I brought Rollerball on DVD a couple of years ago and had never got around to watching it until today - all I can say is that i should have waited many more years.
The original 1970's Rollerball is a classic, with James Caan in the lead role. The remake with Chris Klein is a poor imitation at best.
Klein plays Jonathan Cross, a failed NHL player, who is inticed by Marcus Ridley (LL Cool J), by the big money available to play a new sport, Rollerball. The sport grew out of the old Soviet Union, and is under the ownership of Alexis Petrovich (Jean Reno).
Rollerball takes place in an arena, where a team on rollerblades and motorbikes attempt to score against a defending team, similarly dressed. Cross is soon made aware that the sport is simply a way to get TV ratings, and take the money, via betting, from the working people.
Petrovich to improve TV ratings starts inciting more and more violence into the sport. As players get injured, Ridley and Cross make a run from Petrovich. Cross is caught and is given one final 'retirement' game.
The camera work is poor, the sound track is worse
I am trying to think of any redeeming features, Rebecca Romikn-Stamos makes a bit of eye candy. It has attempted to take the best elements from films like Slap Shot, Youngblood, Running Man etc and failed to achieve.
The special features are probably as interesting as the whole film, and then onky because if you are watching them then you aren't watching the film. There is commentary by the leading actors, trailers, music video by Rob Zombie, a review of the stunts, and a Rollerball yearbook which takes you through the teams and players
At one hour forty, it is about one hundred minutes too long. It is no surprise that the original still sells at a higher price than this remake. All I can say is buy the original and steer clear of this DVD
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Production Year: 1977 - Action/Adventure - Director: Clint Eastwood - Original Language: English - Classification: 18 years and over - Starring:Clint Eastwood, Sondra Locke, Pat Hingle, William Prince, Bill McKinney
Production Year: 1964 - Action/Adventure - Director: Cyril Endfield - Original Language: English - Classification: Parental Guidance - Starring:Stanley Baker, Jack Hawkins, Ulla Jacobsson, James Booth, Michael Caine, Nigel Green
Production Year: 2002 - Action/Adventure - Director: Vincenzo Natali - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring:Lucy Liu, David Hewlett, Anne Marie Scheffler, Joseph Scoren, Matthew Sharp, Jeremy Northam
ThisRollerball, a 2002 remake of the excellent 1975 original, is one of the most notorious ... more
failed would-be blockbusters of recent years. Chris Klein struggles as Jonathon Cross, star of the violent game of the title, a mixture of speedway, hockey and r...
Postage & Packaging: £1.21 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
ThisRollerball, a 2002 remake of the excellent 1975 original, is one of the most notorious ... more
failed would-be blockbusters of recent years. Chris Klein struggles as Jonathon Cross, star of the violent game of the title, a mixture of speedway, hockey and r...
Postage & Packaging: Free! Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours...
Rollerball takes place in the not too distant future and the future is fierce. A ... more
notorious renegade sport Rollerball packs arenas all over the world. A global viewership bets and roots for star players Jonathan Cross (Chris Klein) Marcus Ridley (LL ...
Postage & Packaging: £0.00 Availability: 3-5 working days
In the year 2018, violence and crime have been totally eliminated from society and given ... more
outlet in the brutal blood sport of rollerball, a high-velocity blend of football, hockey, and motor-cross racing sponsored by the multinational corporations that ...
Postage & Packaging: £1.21 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
![Rollerball [DVD] [2001]](http://picnicb.ciao.com/uk/78519639.jpg "Rollerball [DVD] [2001]")
Mar 3rd, 2008
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![Rollerball [DVD] [1975]](http://picnicb.ciao.com/uk/78545841.jpg)
