Flash Gordon

Flash Gordon is one of those sci-fi adventure films that I always knew existed but, not to get too artsy, it hasn't left much of a cultural footprint. The name might be familiar to some but it hasn't seen any notable adaptations in the 21st century as it continues to gather dust. Then came the 4K remaster a few years ago and that got me to consider giving it a watch when it came on to streaming. I knew very little beyond it being Star Wars of a sorts but largely went in blind...

Released in 1980, Flash Gordon is a quarterback for the Jets and is aboard a small plane with a women who has only just met. All seems normal except as the two begin to chat but then their aircraft is struck by lightning and, through a series of events, finds himself, the woman and a scientist trapped on a distant planet ruled by a benevolent leader who intends to destroy Earth. Here Flash meets the various warring factions who despise Ming and somehow this mortal NFL player might just save the day.

If a campy sci-fi adventure is your thing then you are in for a treat with Flash Gordon and I just had such a blast with this escapist piece of entertainment using practical effects for added charm. Sure it is ridiculous but if you can go for the ride, you will enjoy Brian Blessed as a winged bird man wielding a mace, Timothy Dalton as an Error Flynn styled prince and Max von Sydow as the evil Emperor Ming the Merciless. But if sci-fi adventure flicks aren't your thing then there will be little here to entice you.

Flash Gordon is a whole lot of fun but it's a shame this failed to resonate with audiences at the box office as we could have had more films which were in the pipeline initially. What we do have is far from perfect and has plenty of flaws but I can't deny it's so much fun with fantastic visuals, a great supporting cast and a score by Queen to top it all off. Fans of Star Wars, Indiana Jones or even Highlander will certainly have a blast with this.