{"id":85192,"date":"2022-07-03T17:35:06","date_gmt":"2022-07-04T00:35:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=85192"},"modified":"2022-07-04T23:10:08","modified_gmt":"2022-07-05T06:10:08","slug":"westworld-1973","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=85192","title":{"rendered":"Westworld (1973)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>&#8220;It&#8217;s not a joke; it&#8217;s an amusement park &#8212; the best amusement park in the world.&#8221;<\/strong> <\/p>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Poster.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Poster-202x300.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"202\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-85193\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Poster-202x300.png 202w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Poster-86x128.png 86w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Poster-182x270.png 182w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Poster.png 559w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 202px) 100vw, 202px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Synopsis:<\/strong><br \/>\nWhen a recently divorced man (Richard Benjamin) and his friend (James Brolin) arrive in a futuristic theme park for adults, they enjoy experiencing the Wild West and &#8220;killing&#8221; an android gunslinger (Yul Brynner); but soon the lives of all guests at the park are at stake when dozens of androids begin to malfunction.\n<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p>\n<strong>Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Androids and Clones<\/li>\n<li>Richard Benjamin Films<\/li>\n<li>Science Fiction<\/li>\n<li>Survival<\/li>\n<li>Westerns<\/li>\n<li>Yul Brynner Films<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Response to Peary&#8217;s Review: <\/strong><br \/>\nAs Peary writes, this &#8220;surprise hit&#8221; about a theme park with robots who are &#8220;programmed to satisfy every whim of the park&#8217;s guests&#8221; &#8212; including &#8220;computer-controlled saloon girls to provide sex and dressed-in-black villains to provide excitement&#8221; &#8212; was &#8220;written and directed ([in] his debut) by Michael Crichton,&#8221; and thus we fully &#8220;expect this &#8216;foolproof&#8217; system to go haywire&#8221; (which, indeed, it does). <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Blood.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Blood-1024x430.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"269\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-85200\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Blood-1024x430.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Blood-300x126.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Blood-128x54.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Blood-768x323.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Blood-604x254.png 604w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Blood.png 1183w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Peary likens the eventual situation of &#8220;timid Richard Benjamin&#8221; to that of &#8220;the scared Jon Voight character in <a href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=44508\"><em>Deliverance<\/em> [1972]<\/a> once his tough friend Burt Reynolds is incapacitated.&#8221; <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Benjamin5.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Benjamin5-1024x428.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"268\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-85198\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Benjamin5-1024x428.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Benjamin5-300x126.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Benjamin5-128x54.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Benjamin5-768x321.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Benjamin5-604x253.png 604w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Benjamin5.png 1183w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>He adds that in the world of &#8220;Crichton, man starts out working with machines, is careless, and invariably ends up pitted against them&#8221; &#8212; and to that end, the &#8220;final battle between Benjamin and Brynner is a lot of fun, a fitting climax to [a] witty, provocative thriller for the popcorn crowd.&#8221; <\/p>\n<p>I agree. This smart, low-budget flick mostly delivers on its promise &#8212; though as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.moriareviews.com\/sciencefiction\/westworld-1973.htm\">Richard Scheib points out in his review for Moria<\/a>: &#8220;The one big hole in the script is that Michael Crichton fails to explain the nature of the malfunction \u2013 what causes the androids to go amok, exactly why the androids dislike humans and how the androids override the safety feature on their guns that prevent them from hurting humans.&#8221; Regardless, this film most definitely makes one question the wisdom of creating such a park to begin with, and is an appropriately scary cinematic journey to take.  <\/p>\n<p><strong>Note:<\/strong> The recent remake mini-series (2016-present) has gotten strong reviews, but I haven&#8217;t seen it yet, so can&#8217;t compare. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Notable Performances, Qualities, and Moments: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Richard Benjamin as Peter Martin<br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Benjamin.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Benjamin-1024x436.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"273\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-85195\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Benjamin-1024x436.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Benjamin-300x128.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Benjamin-128x54.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Benjamin-768x327.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Benjamin-604x257.png 604w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Benjamin.png 1166w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Yul Brynner as the Gunslinger<br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Brynner2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Brynner2-1024x418.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"261\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-85196\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Brynner2-1024x418.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Brynner2-300x122.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Brynner2-128x52.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Brynner2-768x313.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Brynner2-604x246.png 604w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Brynner2.png 1292w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Fine low-budget sets and effects<br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Set.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Set-1024x425.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"266\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-85197\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Set-1024x425.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Set-300x124.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Set-128x53.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Set-768x319.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Set-604x251.png 604w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Westworld-Set.png 1179w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Fred Karlin&#8217;s score<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Must See? <\/strong><br \/>\nYes, as a still enjoyable sci-fi classic. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Categories<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Good Show<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Links: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0070909\/\">IMDb entry<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.moriareviews.com\/sciencefiction\/westworld-1973.htm\">Moria Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tcm.com\/tcmdb\/title\/2748\/westworld#articles-reviews?articleId=12461\">TCM Article<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.timeout.com\/movies\/westworld\">Time Out Capsule Review<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;It&#8217;s not a joke; it&#8217;s an amusement park &#8212; the best amusement park in the world.&#8221; Synopsis: When a recently divorced man (Richard Benjamin) and his friend (James Brolin) arrive in a futuristic theme park for adults, they enjoy experiencing the Wild West and &#8220;killing&#8221; an android gunslinger (Yul Brynner); but soon the lives of all guests at the park are at stake when dozens of androids begin to malfunction. Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors: Androids and Clones Richard Benjamin&#8230;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"><a class=\"btn btn-default\" href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=85192\"> Read More<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">  Read More<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-85192","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-responses-to-peary"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/85192","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=85192"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/85192\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":85241,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/85192\/revisions\/85241"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=85192"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=85192"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=85192"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}