Colossus: The Forbin Project

 

 

Joseph Sargent’s 1970 computer-gone-amok thriller bears all the hallmarks of vintage seventies sci-fi. Cold War paranoia, white polyester jumpsuits and plenty retro hokeyness are all present and correct, but a brooding tone, fantastically downbeat ending and a wryly satirical edge make for a very satisfying watch. Dr. Forbin (Braeden) and his groovy team of techno-boffins have built Colossus, an enormous supercomputer that controls the US missile defence system, making decisions without human error. Obviously nobody told said techno-boffins what HAL was up to in 2001, or they’d know that in seventies sci-fi land, this is generally A Bad Idea. Colossus promptly dispenses with the feeble humans and sets about dispensing hubris, developing a God complex and learning how to make the perfect martini. Naturally watching this in Space Year 2008, Colossus seems positively antediluvian, all vast beigeness, cassette tapes and tinny robotic voices, but that’s part of the fun. As low-budget cautionary tales go, this Frankenstein fable is both chillingly convincing and enormously entertaining. Seek it out. [Laura Smith]