The old serial may seem primitive by the standards of today's technical effects wizardry, but that doesn't make it any the less enjoyable.
In addition, we have the usual suspects, Prince Barin; Ruka; Ronal; Ming's daughter, Princess Aura; Fria, Queen of the Ice Kingdom; Ming's agents, Torch and Sonja; the Rock Men; plus a multitude of settings from the Prince's palace to the Land of the Dead; and a typical assortment of gimmicks like Zarkov's antidote for the Death Dust, "Polarite," and his later inventions to thwart the Dust, a "Thermal Control" and an "N" ray. It's all wonderfully silly, especially the cute, little toy spaceships. And played out to the continual strains of Franz Liszt's "Les Preludes," it's quite heroic, too. Directed by Ford Beebe and Ray Taylor, the series was originally made for Universal, the chapters lasting approximately twenty minutes apiece.
Video:
Considering the film's age and that it's not digitally restored, the black-and-white print is remarkably well preserved. There are occasional age specks and scratch lines, to be sure, and closely spaced horizontal lines show some signs of flutter, but none of it is distracting. For the most part, the picture is clean and free of damage.
Audio:
The monaural audio does sound its age, though, which probably adds to the nostalgia of enjoying the show the way it first played in theaters. Frequency and dynamic ranges are limited, naturally, and voices are a touch edgy, but, fortunately, background noise is kept to a minimum.
Extras:
In addition to the twelve chapters, each of the discs contains supplementary material. There are three 1970 and two 1975 interviews with Buster Crabbe that last from ten to twenty minutes each, several TV commercials featuring the actor, and some brief footage of the Tenth Olympiad. It's all laid out conveniently, and from the main menu one can choose to watch chapter segments individually or all at once without interruption.
Parting Shots:
Two minutes into "Flash Gordon Conquers the Universe" and we see where George Lucas got much of his "Star Wars" themes and imagery. The old serial may seem primitive by the standards of today's technical effects wizardry, but that doesn't make it any the less enjoyable. In fact, that's one of the main reasons for watching it. Besides, you couldn't ask for a more handsome or dashing hero than Buster Crabbe. One final note: There is a ninety-minute edited version of this material called "Purple Death from Outer Space" that sometimes shows up on television. It robs the film of many of the cliffhangers essential to the action. Go for the real thing.
Video:
Considering the film's age and that it's not digitally restored, the black-and-white print is remarkably well preserved. There are occasional age specks and scratch lines, to be sure, and closely spaced horizontal lines show some signs of flutter, but none of it is distracting. For the most part, the picture is clean and free of damage.
Audio:
The monaural audio does sound its age, though, which probably adds to the nostalgia of enjoying the show the way it first played in theaters. Frequency and dynamic ranges are limited, naturally, and voices are a touch edgy, but, fortunately, background noise is kept to a minimum.
Extras:
In addition to the twelve chapters, each of the discs contains supplementary material. There are three 1970 and two 1975 interviews with Buster Crabbe that last from ten to twenty minutes each, several TV commercials featuring the actor, and some brief footage of the Tenth Olympiad. It's all laid out conveniently, and from the main menu one can choose to watch chapter segments individually or all at once without interruption.
Parting Shots:
Two minutes into "Flash Gordon Conquers the Universe" and we see where George Lucas got much of his "Star Wars" themes and imagery. The old serial may seem primitive by the standards of today's technical effects wizardry, but that doesn't make it any the less enjoyable. In fact, that's one of the main reasons for watching it. Besides, you couldn't ask for a more handsome or dashing hero than Buster Crabbe. One final note: There is a ninety-minute edited version of this material called "Purple Death from Outer Space" that sometimes shows up on television. It robs the film of many of the cliffhangers essential to the action. Go for the real thing.
![Lost [TV Series]](/images/displaymedia.php?id=23770&sizew=70&cat=3)
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[release]4057[/release]