Let’s keep riding out with these movies that I dig. With my folks HBO account back in the days I might have watched ‘Flash Gordon’ about fifty eleven times. Actually, I watched ‘Flash Gordon’, ‘Annie’ and ‘Oliver’ every time they were broadcast. I know the entire score to ‘Oliver’ too. Nullus to that true confession.
‘Flash Gordon’ is a fun flick to watch. This joint might be fifty percent greenscreen with totally campy, bootleg special effects, but it’s obvious that the actors in this film enjoyed themselves. The costuming was designed to be a throwback to the O.G. Flash Gordon televison series and the great MAX VON SYDOW plays a ruthless and comical Ming The Merciless. The chick who played the role of his daughter Princess Aura was smoking hot and she seemed somewhat Persian come to think of it.
The best part of this film though is the score which was done by Queen. Yes! The balls out teh ghey glam rock band who created such classics as ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’, ‘We Will Rock You’, ‘Under Pressure’ and ‘Another One Bites The Dust’. Listen to some of these joints from the movie and tell me that Queen didn’t rock the effin’ house.
Flash Gordon’s Theme
Prince Barin’s Battle Theme
Vultan’s Assault Theme
GORDON’S ALIVE? brian blessed rocks the effin’ house.
I watched Flash Gordon a million times on HBO too. I think back then it was always a toss-up between Flash Gordon or Eddie and the Cruisers. HBO wasn’t big yet. LOL
talk about classic childhood flick…but with me it was WPIX (old channel 11) no cable in my hut. WPIX held it down though, esp on Saturday afternoon’s…Flash Gordon, American Ninja, Delta Force, Blood Sports….
never saw this even though I wanted to.
flash gordon always reminds me of “terminator x to the edge of…” from it takes a nation, and vice versa. the beginning of that song is classic.
I just bought this DVD 2 weeks ago. This movie is fucking classic. I have seen it over 50 times myself.
You have just moved up on my respect list. (whatever that is worth)
Launch war rocket Ajax!
Classic movie. HBO use to play Flash Gordon 3 times in a 24hr time span.
One of the most illmatic original soundtracks ever only second to Purple Rain which is stillmatic today.
Queen is the shit.
Goddamn it! I guess I can cross that Flash Gordon blog I was gonna do off my list now…good shit. You didn’t point out the King Thun black man/lion situation, though (in the comic strip/comic book/cartoon)….Or the fact that he was the FIRST muthafucka to revolt again The Merciless One himself (“Death to Ming!”) and he was summarily the quintessential ‘token Black guy to die first in the Sci Fi/Horror genre flick”. Didn’t we learn anything from George Romero. Don’t post SHIT about “They Live”, please. LOL.
One.
^ *Black nerds stand up*
He’ll save every one of us…
Dp, you nailed this one. Loved the movie and the soundtrack back in the days. I had It Takes a Nation of Millions on the other day when I had peeps at the crib and when terminator x came on one cat was like “did they just sample flash gordan?” and we started tripping about the movie from there…always had a crush on Ming’s daughter, even the version from the cartoon….Candace, you really took it back with Eddie and the Cruisers. The one cat i knew who had cable and a betamax, back then, loved that move. We used to watch that joint all the time. “On the darkside..”
can’t forget about the suave substitute of remington steele a.k.a. the greatest 007 of all time a.k.a. timothy dalton in this flick as well! come to think of it, the brits held up their own in qualty entertainment during the 80s, from thatcher to fine young cannibals to something else i can’t think of right now.
I love, love, love Queen. Only they could do a soundtrack for this movie.