Rollerball

RELEASED to cinemas in 1975, Rollerball remains a powerful viewing experience today. It's also a deeper, more complex movie than it may at first appear – initially it comes across as a standard enough futuristic sports movie but peer a little closer and a smart little political satire starts to emerge.

James Caan is Jonathan, the world's number one player of Rollerball – a death-or-glory-style game where skaters and motorbike riders work together to push a heavy metal ball into the goal of their opponents at all costs. In a world where war is a thing of the past it's a brutal and bruising spectacle that provides an outlet for the viewing public's pent-up anger.

Jonathan's natural ability for the 'sport' and his seemingly anti-authoritarian stance has made him a global superstar and that's something that is worrying his employers deeply. The executives who run the sport also make up the faceless corporations who run society you see and they don't like the power that Rollerball's number one attraction is starting to gain with the fans.

He's becoming bigger than the sport and a figurehead for the great unwashed to rally around and that will never do. Therefore the powers that be decide he should retire immediately before his star rises any further. Problem is, Jonathan doesn't take the news of his imminent retirement too well. He ignores their decision and plays on in his team's tournament but quickly realises there's a very big price to pay for his free-thinking actions.

Like many a 70s sci-fi flavoured offering, Rollerball is a clever assessment of society and the need that capitalist regimes show to reign in free thinkers who rise above their station as subjugated, unquestioning members of the community to offer an alternative opinion.

It's also, for those who prefer not to see the satirical stuff, a straight-ahead testosterone-fuelled sports movie that delivers enough crunching action sequences to satisfy the most demanding of macho movie goers. It is to the credit of director Norman Jewison that the sports moments dazzle just as effectively as the political point making impresses.

The brutality of Rollerball is captured beautifully on camera and Caan exudes a quiet calm as the hero at the centre of the storm. William Harrison's writing is cold and ruthless and the points he drives home about societal control and manipulation seem as relevant today as ever.

Born as it was in an era when downbeat was king, there's a strong sense of pessimism at play that some may find off putting. The concept of faceless corporations keeping their subjects in line with sport remains a strong one, though and there's plenty to enjoy in both performances and production.

The recent reissue of the film on blu-ray by Arrow Video boasts a glorious print that allows the film to almost jump off the small screen. There are extras that include commentary tracks from director Jewison and writer Harrison and a brand new interview with Caan that reveal plenty about the making of this undervalued gem.