Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube
    Nostalgia Central
    Banner
    • Home
    • Blog
      • Lists
      • Playlists
    • Television
      • Shows by Decade
        • 1950s Television
        • 1960s Television
        • 1970s Television
        • 1980s Television
        • 1990s Television
      • Shows by Genre
        • Comedy
        • Drama
        • Kids TV
        • Variety
        • News & Sport
        • Advertisements
      • Shows by Country
        • UK TV
        • USA TV
        • Australia & NZ TV
        • Canada TV
        • Europe TV
        • Japan TV
      • Shows A to K
        • Shows A
        • Shows B
        • Shows C
        • Shows D
        • Shows E
        • Shows F
        • Shows G
        • Shows H
        • Shows I
        • Shows J
        • Shows K
      • Shows L to Z
        • Shows L
        • Shows M
        • Shows N
        • Shows O
        • Shows P
        • Shows Q
        • Shows R
        • Shows S
        • Shows T
        • Shows U
        • Shows V
        • Shows W
        • Shows X
        • Shows Y
        • Shows Z
      • Shows 0 to 9
    • Music
      • Music by Decade
        • 1950s Music
        • 1960s Music
        • 1970s Music
        • 1980s Music
        • 1990s Music
      • Music A to K
        • Music A
        • Music B
        • Music C
        • Music D
        • Music E
        • Music F
        • Music G
        • Music H
        • Music I
        • Music J
        • Music K
      • Music L to Z
        • Music L
        • Music M
        • Music N
        • Music O
        • Music P
        • Music Q
        • Music R
        • Music S
        • Music T
        • Music U
        • Music V
        • Music W
        • Music X
        • Music Y
        • Music Z
      • Music 0 to 9
      • Genres
      • Music on Film & TV
      • One-Hit Wonders
      • Online Radio
    • Movies
      • Movies by Decade
        • 1950s Movies
          • Movies 1950
          • Movies 1951
          • Movies 1952
          • Movies 1953
          • Movies 1954
          • Movies 1955
          • Movies 1956
          • Movies 1957
          • Movies 1958
          • Movies 1959
        • 1960s Movies
          • Movies 1960
          • Movies 1961
          • Movies 1962
          • Movies 1963
          • Movies 1964
          • Movies 1965
          • Movies 1966
          • Movies 1967
          • Movies 1968
          • Movies 1969
        • 1970s Movies
          • Movies 1970
          • Movies 1971
          • Movies 1972
          • Movies 1973
          • Movies 1974
          • Movies 1975
          • Movies 1976
          • Movies 1977
          • Movies 1978
          • Movies 1979
        • 1980s Movies
          • Movies 1980
          • Movies 1981
          • Movies 1982
          • Movies 1983
          • Movies 1984
          • Movies 1985
          • Movies 1986
          • Movies 1987
          • Movies 1988
          • Movies 1989
        • 1990s Movies
          • Movies 1990
          • Movies 1991
          • Movies 1992
          • Movies 1993
          • Movies 1994
          • Movies 1995
          • Movies 1996
          • Movies 1997
          • Movies 1998
          • Movies 1999
      • Movies A to K
        • Movies A
        • Movies B
        • Movies C
        • Movies D
        • Movies E
        • Movies F
        • Movies G
        • Movies H
        • Movies I
        • Movies J
        • Movies K
      • Movies L to Z
        • Movies L
        • Movies M
        • Movies N
        • Movies O
        • Movies P
        • Movies Q
        • Movies R
        • Movies S
        • Movies T
        • Movies U
        • Movies V
        • Movies W
        • Movies X
        • Movies Y
        • Movies Z
      • Movies 0 to 9
    • Pop Culture
      • Fads
      • Toys & Games
      • Fashion
      • Decor
      • Food & Drink
      • People
      • Radio
      • Technology
      • Transport
    • Social History
      • 1950s Year by Year
      • 1960s Year by Year
      • 1970s Year by Year
      • 1980s Year by Year
      • 1990s Year by Year
      • Events
    Nostalgia Central
    Home»Movies»Movies by Decade»1970s Movies»Movies 1975
    Movies 1975 Movies R 4 Mins Read

    Rollerball (1975)

    Share
    Facebook Twitter Pinterest WhatsApp Reddit Email

    “The year is 2018. There are no wars. There is no crime. There is only The Game.”

    In a future world where all-powerful corporations rule and no one asks questions, all problems, including hunger, war and crime have been virtually eliminated and the vicious and barbaric gladiatorial game of Rollerball – a vibrant display of speed and violence – satisfies the impulses of the masses.

    Tuned to their televisions, billions of people watch the sport – a brutal mutilation of hockey, roller derby, motocross and gladiatorial combat – where dozens of men in uniforms and crash helmets hurtle around a circular track on roller skates and motorbikes, ducking and weaving, flailing at a rival team of skaters with black-gloved fists studded with steel spikes.

    Jonathan E (James Caan) is the champion Rollerball player – a man too smart for his own good.

    rollerball22

    The Energy Corporation has taken away the woman he loves (Maud Adams, fresh from The Man With The Golden Gun) – because a bureaucrat wanted her – but they can’t take away his spirit, even though the diabolical corporate head, Bartholomew (John Houseman) is insisting he should retire.

    The Corporation cannot tolerate heroes. Nobody is meant to be bigger than the game itself.

    rollerball23

    The technical achievement of filming the rollerball games was astonishing. The action is continuous and bruising, with each game more urgent, anarchic and dangerous than the one before, and audiences flocked to see the futuristic extravaganza when it debuted in late June 1975.

    But there were also a few critics who claimed that Rollerball crossed the thin line between anti-violence rhetoric and the type of exploitive entertainment it ultimately denounces.

    Director Norman Jewison (whose other forays into the controversial included Jesus Christ Superstar (1973), Dogs of War and Agnes of God) found himself defending the film: “There’s not one piece of gratuitous violence in the film,” he told Boxoffice in 1975. “The statement of the film is surely against the exploitation of violence . . . I would ask how you make a statement about violence without showing any violence”.

    The film was inspired by a short story entitled Rollerball Murder which had been published in Esquire magazine.

    rollerball24

    Jewison was so impressed with the story’s possibilities that he personally championed its conversion to celluloid. Every studio he approached said it was a great story but impossible to film.

    Finally, he bought the story himself, hired the author, Bill Harrison (who taught English at the University of Arkansas) to write the screenplay with him and made a deal with United Artists.

    The cast and crew spent 17 weeks filming – including studio work at Pinewood Studios in England, location shooting at Fawley Power Station in Hampshire, and eight weeks in Munich, filming the games at the Rudi-Sedlmayer-Halle (also known as the Audi Dome) – one of the five largest circular arenas in the world – built for the 1972 Olympic basketball events.

    English players of roller hockey, 12 players from America’s bump-and-shove roller derby, six top-flight motorbikers and 11 hardcore stuntmen from England and Hollywood  – along with James Caan and John Beck (Moonpie) who did much of their own playing – were taken to Munich to play the game

    rollerball_054

    The game itself was so popular with the stuntmen working on the film that they would play it even when the cameras weren’t rolling – and often forgot that the action was meant to be scripted when the cameras were!

    The ball was shot onto the track at 120 mph – and the speed of the skaters slinging themselves from moving motorcycles was often in excess of 40 mph.

    Rollerball survived its initial controversial reception and eventually scored over $30 million in box office receipts – an impressive number in 1975.

    A visually stunning film, and a thousand times – make that TEN thousand times – better than the 2002 remake which has since (deservedly) slipped into obscurity.

    TRIVIA
    The Houston Rollerball team share colours (orange and black) with hockey’s Philadelphia Flyers, who were once known as the “Broadstreet Bullies” for their extremely aggressive rink tactics.

    The Japanese symbol on the Tokyo teams’ headbands translates as “wind”.

    The voice heard commenting on the events on the Rollerball track was Bob Miller, the announcer for the Los Angeles Kings hockey team at the time the film was made.

    rollerball25

    Jonathan E
    James Caan
    Ella
    Maud Adams
    Bartholomew
    John Houseman
    Moonpie
    John Beck
    Cletus
    Moses Gunn
    Mackie
    Pamela Hensley
    Daphne
    Barbara Trentham
    Librarian
    Ralph Richardson
    Team Executive
    Shane Rimmer
    Team Trainer
    Alfred Thomas

    Director
    Norman Jewison

    “I have never seen anything like this game. Three guys are already out of the picture and in hospital right now and it wouldn’t be too difficult to get yourself killed on this set”
    James Caan on the making of Rollerball, August 1974

    Video

    Related Posts

    • Man From Hong Kong, The (1975)
      Man From Hong Kong, The (1975)
      This joint Australian/Hong Kong production co-starred former one-time James Bond George Lazenby and top Hong Kong martial arts star Jimmy…
    • Red Dawn (1984)
      Red Dawn (1984)
      After a quick rundown of politics in the film's then-near-future world (Mexico has fallen to the Commies etc), director John…
    • Robocop (1987)
      Robocop (1987)
      In the not too distant future, Officer Alex Murphy (Peter Weller) is an experienced cop who just started work in…
    • Rapture, The (1991)
      Rapture, The (1991)
      The Book of Revelation is rich fare for those with a taste for weird visions of catastrophe and many films…
    • Johnny Firecloud (1975)
      Johnny Firecloud (1975)
      Borrowing elements from Billy Jack (1971) and Death Wish (1974), this Native American-themed revenge flick is equal parts goofy and…
    • Death Race 2000 (1975)
      Death Race 2000 (1975)
      Set in the America of the future, the defending champion of the nationally televised Transcontinental Road Race - where contestants…
    • True Story of Eskimo Nell, The (1975)
      True Story of Eskimo Nell, The (1975)
      In 19th-century Australia (which looks not unlike the Wild West), one-eyed peeping tom Deadeye Dick (Max Gillies) and cowboy stud…
    • Pure Shit (1975)
      Pure Shit (1975)
      This 1975 Australian film follows 48 hours in the life of heroin users (two girls and two guys) in Melbourne…

    Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest WhatsApp Reddit Email
    Previous ArticleBack To The Future
    Next Article Big Payoff, The

    Comments are closed.

    Can you help?
    Nostalgia Central has been a labour of love for me since 1998. The site carries no advertising, and I rely on donations to help with the running costs of the site and ensure I can keep Nostalgia Central running for your entertainment and education.

    If you find the site informative or enjoyable, please consider a donation – no matter how small.


    Thank you so much, and please enjoy your trip in the time machine!
    Follow us
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • YouTube
    You May Also Like
    • Every Home Should Have One (1970)
      This British Lion film was manic comedian Marty Feldman’s […]
    • Spaceways (1953)
      This early low-budget British sci-fi offering from Hammer Films […]
    • Paris, Texas (1984)
      German director Wim Wenders miraculously accomplished what most […]
    • Soft Machine
      Soft Machine formed in Canterbury, Kent, in 1966 with a line-up […]
    • Soul Train
      1 9 7 1 – 2 0 0 6 (USA) The first-ever syndicated Soul […]
    • Lyndon B Johnson
      1 9 0 8 – 1 9 7 3 Lyndon Baines Johnson was born in […]
    Comments Box SVG iconsUsed for the like, share, comment, and reaction icons

    OUR LATEST FACEBOOK POSTS

    Sad news. We wish her well 🤗

    ... See MoreSee Less

    Link thumbnail

    Dame Esther Rantzen says her lung cancer is in stage four

    www.bbc.co.uk

    The TV presenter and Childline founder says she is on a new form of medication for the disease.
    3 days ago
    View on Facebook
    · Share
    Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email
    View Comments
    • Likes: 3
    • Shares: 0
    • Comments: 3

    Comment on Facebook

    Oh no 😢 in my prayers Esther xxx

    Didn’t she want to put the unvaccinated into camps during lockdown…

    That’s not cool 😞

    Another great voice has left us 😪

    ... See MoreSee Less

    Link thumbnail

    Tina Turner: Music legend dies at 83

    www.bbc.co.uk

    Her unmistakable voice on hits like The Best and What's Love Got to Do With It made her a superstar.
    5 days ago
    View on Facebook
    · Share
    Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email
    View Comments
    • Likes: 7
    • Shares: 1
    • Comments: 2

    Comment on Facebook

    I found out on tiktok before I saw it on any news channels..

    Terrible, terrible news. Taken far too young. Vale Andy Rourke!

    ... See MoreSee Less

    Link thumbnail

    Andy Rourke: The Smiths bassist dies aged 59

    www.bbc.co.uk

    Guitarist Johnny Marr confirmed Rourke died after a lengthy illness with pancreatic cancer.
    1 week ago
    View on Facebook
    · Share
    Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email
    View Comments
    • Likes: 3
    • Shares: 0
    • Comments: 1

    Comment on Facebook

    www.youtube.com/watch?v=g9_xELTfEds

    www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-birmingham-65576903 ... See MoreSee Less

    Link thumbnail

    The Beatles: Rare first edition White Album given to charity

    www.bbc.co.uk

    A 1968 White Album, complete with original inserts, is given to a Sutton Coldfield charity shop
    2 weeks ago
    View on Facebook
    · Share
    Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email
    View Comments
    • Likes: 3
    • Shares: 0
    • Comments: 1

    Comment on Facebook

    I recently fulfilled the dream of over 40 years and saw The Zombies perform live (They were amazing!). Their current bass player is a chap called Søren Koch, and this is his regular band - The Beatophonics. If you love 60s Beat music, do yourself a favour and have a listen. They are truly superb. open.spotify.com/artist/5W05FY5rERtVTBippPjold?si=nU5zM8gJSXONAGCWOUrTnA

    variety.com/2023/film/news/beetlejuice-2-release-date-theaters-1235607767/ ... See MoreSee Less

    Link thumbnail

    ‘Beetlejuice 2,’ Starring Michael Keaton and Jenna Ortega, to Hit Theaters in 2024

    variety.com

    Whether or not you say his name three times, Beetlejuice is returning to movie theaters next year. Warner Bros. has announced that “Beetlejuice 2” will be released on the big …
    2 weeks ago
    View on Facebook
    · Share
    Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email
    View Comments
    • Likes: 3
    • Shares: 3
    • Comments: 0

    Comment on Facebook

    www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-south-scotland-65470238 ... See MoreSee Less

    Link thumbnail

    Why The Wicker Man has divided opinion for 50 years

    www.bbc.co.uk

    It has been described as the Citizen Kane of horror movies - and one of the worst films ever made.
    4 weeks ago
    View on Facebook
    · Share
    Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email
    View Comments
    • Likes: 4
    • Shares: 1
    • Comments: 0

    Comment on Facebook

    RIP Harry Belafonte 😢

    ... See MoreSee Less

    Link thumbnail

    Harry Belafonte: Singer and civil rights activist dies aged 96

    www.bbc.co.uk

    The King of Calypso, who became a major voice in America's civil rights movement, died at home.
    1 month ago
    View on Facebook
    · Share
    Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email
    View Comments
    • Likes: 2
    • Shares: 1
    • Comments: 0

    Comment on Facebook

    www.bfi.org.uk/features/railway-children-yorkshire-locations ... See MoreSee Less

    Link thumbnail

    The Railway Children: in search of the Yorkshire locations, 50 years on

    www.bfi.org.uk

    Does the chocolate-box Yorkshire depicted in The Railway Children still exist? More than half a century since its release, we went looking for the locations.
    1 month ago
    View on Facebook
    · Share
    Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email
    View Comments
    • Likes: 9
    • Shares: 1
    • Comments: 0

    Comment on Facebook

    Farewell Possum :(

    ... See MoreSee Less

    Link thumbnail

    Barry Humphries: Dame Edna Everage comedian dies at 89

    www.bbc.co.uk

    The Australian was known for comic creations such as Dame Edna, Sir Les Patterson and Sandy Stone.
    1 month ago
    View on Facebook
    · Share
    Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email
    View Comments
    • Likes: 7
    • Shares: 4
    • Comments: 0

    Comment on Facebook

    RIP Mary Quant - the originator of the mini skirt and a key figure in the rise of “Swinging London“. 
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-65265531

    RIP Mary Quant - the originator of the mini skirt and a key figure in the rise of “Swinging London“.
    www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-65265531
    ... See MoreSee Less

    2 months ago
    View on Facebook
    · Share
    Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email
    View Comments
    • Likes: 16
    • Shares: 3
    • Comments: 0

    Comment on Facebook

    Load more
    Please note


    Nostalgia Central covers the period 1950 to 1999 and contains some words and references which reflect the attitudes of those times and which may be considered culturally sensitive, offensive or inappropriate today.
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • YouTube
    Search Nostalgia Central
    Tag Cloud
    Action Figures Amicus Arcade games Australia Beach movies Beatles Blaxploitation Board games British Invasion Britpop Canada Cold War Crime Disco Disney Doo-Wop Elvis Presley Girl groups Glam Goth Hammer Heavy Metal Irwin Allen Kraütrock Labels Merseybeat Mod revival Motown New Romantic New Wave NWOBHM Oi! One-hit wonders Politics Power Pop Prog rock Pub rock Punk Radio Scotland Ska Soul music Sport Surf music Video games
    Copyright © 1998, 2023 Nostalgia Central. Run by volunteers. Funded by donations.
    • About Nostalgia Central
    • Contact
    • FAQ

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.