"Director: Douglas Trumbull"

• Silent Running (1971) (Masters of Cinema) | Blu Ray | (14/11/2011) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Three years after helping to achieve some of the most amazing imagery in cinema history with 2001: A Space Odyssey, special effects maestro Douglas Trumbull made an auspicious directorial debut at age 29 with the environmentally themed science fiction classic Silent Running. In the distant future, plant life on our planet is extinct. Remaining specimens are cultivated in vast greenhouse-like domes orbiting in space. Bruce Dern (Marnie, Coming Home, The 'burbs, Monster) stars as Freeman Lowell, dedicated botanist aboard the Valley Forge, awaiting the call to refoliate Earth - despite the scorn of his crewmates. When an order comes to instead destroy the domes and return home, Lowell takes matters into his own hands, beginning a long and lonely voyage into the unknown. With its remarkable special effects (especially the robot drones Huey, Dewey, and Louie); glorious score (including songs performed by Joan Baez); memorable sound effects (created by Joseph Byrd from the cult band The United States of America); a screenplay co-written by Michael Cimino (The Deer Hunter) and Steven Bochco (Hill Street Blues), and an impassioned central performance from Dern, Silent Running remains a uniquely contemplative and haunting adventure that continues to make hippies of young children, even today.

• Silent Running | DVD | (17/04/2019) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £9.99

  After creating many of the innovative special effects for 2001: A Space Odyssey, Douglas Trumbull tried his hand at directing, and 1971's Silent Running marked an impressive debut. (In addition to creating the visual effects for Close Encounters of the Third Kind and directing 1983's Brainstorm, Trumbull later turned to the creation of high-tech cinematic amusement park rides.) One of the best science-fiction films of the 1970s, Silent Running stars Bruce Dern as Freeman Lowell, a nature-loving crewmember aboard the Valley Forge, a gigantic spaceship in a small fleet that carries the last surviving forests of the Earth, which has fallen victim to overpopulation and ecological neglect.Freeman's name reflects his nonconformist philosophy, which runs counter to the prevailing recklessness of his three ill-fated crewmates, who are eager to jettison their precious payload and return to the bleakness of Earth. Before they can sabotage the forests, Freeman does what he must, and spends the remainder of his mission with three robotic "drones" as his only companions, struggling to maintain his sanity in the vastness of space. Dern is superb in this memorable role, representing the lost soul of humankind as well as the back-to-nature youth movement of the 1960s and the pre-Watergate era. (Appropriately, Joan Baez sings the film's theme song.) A rare science-fiction film that combines bold adventure with passionate social conscience, Silent Running will remain relevant as long as the Earth is threatened by the ravages of human carelessness. --Jeff Shannon, Amazon.com

• Silent Running UHD | Blu Ray | (12/12/2022) from £19.99   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  In 1968, visual effects pioneer Douglas Trumbull (The Andromeda Strain, Close Encounters of the Third Kind) contributed to the ground-breaking special photographic effects of Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey. Four years later, he stamped his own indelible mark on the science fiction genre with his mesmerising directorial debut Silent Running. In the not-so-distant future, Earth is barren of all flora and fauna, with what remains of the planet's former ecosystems preserved aboard a fleet of greenhouses orbiting in space. When the crews are ordered to destroy the remaining specimens, one botanist, Freeman Lowell (Bruce Dern, The 'Burbs), rebels and flees towards Saturn in a desperate bid to preserve his own little piece of Earth that was, accompanied only by the ship's three service robots. Featuring a captivating central performance by Dern, visual effects that rival anything in 2001 and a powerful ecological message, Silent Running is a haunting and prescient sci-fi classic that resonates even more strongly today than it did at the time of its original release. Product Features Brand new 4K restoration by Arrow Films from the original camera negative 4K (2160p) UHD Blu-ray presentation in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible) Original lossless mono audio Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing Audio commentary by critics Kim Newman and Barry Forshaw Original audio commentary by Douglas Trumbull and actor Bruce Dern Isolated music and effects track No Turning Back an interview with film music historian Jeff Bond on the film's score First Run a visual essay by writer and filmmaker Jon Spira exploring the evolution of Silent Running's screenplay The Making of Silent Running an archival 1972 on-set documentary Silent Running by Douglas Trumbull and Douglas Trumbull: Then and Now two archival interviews with the film's director A Conversation with Bruce Dern an archival interview with the film's lead actor Theatrical trailer Extensive behind-the-scenes gallery Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Arik Roper FIRST PRESSING ONLY: Illustrated collector's booklet featuring writing on the film by Barry Forshaw and Peter Tonguette

• Silent Running Blu-ray | Blu Ray | (12/12/2022) from £12.09   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  In 1968, visual effects pioneer Douglas Trumbull (The Andromeda Strain, Close Encounters of the Third Kind) contributed to the ground-breaking special photographic effects of Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey. Four years later, he stamped his own indelible mark on the science fiction genre with his mesmerising directorial debut Silent Running. In the not-so-distant future, Earth is barren of all flora and fauna, with what remains of the planet's former ecosystems preserved aboard a fleet of greenhouses orbiting in space. When the crews are ordered to destroy the remaining specimens, one botanist, Freeman Lowell (Bruce Dern, The 'Burbs), rebels and flees towards Saturn in a desperate bid to preserve his own little piece of Earth that was, accompanied only by the ship's three service robots. Featuring a captivating central performance by Dern, visual effects that rival anything in 2001 and a powerful ecological message, Silent Running is a haunting and prescient sci-fi classic that resonates even more strongly today than it did at the time of its original release. Product Features 2K restoration by Arrow Films from the original camera negative, approved by director Douglas Trumbull High Definition (1080p) Blu-ray presentation Original lossless mono audio Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing Audio commentary by critics Kim Newman and Barry Forshaw Original audio commentary by Douglas Trumbull and actor Bruce Dern Isolated music and effects track No Turning Back an interview with film music historian Jeff Bond on the film's score First Run a visual essay by writer and filmmaker Jon Spira exploring the evolution of Silent Running's screenplay The Making of Silent Running an archival 1972 on-set documentary Silent Running by Douglas Trumbull and Douglas Trumbull: Then and Now two archival interviews with the film's director A Conversation with Bruce Dern an archival interview with the film's lead actor Theatrical trailer Extensive behind-the-scenes gallery Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Arik Roper FIRST PRESSING ONLY: Illustrated collector's booklet featuring writing on the film by Barry Forshaw and Peter Tonguette

• Silent Running | Blu Ray | (14/11/2011) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £29.99

  After creating many of the innovative special effects for 2001: A Space Odyssey, Douglas Trumbull tried his hand at directing, and 1971's Silent Running marked an impressive debut. (In addition to creating the visual effects for Close Encounters of the Third Kind and directing 1983's Brainstorm, Trumbull later turned to the creation of high-tech cinematic amusement park rides.) One of the best science-fiction films of the 1970s, Silent Running stars Bruce Dern as Freeman Lowell, a nature-loving crewmember aboard the Valley Forge, a gigantic spaceship in a small fleet that carries the last surviving forests of the Earth, which has fallen victim to overpopulation and ecological neglect.Freeman's name reflects his nonconformist philosophy, which runs counter to the prevailing recklessness of his three ill-fated crewmates, who are eager to jettison their precious payload and return to the bleakness of Earth. Before they can sabotage the forests, Freeman does what he must, and spends the remainder of his mission with three robotic "drones" as his only companions, struggling to maintain his sanity in the vastness of space. Dern is superb in this memorable role, representing the lost soul of humankind as well as the back-to-nature youth movement of the 1960s and the pre-Watergate era. (Appropriately, Joan Baez sings the film's theme song.) A rare science-fiction film that combines bold adventure with passionate social conscience, Silent Running will remain relevant as long as the Earth is threatened by the ravages of human carelessness. --Jeff Shannon, Amazon.com