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Flash Gordon (1980)
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Overview
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Release Date:
5 December 1980 (USA) moreTagline:
He'll save every one of us! morePlot:
A football player and his friends travel to the planet Mongo and find themselves fighting the tyrant, Ming the Merciless, to save Earth. full summary | add synopsisAwards:
Nominated for 2 BAFTA Film Awards. Another 1 win & 8 nominations moreNewsDesk:
(34 articles)
Anthony Hopkins As Odin (Not Brian Blessed) And Grant Morrison's Mystery Project In Today's Twitter Report (From MTV Splash Page. 30 October 2009, 11:31 AM, PDT)
Are These The Ten Greatest Villain Costumes in Sci-Fi Movie History?
(From Cinematical. 29 October 2009, 1:15 PM, PDT)
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Hotpants in Hotspace - The turbo-powered love rocket story more (191 total)Cast
(Cast overview, first billed only)| Sam J. Jones | ... | Flash Gordon | |
| Melody Anderson | ... | Dale Arden | |
| Max von Sydow | ... | The Emperor Ming / Ming's Floating Servant (as Max Von Sydow) | |
| Topol | ... | Dr. Hans Zarkov | |
| Ornella Muti | ... | Princess Aura | |
| Timothy Dalton | ... | Prince Barin | |
| Brian Blessed | ... | Prince Vultan | |
| Peter Wyngarde | ... | Klytus | |
| Mariangela Melato | ... | Kala | |
| John Osborne | ... | Arborian Priest | |
| Richard O'Brien | ... | Fico | |
| John Hallam | ... | Luro | |
| Philip Stone | ... | Zogi, the High Priest | |
| Suzanne Danielle | ... | Serving Girl | |
| William Hootkins | ... | Munson |
Additional Details
Parents Guide:
View content advisory for parentsRuntime:
111 minLanguage:
EnglishColor:
Color (Technicolor)Aspect Ratio:
2.20 : 1 moreCertification:
UK:A (theatrical rating) | Iceland:L | Singapore:PG | Australia:PG | Finland:K-12 | Netherlands:12 | Sweden:15 | UK:PG | USA:PG | West Germany:12Fun Stuff
Trivia:
The wristwatch Flash is wearing in the early scenes of the film is a Seiko automatic chronograph, model 6139-6002. The watch disappears when Flash gets to Mongo. moreGoofs:
Revealing mistakes: When Flash and company first arrive at Ming's palace and see the floating orb droid for the first time, three wires holding it are clearly visible. Later as it floats down the hallway two holes punched in the extended pieces are seen where the wires are threaded through. moreQuotes:
[first lines]The Emperor Ming: Klytus, I'm bored. What play thing can you offer me today?
Klytus: An obscure body in the S-K System, your majesty. The inhabitants refer to it as the planet Earth.
more
Soundtrack:
Flash moreFAQ
Why do the Hawkmen use rocket cycles if they have wings and, therefore, can fly by themselves?more
more (191 total)
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A blonde, whip-wielding man in red PVC hotpants. A sultry brunette temptresses in a (red PVC) catsuit. A dastardly skullcapped villain with a penchant for S'n'M. A horny, malevolent robot-man called Klytus (a cross between coitus and clitoris?) with a penchant for young ladies. A phallic war rocket Ajax looking like a model 747 decked out with spikes and fins. No: this isn't a 1990s porn extravaganza; this is Flash Gordon the early 80s camp comic classic.
What a film! Sorry, I mean what a film? It's impossible to convey the qualities of this film in a short review. Indeed, I'm not entirely sure I understand on what level (or planet) this film works. Mainly I think it works because everyone is having such fun, from the gloriously camp Max Von Sydow (my all time hero) to Queen (who seem not so much responsible for the soundtrack as the spiritual progenitors for the film itself).
I should mention that I have fond memories of this film from childhood. I remember sneaking downstairs to watch it late at night aged about 8. From that moment, my childhood fantasies usually came (so to speak) in the form of Princess Aura (Ornella Muti and the now famous red catsuit). I should also point out that the film has very few other obvious things (apart from exuberance) going for it. It is possibly one of the daftest films ever made, only slightly redeemed by the fact that it doesn't take itself seriously note the Houdini reference and the casting of Blue Peter presenter Peter Duncan as proof of this, not that you'll need any proof after five minutes of watching it. Indeed, the only ones who don't seem to be enjoying themselves are the humourless Timothy Dalton and the limp-wristed, wet as a haddock Melody Anderson proving once and for all that rampant Euro totty spank the ass (so to speak) of all American girls.
Anyway, I digress. Flash Gordon is essentially a pantomime with an all-star cast (for Max Von Sydow as Ming the Merciless, think Sir Ian McKellem as Widow Twanky). Viewed objectively it's a moderately, if not abjectly awful film. If you just unhook your critical consciousness for 90 minutes you are sure to be rewarded by a high camp, high-energy slice of high grade Camembert. And Mistress Muti she's still a kind of magic! 5/10