This week the death of the Israeli actor was announced Chaim Topolwhich for many means the loss of the famous protagonist of ‘Fiddler on the Roof‘. Without a doubt, that was his most applauded role, with which He won a Golden Globe and was nominated for an Oscar.. For many others, yes, his name is inseparable from ‘Flash Gordon’.
It will not have that much prestige, but there is no doubt that it will be cult. Topol gave life to the memorable doctor Hans Zarkov, a scientist expelled from NASA who wants to make a space trip and bundles a rugby player and his romantic interest for such an undertaking. Together they reach the distant kingdom of Mongo, which has launched one of its moons to crash against Earth. The Tel Aviv actor is one of his most remembered aspects for giving himself completely to the most colorful and comic book fantasy possible.
From the rugby team to the floating city
It’s hard to imagine movies like ‘Thor: Ragnarok’ that unbiasedly embraced this kind of light-hearted and imaginative science fictionwithout the existence of this powerful adaptation directed by Mike Hodges that Dino De Laurentiis designed with determination. No expense was spared to craft a totally pulpy and decidedly tacky space adventure where even the most firecracker Queens are in their perfect place.
It is a film that you have to stay away from if you approach fantastic cinema with the tweezers in your nose. ‘Flash Gordon’ does not hesitate to fill every corner of the screen (not literally, that the aspect ratio is 2.35:1) with the most intense colors, the most crazy sets, the most outlandish costumes and an approach that is decidedly looking for pure fun. The film embraces all these wacky worlds with such enthusiasm that it succeeds in wowing.
This is a film that makes a perfect transition between the sci-fi genre cinema of the seventies and the lacquered fantasy of the eighties. Also a turning point for superhero cinema, showing us with Gordon an exemplary space opera hero who faces the most unpredictable challenges. many of those eccentricities that he wears with pride and that were mocked by some have now been integrated into the DNA of many genre blockbusters.
‘Flash Gordon’: fantasy without limits
And although it is not usually important in this kind of fiction, ‘Flash Gordon’ has brilliant actors delivered to the trotton and nice foolishness (not stupidity) that Hodges is looking for. In addition to a really funny Topal as a mad scientist we have an electrifying Max von Sydow as the terrifying villain to defeat and a hard-hitting Timothy Dalton as the battle-hardened Prince Barin.
Even though it can be objected (the camp touch is not exactly a dish for all tastes), ‘Flash Gordon’ is a truly appreciable film. Worthy of reaching the cult among fans of science fiction to which the sum of a floating city, impossible technology and an exaggerated use of the color red is synonymous with riding a roller coaster. Really the experience of watching the movie is comparable to that. It’s fun to imagine a Federico Fellini version of this material as it might have initially come to pass, but what we ultimately got isn’t bad at all.
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