View source for H. G. Wells' The Shape of Things to Come

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''[[H. G. Wells' The Shape of Things to Come]]'' is a 1979 Canadian science fiction film directed by George McCowan, and starring [[Jack Palance]], [[Barry Morse]], Nicholas Campbell, Anne-Marie Martin, Carol Lynley, and John Ireland.

Although credited as an adaptation of [[H. G. Wells]]' [[The Shape of Things to Come|novel of the same name]], the film takes only its title and some character names from it. The film's plot has no relationship to the events of the book, as it was a blatant attempt to capitalize on the popularity of such recent successes as ''[[Star Wars]]'', and TV series such as ''[[Space: 1999]]'' and ''[[Battlestar Galactica (1978 TV series)|Battlestar Galactica]]'', although the film had only a fraction of the production budget of any of these.

With the earth rendered all but uninhabitable due to the [[Terminator|"Robot Wars"]] and resultant plague, humankind has colonized the moon with a [[No New Fashions in the Future|tres-70 discotastic]] society. Enter Omus, who has overthrown an outlying drug-mining colony and who wants to be installed as [[Calvin and Hobbes|president and dictator-for-life]] of the human race; to this end, he crashes a robot-piloted ore ship into the moon colony, warning that drug shipments (apparently necessary for human survival, due to [[The Plague]]) will cease if he is not appeased.

There are only three people who seem to think that standing up to Omus is a good idea: John Cabal, an old colleague of the villain; his Skywalker-ish son Jason; and Jason's girl Kim, daughter of a senator. Adding to the mix is the robot pilot, whom Kim repaired and reprogrammed after the crash so as to become an ally -- and [[Magic From Technology|gaining the ability to teleport]] in the process. These four brave souls steal an experimental starship (which looks suspiciously like the [[Star Trek|USS ''Enterprise'']] after being hit with a steamroller) and set out on a series of mini-adventures to stop the Evil Omus once and for all.

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* [[After the End]]: We will live on the moon.
* [[Brown Note]]: A high-frequency sonic weapon which can literally pierce your brain like a knife.
* [[Cow Tools]]
* [[Follow the Leader]]: Emboldened by... well, I'm sure you can guess.
* [[Heel Face Turn]]: the [[Robot Buddy]], after being rebuilt by Kim.
** [[Face Heel Turn]]: Subverted
* [[Hey, It's That Guy!]]: Barry Morse from ''[[Space: 1999]]'' as John Cabal; but Jack Palance steals the show as Omus.
* [[Huge Holographic Head]]
* [[In Name Only]]: Takes more cues from ''[[Star Wars]]'' than from its own namesake.
* [[Large Ham]]: What else can one expect from [[Jack Palance]]?
* [[La Résistance]]: Governor Nikki's little [[Redshirt Army]]
* [[Load-Bearing Boss]]: Shortly after Omus' defeat, his fortress collapses.
* [[Magic From Technology]]: after the [[Robot Buddy]] is repaired, it inexplicably develops [[Transporters and Teleporters|teleportation powers]].
* [[The Plague]]
** [[Infant Immortality]]
* [[Robot Buddy]]
* [[Space Clothes]]

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[[Category:Film]]
[[Category:Films of the 1970s]]
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[[Category:Science Fiction Films]]