Silent Running

I don't think any film before or since has, has done anything close when it comes to consulting with the top experts out there.

I think that, yeah, I mean, I obviously agree with that, but I also wanna say that films that followed it, and even if we start with Doug Trumbull's own follow-up, Silent Running-

Yeah

...

It's time for a short break.

[gunshots]

Du- Doug told me a story about how, you know, those little, uh, droids that he has in Silent Running, um, uh, really made an impression, and then he got a call one day from a guy named George Lucas, um, who, who said, "I'd like for you to work...

I'm working on this science fiction idea.

So the, the, the hardest part of this whole thing for me was just the two years of list breaking everything he says up into tiny parts and then making sections of like, here's everything he's on Gatsby.

Here's everything on silent running.

Here's everything about Nebraska.

And so many times silence, So many times in those first two years, it was so daunting.

That was the first time he was like the star of a movie that did well and was critically acclaimed.

Because we

love Silent Running, but Silent Running didn't do any business.

Right,

A strange choice for a sci-fi bar, I thought, but figured the sake would make up the difference.

Much to my surprise, the film they were actually screening is my recommendation today, the sci-fi classic Silent Running from 1972.

That makes so much sense.

It's the same movie.

It's the same movie.

They both run in it.

He doesn't run in Silent Running, so it's even worse.

They don't run in Cool Runnings either.

Interesting.

Some mainstream movies in the theaters in April of 72 were Cabaret, Silent Running, What's Up, Doc?, Slaughterhouse-Five, and The Godfather.

I forgot The Godfather was that old.

I mean, not that it makes a difference, but I think of it like 74 or 5, but really that's the sequel.

Like, Sunshine and Project Hail Mary are kind of similar.

Solaris? is Solaris an astronaut movie it kind of is you know but like it's easy about the ones that are about biographical movies about astronauts Paul 13 the right stuff like is Silent Running an astronaut movie I think so but I'm not sure yeah

no you're right it's these are like some of these are more it's not about bobsledding no that's cool running oh some of these are more these are

all running movies cool running silent running run silent run deep yeah you know the loneliness long distance runner

yeah the

running man

I feel like it's like on the line of being more sci-fi than astronaut movie, but I think it's still...

And I think Sunshine goes on there too.

This is a 1983 picture that has Christopher Walken, Natalie Wood, and Cliff Robertson, Louise Flesher, a good cast.

And the reason that we picked this one, we had done Silent Running last time, and this time we wanted to see what the second film of Douglas Trumbull would look like.

His only other film.

It's only under film, and it was by his choice.

And Trumbull comes and saves him.

And then I think he does Brainstorm after that.

Silent Running and

then Brainstorm.

the special effects artist, was due to direct the film.

Now, Douglas Trumbull, as I appreciate Ellen and Paul will know this, and, uh, I'm sure lots of folks out there will know, had directed Silent Running, the science fiction film from I think 1972.

And he then went on to work, which postdates his- Initial involvement with this film.

He went on to, to work on Blade Runner and then directed, uh, was it called Brainscan? And of course, he also supervised the visual effects for Close Encounters of the Third Kind.

Well, first and foremost, it was really fascinating to see like bruce stern effectively came out of years of wilderness in order to do this because bruce stern had been acting in films up before this is probably his most prominent role for about 20 or 30 years and it would probably be i mean he'd been in things but it'd be tempting to think that the burbs yeah I mean that was what late 80s like yeah 89 yeah I mean Coming Home was the 70s The Driver which is the first thing I remember seeing Bruce I loved The Driver when he was opposite Ryan O'Neill that was like late 70s as well the Walter Hill movie

I mean Pat Garrett Billy the Kids but Silent Running when I look at Bruce I think of Silent Running

I mean, you think like the Cowboys when he shoots John Wayne, that was 70s as well.

So the temptation would probably be, well, how much of a stretch is it for an actor of a certain vintage to play an ailing, crotchety, doddery old guy who doesn't know where he is? I'm like, the answer is it's probably a lot more difficult than it looks because Bruce Dern brings a lot of subtlety to the role because Alexander Payne ordinarily is a very attentive and subtle director, particularly when it comes to characters and actors.