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Capricorn One (Widescreen) | 
| Director: Peter Hyams
Actors: Elliott Gould, James Brolin, Brenda Vaccaro, Sam Waterston, O.j. Simpson
Studio: Live/Artisan
Category: DVD
List Price: CDN$ 11.98
Buy New: CDN$ 7.48
You Save: CDN$ 4.50 (38%)
New (12) Used (8) from CDN$ 7.45
Rating:  43 reviews
Sales Rank: 14683
Format: Ntsc, Widescreen
Languages: English (Original Language), Spanish (Subtitled)
Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Region: 1
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
DVD Layers: 1
DVD Sides: 1
Picture Format: Letterbox
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 7.5 x 5.3 x 0.6
MPN: D60475D
ISBN: 0784011540
UPC: 012236047506
EAN: 9780784011546
ASIN: 0784011540
Theatrical Release Date: June 2, 1978
Release Date: June 24, 2003
Availability: Usually ships within 1 - 2 business days
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: Brand new Item, factory Sealed. Buy direct from the U.S. and save! We only ship airmail to Canada (7-15 days).Caiman, les prix qu'on aime! Tous nos produits sont neufs. Envoi par avion des Etats-Unis
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From Amazon.com
Thanks to repeated showings on cable television and home video, this speculative thriller has built quite a loyal following since its release in 1978. The provocative "what if?" scenario still packs a punch, even if it is not always believable. James Brolin, Sam Waterston, and O.J. Simpson star as three astronauts who agree to spare the government embarrassment by faking their historic landing on Mars after their spacecraft is determined to be unsafe for blastoff. When a scheming mission controller (Hal Holbrook) plots to kill the astronauts in a staged capsule fire, the trio embarks on a dangerous mission to expose the truth. Elliott Gould costars as the journalist determined to crack the conspiracy, and director Peter Hyams turns up the tension with an exciting chase sequence involving Telly Savalas as an eccentric barnstormer who comes to Gould's aid in his attempt to rescue the hoax mission's sole survivor. i--Jeff Shannon/i
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| Customer Reviews: Read 38 more reviews...
 Underground Classic for Conspiracy Buffs July 16, 2004
David J. Neal (Miami Beach, Florida United States)
If this wasn't the original Black Helicopters movie, it sure went a long way toward immortalizing that aviatory image as a sure sign of evil government conspiracies. On a personal note, I remember it for two things -- seeing it on a Sunday afternoon with my Dad on the best weekend we spent together of my pre-teen years; and first hearing the "black guy dies first" movie custom from Dad.pThe plot is simple and, at the time, rather chilling. Remember, it was only nine years after the 1969 moon landing, even less after Vietnam lies began coming to light and four years after Watergate climaxed with Nixon's resignation. Also, it's one year after the Viking unmanned craft landed on Mars.pThe first manned mission to Mars has a wee bit of a problem -- a life support system that was too cheap and discovered too late. NASA needs this mission to be successful with no glitches to keep its considerable funding amidst dying interest in the space program. Solution? Fake the mission! Hal Holbrook explains all this to astronauts James Brolin, Sam Waterston and O.J. Simpson (there were athletic black actors who could ACT in the 1970s, but the trend was to use famous and semi-famous jocks. Probably has something to do with Q ratings and bankability). Holbrook persuades them to go along in a manner that makes you ask "Are the government or major corporations such as the aerospace industry siblings, distant cousins, kissing cousins or incestuous siblings with the Mafia?"pAll is well until technology and the astronauts begin little rebellions that hint this mission isn't exactly a space oddity. This puts Eliott Gould, a newspaper guy always foolishly swinging for the fence sexually and professionally, on the case. Unlike others, I think the part as written called for Gould, someone who could flow between drama and comedy seamlessly.pSo you've got Gould doing his Scooby Gang thing and the whole months long fakery being pulled off when there's another wee problem on reentry. That sets up the last third to half of the movie when we get black helicopters, snake lunches and Telly Savalas.pNot a great flick for the quality cast involved (Gould, Waterston, Holbrook, Denise Nicholas, Robert Walden) but a good one. It does drag in some spots. The DVD doesn't have enough extras to be a great DVD or even a good one -- no commentaries, just some production notes. I bought it just because I wanted the movie. I'm not sorry I did, but the DVD package is still disappointing.
An uneven film, still worth the effort June 24, 2004
Jeffrey Ellis (Richardson, Texas United States)
In many ways, Capricorn One is a quissential example of a '70s action film. The film tells the story of the first manned spaceflight to Mars and the three dedicated pioneers (played by James Brolin, Sam Waterston, and O.J. Simpson -- and yes, it is impossible to watch the film without thinking about Simpson's most recent role) who bring hope to a cynical country by conquering the Red Planet. The only problem, of course, is that the whole thing is a fake. The three men are actually in a hastily constructed studio in the middle of a barren desert and their spacecraft is empty as it journeys through space and time. As implausible as this plot may sound, the film actually goes to the trouble to make the reasoning behind this plot believable and it even goes to the trouble to provide some humanity to the plot's mastermind, a NASA official played by Hal Holbrook. Because the film actually takes the time to set up the situation, it remains compelling even when that empty spacecraft happens to burn up on reentry, meaning that -- in order for the three spacemen to remain martyrs and for NASA to continue to get funding -- they have to die in reality as well. As the three men try to escape across the barren desert (pursued by three very ominous helicopters -- never has a sinister government conspiracy ever looked so realistically sinister), a reporter played by Elliott Gould slowly starts to uncover the conspiracy and soon his life is in danger as well.pWhile the basic plot itself is similar to quite a few recent action films, what distinguished Capricorn One is that the film -- made while the nation, still feeling the pain of Watergate and Viet Nam, was still getting used to not being able to trust the government -- plays this story totally straight. Neither of the film's leads (Brolin and Gould) manage to get off a single smirky one-liner in the style of our modern action heroes and the film makes it painstakingly clear that neither one of them is invulnerable. Brolin's trek through the desert is almost painful to watch (at one point, nearly dead of dehydration, Brolin very graphically kills and eats a rattlesnake -- a scene that would verge on disgusting if it wasn't obvious that Brolin's life depends on his actions). As for Gould, he has a wonderful scene in which he discovers that his car's breaks have been tamepered with and the entire sequence of his car racing out of control down the streets of Houston before eventually plunging off a bridge is almost totally shot from his point of view -- it's a scary sequence that is well-directed and if it's conclusion seems a little far fetched, the build-up is almost equal to the famous car chase in The French Connection.pThat said, this is not a perfect film. Director/Writer Peter Hyams allows quite a few scenes to go on a bit too long. (The film is full of quirky characters but occasionally, the spend so long being quirky that it becomes obvious that they're there for no other purpose other than to show off that quirk.) This is a two hour film that would have been better if it had been thirty minutes shorter. The film has a clever script but far too many scenes (especially of Gould's character trying to figure out the conspiracy) seem to repeat each other for no basic reason other than the lack of a good editor. The performances are a mixed bag. Gould does a good job for the most part except for a few scenes when he was seems to be chanelling Dustin Hoffman from All The President's Men. As for the three astronaughts, their characters aren't strong developed beyond a few identifying quirks -- Brolin is the heroic one, Waterston is the funny one, and Simpson -- well, he doesn't really get any identifying quirks beyond being O.J. Simpson. Of the three, only Waterston gives a memorable performance and this is largely because he gets the funny lines. Brolin is -- well, he's Brolin, vaguely likeable but mostly dull. Simpson's performance is a typical O.J. Simpson performance -- he seems to be trying really hard to excel at something that he has no talent at. You'd almost feel sorry for him if he wasn't O.J. pAs far as the supporting roles are concerned, there's a lot of familiar faces and it's a mixed bag. Both Karen Black and Telly Savalas put in what the credits assure us are special appearances. Black is occasionally amusing even if her character serves no real purpose while Savalas manages to bring the film to a dead stop by wildly overplaying a role that one hopes was meant to be comic relief but, which in the end, just serves as a very annoying distraction. On the plus side, Brenda Vaccaro is sympathetic and compelling as Brolin's wife and the undderrated Denise Nichols has one good scene as Simpson's wife -- one almost regrets that the crew of Capricorn One had to be male as Vacarro and Nichols give the type of performances that should have come from Brolin and Simpson. However, the film's greatest performance is given by the great Hal Holbrook who, instead of playing an outright, melodramatic villian, instead plays a human being who, for good reasons, does some truly evil things. Indeed, the film's main strength is Holbrook's villian who serves as a great testament to what can happen when idealism gives way to self-righteousness. By the film's end, you may hate Holbrook but you never cease to understand him and even mourn the person he used to be.pCapricorn One is a flawed film and it's a dated film but it is still a film that is worth seeing for both it's nostalgia value (Yes, Virginia, there actually was a time when journalists were considered heroes) and for an example of a believable and compelling action film.
Plays to the Moon Landing Was a Hoax crowd May 16, 2004
Joseph H Pierre (Salem, OR USA)
pbrGood entertainment. It plays on the old the moon landing was all a giant hoax conspiracy theory. There are people who still believe that, and this film is built on the same plot. The trip to Mars was a failure, and so the power brokers stage it with real astronauts who have to be killed in the end, and movie and television tricks.ppHal Holbrook plays the heavy (bad government guy in charge of the hoax, including killing folks). Elliott Gould is the plucky young reporter (Caulfield) who is being set up by the government because he knows too much, and suspects more than he knows. The three astronauts are played by James Brolin, O.J. Simpson and a young Sam Waterson. They are supposed to be killed when their heat shield fails on re-entry (to avoid any embarrassing leaks later), but they escape from their southwest location. Even Telly Savalas gets a part in the solution, as Elliott Gould closes in on the bad (read government) guys who are caught red-handed in their hoax on the gullible American people (aren't they always?).ppThis film has the whole schmeer, including the black helicopters, bad politicians (probably Republicans, of course), car chases, gun battles from airplanes, and the bad guys getting their comeuppance in the end.ppIt's good entertainment.ppJoseph (Joe) Pierrebrbrauthor of Handguns and Freedom...their care and maintenancebrand other booksp
All the President's Nasa Men April 13, 2004
A nifty adventure that fits in well with many of the 1970's paranoid thrillers (i.e. Marathon Man, Three Days of the Condor, etc.).CAPRICORN ONE stars James Brolin (THE AMITYVILLE HORROR, WESTWORLD), Sam Waterson (tv's LAW AND ORDER), and O.J. Simpson (THE NAKED GUN) as the three astronauts who reluctantly agree to stage a fake landing on Mars when Nasa determines the mission is unsafe and that the government does not want anymore failures. However, the astronaut's attitude does not sit well with an unscrupulous mission controller Dr. James Kelloway (Hal Holbrook-MAGNUM FORCE) and plans to kill them. Then, they must escape and expose the truth. Director Peter Hyams (2010: THE YEAR WE MAKE CONTACT,TIMECOP) does a pretty good job in the suspense and action while handling a delicate and very interesting plot. Good support roles especially Eliot Gould as the investigative reporter trying to find the truth, Brenda Vaccaro as one of the astronauts wives, David Doyle (tv's CHARLIE'S ANGELS' 'Bosley'), Robert Walden (tv's LOU GRANT, SHIRTS/SKINS) and Telly Savalas.
Wonderful forgotten movie - Lousy transfer December 3, 2003
Yarby (Medina, OH United States)
What a joy to see this movie again. I had forgotten how suspenseful it was, not having seen it since its theater release. Even O.J. Simpson can't ruin it. Of course, it pushes the limits of believability from time to time...but never far enough to make it unenjoyable.pNow for the bad part....this movie definitely deserves a better DVD than this. It is widescreen, but not enhanced as it should be. But worse...the picture has areas where it almost appears as if it is being projected against a dirty screen. Other areas of the movie are blurred...amplified when viewed in a large format.pI can't NOT recommend this DVD...only because it is the only one available of this film. But I sure wish someone would do the movie justice.
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