Futureworld

Futureworld is currently streaming in Australia on Amazon Prime Video, and in the US on Amazon Prime Video and fuboTV, and it earns its premise rather than just borrowing genre trappings. A tight runtime that never overstays its welcome. A 6/10 rating says what the writing already makes obvious: this one works. Peter Fonda anchors it with a performance that grounds the bigger ideas in something human. Put it on tonight on Amazon Prime Video and see for yourself.

Futureworld is not trying to be everything to everyone, and that focus is exactly what makes it work. The world-building is meticulous, but it is the characters who carry Futureworld through its more ambitious moments. Two years after the Westworld tragedy in the Delos amusement park, the corporate owners have reopened the park following over $1 billion in safety and other improvements. For publicity purposes, reporters Chuck Browning and Tracy Ballard are invited to review the park. Just prior to arriving, however, Browning is given a clue by a dying man that something is amiss. Peter Fonda and Blythe Danner lead a cast that brings real weight to the material. It was released in 1976. What separates Futureworld from lesser genre entertainment is a willingness to let the concept cost the characters something. There is real craft here, even in the moments that do not fully land.

Sci-fi fans who want ideas alongside the spectacle will find Futureworld genuinely rewarding. If you have run out of similar titles to watch, this is a strong next pick. It is a manageable watch, easy to fit into a single evening. Watch for Peter Fonda in particular — the performance elevates the material. Satisfying on multiple levels.