Z.P.G. Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		3.0
Audio		3.5
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.5

Z.P.G. Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf March 29, 2017

The 1970s were a fertile time for dystopian adventures. Reflecting an increasingly hostile and hopeless world rife with political upheavals, terrorism, and pollution concerns, world cinema took notice, producing a great number of films throughout the decade that attempted to turn societal ills into mass entertainment, often granted a license to be as depressing as possible, to best brand audiences looking to grab a peek at the dark side of life. Think “Soylent Green,” “Logan’s Run,” and even “Planet of the Apes.” Offered early in this revolution is 1972’s “Z.P.G.” (“Zero Population Growth”), which examines life in an overpopulated futureworld where the air is choked with smog and babies are outlawed to preserve global control, pitting the few against the many as free will fights to survive. Directed by Michael Campus (“The Mack”), “Z.P.G.” has all the ingredients for a vivid examination of oncoming misery, delivering impressive production achievements that sell the sterility of a society built on complacency. While not precisely satiric in nature, the feature has some fun with era-specific concerns between bouts of depression as the end of the world is recreated for the screen.

In the future, pollution created by overpopulation and capitalism has reached a point of no return, forcing an unseen government force to take possession of humanity, enforcing a strict no-birth policy to winnow down the hordes, with those who ignore the law publically executed. While the powers that be offer realistic human robots for couples in dire need to satisfy their craving for parenthood, Carol (Geraldine Chaplin) isn’t interested in following orders. Secretly desiring a baby of her own, Carol takes steps to ensure a pregnancy with husband Russ (Oliver Reed), with the pair prepared to protect their illegal bundle of joy from government surveillance and their community, with informants receiving extra food rations for their efforts. Paranoid and panicked, Carol attempts to stay out of sight, but the pregnancy attracts interest from neighbors George (Don Gordon) and Edna (Diane Cilento), who respond to the unusual situation with manic possessiveness, threatening to expose the parents-to-be to the authorities, guaranteeing a death by dome-enclosed suffocation.

The world in “Z.P.G.” is small, as the production rarely uses locations to help depict its ruined civilization, with Campus preferring to stick with sets to preserve the feeling of claustrophobia that’s key to the film’s suspense. There isn’t truly an outdoors for Russ and Carol to visit, just a smog-infested city that requires “atmospheric shields” to help protect humans from the toxic air, which is often so thick, the characters can’t see what’s coming for them. Futuristic touches like the deadly skies are the highlights of the feature, also discovering that Russ and Carol live in a world that’s arranged like a museum for the ways of the 1970s, with the couple working as actors in alien scenarios such as ordering from a restaurant menu and engaging in a swinging lifestyle with George and Edna, delighting onlookers with their recreation of a permissive past. Exhibits at the “State Museum of Nature” (which requires a four-year wait to enter for only an hour) with stuffed animals and extinct plants showcase a world that once was, and inside Carol’s bathroom is a glowing abortion machine for marital accidents. Shopping is conducted via screen, keeping citizens cozy in their apartments, and there’s the issue of robotic children, with the dolls distributed to couples in need of a distinctly human experience, programmed to “live” for their parents.

“Z.P.G.” doesn’t get carried away with its future shock. The screenplay by Frank De Felitta and Max Ehrlich tries to stick closely to character, focusing on Carol’s internalized cry for motherhood, unable to refuse the urge to have a baby, but unsure how to share her needs with Russ, who’s a distant but understanding man. Carol is surrounded by reminders of life as she once knew it, but hope is depleted, even finding the doctor that delivered her lamenting the drive of science and medicine that conquered death, allowing the world to be overrun with selfish interests. There’s also threat from the “execution domes,” which are lowered on the condemned, locking them in for a slow death. Witnessing such treatment turned on another couple with an infant, and Carol is left a mess of emotions, but she’s determined to see the pregnancy through, eventually turning Russ around with her enthusiasm, inspiring a plan to hide his wife in an abandoned bunker created during the nuclear weapon era of human history, building a home underneath their home to keep the Carol out of sight, though the isolation doesn’t agree with her.

Z.P.G. Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

After a DVD release nearly a decade ago, "Z.P.G." graduates to Blu-ray with an AVC encoded image (1.78:1 aspect ratio) presentation. The results are mixed with moments of greatness, finding detail to be a highlight of the viewing experience, isolating strong facial particulars on immobile faces, delivering an examination of pores and hairs during close-ups, and futureworld design is also open for inspection, with clear set decoration and electronic comforts. Colors are equally satisfying, handling primaries with care, especially with male costuming, which favors bright yellows and oranges (fuzzy turtlenecks are huge in the future of menswear). The bluish dystopian world is retained as well, and skintones are natural. Source issues are common throughout, with the print displaying a whitish discoloration on the right side of the frame, which intensifies to almost a strobe-like effect during scenes with limited lighting. Delineation suffers, with blacks milky. Artifacts are also detected, with the viewing experience hitting periodic encounters with banding and mild pixelation. Speckling is present.

Z.P.G. Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The 2.0 DTS-HD MA sound mix isn't precise, but it delivers the essentials of "Z.P.G." without distraction. Age is apparent, found in sharp highs during dialogue exchanges, but dramatic communication is easy to follow, riding emotional waves and future environments without losing intelligibility. Atmospherics are adequate, providing a full read of group encounters and apartment gadgetry. Scoring handles pleasingly, with agreeable instrumentation and support, never steamrolling over performances.

Z.P.G. Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary features film historian Steve Ryfle.

• A Theatrical Trailer has not been included.

Z.P.G. Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

While the first half of the endeavor details the boundaries and textures of the diseased world, which is distinctly Orwellian, the rest of the film evolves into a paranoia thriller. Bringing in George and Edna for closer inspection, the screenplay transforms into a custody battle between the formerly intimate couples, with one side protecting what they've created in secret, while the other tries to collect what isn't theirs, motivated by blinding need and envy, creating hostilities between the neighbors. Suspense escalates, taking the story into a few unexpected directions, but it remains focused on the primal needs of the characters, who are forced to fight for their future. "Z.P.G." suggests a world uprising climax to come, but it remains modest in design, preferring to bathe in the bleak atmosphere of the feature, which is periodically popped by hope. It's not a lively movie by any means, but Reed and especially Chaplin show commitment to the premise, and the overall effort fits in nicely with the decade's attention to disaster, showcasing the determined trying to break free from the miserable and the weak. "Z.P.G." doesn't offer hospital corners on its narrative, but it's memorable and ambitious at times, and, as these productions tend to go, likely prescient.