Capricorn One (Blu-ray Review)
- Review Date: Oct 08, 2024
- Format: Blu-ray Disc
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Director
Peter HyamsRelease Date(s)
1978 (September 25, 2024)Studio(s)
ITC Entertainment/Warner Bros. (Imprint Films/Via Vision Entertainment)- Film/Program Grade: A-
- Video Grade: B
- Audio Grade: B
- Extras Grade: A-
- Overall Grade: A-
Review
[Editor's Note: This is a Limited Edition Region-Free Australian Blu-ray import.]
Capricorn One was fairly successful for an independent production when it was originally released in 1978, although not enough so to have had any serious cultural impact in those early years of the modern blockbuster era. It didn’t help that it also landed in the waning years of the Seventies paranoia thriller cycle. The world had already moved on from films like All the President’s Men and The Parallax View to the more visceral thrills of Star Wars, so no one was really looking for a science fiction paranoia thriller to bridge the gap between the two. Yet Capricorn One is still an underappreciated riff on moon landing conspiracy theories, and it’s only gained more relevance as the years have gone by, especially during the conspiracy theory mania of the internet age.
Capricorn One looked forward from the then-recent moon landings to the first manned mission to Mars, a mission that’s jeopardized once NASA discovers that their capsule’s life support system is faulty. Fearful of losing funding from Congress, shadowy forces within the agency choose to pull out the astronauts just before the launch and coerce them into faking the rest of the mission. That’s just the basic setup, but everything that follows is best experienced cold by anyone who’s never seen the film. There aren’t any major surprises, but everything is handled with panache by writer/director Peter Hyams. His script is filled with numerous plot holes and major technical errors, but he maintains just enough narrative momentum throughout the film in order to make them easy enough to disregard. The camerawork from legendary cinematographer Bill Butler is effective, with some clever use of depth in his widescreen compositions that help to build suspense. This was a few years before Hyams officially started shooting his own films, but it’s easy to see the influence that Butler had on him—and the influence that Hyams had on Butler in return (Hyams pushed him outside his normal comfort zone).
Despite all the efforts by Hyams and his capable crew, Capricorn One still wouldn’t work as well as it does without the fine cast that he assembled. Even when the dialogue is a bit creaky or implausible, the actors are able to sell it convincingly enough. James Brolin’s innate churlishness works well for the leader of the astronauts, and Sam Waterston is memorable playing against type as the wisecracking joker of the group. Even O.J. Simpson is fine as the third member of the crew, however distracting that his presence may be these days. The rest of the cast is filled with character actors working safely within their comfort zones: Elliott Gould, Karen Black, David Huddleston, Robert Walden, James Karen, David Doyle, Telly Savalas, Lou Frizzell, and Hyams regular James B. Sikking. (Watch for his Hill Street Blues costar Barbara Bosson in a small role, although they don’t share any screen time together here.)
Still, the unsung heroes of Capricorn One are Hal Holbrook as the NASA director and Brenda Vaccaro as Brolin’s wife. Holbrook provides some necessary gravitas to the proceedings, and he even manages to sell a massive exposition dump during the astronaut debriefing that no other actor could have pulled off quite so effortlessly. Yet it’s really Vaccaro who anchors the entire film in her brief but crucial role. The nature of her part forces her to spend most of her time reacting, but she’s simply marvelous at doing so. She’s able to reveal more of what her character is feeling through her eyes and subtle facial tics than most actors could do with pages of dialogue at their disposal. (In that regard, she provides an interesting counterpoint to Holbrook’s skill with exposition.)
Capricorn One concludes with a chase scene that isn’t always mentioned in context with the greatest cinematic chases of all time, but it deserves to be. While an earlier action scene with a runaway car is disappointing thanks to some obviously undercranked footage, the aerial cinematography during the finale more than compensates for it. Stunt pilot Frank Tallman called it “the most dangerous and complex aerial sequence ever executed for a movie," and it’s easy to see why. (Tallman died shortly afterward during a routine flight when he crashed into the Santa Anna mountains in low visibility conditions, which is a tragic irony considering what happens in the film.) When viewed on the largest screen possible, it’s a genuinely dizzying scene.
In addition to the death-defying stunt work, there are two unusual elements that contribute to why this chase works so well. The first is that there’s no music, just the sounds of the aircraft. Jerry Goldsmith contributed one of his finest scores to the film, but he wisely decided to let the chase speak for itself. The second is the way that Hyams anthropomorphized the helicopters all throughout the film. With the exception of one brief sequence, the pilots are never shown, so the helicopters seem to have minds of their own. As a result, they feel more threatening and almost human, in their own dehumanized way. It all combines to make for an unforgettable scene.
Capricorn One has picked up a minor cult following over the decades, no doubt aided by the attention that moon landing hoaxers have given to it recently (clips from the film have been used in multiple conspiracy videos on YouTube and elsewhere). With or without this newfound familiarity, Capricorn One has still earned a following simply because it’s a well-crafted film. Peter Hyams doesn’t always get the respect that he deserves, but Capricorn One is a worthy addition to the pantheon of classic paranoia thrillers from the Seventies. You don’t even have to believe that the truth is out there in order to enjoy it. That’s the mark of a classic conspiracy thriller: it still works even for viewers who reject the underlying conspiracy theory. In that regard, Capricorn One has always been a remarkably successful film that doesn’t really need the exposure from moon landing hoaxers in order to keep its memory alive.
Cinematographer Bill Butler shot Capricorn One on 35mm film using Panavision Panaflex and Panaflex Gold cameras with Panavision C-series and Cooke anamorphic lenses. (The aerial sequences were shot by David Butler using Mitchell MK II cameras with Panavision 50mm-500mm zoom lenses.) 35mm prints were framed at 2.39:1, while 70mm blowups were cropped to 2.20:1. There’s no information regarding this 2.39:1 HD master, but it appears to be the same dated one that’s been used repeatedly since it first appeared on the 2007 Blu-ray from ITV in the U.K. It has the same light bleed on the right side of the frame during the opening credits, the same scratches at various points throughout, and the same noise in the darker portions of the frame. It’s the same encoding, too, although it suffers from occasional pixelization artifacts that weren’t present on that disc, but were instead an issue on the 2015 Blu-ray from Timeless Media Group/Shout! Factory. (For an example, watch the shot of Elliott Gould walking onto the street of Flat Rock at 74:01—the buildings and trees in the background break up sporadically on both discs.)
In any event, it’s still an adequate presentation of the film despite any flaws. Damage is mostly limited to the light scratches and some speckling, although there are also a few minor density fluctuations. The source element was an interpositive, and while the contrast is generally good, it does suffer from some black crush at times (as well as the aforementioned noise). Detail is slightly softer than it would have been from a negative scan. The color balance is good, and the flesh tones look natural. Capricorn One definitely needs a fresh scan (although the status of the camera negative is unknown), but this is still a serviceable HD master.
Audio is offered in English 2.0 stereo LPCM, with optional English SDH subtitles. Capricorn One was released theatrically in 4-track mag stereo and optical mono on 35mm prints, and 6-track mag stereo on 70mm prints. While matrix encoded 4-channel optical Dolby Stereo was available at that point, it wasn’t used for Capricorn One (even the mag tracks weren’t encoded with Dolby noise reduction). According to the liner notes on the 1997 Pioneer Special Edition LaserDisc release of the film, the 6-track mix no longer existed, but they were able to locate the original dialogue, music, and effects tracks, plus the surround tracks. Pioneer created a new 5.1 AC-3 mix using those stems. That 5.1 track was carried forward to the 1998 Artisan DVD and the 2008 Lionsgate DVD, but it hasn’t been used anywhere else since then.
Pioneer also created a Dolby surround-encoded stereo track, but that doesn’t appear to the be the version that’s used here, nor was it used on the ITV or Timeless Media Group Blu-rays. Instead, it’s true stereo with no encoded surround channels. There’s a stereo spread, with directionalized effects traveling across the screen, but the surrounds aren’t utilized. Fortunately, the single most important element of the mix is Jerry Goldsmith’s marvelous score, and it sounds robust in full stereo. The dialogue is always clear. If the original 6-track and 4-track mixes really are gone, it’s a shame that the Pioneer mixes couldn’t be used instead, but they’re probably in legal limbo. Still, as plain stereo goes, this is a fine mix.
Via Vision’s Region-Free Limited Edition Blu-ray release of Capricorn One is #355 in their Imprint Films line, and it’s a two-disc set that includes both the theatrical cut and the extremely rare extended Japanese cut. Each disc is housed in its own clear Amaray case, with new artwork inspired by the classic theatrical poster design on one of them, and alternate theatrical poster artwork on the other. Both of them offer different scenes from the film on their reverse side that’s visible when the cases are opened. Everything comes housed in one of Imprint’s rigid Hardboxes that opens up at the top. The following new and archival extras are included:
DISC ONE: INTERNATIONAL THEATRICAL CUT
- Audio Commentary by Peter Hyams
- Flights of Fancy: The Politics of Capricorn One (Upscaled SD – 17:17)
- What If?: The Making of Capricorn One (Upscaled SD – 6:51)
- On Set with Capricorn One (Upscaled SD – 38:22)
- Photo Gallery (HD – 9:31, 95 in all)
- Theatrical Trailer (HD – 3:09)
All of the archival extras are located on disc one. The commentary track with Peter Hyams was originally recorded for the 2008 DVD from Lionsgate. He says that it’s his first time watching Capricorn One since its original release, since he doesn’t like watching his films after they’re finished—he always wishes that he had done things differently. He does point out a few examples of that throughout the film, but he mostly sticks to how the film was made. He explains how he got the idea for the story and the difficulties in getting the film made. He also offers copious praise for all of the actors, pointing out Brenda Vaccaro’s subtle facial reactions, and he says that no one is better at delivering speeches than Hal Holbrook (he calls Holbrook the best “word spitter” in the business). James Brolin wasn’t afraid to take the chances that Hyams demanded of him, and since he was learning to be a pilot at the time, he was able to add verisimilitude to the Learjet scenes. Hyams also admits to his rocky history being accepted as a cinematographer, but he says that Bill Butler was an enormous help on Capricorn One.
Flights of Fancy: The Politics of Capricorn One is a featurette that was also produced for the 2008 Lionsgate DVD. It examines the political motivations that drove the space programs in both the United States and the Soviet Union, as well as the rise of moon landing conspiracy theories and how they influenced Capricorn One. It includes interviews with Peter Hyams, historian Dr. Steven J. Ross, and publisher/columnist Dr. Micheal Shermer.
What If? and On Set with Capricorn One are both vintage promotional reels that were created for Capricorn One’s theatrical release in 1978. What If? features on-set interviews with Peter Hyams, James Brolin, Brenda Vacarro, O.J. Simpson, Sam Waterston, Karen Black, Hal Holbrook, (What it lacks in depth it makes up for in breadth.) On Set with Capricorn One is an extended look at the location shooting in the desert for the scenes where Brubaker (James Brolin) finds the abandoned gas station. There’s plenty of interesting footage of the helicopter and biplane action.
DISC TWO: JAPANESE EXTENDED CUT
- Extended Cut (HD – 128:30)
- Audio Commentary by Daniel Kremer and Daniel Waters
- Conspiracy Busting (HD – 17:45)
- Confessions of an Astronaut’s Wife (HD – 13:18)
- How the Capricorn Was Won: Getting the Greenlight (HD – 26:49)
- A Lady of Wondrous Abandon: Remembering the Incomparable Karen Black (HD – 7:16)
- Orchestrating a Conspiracy (HD – 18:00)
The Extended Cut is an early version of Capricorn One that was released in Japan in 1977, running about five minutes longer than the final cut that was released everywhere else in 1978. It doesn’t include the title cards that were added to provide the dates for when everything is happening, but it does include the docking sequence that was omitted from the final cut. It’s significant for two reasons: it’s the first moment where Elliot (Robert Walden) starts to suspect that something’s wrong with the data that he’s seeing, and it also shows that an aide to Congressman Peaker (David Huddleston) is present on the Mars set—which implicates the Congressman in the coverup. The video quality for most of the film is similar to the theatrical cut, although there’s a bit more speckling and scratches throughout, but the missing material looks like it was sourced from lesser elements. Audio is offered in English 2.0 mono LPCM, and it suffers from some distortion that mars Goldsmith’s score. It’s still wonderful to have this cut of the film available for the first time outside of Japan.
Daniel Kremer worked on the new extras in this set, and he’s also on hand to provide a commentary for the Extended Cut, joined by screenwriter Daniel Waters. While they offer plenty of factual information about Capricorn One, it’s more of a fan’s perspective. As a result, it complements the Hyams commentary perfectly. Among other things, they discuss their own personal history with the film; Waters was so fascinated by it that he ended up seeing it more times than he had seen Star Wars (and that was still during the era when you had to go back to the theatre to do so). Kremer, on the other hand, laments the fact that the era is over when filmmakers could imagine mid-budgeted features like this and actually get them made. They’re open-eyed about the numerous flaws in Capricorn One, pointing out the holes in the underlying conspiracy theory, but Waters says that the flaws only serve to endear it to him more. They do point out the alternate material in this cut of the film (although they get confused at one point regarding whether or not one small moment with Walden was in the standard theatrical cut). They also talk about their love of Peter Hyams in general—Kremer notes that he knows a film scholar who’s planning a book about the director, which is great news.
The rest of the new extras primarily consist of new interviews that were conducted by Kremer. Conspiracy Busting (I see what you did there, Daniel) is with Elliott Gould, who talks about his work with Hyams and the idea that the truth isn’t always what you see. He says that he’s not political, but he hates corruption in all of its forms. Confessions of an Astronaut’s Wife is with Brenda Vaccaro, who offers plenty of praise for all of the other cast members (she ended up working with two of Barbara Streisand’s husbands on the film). How the Capricorn Was Won is with producer Paul Lazarus, who traces Capricorn One’s torturous path to the screen, and explains how they got approval from NASA despite the nature of the story. Orchestrating a Conspiracy is with soundtrack journalist Daniel Schweiger, who breaks down Jerry Goldsmith’s work on Capricorn One and other conspiracy thrillers from the Sixties and Seventies.
A Lady of Wondrous Abandon is a change of pace. While it does include material from Kremer’s interview with Elliott Gould, it’s mostly footage from Karen Black’s memorial back in 2013. Gould, Paul Sorvino, Alan Cumming, and Juliette Lewis all offer their thoughts and feelings about her, with Gould bringing down the house with a story about how she wanted to do improv with him during an inopportune moment on the set of Capricorn One.
Considering how little love that Capricorn One has received on home video up to this point, that’s a pretty impressive slate of extras. It’s nearly every significant archival extra (minus a brief vintage studio filming promotional reel), plus a fine slate of new ones. The inclusion of the extended Japanese cut is worth the price of admission alone. While it’s a shame that there’s no new transfer of the film itself (and that the various multitrack audio mixes are still MIA), Via Vision had to work with what they were provided, so you can’t blame them for that. This is still the true special edition release of Capricorn One that we’ve always wanted but never received prior to this point. It’s a must-own for Capricorn One fans, Peter Hyams fans, and fans of paranoia thrillers in general.
- Stephen Bjork
(You can follow Stephen on social media at these links: Twitter, Facebook, and Letterboxd).