Just what is it with Disney’s The Black Hole that makes it such a conversation piece for science fiction fans? Those that have seen it tend to fall into one of two camps: Those that applaud its dark imagery, macabre story and meaningful conclusion; or Those that deride its wooden, often campy characters, its plodding pace, and its jumbled, clumsy conclusion. In fact, much of the film is an exercise in paradoxes — and not just those that arise from spending time in the vicinity of an event horizon. It’s true, this film has plenty of flaws, but it’s also true that they just don’t make movies like this one anymore. Amongst the contradictory opinions, the simple fact remains: people are still talking about this movie more than thirty years later. That alone demonstrates an inherent value that no amount of criticism can explain away.

The Black Hole – Image Gallery

This is the story of how the crew of the USS Palomino encounters the long-lost ship, the USS Cygnus, in deep space, precariously parked in the vicinity of a black hole. The crew, which includes an R2-D2-like robot called VINCent, discovers that the lead scientist, a man named Dr. Reinhardt, has survived to lord over a ship populated by robot drones who seem more like zombies than anything else. Reinhardt’s shockingly wild hair and beard lend him a sinister, mad-scientist air that establishes him on the brink of insanity — a trait that helps reinforce the thin line between safety and utter doom that pervades the entire film.

Indeed, the episode’s mood is one of its strongest elements. Opening with a rather unsettling symphonic score, which lurches about as if it were a toy ship in a great tempest, the film conjures a sea-sick-like mood that makes its audience feel like its teetering on the brink of disaster — a perception that only deepens as the film unfolds. The score certainly helps. But there’s also the visual design of the film. The Cygnus is a triumph of paradox. A fortress that, while sitting on the brink of an event horizon, looks as fragile as it feels foreboding. Dr. Reinhardt, would look sinister enough in his blood-red apparel. But when accompanied by his lieutenant, an satanic-looking robot, called Maximillian, the pair make the Cygnus feel like the antechamber of Hell.

And this would not be a misleading impression. Much of the film is metaphorical. Dr. Reinhardt is the embodiment of using the ends to justify his means — a life of scientific discovery being used to justify depravity toward society at large, and his former crew members. Dr. Reinhardt, too, tempts one of the Palomino scientists with promises of future discovery. It’s only when the crew finally realize that the “robots” that populate Reinhardt’s ship are, in fact, what’s left of the former crew, do they begin to truly understand their danger. Fittingly, the tempted doctor is killed (by Maximillian), as is a coward who tried to save himself at the expense of everyone else — fitting, considering the “heaven” and “hell” symbolism of the film’s finale,

Those final sequences, in which the surviving crew, as well as Reinhardt and Maximillian, enter the black hole, like the final moments of 2001: A Space Odyssey, the closing scenes of The Black Hole are meant to be symbolic of a metaphysical journey. It’s an extended metaphor in which Reinhardt, whose body has been encased in Maximillian’s robotic shell, lords over a realm of fire and empty souls. By contrast, the surviving crew of the Palomino, including the robot VINCent, pass through an archway, accompanied by a floating spirit … and then pass through the black hole unharmed. The commentary, of course, being that their souls were pure enough to enter a heavenly realm — as represented by a new lease on life.

With all of these elements, it’s not difficult to understand why, for many, The Black Hole is a classic of science fiction — even if the science is a bit wonky, and even if the symbolism is a bit blatant. But all of this alone does not a good science fiction movie make.

Despite the depth of its story and the triumph of its style, The Black Hole suffers because, as a film, it just doesn’t work exceptionally well. The acting is wooden, the dialogue can be clunky, the pacing is very, very slow, and the science often defies explanation (in one scene, humans are floating in zero-g while three-ring binders — and their pages! — rest comfortably on desks.

Just as problematic are some of the film’s strengths. The score, while successful in building an unsettled feeling can also be unsettling and simply annoying. There’s also a point when the score becomes bombastically heroic during a shootout — an odd juxtaposition with the almost gothic tone of the rest of the film. The final symbolism can come across as either too blatant or incomplete, robbing the movie of a satisfying ending for many viewers. The robots, which prove to be iconic in their own way, can be campy and silly — particularly those of VINCent and BOB.

All told, there are plenty of impediments to enjoying the film on its own merits. If an audience cannot be drawn in by a slow, deliberate pace and stiff acting, it will have a difficult time engaging with the deeper layers of the story. And when those layers prove to be as polarizing as the ones presented by The Black Hole — I haven’t even bothered to comment on the validity of the heaven-hell dynamic — it’s no surprise that viewers will find the movie of questionable value.

Overall Grade: C+

On the whole, The Black Hole will remain a difficult, yet potentially valuable film, to watch. If you’ve never seen it before — or even if it’s been decades since you last saw it — do not be surprised if its classic melodrama is inaccessible by today’s fast-paced standards. But it’s safe to say that the longevity of this film isn’t based on nostalgia alone. Unlike much of modern cinema, this is, at least, a film with a purpose and a message. It’s about something. And it’s hardly a children’s film — campy robots notwithstanding.

Topics: Film Review, Sci-Fi
Filed under: Film

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