| Parts: The Clonus Horror | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Robert S. Fiveson |
| Screenplay by | Bob Sullivan Ron Smith Adaptation: Myrl A. Schreibman Robert S. Fiveson |
| Story by | Bob Sullivan |
| Produced by | Robert S. Fiveson Myrl A. Schreibman |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Max Beaufort |
| Edited by | Robert Gordon |
| Music by | Hod David Schudson |
| Distributed by | Group 1 International Distribution Organization Ltd. |
Release date |
|
Running time | 90 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $350,000 |
| Box office | $3 million ($1,680,000 theatrical rentals)[1] |
Parts: The Clonus Horror (also known asThe Clonus Horror, or simplyClonus) is a 1979science fictionhorror film directed, co-written and produced by Robert S. Fiveson, and starringPeter Graves,Tim Donnelly,Dick Sargent,Keenan Wynn, Paulette Breen andFrank Ashmore. The film is about an isolated desert community whereclones are bred to serve as a source of replacement organs for the wealthy and powerful.
An independent production,Parts was released in the United States in August 1979. It was nominated at the7th Saturn Awards for "Best Film Produced for Under $1,000,000". It gained further recognition after being featured on the comedy television seriesMystery Science Theater 3000 in 1997.
In 2005, the filmmakers filed a lawsuit againstDreamWorks Pictures forcopyright infringement, citing numerous similarities betweenClonus and theMichael Bay filmThe Island. The two parties reached a seven-figure settlement, the terms of which were sealed by the court.
The film takes place in an isolated desert compound calledClonus, where clones are bred to be used as replacement parts for the elite, including a soon-to-bepresident-elect Jeffrey Knight. The clones are kept isolated from the real world by workers of the colony, but are promised to be "accepted" to move to "America" after they have completed some type of physical training. After a group of clones are chosen to go to "America", they are given a party and a farewellcelebration with their fellow clones. The chosen clones are then taken to a lab where they are sedated and placed in an airtight plastic bag, and their bodies are frozen in order to preserve theirorgans for harvest.
A clone named Richard questions his existence and eventually escapes the colony. Pursued by compound guards, he enters a nearby city, where he is found by retired journalist Jake Noble and his wife. Jake takes him to Richard Knight, the man Richard is cloned from, and the brother of Jeffrey Knight. The Knights argue over what to do with the clone (who is revealed to have been secretly commissioned by Jeffrey).
After a falling out, Richard's clone returns to the colony to reunite with his love interest, Lena. To his horror, the clone finds that Lena has beenlobotomized by those running the colony. They had used her as bait to trap the Richard clone. Once they have him in custody, they kill and freeze him. Meanwhile, Clonus completes its cover-up by sending thugs to murder Richard Knight, his son, and the Nobles. Jeffrey Knight is stabbed through the chest in the ensuing struggle with his brother, but he appears fine the next day at a press conference, where he is stunned to find that Noble had, before his death, managed to disseminate a secret tape to the news media, exposing the Clonus project.
The final shot shows Richard's frozen corpse with an open chest -- implicitly, the source of Knight's new heart -- and a tear coming out of his eye.
Parts: The Clonus Horror was based on a screenplay by Bob Sullivan. The idea for the script came while Sullivan was taking a screenwriting class at theUniversity of Southern California taught by Irwin Blacker, astory editor forBonanza.[2] The film was directed by Sullivan's classmate Robert S. Fiveson,[3] his first and to-date only feature film as director.
Production began in Southern California in September 1978 with a budget of $350,000. In exchange for making a donation to theJunior Chamber of Commerce, the town ofSimi Valley, California was rented for the picture. Students from a local college received class credit for working on the film. On-screen credit was given to people who offered the production crew dinner, tennis shoes, and bicycles.[4]
The original title Robert Fiveson intended was "Clonus". The film distributor meanwhile wanted it to be called "Parts", much to the protest of Fiveson. Eventually the two titles were combined to make itParts: The Clonus Horror.[5] The Clonus compound was shot at the then new campus forMoorpark College inMoorpark, California.[6][7] Additional outdoor shots were filmed at theCalifornia Lutheran University quad near Alumni Hall.[8][9]
At the end of 1979, the film had made $1,680,000 in domestic theatrical rentals,[10] with an overall gross of almost $3,000,000.[4]
The film has been released by Mondo Macabro under the titleClonus.[11]
Blockbuster Entertainment gave the film two stars, calling it an "Interesting suspenser".[12]Leonard Maltin's Movie Guide also gave it two stars, describing it as "Watchable, but uninspired".[13]VideoHound's Golden Movie Retriever by Jim Craddock gave it one and a half stars.[14]John Kenneth Muir called it "A compelling low-budget film that despite lapses in taste and style has the sweet odor of paranoia all over it."[15] Robert C. Trussell forThe Kansas City Star praised the cast and its social commentary, saying it deservedcult classic status.[16] Linda Gross fromThe Los Angeles Times gave praise to the film's cinematography and art direction.[17]
Fangoria gave it three stars. While criticizing the acting and writing as "awkward", praise was given for its political subtext in the film.[18]Time Out called the film a "Competent and engrossing sci-fi thriller in theComa vein", speaking positively of its ethics.[19]TV Guide gave the movie two stars, saying it was undermined by its budget and was derivative ofComa,Logan's Run, andThese Are the Damned.[7] In 1980, the film won the "Best Film Produced for Under $1,000,000" category at the7th Saturn Awards.[20]
Parts: The Clonus Horror was featured in an eighth-season episode ofMystery Science Theater 3000 (MST3K), a comedy television series whose premise is that the characterMike Nelson and his two robot friendsCrow T. Robot andTom Servo are forced to watch bad films as part of an ongoing scientific experiment. The episode aired on theSci-Fi Channel in June 1997. In 2007,Rhino Video released theMST3K episode as part of the "Volume 12" DVD collection of the series along withThe Rebel Set,Secret Agent Super Dragon, andThe Starfighters. The DVD release of theMST3K episode includes an interview with Fiveson, who discusses the production ofClonus and theIsland lawsuit.[21] Though hesitant about it for the first five minutes, director Robert Fiveson said that he felt "honored" that the film made it onto the show.[22]Shout! Factory re-released the boxset in 2019.[23]
The big-budget 2005DreamWorks productionThe Island, also about a colony that breeds clones to harvest organs for the elite, mirrorsClonus in a number of ways. The makers ofClonus filed suit, claiming copyright infringement.[24][25] On August 25, 2006, the court presiding over this case ruled that it could proceed to trial.[26] When asked about the similarities, formerMST3K hostMichael J. Nelson calledThe Island a "pale copy ofParts: The Clonus Horror."[27]
According to a 2007 interview withClonus screenwriter Bob Sullivan, DreamWorks and Clonus Associates reached a settlement, the specific terms of which are sealed. According to Sullivan, the amount settled on was in the seven-figure range.[2]