The Black Hole (1979)

Director:

Gary Nelson

Writers:

Jeb Rosebrook (story) and
Bob Barbash (story) ...

Release Date:

21 December 1979 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Family | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

A journey that begins where everything ends!

Plot:

A research vessel finds a missing ship, commanded by a mysterious scientist, on the edge of a black hole.

Plot Keywords:

Black Hole | Robot | Spaceship | Space | Reverse Footage

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 5 nominations

Cast

Maximilian Schell	...	Dr. Hans Reinhardt
Anthony Perkins	...	Dr. Alex Durant
Robert Forster	...	Captain Dan Holland
Joseph Bottoms	...	Lieutenant Charles Pizer
Yvette Mimieux	...	Dr. Kate McCrae
Ernest Borgnine	...	Harry Booth
Tom McLoughlin	...	Captain S.T.A.R. (Special Troops Arms Regiment) (as Tommy McLoughlin)

Also Known As:

Space Station One (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

98 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.20 : 1

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) | Dolby (35 mm prints) (RCA Photophone Sound Recording)

Certification:

Singapore:PG | Argentina:Atp | Australia:PG | Chile:TE | Finland:K-12 | Norway:12 | Sweden:15 | UK:PG | USA:PG | West Germany:12 | Canada:G (Nova Scotia) (original rating) | Canada:PG (Nova Scotia) (re-rating) (2004) | UK:A (original rating) | Iceland:L

Filming Locations:

Walt Disney Studios, Burbank, California, USA

Company:

Walt Disney Productions

Trivia:

The visual effect of the black hole itself was created by forming a whirlpool in a round Plexiglas water tank, and adding different colors of paint.

Goofs:

Continuity: Despite the fact that throughout the dining room scene characters come and go through an interior door, as is clearly shown in later exterior shots, the dining room is set apart from the body of the Cygnus atop a scaffold-like tower with no elevator, walkway, ladder or any means to enter or exit.

Quotes:

Dr. Hans Reinhardt: Maximilian, the time has come to liquidate our guests.

Movie Connections:

Featured in SPFX: The Empire Strikes Back (1980) (TV)

Disney gets it right. For once.

The Black Hole is probably the only Disney live-action movie (with the possible exception of Cool Runnings) that is even watchable. So the fact that it's incredibly fun just makes it all the more odd.

Perhaps it's the overabundance of mediocre effects (even by 1979's standards, considering it was preceded by Star Wars (2 years) and 2001: A Space Odyssey (11 years)), or it could be the overall impossibility of the robot VINCENT, but I am hooked on this movie.

Plotwise, there's some new stuff here for science fiction. In general, the black hole had never really been looked into, so combining that with the crazed genius (Maximillian Schell) just creates a story worth watching, despite some obvious speaking errors ("habitable life in outer space") and some scientific errors (the astronauts are exposed to the vacuum of space and nothing happens...).

All in all, the fighting, the story, and the utterly bizarre 1970s sets and costumes make this one of my closet favorites. If you are even vaguely interested, buy the video today, because it took 20 years to see it come out to the mainstream. Don't miss this!