The Final Programme
Encyclopedia
The Final Programme is a 1973 British comedy-thriller film directed by Robert Fuest
, and starring Jon Finch
and Jenny Runacre
. It was based on the first Jerry Cornelius
novel (also called The Final Programme
) by Michael Moorcock
. It was distributed in the United States
and elsewhere as The Last Days of Man on Earth.
human being.
A group of scientists including Dr. Smiles and the formidable Miss Brunner
(who consumes her lovers) try to persuade Cornelius to locate the microfilm containing his father's Final Programme, which is believed to be hidden somewhere in a family-owned house.
Things are further complicated by the apparent disappearance of Cornelius's sister, Catherine; the activities of his evil brother, Frank; and the involvement of other characters such as his old friend "Shades", and "Little Miss Dazzle", originally a singer.
The attack on the old house commences, with many traps to be breached, until Jerry finally confronts Frank, and a fight ensues. In the process, Catherine is killed, Jerry wounded, and Frank falls into the hands of Miss Brunner.
She encourages him to open the vaults, but he outsmarts her and gets away.
After Jerry recuperates, he again meets Miss Brunner, who introduces him to her new friend, Jenny. They plot to go and find Frank but in the meantime, Jenny is consumed by Miss Brunner. When they find Frank, another fight ensues, and this time Frank is killed and Miss Brunner takes Cornelius and the microfilm to Lapland, "Daddy's summer resort".
There, the scientists put the Final Programme into operation, in a process that involves combining Cornelius with Miss Brunner. The result of the experiment is supposedly a new Messiah, but is actually a rather dumpy looking caveman.
was highly disappointed by this film because of its many plots, unrelated to the book, and the final image of the "all-purpose human being" portrayed as a joke caveman instead of the novel's beautiful if vapid hermaphrodite
.
Robert Fuest
Robert Fuest is an English film director, screenwriter, and production designer who has worked mostly in the horror, fantasy and suspense genres....
, and starring Jon Finch
Jon Finch
Jon Finch is an English actor noted for many Shakespearean roles. Perhaps his most notable role was the title role in Roman Polanski's 1971 film adaptation of Shakespeare's Macbeth. His other famous role was as a down-and-out ex-RAF pilot wrongly accused of murder in Alfred Hitchcock's...
and Jenny Runacre
Jenny Runacre
Jenny Runacre is an actress.Runacre was born in Cape Town, South Africa. She relocated to London as a child, attended The Actor's Workshop there, and trained in the Stanislavski System....
. It was based on the first Jerry Cornelius
Jerry Cornelius
Jerry Cornelius is a fictional secret agent and adventurer created by science fiction / fantasy author Michael Moorcock. Cornelius is a hipster of ambiguous and occasionally polymorphous sexuality. Many of the same characters feature in each of several Cornelius books, though the individual books...
novel (also called The Final Programme
The Final Programme
The Final Programme is a 1973 British comedy-thriller film directed by Robert Fuest, and starring Jon Finch and Jenny Runacre. It was based on the first Jerry Cornelius novel by Michael Moorcock...
) by Michael Moorcock
Michael Moorcock
Michael John Moorcock is an English writer, primarily of science fiction and fantasy, who has also published a number of literary novels....
. It was distributed in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and elsewhere as The Last Days of Man on Earth.
Plot synopsis
The story starts with the burial of Jerry Cornelius's father, a Nobel-prize-winning scientist who has developed the "Final Programme"—a design for a perfect, self-replicatingSelf-replication
Self-replication is any behavior of a dynamical system that yields construction of an identical copy of that dynamical system. Biological cells, given suitable environments, reproduce by cell division. During cell division, DNA is replicated and can be transmitted to offspring during reproduction...
human being.
A group of scientists including Dr. Smiles and the formidable Miss Brunner
Miss Brunner
Miss Brunner is a fictional character in Michael Moorcock's Jerry Cornelius stories. She has also appeared in stories by other authors including M. John Harrison and Brian Aldiss. Unlike Cornelius and Una Persson, she is depicted as an authoritarian figure, a sado-masochistic techno-magician...
(who consumes her lovers) try to persuade Cornelius to locate the microfilm containing his father's Final Programme, which is believed to be hidden somewhere in a family-owned house.
Things are further complicated by the apparent disappearance of Cornelius's sister, Catherine; the activities of his evil brother, Frank; and the involvement of other characters such as his old friend "Shades", and "Little Miss Dazzle", originally a singer.
The attack on the old house commences, with many traps to be breached, until Jerry finally confronts Frank, and a fight ensues. In the process, Catherine is killed, Jerry wounded, and Frank falls into the hands of Miss Brunner.
She encourages him to open the vaults, but he outsmarts her and gets away.
After Jerry recuperates, he again meets Miss Brunner, who introduces him to her new friend, Jenny. They plot to go and find Frank but in the meantime, Jenny is consumed by Miss Brunner. When they find Frank, another fight ensues, and this time Frank is killed and Miss Brunner takes Cornelius and the microfilm to Lapland, "Daddy's summer resort".
There, the scientists put the Final Programme into operation, in a process that involves combining Cornelius with Miss Brunner. The result of the experiment is supposedly a new Messiah, but is actually a rather dumpy looking caveman.
Cast
- Jon FinchJon FinchJon Finch is an English actor noted for many Shakespearean roles. Perhaps his most notable role was the title role in Roman Polanski's 1971 film adaptation of Shakespeare's Macbeth. His other famous role was as a down-and-out ex-RAF pilot wrongly accused of murder in Alfred Hitchcock's...
as Jerry Cornelius - Jenny RunacreJenny RunacreJenny Runacre is an actress.Runacre was born in Cape Town, South Africa. She relocated to London as a child, attended The Actor's Workshop there, and trained in the Stanislavski System....
as Miss Brunner - Hugh GriffithHugh GriffithHugh Emrys Griffith was a Welsh film, stage and television actor.-Early life:Griffith was born in Marianglas, Anglesey, Wales, the son of Mary and William Griffith. He was educated at Llangefni County School and attempted to gain entrance to university, but failed the English examination...
as Professor Hira - Patrick MageePatrick Magee (actor)Patrick Magee was a Northern Irish actor best known for his collaborations with Samuel Beckett and Harold Pinter, as well as his appearances in horror films and in Stanley Kubrick's films A Clockwork Orange and Barry Lyndon.-Early life:He was born Patrick McGee in Armagh, County Armagh, Northern...
as Dr. Baxter - Sterling HaydenSterling HaydenSterling Hayden was an American actor and author. For most of his career as a leading man, he specialized in westerns and film noir, such as Johnny Guitar, The Asphalt Jungle and The Killing. Later on he became noted as a character actor for such roles as Gen. Jack D. Ripper in Dr...
as Major Wrongway Lindbergh - Harry AndrewsHarry AndrewsHarry Fleetwood Andrews, CBE was an English film actor known for his frequent portrayals of tough military officers. His performance as Sergeant Major Wilson in The Hill alongside Sean Connery earned Andrews the 1965 National Board of Review Award for Best Supporting Actor and a nomination for the...
as John - Graham CrowdenGraham CrowdenClement Graham Crowden was a Scottish actor. He was best known for his many appearances in television comedy dramas and films, often playing eccentric 'offbeat' scientist, teacher and doctor characters.-Early life:...
as Dr. Smiles - George CoulourisGeorge CoulourisGeorge Coulouris was a prominent English film and stage actor.-Early life:Coulouris was born in Manchester, England, the son of Abigail and Nicholas Coulouris, a merchant of Greek origin. He was brought up both in Manchester and nearby Urmston and was educated at Manchester Grammar School...
as Dr. Powys - Basil HensonBasil HensonBasil Henson was a British actor. Henson had a lengthy career on stage and television. His stage performances included a number of parts in Shakespeare productions, including once opposite Dustin Hoffman...
as Dr. Lucas - Derrick O'ConnorDerrick O'ConnorDerrick O'Connor is an Irish character actor, mostly known for his roles in Terry Gilliam films. He was a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company....
as Frank
The author's verdict
Reputedly, Michael MoorcockMichael Moorcock
Michael John Moorcock is an English writer, primarily of science fiction and fantasy, who has also published a number of literary novels....
was highly disappointed by this film because of its many plots, unrelated to the book, and the final image of the "all-purpose human being" portrayed as a joke caveman instead of the novel's beautiful if vapid hermaphrodite
Hermaphrodite
In biology, a hermaphrodite is an organism that has reproductive organs normally associated with both male and female sexes.Many taxonomic groups of animals do not have separate sexes. In these groups, hermaphroditism is a normal condition, enabling a form of sexual reproduction in which both...
.