Dr. Charles Forbin (veteran soap star Eric Braeden, in his first starring role in an American feature) is an electronics genius who's created an advanced super-computer that he's dubbed Colossus. Colossus will be used to monitor the defensive capabilities of the United States and to try to prevent wars from taking place. But the damn thing is smart, very smart, and it becomes aware that the Soviets created a similar intelligence dubbed Guardian. The two "minds" link up, and the two nations are thrown into a panic, thinking that the computers will share classified information with each other. Colossus gets *very* big for its britches, and seemingly can't be touched. Every time mankind tries to sabotage it, it's one step ahead of them.Scripted by future director James Bridges, based on a novel by D.F. Jones, this is one of the best films ever made about computers turning against us. It works as a predecessor to similar films like "Demon Seed" (although Proteus' mission in that one was of a more personal nature) and "The Terminator". Master filmmaker Joseph Sargent, who guided other 70s classics such as "White Lightning" and "The Taking of Pelham One Two Three", never calls attention to himself with stylistic flourishes or gimmicks, and lets the story and the performances carry the film a long, long way. Even 48 years later, the film loses none of its power to chill, especially since Colossus has ready access to the States' nuclear capabilities. Sargent handles things in a very matter-of-fact way, and even when tragedies and disasters occur, they're dealt with in the same kind of way that would make Colossus itself proud.Yet, the essential *need* for humanity remains, and it's good to see that our intelligent and resourceful human cast try everything they can think of to avoid letting the machines take over.A sense of humor helps at times, especially in scenes where Forbins' colleague Cleo Markham (ever-sexy Susan Clark) masquerades as his mistress so that she can relay information to and from Forbin. Legendary matte artist Albert Whitlock works some of his magic, the art direction & photography are excellent, and French composer Michel Colombier provides an eclectic score that was one of his first for an American release.Braeden is rock solid as the hero of the piece, with great support from a variety of familiar faces and great character actors: Ms. Clark, Canadian icon Gordon Pinsent as the President, William Schallert as the C.I.A. director, Georg Stanford Brown, Marion Ross, Dolph Sweet, Robert Cornthwaite, and James Hong. Paul Frees does the eerie, metallic voice of Colossus in the later parts of the picture.Must viewing for sci-fi fans, and another sterling example of how the genre experienced another great renaissance in the 70s.Nine out of 10.

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I read many of the reviews so I see no need to repeat the many interesting as well as questionable observations.I read the book shortly after seeing the film when it first opened in NYC so of course I was excited especially because I had recently started my next career - computer software development on mainframes (by the way they still exist and going strong). The movie title when it opened was simply "Colossus". Sometime later they titled the film "The Forbin Project" which I would think was done to improve the film's marketing.I was and still am a movie buff, a futurist, and a lover of science fiction.Most of the criticisms in the IMDb reviews tended to be concerned with its level of computer technology and its datedness, however, in my opinion these tend to miss the strength of the story. Similar to many SCI-FI stories, the specific mechanism of how the technology manages to do what it does will always have technical weaknesses and be out of sync with our times as well as its times, however, when well thought-out as this was, the story's fundamental ideas/concepts will continue to be interesting and thought provoking.Being a futurist I had been thinking about machine advances well before I came across this story so what I liked about this story was leaving mankind with what appeared to be an insoluble problem. When I left the theater I considered the problem and could not come up with a solution other than alien intervention or in desperation I had hoped the heuristic Colossus might develop over time a kinder solution for mankind.. I was pleasantly surprised when I read the sequel "The Fall of Colossus". Any remake I think should include the full story - a wild and still scary end.One review did raise an interesting technical issue that I think has merit. Namely, station troops next to all the missile sites around the world armed with low tech weapons that can destroy the ICBM's as they leave their silos (what about the nuclear submarines - not in this story). Of course planning and coordinating this effort without ever using electronic communications before and during this operation is questionable. I think that even if this solution seems workable, I would be confident that the author could address this "hole", e.g., the launches could occur over an extended period and thereby overcome this "hole". I raised this example because it seems to me the strength of the story is not fundamentally destroyed by this possible "hole". I had considered many other technical issues that have not been presented, but again, for me these "weaknesses" do not weaken the story.Please see and enjoy the film and read "The Fall of Colossus".PS. Where can I find the complete original version DVD?

The film is based on the 1966 novel, Colossus: The Forbin Project, by British author Dennis Feltham Jones, and was released in 1970 with a screenplay by James Bridges (The Hitchcock Hour, The China Syndrome, White Hunter Black Heart, among others.)It starred Eric Braeden as Dr. Charles Forbin, Susan Clark as Dr. Cleo Markham and Gordon Pinsent as The President.REVIEWAlthough the film begins slowly, and isn't your typical all-action movie, that people expect today, it still a suspenseful and unnerving film, which builds in intensity until one of the greatest climaxes in cinema history. The casting of the unknown Eric Braeden, in his first leading actor role, adds much to the power of the story. The acting is solid and the dialogue is concise, so that there is nothing said that didn't need saying. Eric Braeden is convincing as Dr. Forbin and it his story that we follow and it is his character that has the most depth. His struggle to believe that his creation has become more than he imagined, and his even bigger battle to try to defeat it, are what really makes the film that much more believable. Susan Clark gives subtleness to the character of Dr. Cleo Markham. A woman who is as intelligent as any of her male colleagues, if not smarter, but who also has the emotional aptitude to help Dr. Forbin, as his World begins to collapse around him. Gordon Pinsent portrayal of The President is very well executed. At the beginning of the film he is the supremely confident and affable Commander-in-Chief, but, as the story unfolds, he becomes far less controlled as his power to control anything is gradually taken from him. It is the relationship between these three that keeps the suspense building, to one of the greatest climaxes in movie history.The 'voice' of Colossus is provided by Paul Frees, and it is this voice that although chilling, also has a certain intelligence and, possibly, emotion. There are many supporting characters, such as Dr. Kuprin, the creator of Guardian, played by Alex Rodine, who is ultimately betrayed by his own creation. C.I.A. Director Grauber is wonderfully played by William Schallert, who gives a performance that has now become synonymous with inept C.I.A. Directors.When the film was released in 1970, Universal found that they had a surprise hit on their hands, as everyone clamoured to see it.Many of the Artificial Intelligence / supercomputer films, that have been released in the last thirty years have borrowed, if not downright stolen, their ideas from what Colossus set out. Gene Roddenberry used the idea in the 1968 Star Trek episode, 'The Ultimate Computer', while James Cameron cites Colossus as his inspiration for Skynet, in his 1984 movie 'The Terminator'.