“SOYLENT
GREEN IS PEOPLE!”
I
don't think anyone has gone into this movie not already knowing that
in years. Along with Vader being Luke's father, it's the biggest
non-spoiler spoiler in film history.
Funny
that it should come from a film that's so... meh. I know 'Soylent
Green' gets a lot of hate for being dated (and, I guess, not living
up to the expectations of modern viewers?), but it's no worse than
pretty much everything else of the same time. The world building left
something to be desired, but occasionally created an air of
creepiness, and though the budget isn't huge they do OK with it. It's
no masterpiece, and it isn't particularly original or anything, but
it's a fine sci-fi thriller.
The
characters are all fairly simple too, in that they don't do much
growing. They're set up well, but then they just react to one another
without much development of anything other than plot. Come to think
of it, this may be a reason why this film feels so unfinished.
Nothing is really resolved for anyone (other than Sol Roth - who's
euthanasia scene was easily the most striking of the movie) and no
headway is made into anything beyond the discovery at the end.
We
finish on the bummer note that nothing will likely change, which I'm
all for (it's both my favourite ending for sci-fi and a more
realistic ending (even if it is set a few hundred years too early)),
but the way that they presented it made it feel like there was a
missing scene of two.
Entertaining
and very of its time, 'Soylent Green' will forever to remembered
chiefly for its big cheesy twist.
Soylent Green: 47.2