Review of Gas! -Or- It Became Necessary to Destroy the World in Order to Save It. (1970) by Lothar M — 29 Mar 2014
By the end of the 1960's, producer and director Roger Corman wanted to comment on hippy idealism, and also comment on the alienation of Vietnam on America. So, he made this post-apocalyptic satire, which was a good idea at the time, But, American International delayed it's release by a year due to the Manson murders and re-cut it.
Corman would never work for them again as a result. This is set after an accidental military gas leak, which kills everyone on Earth over the age of 25. But there are some police officers around, rounding up hippies.
One of which is Coel (Bob Corff) who ends up on the run and ends up with Cilla (Elaine Giftos), a scientist who is looking for a lost hippie called Utopia. On the road to New Mexico, they pick up revolutionary Carlos (Ben Vereen) and his pregnant girlfriend Marissa (Cindy Williams) and their hippie friends Hooper (Bud Cort) and Coralee (Talia Shire).
But along the way they see sights such as a football team on dune buggies and Country Joe and the Fish on a golf course. It's clear that this is trying to be an American take on Richard Lester's films, especially The Bed-Sitting Room (1969), but it doesn't work, and our heroes go from one hippy happening to another.
If Corman's The Trip (1967) showed one side of hippy culture, this shows the other, if the lunatics got power, and it looks bad.
This review of Gas! -Or- It Became Necessary to Destroy the World in Order to Save It. (1970) was written by Lothar M on 29 March 2014.
Gas! -Or- It Became Necessary to Destroy the World in Order to Save It. has generally received negative reviews.
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