Logan`s Run
released 1976
www.ink2quill.com

“Logan´s Run” is an American, action, scifi, dystopian film produced by Saul David and Hugh Benson. Directed by Michael Anderson and written by David Zwelag Goodman, who wrote the screenplay and William F. Nolan and George Clayton Johnson who wrote the book of the same name the film is based on. It stars Michael York, Richard Jordan, Jenny Agutter, Roscoe Lee Brown, Farrah Fawcett, Michael Anderson Jr., Peter Ustinov, Randolph Roberts, Lara Lindsay, Gary Morgan, Michelle Stacy, David Westberg and many more. This film has won several awards and remains a kind of classic tot this day.

Logan`s Run IMDb webpage

“Logan´s Run” is set in a future where all problems in society seemed to have been solved. The time is 2274 and society for the protagonist is a geodesic domed one of people broken down into categories according to their age and professions. Life inside the domed city is one where its people want nothing. It is a place without scarcity and all its people’s needs are granted to them. Under such conditions you would expect problems of overpopulation but the planners of this society have devised a clever ritual to solve this problem. Each person is implanted with a chip that counts down until they reach the age of 30. At 30 years old they go through “Carousel” for renewal. No one is explained exactly what renewal is and they are lead to believe it is a kind of rebirth. This society has fooled its people into believing that death does not exist and that they essentially live forever.

The protagonist is Logan 5. he is what’s called a Sandman who uncovers some disturbing thruths about his society. Those truths lead him on a journey to abandon his safe, hedonistic life and become a law breaker. Sandmen have the job of terminating the people that run to avoid Carousel. So you can argue that Logan 5 is in a great position to learn the truth about the society he lives in and the lies they tell their people.

The story of Logan 5 and the themes of “Logan’s Run” are is so common in fiction, scifi genres of literature. The theme of the priviledged protagonist finding out some ugly truths about the society they live in and deciding to dig further and eventually abandon that society for the truth. One of my all time favorite books with that theme is Herman Hess’ classic novel “Siddharhta”. In this case Logan 5 is forced out of his nurturing society but he still must go on his quest for the truth about his society and discover the world outside his dome. Metaphoriclly its like the process of life where the fetus leaves the comfortable womb to a less nurturing world.

“Logan’s Run” is a dated TV movie but good nonetheless. The fashion and technology is dated to modern audiences but keep in mind that that is often the case with movies, especially scifi movies, but that does not keep them from being gems in their genres. The ideas, themes and script are excellent and that is what makes this a good watch. I loved the introduction of the Ankh symbol to represent life. Life after sheltered, unsustainable society. It was almost like a religious symbol that guided the protagonists toward a realistic and achieveable goal. With good writing this could definitely be turned into a more modern mini series. It’s all in the writing for this project.

There is an elephant in the room that has to be talked about and that is the other theme that is glaring at us. The idea that a society would not want people after they turn a certain age is a problem that exists in our society today. The idea that people whether they are handicapped, poor, their gender, ethnicity and even older, yes older people, can be put to the side is a reality in the world today. The list of people marginalized by society is long and should be taken seriously. It’s the individual against society dynamic in stories that can reveal the can bring out the greatest courage in people.

“Logan’s Run” is really worth seeing. The story is good and the comparisons to our society are hard to ignore.

John Ink2Quill

I2Q Blogs / The Visual Medium ink2quill / john / logan / quill / sanctuary / scifi /