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UNCUT - Flash Gordon (1980)

🕑 Added 2025-03-22 14:53:53 +0000 UTC

Comments

Mike Rogers

Both his character names in those movies are a pun on him being a big guy. Porkins in Star Wars, Major Eaton in Raiders.

Aramis Calcutt

FLESH Gordon!! It’s a real movie.

Rory O'Toole

Buster Crabbe was the actor who originally played Flash Gordon in the movie serials. He played Buck Rogers in the Buck Rogers serials. He also played Tarzan in the Tarzan serials. There's a great scene with him as a fellow fighter pilot in an early episode of the TV show Buck Rogers from the '80s where he plays an older pilot named Gordon.

Rory O'Toole

Flash Gordon's whole thing is that he's able to unite the various societies of Mongo to stand up against Ming.

Rory O'Toole

If you look at the old black and white serials you'll see they began with an opening crawl that Lucas directly borrowed for Star Wars. Also in Phantom Menace when the Trade Federation is talking to Amidala through a screen, the swirly effect and sound of the screen is directly taken from the old serials as well. I thought that was a great homage to George Lucas' inspiration for Star Wars. I don't think it's ever said in the film but Ming's full title is Ming the Merciless. There is a very good Flash Gordon animated series that came out in 1979 and was considered pretty faithful to the original stories. Inspired again by the Flash Gordon comic strips in newspapers George Lucas had a Star Wars comic strip made and even tried to get the artist who had later continue the Flash Gordon comic strips after Alex Raymond. Eventually Lucas was able to get having to do Star Wars and it has a lot of the same art style. I wish I read your comment about the sync being slightly off. I kept noticing y'all reacting before things happen sometimes but I just kept adjusting.

Rory O'Toole

Wow, nobody mentions that Brian Blessed who played Vultan also played Boss Nass, the leader of the Gungans, in Phantom Menace. He's a great actor with a great voice. I was so happy to hear he was going to be in Star Wars but then let down a bit and he was a CGI character and not actually on screen. But he fits in with the older classic British actors Lucas would use like Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee,

Rory O'Toole

But then he was a successful FBI agent who obtained the lost ark of the covenant from the Nazis with the help of Professor Henry Jones Jr.

C

There's a Looney Tunes riff on the old Flash Gordon comic with Daffy Duck: "Duck Dodgers in the 24th and a Half Century", so contemporary with TNG

empirejeff

Ha Haaaaaaaaa!!!!!

Kosh Naranek

Side note: he was also one of the feds that recruited Indiana Jones to begin his quest for the lost ark of the covenant.

Paul O'Neal

I unironically love this movie. Flash Gordon was created back in the 30's for the comic strips. Buck Rogers in the 25th Century was a popular comic strip (based on an earlier science fiction novel) and King Features Syndication wanted their own character like that. So comic artist Alex Raymond came up with Flash Gordon. He became popular enough to get movie serials, cartoons, comic books, toys, etc. back in the day. As pointed out earlier, George Lucas really wanted to revive the character but couldn't get the rights. Perhaps ironically, the success of "Star Wars" spurred the development of this movie. I love the fact that the producers realized early on that: A - They were not going to be able to out-special FX Star Wars. B - There was a camp element to the whole thing. C - That leaning INTO the camp element, going for color and style over "realism" and playing things straight was a better idea than turning Flash Gordon into a Star Wars rip off. I loved your guys' reaction to this one. It's a favorite from back when I was a kid, so I am glad you enjoyed it. Looking forward to the next movie lottery! I think if I manage to get picked, you guys are going to have to check out "Buck Rogers in the 25th Century" for another dose of early 80's sci-fi with a bit of camp, some cheese, and a lot of heart.

KatWithAttitude

Fun facts: Brian Blessed, Prince Vultan of the Hawkmen, is a good friend of Patrick Stewart. They met in acting school and are still close. And of course, Timothy Dalton, Prince Barin the boy toy of Aura, went on to become James Bond in two movies. The late Max Von Sydow, Emperor Ming, was acting for a long time. Probably his most parodied role was in the Ingmar Bergman film The Seventh Seal, in which his character plays chess with Death. Yes, I have seen it, even though it's in Swedish with subtitles, and I also own it. Among other well-known roles he was also in a few later episodes of Game of Thrones. Almost all of the music is composed by at least one of the members of Queen. One exception was The Wedding March, and this version was arranged by guitarist Brian May. The soundtrack album includes lots of the movie dialogue. Since Queen is my favorite group of course I have it. And another Queen related tidbit is that Prince Vultan's line "Who wants to live forever" became the title of one of several songs they did for "Highlander" a few years after this. Coincidence? Maybe, maybe not.

T’Pynyn of Vulcan

FYI. Howard Blake did the score for the movie. Queen did the song only. I really enjoyed watching this movie with you two. This movie was both better and worse than I remember it but it’s still goofy and fun.

Collin Freeman

Yes, good factoid. I was thinking of that, too.

tyranusfan

You said this is like Star Wars, only ridiculous. Funny that, since George Lucas wanted to make a movie based on the old Flash Gordon serials but couldn't get the rights, so he made his own: Star Wars. :)

tyranusfan

This is one of those movies from my childhood where I only remember parts of the middle and the end.

Keith S

I think he was, and he wasn't even shot down. His T65 had a catastrophic mechanical failure.

Ken R

Now watch the 1936 version to see how they did it with no budget.

Philbot

Porkins wasn’t the first was he?

Paul D

As a fan of the original movie serials with Buster Crabbe, I will also cite the original reason for Flash's athleticism on Mongo instead of this film's stupid: quarterback for the New York Jets. That said, this film has two things going for it: "Gordon's alive!?!" and the delicious Princess Aura.

Keith S

Poor William Hootkins. First one to die in the battle of Yavin. Then he gets run over by a plane in Zarkov's green house.

Kosh Naranek

Useless fact - Sam J Jones' dialogue was voiced by an entirely different person. Also, yes Alex, the porn version is titled 'Flesh Gordon's 🤣

Collin Freeman

The scenes I like best are with Prince Barin (Timothy Dalton).

Terminaldogma01

Flash Gordon is a Captain America type character, inspiring people to follow him.

Collin Freeman

Yes, it's cheesy and campy. I mean, they have a prince (Thun) who has blue blood. How campy/corny is that? Interesting fact: Sam Jones was a natural brunette whose hair was dyed blond for the role of Flash. Melody Anderson was a blond whose hair was dyed brunette for the role of Dale Arden.