Well, my next review is going to be a little different from any other films I have done before. I have been a member of a Facebook group called Incredibly Strange Films and I will post a link at the end of this blog. Go check it out it’s of any interest to you, I do enjoy reading some of the comments on there. This still does not tell you why it will be different! Well, I will be reviewing films that people love a lot in that group. Not only that but this will be my first time viewing it without any research at all, not even a trailer. It’s just a different approach for me and if I like it I will carry on reviewing some films from the group. Anyway, someone in the group mentioned that Soylent Green was better than Blade Runner in his opinion so obviously that got my attention. All I can tell you it is a 1973 post-apocalyptic thriller starring Charlton Heston and it has a strong cult following. Again, I know people watch these films over and over and it is not my intention to know all the facts and details, it’s just my first thoughts on viewing. So here goes.
Well, the first minute of this film reminds me of Cheers till it soon turns into one of my best openings for a film, it’s the real-world problems montage. It’s a little strange to think people were already beginning to worry about the planet before I was born; furthermore 40 years later and still nothing has changed. So, Its 2022 and I have just learnt that Soylent Green is the tofu of the future. Was Charlton Heston the Harrison Ford of the 60s and 70s? As with every dystopian film, there is a lot of poor people living in real dire situations and this is no different. I must say for 1973 I am really impressed with the visual effects and tones used in the film. Detective Thorn, I’m learning is some kind of Police Officer investigating the murder of a man of great importance. Honestly, with the outfit he is wearing he would be better suited to work on a Steam Train. So now I am really starting to wonder what Soylent Green is as we see people hungry and waiting for its green deliciousness with a lovely green mist in the air to top it off! I do love watching a film set in the future from our past if that makes any sense to you? Basically, I can see the 70s vibe all over the place.
Now I have learnt that a local thug is buying strawberry jam at $150 a jar, he must be up to something, also that our murder suspect is in fact the CEO of the company that make Soylent Green. Next, we visit the apartment of the murder victims apartment and the look of this apartment is wonderful. bubble wrap doors and plenty of fake fur hopefully, I dig it. I have kind of lost this story a little bit now but we find the detective in a local market where they are giving out Soylent Green and a delicious array of other vibrant coloured blocks, yum; however they have run out of the green stuff, I predict a riot. Oh, it’s all gone a bit crazy now and people are being scooped up in Garbage Wagons and threw in the back of them. This is brilliant and really is the highlight of the film for me, I can’t wait to see what happens next? Detective Thorn’s best friend has gone to the hospital to have himself put to sleep it seems; furthermore in his bed, he gets a Cinema experience of life before it all went wrong apparently. This brings back memories of when I first watched HD television: also it’s also a stark reminder that this could be the case in the future. Detective Thorn decides to go try to find his friend once the terrible deed has been done only to find that they are also sticking him into Garbage Wagon also. Thorn jumps a ride as it goes to a Processing Plant? Oh! I think I am putting this mystery together now, it’s confirmed WE are the tofu of the future, there is a bit of a shoot-out and the detective dies. THE END.
I will admit I have missed a lot of vital information in that film and I will have to watch it again. Is it as good as Blade Runner? Well, it’s too early to tell after one viewing but I will say no. Charlton Heston’s clothes are terrible but there is stuff to like in this film and it is incredibly strange. I am a big fan of the dystopian future so I liked it. Thanks for reading and If It goes well enough there will be some more Incredibly Strange Films coming again soon.
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Who’s more foolish, the fool or the fool who follows him? 