The Design of Flash Gordon
The quote in the title is from the Dino de Laurentis’, Flash Gordon, and aptly sums up the over-the-top design of not just the 1980 movie, but that of the 1930’s serial as well. The design of both these versions of Flash Gordon prepare you for the roller-coaster ride of the films, basically saying – check credibility at the door of the Egyptian theater (itself a flight of fantasy). The program, Designing for Science

Fiction, was presented by the Art Directors Guild and the American Cinematheque, and honored the designers, Ralph Berger and Danilo Donati, who worked on the 1930s and 1980 films respectively.

Photo from Flickr.com. Licensed under Creative Commons.

John Muto introduced the screenings talking a bit about the history of the series, then showing a slideshow of clips and stills from films that influenced it such as Metropolis, Things to Come and Just Imagine. Then the films IT influenced such as Barbarella, and Flesh Gordon – films with lots of hot, scantily clad women, exotic extraterrestrial locations, and fantastic beings.

The first film, Flash Gordon – Rocketship, consisted of episodes of the 1930’s series (each originally 20 minutes long) edited together to produce a feature length movie that moved at breakneck speed. You just had to accept the fact that Dale Arden, was hopelessly in love with Flash Gordon, though for all intents and purposes they had only just said hello. Regularly the chuckles would rise from the audience at the totally ‘B’ elements of the movie. Such things as; Dale Arden who used any excuse to faint, or the fight with the Orangopoid (clearly a man in a suit) who’s secret weak spot turns out to be its neck. (I guess if Princess Aura hadn’t killed the beast Flash would have spent all day stabbing away at its hand or foot.)

The design of the serials was part Egyptian part Futurist. The great god Kalo and the clothes showed ancient Egyptian influences (in fact there seemed to be a veritable history play taking place as Prince Barin was dressed like a Roman centurion). Some of this no doubt the result of salvaging sets from other productions, for instance the exteriors were from Frankestein.

After the film Steve Berger, talked about his father who became the head of the Desilu art department and supervised many television series including I Love Lucy, growing up on the studio backlot, and often times being babysat by actors such as Frank Sinatra.

Then it was on to the Dino de Laurentis, Flash Gordon, the reason that many had come, myself included. The movie opening featured panels from the original Alex Raymond comics and the song “Flash!” by Queen, which roused the audience with a power usually reserved for only the Star Wars fanfare. Danilo Donati dazzled the eye with costumes that would make a West Hollywood drag queen drool with envy, (Quite a change from the work he did for Pasolini’s scandal filled productions such as Salo, (shown a few months ago at the Fetish Night at the Egyptian) while the skies above Mongo entranced with psychedelic-cloud filled vistas. And then there was the red – red everywhere!

That the original comic strip by Alex Raymond had racist overtones is not in doubt – no one denies that Ming was meant to be Oriental (another Oriental villain, Fu Manchu from around that time interestingly also had an evil daughter). Other things as the planet Mongo (obviously a shortened form of ‘Mongolia’) and the gong (interrupted by Flash just before it strikes thirteen, saving Dale from being defiled by the Oriental – Ming) are all cues that point to the Orient. More recent versions of Flash Gordon have made efforts to be politically correct by having a grey-skinned, reptilian and even blonde-Caucasian Ming. The 1980s version, not only did not try to mask the original intent in the comics, but Danilo’s costumes take this further than the original 1930’s serials and its plainly obvious that the dress of Ming’s court is Chinese inspired.

The film is a live action equivalent of the comic strip, complete with its bright colors except for the room where Kala governs robot-like beings with funky video screens over their eyes through which they monitor the goings-on of the entire kingdom. Part Borg. Part ’80s hipster doing the ‘Mr. Roboto’. It was a part of that whole sci-fi trend that included Star Wars, Superman and Star Trek: The Motion Picture. Flash Gordon didn’t do very well but has since become a cult classic with a multitude of memorable scenes. The script by Lorenzo Semple Jr. and Michael Allin is very quotable, calling to mind the (usually hilarious) scene they’re from. One of my favorites being when Princess Aura tries to convince Prince Barin that she’s not lusting after Flash. She goes through her patronizing spiel, throughout which he’s quiet and attentive and when she’s done he replies, “Lying bitch!”

In another scene, Aura saves Flash and proceeds to make sexual advances while he’s communicating telepathically with Dale, resulting in embarrassing ‘broadcasts’ to Dale.

There’s a trend here; sex, and it continues in the mythology surrounding at least one of the film’s stars, Sam Jones, a Playgirl centerfold, whom the Enquirer supposedly reported as being blackmailed because he’d done a gay porn. Another rumor has it that Freddie Mercury was hopelessly in love with Sam. And perhaps the strangest is that most of the voice we hear in the movie is not Sam at all. The rumor goes that because of a falling out Sam did not come back for looping sessions so the director hired someone else to do them. (Okay so that last one is not quite sex related – but its about Sam Jones, and as stated before he was a Playgirl centerfold…)

Getting a stalker and having sex rumors circulating about you are sure signs you are a cult classic and I was very glad that the Art Directors Guild decided to do this classic as part of their series. Last month they did Things to Come; Art Deco in Science Fiction, and later this year will be doing Star Trek so keep checking the Egyptian calendar for details.

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All photos from Flash Gordon (1980) are from allmoviephoto.com. Licensed under Creative Commons

Published on 2 June 2009 | |