Genesis II

Director: John Llewellyn Moxey John Llewellyn Moxey

Overview

On three occasions between 1973 and 1975, Star Trek producer Gene Roddenberry attempted to launch a new science-fiction series. All three pilot films were predicated on the premise of a modern-day scientist awakening after nearly two centuries in suspended animation. The first of these feature-length pilots was Genesis 2, which debuted March 23, 1973. Alex Cord stars as Dylan Hunt, who opens his eyes to discover that he now resides in a post-apocalyptic world. He is reluctantly recruited into a resistance movement, aimed at toppling the present despotic regime. The film's "money scene" involved leading lady Lyra-a (Mariette Hartley), who at a crucial plot juncture lifts her blouse to reveal that she has two navels. When Genesis 2 failed to click as a series, Roddenberry and company tried again with Planet Earth (1974); when that didn't sell, the property was reworked as Strange New World (1975).

Product Details

Release Date:	10/06/2009
UPC:	0883316203392
Original Release:	1973
Rating:	NR
Source:	Warner Archives
Presentation:	[Full Frame]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital Mono]
Language:	English
Time:	1:14:00
Sales rank:	25,826

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Alex Cord	Dylan Hunt
Mariette Hartley	Lyra-a
Ted Cassidy	Isiah
Percy Rodrigues	Primus Isaac Kimbridge
Harvey Jason	Singh
Titos Vandis	Yuloff
Majel Barrett Roddenberry	Primus Dominic
Leon Askin	Overseer
Liam Dunn	Janos
Linda Grant	Astrid
Robert Swan	Lahyn-n
Beulah Quo	Primus Lu-Chan
Dennis Robertson	General
Ray Young	Tyranian Teacher #2
Tom Pace	Brian
David Westberg	Station Operator
Robert Hathaway	Shuttle Car Operator
Tammi Bula	Teenager
Didi Conn	TV Actress
Harry Sukman	Composer

Technical Credits

Gene Roddenberry

Gene Roddenberry	Producer,Screenwriter
John Llewellyn Moxey	Director

Editorial Reviews

This stab at a series pilot by Gene Roddenberry manages to be overambitious and underrealized all at once. The biggest problem of Genesis II is that it is too big in conceptual terms for its television limitations. The script has a promising plot and plenty of interesting ideas for its post-apocalyptic world but it simply tries to cram too much into too tiny a space. As a result, there's more than one moment in the story where important developments are either clumsily delivered via dialogue or breezed through in a too-hasty fashion. John Llewellyn Moxey's direction handles the action and drama components nicely but is hampered by the limited scope of a t.v. budget. Some of the sets and costumes look distressingly cheap, adding an unintended element of camp to the proceedings (look out for the really awful wigs on the male Pax characters). The best element of Genesis II is the acting: Alex Cord fits the retro-macho style of a Roddenberry hero nicely and Mariette Hartley delivers a highly effective turn as the inscrutable, possibly dangerous romantic interest for Cord. The end result delivers a certain amount of b-movie-style fun for sci-fi fans in the right forgiving mood but even they would have to admit that Genesis II isn't Gene Roddenberry's finest hour.

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