What a better way for a fascist government to establish complete control over the people by blaming a series of fake insurections and rebelliousness on innocent freedom fighters only looking for the truth to be revealed? The film starts with the abduction of an enemy of the state who knows the truth about the new security task force that has taken control, with only a person in charge of the United States referred to as "the leader".
The head of this security agency (John Forsythe) may not be as calculating as the leaders of insurrection in "The Manchurian Candidate", but he wants to create further chaos by blaming terrorist acts at a California power plant on rebel leaders, only so he can declare a martial law and arrest anybody he chooses all under the name of national peace. To do this, he must capture and destroy the abducted Jackie Cooper, an army lieutenant colonel who knows the truth about the new order which has destroyed democracy without society even being aware of it.
I found it fascinating to see a late 1960's Los Angeles where the citizens act as if nothing is wrong as the obvious gestapo like agency takes control of law enforcement, making people disappear without notice. Pamphlets of this new world show evil intentions through false propaganda, and even at the airport, the chaos to get home for Christmas is rampant and scary. Special types of passes are needed, required out of the blue, and that creates a lot of anxiety and anger.
Forsyth is a sensational villain, very ill-tempered, and without any type of soul. Gene Hackman is cast as Cooper's priest brother who becomes involved in destroying Forsythe's agenda only when he has to. Set during the Christmas holiday, this film shows this new world as anything but Christian. The ending also leaves it open for continuation, but as this did not end up with a sequel or a TV series, the viewer is a bit stuck at the end. I'm not sure that the national anthem stuck on at the end was a part of this movie, as it reminded me of TV channel sign offs before they became 24 hours. While not perfect, it is intriguing and scary, and as a "what if" film with a "just imagine" concept, it can shake the viewer up with more distrust to an already toxic environment.
The head of this security agency (John Forsythe) may not be as calculating as the leaders of insurrection in "The Manchurian Candidate", but he wants to create further chaos by blaming terrorist acts at a California power plant on rebel leaders, only so he can declare a martial law and arrest anybody he chooses all under the name of national peace. To do this, he must capture and destroy the abducted Jackie Cooper, an army lieutenant colonel who knows the truth about the new order which has destroyed democracy without society even being aware of it.
I found it fascinating to see a late 1960's Los Angeles where the citizens act as if nothing is wrong as the obvious gestapo like agency takes control of law enforcement, making people disappear without notice. Pamphlets of this new world show evil intentions through false propaganda, and even at the airport, the chaos to get home for Christmas is rampant and scary. Special types of passes are needed, required out of the blue, and that creates a lot of anxiety and anger.
Forsyth is a sensational villain, very ill-tempered, and without any type of soul. Gene Hackman is cast as Cooper's priest brother who becomes involved in destroying Forsythe's agenda only when he has to. Set during the Christmas holiday, this film shows this new world as anything but Christian. The ending also leaves it open for continuation, but as this did not end up with a sequel or a TV series, the viewer is a bit stuck at the end. I'm not sure that the national anthem stuck on at the end was a part of this movie, as it reminded me of TV channel sign offs before they became 24 hours. While not perfect, it is intriguing and scary, and as a "what if" film with a "just imagine" concept, it can shake the viewer up with more distrust to an already toxic environment.