About the film
- Directed by
- Robert Fuest
- Released
- October 4, 1973
- US theatrical
- August 1, 1974
- Certification
- R
- Country
- United Kingdom
- Starring
- Jon Finch, Jenny Runacre, Sterling Hayden, Harry Andrews, Hugh Griffith
More credits
- Language
- English, German
- Origin
- GB
- Studios
- Anglo-EMI Film Distributors, Goodtimes Enterprises, Gladiole
- Written by
- Robert Fuest, Michael Moorcock
- Produced by
- Roy Baird, John Goldstone, Sanford Lieberson, David Puttnam
- Cinematography
- Norman Warwick
- Music
- Paul Beaver, Bernard Krause
- Also starring
- Julie Ege, Patrick Magee, Sarah Douglas, Sandra Dickinson, Graham Crowden
Mick Jagger was offered the lead and turned it down for being too weird.
Michael Moorcock is one of the most prolific fantasy writers who ever lived. In more than half a century, his vast body of work has been turned into a feature film only once.
THE FINAL PROGRAMME (1973) gave his coolest creation, Jerry Cornelius, a Nobel-winning physicist, rock star, assassin, and impeccable dandy to Robert Fuest, the stylist behind the campy Vincent Price Dr. Phibes films. Fuest had started as a set designer, and it shows. The film is a dazzling pop-art fever dream more interested in looks than sense.
The Final Programme is about a race to build the perfect self-sufficient immortal human as civilization collapses. Jenny Runacre steals it as Miss Brunner, a scientist who absorbs her lovers whole.
Critics savaged it, audiences ignored it, Moorcock disowned it, and yet, decades on, it survives as a cult object, beloved by people who treasure just this kind of magnificent, swaggering failure.
How to see The Final Programme (1973)
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Source: JustWatch
Physical media
More editions
Movies they don’t want you to see
Related movies only streaming in other territories
Movies we wrote about
17 commentsBreaking Glass (1980)
14 commentsToomorrow (1970)
16 commentsI Start Counting (1970)
6 commentsGhost in the Noonday Sun (1973)
6 commentsThe Asphyx (1972)
16 commentsMr. Horatio Knibbles (1971)
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StudioCanal Cult Classics (Blu-ray, 2023). A solid UK edition built on a new restoration that finally lets Fuest’s dazzling design breathe. Modest extras: a new interview with Jenny Runacre and a good piece by cult-film historian Kim Newman on Fuest and the film, plus the Italian title sequence and trailers.
Severin Films 4K Ultra HD. A two-disc set scanned in 4K from the original camera negative, with more than six hours of special features, and the perfect capstone to this whole story: it includes the first-ever home-video participation of Michael Moorcock himself.
https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/the-final-programme
Anywhere But Hollywood thanks for always including the physical media release info — super helpful. Your details are more clear that Amazon or most other sites as to which edition I’d want to buy.
Indeed, Jenny Runacre was just perfect as Miss Brunner.
I have it on laserdisc!
THIS is “too weird” but PERFORMANCE isn’t?
Lmao.
I’m a big fan of both.
NED KELLY is OK, but I prefer Dennis Hopper as MAD DOG MORGAN.
Also let’s be thankful that the Stones weren’t able to secure the film rights to A CLOCKWORK ORANGE like they tried to ,or wanted to at least.
Pete Scare exactly 💪🏻💪🏻👏🏻👏🏻✌🏻
Pete Scare My thought exactly.
ugh yeah wow… knew shout factory would have it…
https://youtu.be/Uemp_RDmgi0?is=c9rcMuSnSX1NvCGq
I’m suprised that this post has no mention of Jon FInch who was superb as Moorcock’s Jerry Cornelius and a much better choice than Jagger. He was an excellent actor and John Gielgud thought Finch’s command of Shakespeare was noteworthy “The finest of his generation.” His health probems regarding Diabetes kept him from having the career he should have. Interesting side note, John FInch served in the SAS as a reservist. https://bloodandporridge.co.uk/wp/2020/06/09/cinematic-heroes-1-jon-finch/
Wonderful film. Even have the original DVD. Too sad they never release the original soundtrack by Jerry Mulligan 💪🏻💪🏻👏🏻👏🏻✌🏻
Leopoldo Blanco https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7kqn78lUQeU
I’ve never been wild about it, but it is definitely a worthwhile film.
There’s a deep-cut reference to this in Wes Anderson’s first feature film, BOTTLE ROCKET. Owen Wilson’s character, Dignan, introduces himself and Bob to Inez (the motel housekeeper) by saying: “I’m Jerry and this is my associate, Cornelius.”
Oh wow, I’ll watch for that. Thanks!
This needs a remake.
Paul J. Jones can we have Tilda Swinton in it?
Diana Pahule I think the singer Florence Welch of Florence and the Machine would be a dead ringer for Miss Brunner.
I read a lot of Moorcock in my youth but have never heard of this film.
Fun flick. Also features the single weirdest pronunciation of the word “napalm” in film history.
A bit like The Avengers on acid. I’m a great fan of MM’s JC books and the movie comes pretty close to the spirit of them.
It’s an interesting movie that’s fairly faithful to the novel — but then torpedoes itself with a terrible ending.
You can tell the director “had an idea” at the last minute, and it was a bad idea.
Adam Johnson
Sweets Martinez didn’t
You already tagged me in this? lol
Adam Johnson I sent it to you via message too just in case 🤣🤣🤣
Sweets Martinez oh okay lol. I added it to the shared movie note we have💚
Heard Jagger was also first pick for Clockwork Orange, which he would have totally rocked, but thought the Stones were in enough trouble with their Satanic Majesties image with out adding Clockwork to the fire.