Futureworld

This 1976 sequel to 1973's Westworld (Michael Crichton's high-concept theme park thriller about malfunctioning robots who turn against customers in a cowboy fantasy land for wealthy vacationers) stars Peter Fonda as Chuck Browning, the investigative newspaper reporter who exposed the murders that made the Westworld site a corporate PR nightmare. Here, with the Delos resort eager to restore public confidence, Browning is on a company-sponsored junket to the new “improved” park, which has replaced the western-themed attraction with a futuristic setting. Also aboard is TV news personality Tracy Ballard (Blythe Danner), who happens to be an old girlfriend. Acting on a tip from an informant, Chuck suspects that things are still amiss at Delos, and when the snitch turns up dead, Chuck has all the more reason to snoop around. Far less lavish and interesting than its predecessor, director Richard T. Heffron's Futureworld spends more time scuttling through service tunnels and secret workshops than highlighting the attractions, while the behind-the-scenes workings lack Westworld's humor and texture. Even Yul Brynner, who appeared in posters and trailers referencing his iconic Gunslinger role, is only seen here in flashback clips and a completely gratuitous dream sequence. A flat conspiracy flick that makes little sense (but does offer the memorable sequence of Fonda squaring off with his own android double/genetic twin), this MGM Limited Edition Collection edition is presented in the DVD-R format. Optional. (S. Axmaker)