet I didn’t see any of those cars or people - - but I will pay close attention, the next time that I watch it.
Mine was night of the living dead. Had to been 9 when I seen it . Maybe going on 10
I saw it at the same age and had recurring nightmares of those cloaked figures for years.
I saw PotA on the big screen BEFORE seeing Omega man and I am with you: 1970s cinema was a magic time capsule. It's different today.
Love this film.🥰 It changes a lot but the last man vibe an the amazing score make up for that. The Vincent price version IS the book. The less said about the Will Smith version the better.
That score had younger me holding a cassette player up to the speaker on the TV, just to get some of it! The cd release was magnificently mixed and I play that more often than I even watch the dvd! Anyway, Matheson also wrote "Bid Time Return" which was a massive hit when changed to "Somewhere In Time." Now THAT'S literary range right there!
Get Will’s name outta yo mouth! His version slaps!
@@gregbors8364 please... 🤮
Will Smith also took a crap on the Wild Wild West! One of my favorites growing up. His version was a mockery!
I agree, but the will smith one wins the feels category. Good girl Sam makes me want to cry everytime....
Omega Man is a masterpiece
Thanks for this Minty.
Like Soylent Green, this is another of my favorite “end of civilization “ movies that seemed to be really popular back in my teenage days. And like Soylent Green, this movie also made an impression on my teenage years. Ha, made me kinda cynical and skeptical of government and big business, that I still carry with me today.
Here’s another one from that time, “Silent Running”. Thanks for posting.
Soylent Green was a very important film, it is relevant to everything that has happened since it was made. Very prophetic film, even though we're not eating people, it deals with food engineering and climate change and even inflation and over population. Terrific film
I always liked Anthony Zerbe (Matthias) in this movie. A very under-rated actor in my opinion.
He was great in everything he did and had a distinctive face so you always knew it was him.
totally agree. a GREAT performance. Oscars should have noticed this.
Ebert commented on the odd way the Zombies talked in the movie but didn’t compliment it.
totally underrated
@@thebetazone-km6xhgreatness
Ron Grainer may have written the Dr Who theme song, but it was actually produced and recorded by a woman named Delia Derbyshire, one of the pioneers of synth music. It’s actually a fascinating story of how she made the sounds and textures for the theme, which was quite revolutionary for the time.
It's strange you mention Dr Who, to some fans, the Family act like how the Fitzroy crowd fans want to change/distort the canon :p
The BBC produced a very interesting documentary about Delia Derbyshire, "An Adventure in Time and Space", several years ago. Of course it included her time in the BBC Radiophonic Workshop when she produced the Dr Who theme tune. I always think that, although Ron Grainer wrote the piece, it was the strange sounds effects that Delia employed that made it sound so amazing and otherworldly.
@@Steve-GM0HUU she was also featured in the movie Sisters With Transistors, which gives a broad overview of women in synthesis. Highly recommended.
yes true, scott
Grainer composed the soundtrack for The Prisoner. It's his emphasis upon weighty brass which makes his compositions stand out and rock. Nothing else sounds like him; it's my belief that it's his unique use of heavy, heavy, but well-arranged bass horn sections which set him apart from his contemporaries and put his works in big demand for both small and large screen projects.
I miss the 70’s !!! 🤗♥️
It's like hearing nails on a chalkboard when "fiction" gets incorrectly inserted into "Mystery Science Theater 3000". I don't even think this is a "Teenage Mutant Hero Turtles" thing where a show gets a slight name change in a different region of the world. I think Minty just got the name wrong. At least he's consistent in using the same incorrect title.
Literally stopped the playback in yelled out loud "fiction??"
Love his work, but LOL he literally said it as he showed the graphic that said mystery science theater 3000😂
If Charlton Heston is in a movie you know it's going to be great... He is a legend.
also he was a member of the national rifle association.
@@garymeacham7353 He always fought for our civil rights, he also marched with Martin Luther King.
A truly awful person, who holds responsibility for all these mass shootings
@@SMDoktorPepper Nope. There's always been guns in America. Something happened to society starting in the late 90s. The rise of the incel and the simp and Democrats are desperate to disarm their political enemies. Every tragedy that happens, is an opportunity for them to push their agenda.
@@eldesgraciado6690 there were, under a well regulated militia..and boy, you are no militia. Your words alone mark you as a terrorist
I really like the Omega Man. Always thought it was really great and has some really good themes for it's time! Yes, I'll agree it's stuck in a particular time, and has not aged as well as other movies, but is a great classic.
Bit like the original Planet of the Apes. What a great ending. It should have just stayed as that one movie lol
Charleston Heston made indeed quite a shift from heroic Biblical figures in the 50s to tragic figures in the dystopian 70s scifi. And he's awesome and iconic in them all. Truly underrated. I'm amazed he didn't make a shift to self-aware camp, but I'm not complaining.
Charlton, not "Charleston', which is a dance. Also, what is "self-aware camp"?
@@pp312 I think an example of that would be Arnold Schwarzenegger in The Last Action Hero or Marlon Brando in a lot of his 90s movies.
All his performances *are* camp. He’s the biggest scenery-chewer in history
@@gregbors8364 I never cared for him in contemporary roles as he could come across as rather mannered. In historical epics, however, he was unmatched. No one else had such authority and presence.
@@pp312 I consider films like “The Ten Commandments” and “Ben Hur” to be high camp, so that probably also influences my opinion of Chuck’s career as an actor
As an Angelino, the barren streets downtown are because it's the financial district and there were no shopping centers back then. It's changed a bit as more residential high rises have emerged but even 10 years ago that area was dead on weekends. But other parts of LA were as busy as ever
And no tents on the street like now.
There's no 'Fiction' in Mystery Science Theater 3000.
I have always loved this movie, I dunno why, you can't tell it was directed by a TV director because it looks like a TV show. Great musical score, good message
One of the better older, non-effects laden sci-fi movies.
Oh, Lordy! I remember my friend and I going from theatre to theatre following the Omega Man in its showings! In 1971, VCRs were still unknown, and the only way to watch a favorite film again and again was to do exactly that: scan the newspaper listings to find where it was playing and then go see it. We did that with Omega Man, then again in 1975 with Phantom of the Paradise. I have several Omega Man scripts, early and late versions. We were huge fans.
There was also an adaptation starring Mark Dacascos called "I Am Omega" in 2007 that I believe went straight to video. . Also, the show you referenced being inspired by the movie was "Mystery Science Theater 3000", (aka MST3K) not "Mystery Science Fiction Theater 3000"
That's what I was going to write. At least the "I am Omega" Part. Thank you
I have I Am Omega on dvd,still haven't watched the film.
@@powerbadpowerbad I liked it
@@Comfortdoll You did ??? Good,which parts were your favorite ???
@@powerbadpowerbad Honestly I haven't seen it in years but I remember telling my Hubs that I liked parts of it better than "I Am Legend". I found a link for it online and will be watching again soon. th-cam.com/video/mYH9dDorono/w-d-xo.html
I remember seeing this movie in a theater when I was a kid. I found it very frightening, especially the idea of the world, as was known, being totally wiped out. At that time we lived under the threat of a nuclear war hanging over our lives- at least here in the USA, so world ending threats were real to us.
I can recall bombing drills we practiced in school. Yeah, like hiding under our desks would be of the slightest protection in event that a nuclear bomb was dropped.
The Christ reference at the end did not go unnoticed either, I just never realized that Nevel died in the "Friends" fountain. Lol
Ty for another fun look back at the entertainment of my youth.
As a child growing up in Los Angeles area, I remember the "Drop Drills" vividly. Actually, the fountain is different because in the center of it, is a concrete abstract sculpture. The crucifixion reference is shown also in the stadium where Neville is tied to a framework. After being rescued, Lisa frisks Neville for weapons, saying something like "Arms out! Like they're gonna crucify you!" and Neville replies "As a matter of fact, they were gonna roast me."
12:00 that's true, back in the 70's and 80's sundays everything was still closed and about the only things open were variety stores and gas stations. it was kind of nice actually.
Sundays shops are closed to this day in parts of EU - Austria here.
I agree, more peaceful days
@@gunfighterzero There WAS the issue though of if you're building a deck or whatever and you needed another box of deck screws and you were fubar because all the stores were closed.
I remember I was repairing something on my boat and I needed ONE 1/4 20 nut. Do you think I could find one in my tool box? Nope. I was screwed. Couldn't finish the repair because all the hardware stores were closed.
That's why now? I have like 2 boxes of 100 lol and boxes of 1/4 x 20 bolts in various lengths.....and 12 different wood screw lengths and and and...lol
Anyone else remember "Blue Laws" ?
@@muskokamike127 yea my dad stocked up material for 2 years before he retired from maintenance at GE, he died in 97 I stil have 90% of it but I don't make many trips to home depot 😁
It's been a favorite of mine for years - in fact, pretty much any of Chuck Heston's films are worth watching. The 10 Commandments is a staple around Easter.... Ben-Hur, Planet of the Apes, Soylent.... they are all just really good, enjoyable movies. Chuck was such a great actor that even here, in a bit of low-budget schlock; he still manages to turn in a good performance and helps elevate the movies' credibility.
"Dungeons and Dragons" (2000) was TOTAL CRAP.... But Jeremy Irons, I felt, REALLY put himself into the part.
It was STILL CRAP because they gave him CRAP, but he would have been GREAT in a REAL "Dungeons and Dragons" movie. Only HE was trying to make a GREAT MOVIE.
Everything in that movie should be thrown away except for keeping him in it, if it was possible to travel to back then and make that movie again.
One of my favorite movies of all time.
I loved omega man, dr who, and mst3k and never realized they were all connected. Great video!
Long before zombie movies made me wonder how I'd handle an apocalypse, this one was my favorite!!
Yes I think it was the blueprint for lots of zombie movies
@@gunfighterzero night of the living dead was like 3 years ahead of this.
The obvious answer is that you handle them with an S&W M-76 9mm subgun, and a B A R with infrared projection sight!
@@jerrywoods4066 and?
21:20 - I just LOVE that weird carousel-like music during Neville's final showdown with Mathias and his followers.
Unfortunately that exterior set is being torn this year as the Warner's Ranch lot was sold to developers redeveloping the lot. I was lucky enough to have worked on the lot in the early 2000's when WB animation was still using the old writers shacks. I got to walk around Neville's house and sat on the fountain he died in. On the lot there were loads of iconic TV building fronts, like the Walton's homestead and Samantha Steven's house from Bewitched. Quite magical standing in and near those places that I remembered from my childhood favorite TV shows. I was sad to hear that they were going to redevelop the lot.
I first saw The Omega Man on TV when I was about 12. I found it interesting, thought provoking, and scary in places. While not the biggest zombie or science fiction fan, I have always regarded this movie as quite good. I don't think it has aged well, but that doesn't bother me from recommending it to someone or seeing again myself. Charlton Heston was great in any movie of his that I have ever seen. He was one of the greatest actors of the 20th century.
Minty you need to do more of these videos on the "old" movies, the ones you have already done are great ! Am sure the research takes longer but we appreciate your effort a lot. Also I would suggest small series of videos, like on leading character, director, theme or genre. Am sure you have a good start already on a lot of those type of categories with your large catalogue of videos.
I remember when I first got into film, and I rented The Omega Man, Planet of the Apes & The Last Man on Earth on one weekend. That made for a very surreal experience. All 3 about a man lost, searching for remnants of humanity. 2 of them based on Richard Matheson’s “I Am Legend.”
Thank you. I am going to go watch The Last Man on Earth now.
You didn’t watch the Will Smith version to watch all of them at once.
All three looking for their destiny.
@@donna25871 he didn't miss much.
Was and still is one of my fave movies!
Another pretty good disaster movie of Heston's was a movie called Earthquake, released in 1974.
I liked that one, too.
"Tell me something, would you? Are you fellas really with the Internal Revenue Service."
I love that you’re looking at these old Heston movies. They are hidden gems.
Thanks for this. I’m really enjoying your Charlton Heston retrospective. This is one of my all time favorite movies. I was too young to see it in the theater but not by much. I remember the TV spots for it though, back when they used to actually advertise movies on television. The spot focused on Heston driving through the stadium tunnels chased by torch wielding mutants. I was enthralled. When I saw it a few years later on late night TV it was a revelation. It’s one of the first movies I bought on VHS. I still have it. The 70’s was a great time for movies like this with Rollerball and Silent Running being favorites also.
Love..love..LOVE this movie as an all-time classic Sci-Fi as well as the music score...and thank YOU Minty for the great homage review of it. Learned several things.
'The Last man on Earth' with Vincent price is IMO the best version of this book ever made. Vincent price just brought a level of class to the role that has not been seen since. No insult to Charlton Heston, it is just his style was to bring that overly masculine 'a man's man' style, but for sheer class it is next to impossible to outdo Vincent Price. Even when he did Muppet show guest appearances, he couldn't help but bring that classy style with him.
Love you Minty, keep on making great vids man, helps me discover all sorts of gems from back in the day.
I remember seeing this on a small b&w TV, and my aunt referred to the albino muties as the blindmen.
Good memories
Man we need Ten Things You Didn't Know About The Hand That Rocks The Cradle!!!
When I first saw "The Omega Man" back in 1971, I fell in love with Ron Grainer's score, up there with Jerry Goldsmith's "Planet of the Apes" and Akira Ifukube's "Godzilla vs. the Thing". When I discovered that there was a CD in 2001, I became obsessed until I got it. Audio ambrosia...
I fell in love with Nova.
@@canamrider07 So did Taylor...
You can hear the theme from The Prisoner TV show in the repeated three-note horn theme (pum-pum-pum!) in Omega Man.
I just watched this movie a few weeks ago, such a great movie!
So, I'm guessing "Planet of the Apes" is next week?
Great review! This is my favourite version of the three cinematic productions. A really good film that I can watch again and again.
One of my top 10 movies of all time!
One of my favorite drive-in double features -- Omega Man and Enter the Dragon. What a night...
This is a classic film and deserves more credit. Any film where you can refer to it in your life must be good. In lockdown in my part of the world when I was out with my dogs it was like the Omega man, just no one around and each time I would say this. Just one thing while watching your video it seems that in a world without people roof gardens still remain and are perfectly manicured.
A hundred years from now the omega man will still be relevant,now that’s what makes a authentic classic.
Some movies you just can't never forget, this is one of them...
I remember Anthony Zerbe as the villain in KISS Meets The Phantom Of The Park.
I grew up watching this awesome movie, we used to play omega man in our backyard!! Charlton Heston is just badass in this movie!! He has the ultimate set up, cars,bikes,jeeps,guns,guns, guns, whiskey n food !! He is a real man, tells it how it is, not afraid to go out n fight, jokes, and uses the language a real man would!!! I am legend was a fucking joke compared to this awesome classic movie!!
I love this movie especially the opening scenes when he's driving around the deserted streets of L.A.. I've wondered over the years how they were able to film those scenes. Who knew downtown L.A. was so deserted on weekends back in the 70s?
.... Boris Segal ROCKS. He did a great directing job!
Anthony Zerbe was also in the campy Kiss Meets The Phantom of the Park (1978) he played the mad scientist/Amuzement Park owner Abner Deveraux. You should do a 10 things on that movie. lol
Anthony Zerbe was also the admiral in Star Trek : Insurrection
@@keverzoid and in Star Trek he had the same style of final scene like what he had in the James Bond film Licence to Kill!
Rip & Destroy!
He was in See No Evil Hear No Evil with Richard Pryor and Gene Wilder!
@@deanevans2505 good flick
This movie is a fantasy favorite of mine.
Imagine having the whole city to yourself? Traffic is awesome. 😂
This is is my favorite Charlton Heston SciFi movie. Is this how it starts? A trip to the laughing academy? No, you silly bastard, it starts with you asking yourself silly questions
"There Is No Phone, dammit!" always helps me reset in crisis.
I saw this film when it first came out (same with Planet of the Apes and Soylent Green). And I'm thrilled to have learned new things from you about a film that's one of my guilty pleasures. Tim Burton loves it? So cool! Deleted scene probably filmed? Amazing! Neville's house is still on the back lot? I'd love to see it! Also... Ron Granier's score ... especially the theme... is one of my favorite motion picture themes ever. I first heard his work when watching The Prisoner on TV. All around great video. I'm a new subscriber now!
Love this movie Charlton Heston the original badass just gotta love it.
"I am Omega" is another adaptation of "I am Legend."
Mark W. I'm so glad I found the one other person on earth who's seen it😂
1976 Melbourne Austalia ,this movie kept me away from school and not sleeping at night for nearly a month ,it had such an impact on me
Minty, do the movie Soldier with Kurt Russell.
Hey, I had a great idea last year. Soldier was gold.
The original version of the Doctor Who theme was a combined effort from Delia Derbyshire and Dick Mills at the BBC Radiophonic Workshop. The compositional basis for the Doctor Who theme music was delivered to the Radiophonic Workshop in mid-1963 by composer Ron Grainer on a single sheet of A4 manuscript paper containing the basic melody and bassline parts of the theme.
Interesting fact. I was Sting's Grandmother's postman. Agnes was a lovely woman, bless her.
Love this movie. The tone and music are really gripping and evocative. Truly a classic.
Mst3k was a formative part of my youth, and a huge influence on my sense of humor. Classic. Funny I never put it together.
Still want to see this movie.
Loved Heston and the Omega Man. Saw it in its first run in the theaters when I was 12. Appreciate these interesting tidbits you have provided.
Omega Man was excellent drive-in fare! That's where I saw it when I was 14. It scared me - I loved it!!!
Fantastic Minty!!!
I prefer it over Will Smith version!
I love this film, it's the best version.
I saw the appropriately edited television version of this in the mid 1970s when I was but a wee child. Oddly, when I saw the full version as an adult, I didn't think it gained all that much. The real impact of this movie comes from the concept and the look.
This film made a big impression on me when I saw it as a kid in th 70's. Even today, decades later, I still love everything about it.
I love Mystery Science (fiction) Theater 3000!! 🤦♂🤦♂🤦♂️
Seriously, love ya Minty, but where did you get the idea it was called that? 😂🤣😂😭😭😭
The Last man on earth is a classic!
With Will Forte?? 😜
@@WayneCatlin Vincent Price. Worth watching at least once a year👍
@@martinvegas1327
I know matey!! 🤣 I've just got a daft sense of humour...
The full movie is on TH-cam, it's on my to watch list... Secret of the Incas is on here too!! 👍
@@WayneCatlin Get it watched👍Runaway train is on TH-cam as well😎
@@martinvegas1327you know, I've had this film on my radar for a while now, cheers!! I'll add it to the list pal 👍
Star Trek's interracial kiss was in 1968. This was for TV. Omega Man was a movie with an interracial kiss released in 1971, but shot sometime earlier. Still great history and great job from Minty.
There was also an Asylum production called I AM OMEGA (get it?) released around the time of I AM LEGEND. It even rips off the "There. Are. No. Phones. Ringing!" line from THE OMEGA MAN.
I was so hoping this was going to be your next video! One of my all time favourite movies and movie scores! And all of the Brits out there will also know another famous TV show Grainer did the theme for, Tales Of The Unexpected
Could please do 10 things you didn’t know about Akira (1988)?
Omega Man is one of my favorite films.
I so appreciate your making this video. The Omega Man is one of my favorite movies.
Great review of one of my favorites! Thank you for including bits of the score, which works very well for this film. Your reviews are always well worth watching, and I look forward to new videos. Thanks!
A bit cheesy but loads of fun. The music makes it awesome.
BIG fan of this film! I always had to make sure to catch the opening, whenever it showed up on the 4pm Saturday Movie, with the empty Downtown LA and Heston cruizing in his boss Mustang gunning down mutants!
!
Rob Zombie's song "Creature of the Wheel" is also about THE OMEGA MAN, even featuring snippets of dialogue.
Oh, and to be the 685th person to say, there's no "Fiction" in Mystery Science Theater 3000.
Thank you!!! This is my favorite sci-Fi film! You did a great job with it. I’ve been ill and this show cheered me up immensely!
I knew this had to be next after Soylent Green. RIP Charleston and Roselind 🙏
Ron Granger as well. Magnificent score whose cd booklet also RIP all three.
Dude, I have been loving some of your movie selections lately. I'm such a fan of the older sci-fi movies. My favorites of this series in order: Last Man on Earth, Omega Man then I Am Legend. All really good.
Omega man and Soylent Green are great movies. I liked the behind the scenes footage.
I remember watching your Soylent Green episode and thinking "man, I hope he does Omega Man next". Perfect timing Minty.
Omega Man's best single feature is definitely Ron Grainer's bitchin' music score. I knew him from THE PRISONER.
The interracial composition of the film was important because, when the film was made, the United States was beginning the process of transitioning away from being an Apartheid nation. Interracial marriage was illegal in many places, interracial dating was scorned, and interracial children were scandalous. Understanding the historical context gives you better insight into why certain choices were made
It might answer the question as to why they cut the cemetery/pregnancy announcement scene
MINTY!!!!! Omega Man and the Vincent Price version are super cool.
Thank You Minty for coverage of both films, Soylent Green & The Omega Man.
These 2 films were the BEST ( & still are) when I was a young dude!
Appreciate all that you do.... keep up the good work!
Doctor Who, The Prisoner, etc. were great - the Omega Man was great as well. The theme is from a a 1959 movie called a "Summer Place".
The musical score of the Omega Man was creepy.
And even better when playing the CD release.
The Homega Man was my favorite adaptation.