"On a scale of 1-10, how freaking awesome is Zardoz?" Topic

It is neither Horror nor Sci-fi. It is unique in its LSD awesomeness.
I give it a 10!

Way back, someone (Brigade Games?) offered Zardoz miniatures. I bought 6 for my Sedan Chair Races project.

'The GUN is Good'

No way would it get made today

10

The flying head at the start is beyond fantastic – cinema should be able to offer fantastical images and challenging stories. I'm not asking for a remake, what a hollow waste of time that would be, but I'll be happy to see the "next zardoz-like' film.

X) I have not drunk the Flavor-Aid.

On a whim, I googled "28mm Zardoz", and I found a few options. Etsy among others.
Even a conversion for "Zardork". Whet your X-acto knives!

It was The Warstore (RIP) that offered the Zardoz figures- totally forgot I ordered 3 until I came across them recently looking for other figures…

Ah, yes. The Warstore. Thanks.

Only seen it once.

6?

Lots of competition.

A Xanadu crossover may be worth it.

10! TEN! Loud and clear. I was one of the original ringleaders of the silly Zardoz movement here on TMP. The film is… indescribable!

And so you either revel in its weirdness or shun it entirely as a waste of your time, and I get that. But let the DVD commentary from the director speak for itself. ZARDOZ definitely had a method behind its madness, even if it didn't quite stick.

Besides, it's a glorious period piece and even Sean Connery couldn't get all the copies recalled and burned.

I still have four or five unpainted Zeds from that defunct production, I was going to paint them in different colored diapers and make some kind of game scenario around them all, Zed Prime, Zed Blue, Zed Yellow, etc.

ZERO waste of celluloid

I actually saw this movie when it came out in a theater.

1 my original opinion did not change.

I had to look up a plot summary. 14bore to the contrary, it seems eminently doable today. You think modern Hollywood can't do message-heavy stories with gratuitous nudity and sex, a preposterous plot and unspeakable dialogue? Only things in that movie they can't do are feature straight white male heroes and stay within budget.

The remake will make Zed a black lesbian and cost more than $200 USD million. The lead will do interviews to tell conservatives she doesn't want their money. When it tanks at the box office, the studio will blame racism and sexism.

Raising Gazorpazorp is better.

One person on the thread makes me think of the phrase "One Trick Pony"

🙄

That's one more trick than some ponies, 20th.

Is it the person not saying what they are talking about?

I saw it the first time in 1976 or 1977, at a university-area rep cinema, so second -run or thereabouts. And I was… disappointed, because it wasn't what I'd anticipated, and to my narrow 20-something mind thinking, not what I could understand. But then, I had the same reaction the same time I saw Boorman's "Excalibur" in around 1983 or 1984 -- and yet I had the same feeling of. "some of these scenes just stick with me," despite all. The visuals, the music. And then, repeat viewings of both, paid dividends. The more I watched them, the more I understood them. (Well, Excalibur more so than Zardoz.) So definitely, these are films that linger and grow on you if you go back to them later on, you may find that you've grown into them. In some way or another.

Oh, Excalibur is just wonderful – the imagery is perfectly handled and Nicol Williamson just is Merlin.

@zulupaul – respectfully I would disagree: that it is still worth discussing 50 years later means it wasn't quite a waste of time. There is something about it which engenders strong responses, and surely that is the point of the film.

I doubt (I will never know obviously) that for example,Megalopolis will still be discussed much in 50 years time.

I doubt (I will never know obviously) that for example,Megalopolis will still be discussed much in 50 years time.

I had to read that twice to realize you weren't talking about Metropolis.

Oh, I know they'll be talking about Metropolis in 50 years!

Lol.

No.

They'll be living it.

+1 Robert

I doubt a remake of Zardoz would cast the lead as e female.

Would rather obscure the gun/penis thrust of the story.