The man behind Westworld…..
Michael Crichton is perhaps best known as the writer of Jurassic Park but it was an earlier film that he had written and also directed that would be really the origin story for that blockbuster. The film was Westworld that’s was set in the fictional Delos, a futuristic resort where, for $1,000 a day, wealthy vacationers can live out their wildest fantasies in hyper-realistic theme parks. In the Old West zone, friends Peter (Richard Benjamin) and John (James Brolin) saddle up for adventure, unaware that their dream holiday is about to turn into a nightmare. When a malfunction sends the park’s android hosts off script, the Gunslinger (Yul Brynner, in his iconic black-clad role) begins a relentless pursuit, obliterating the line between simulation and survival.
It was a regular theme of the danger of technology that would be a constant through so much of Crichton’s work that had started with The Andromeda Strain that had been filmed in 1971 to much acclaim. Originally having qualified as a doctor he almost immediately gave it up to return to his love of writing and his books were quickly turning into lucrative best sellers and optioned for films. He had gained the leverage to direct his first project the TV movie ’Pursuit in 1972 which he again had scripted and had struck a bargain to direct the film too.
Behind the scenes of Westworld
A relatively low budget film at just over $1.25m they had cast Richard Benjamin along with James Brolin as friends taking a fantasy vacation at Westworld where they got to play cowboys and have bar brawls, and have a shoot out with a robot gunslinger. To the amazement of producer Paul Lazarus it was Yul Bryner’s agent who made the approach for his client to play the gunslinger – Lazarus , pointed out there was no way he could afford Bryner on the budget he had quickly found that the actor was in need of cash and took the role for a lowly $75,000. It was ideal casting and became one of the actors iconic roles along with the Magnificent Seven and The King and I when the film went onto be a hit. Yet despite its success Crichton turned down the sequel ‘Future world’ and years later the template of technology run amok would be reworked as Jurassic Park to spectacularly successful effect.
Those bonus features
Released on limited edition blu-ray there’s a load of bonus features that includes:
- Brand new 4K restoration from the original negative by Arrow Films
• High Definition (1080p) Blu-ray presentation
• Original restored lossless 4-channel stereo, 2.0 stereo, and 1.0 mono audio options
• Optional remixed 5.1 DTS-HD MA surround audio
• Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
• Brand new audio commentary by filmmaker and film historian Daniel Kremer
• Cowboy Dreams, a newly filmed conversation between actor Richard Benjamin and producer/screenwriter Larry Karaszewski
• At Home on the Range, a brand new video interview with actor James Brolin
• HollyWorld: Producing Westworld, a brand new video interview with producer Paul N. Lazarus III
• Sex, Death and Androids, a brand new appreciation of the film by author and film scholar Alexandra Heller-Nicholas
• On Location with Westworld, an archival behind-the-scenes look at the making of the film from 1973
• Beyond Westworld, the 48-minute pilot episode of the 1980 follow-up television series
• Theatrical trailer
• Image gallery
• Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Arik Roper
• Collectors’ perfect bound booklet featuring new writing on the film by David Michael Brown, Priscilla Page, Paul Anthony Nelson, and Abbey Bender
• Double-sided fold-out poster featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Arik Roper
• Six postcard-sized art cards
Worth a look?
Unfortunately Crichton passed away in 2008 at only 66 years of age and a commentary from him is much missed but interviews with Brolin and especially Benjamin and producer Lazarus are fascinating with great anecdotes ( Crichton hiring a goth girl to play one of the saloon bar prostitutes had Lazarus having to take his director to one side and make a quick casting change). Although an award winning TV series arrived in 2016 this limited edition contains an extremely rare chance to see the first episode of the 1980 TV pilot for a series that never got commissioned.
Crichton’s books were mostly well worth the studios optioning (perhaps not so much ‘Congo’ or ‘Sphere’) but when his stories worked they worked brilliantly and West world is certainly one of those and this limited edition rightly elevates the film to the near top of his body of work.
related feature : The Andromeda Strain – BLU RAY review
related feature : Terminator Dark Fate – the actual model used in the film
Here’s the Westworld trailer……
Westworld – LIMITED EDITION BLU-RAY is released on 23rd February 2026
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