As a kid, I think I always assumed Star Wars was George Lucas’ singular project, not giving much thought to his actual history as a filmmaker. Since the sixth grade, I’ve of course learned more about him and love American Graffiti, but THX 1138 is cool because you can see some of the blueprints for what was to come only a few years later in Lucas’ career. The world is ambiguous enough to keep you interested but established enough to where you understand the rules in the dystopia Lucas has created. It’s a very simple story that doesn’t overcomplicate itself or its characters. Unfortunately, Lucas decided to give this the “special edition treatment,” which seriously took me out of the movie. I actually said “Ugh!” out loud after seeing one of the early-2000s CG creations come up on the screen. The climactic car chase had me squirming just as bad. It’s still a solid movie, but why, oh why, Mr. Lucas…
9/22/23
