In the ruins of the old world, Arthur Frayn encouraged Zed to learn to read and led him to the book The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. Zardoz's aim was to breed a superman who would penetrate the Vortex and save human-kind from its hopelessly stagnant status quo. Genetic analysis reveals he is the ultimate result of long-running eugenics experiments devised by Arthur Frayn, who controlled the outlands with the Exterminators.

Zed is less brutal and far more intelligent than the Eternals think he is. Eternals who have managed to die, usually by accident, are then reborn into another healthy, synthetically reproduced body that is identical to the one they lost. The most extreme offenders are condemned to permanent old age. To give life more meaning and in a failed attempt to stop humanity from becoming permanently catatonic, the Vortex developed complex social rules whose violators are punished with artificial aging. The Eternals spend their days stewarding humankind's vast knowledge, baking special bread from the grain deliveries and participating in communal meditation rituals. Others fall into catatonia, forming the social stratum the Eternals have named the 'Apathetics'. The needlessness of procreation has rendered the men impotent and meditation has replaced sleep.

Given their limitless lifespan, the Eternals have grown bored and corrupt, and are descending into madness. The Eternals are overseen and protected from death by the Tabernacle, an artificial intelligence. In time, Zed learns the nature of the Vortex. Consuella wants Zed destroyed so that the resistance cannot use him to start a revolution others, led by May and the subversive Eternal Friend, insist on keeping him alive for further study, while secretly planning to overthrow the government and end humanity's suffering. Overcoming Zed with psychic powers, they make him a prisoner and menial worker within their community. Zed, a Brutal Exterminator, hides aboard Zardoz during one trip, temporarily 'killing' its Eternal operator-creator Arthur Frayn.Īrriving in the Vortex, Zed meets two Eternals – Consuella and her assistant May. The Brutal Exterminators kill and terrorize other 'Brutals' at the orders of Zardoz, a flying stone head which supplies them with weapons in exchange for the food they collect. The Brutals live in an irradiated wasteland, growing food for the Eternals, who live apart in 'the Vortex,' leading a luxurious but aimless existence on the grounds of a country estate. In the year 2293, the human population is divided into the immortal 'Eternals' and mortal 'Brutals'. It was shot entirely in County Wicklow, in the east of Ireland, and used locations at the Glencree Centre for Reconciliation, Hollybrook Hall (now Brennanstown Riding School) in Kilmacanogue, and Luggala mountain for the dramatic wasteland sequences. Sean Connery, in an attempt to reinvent himself after portraying James Bond, signed on. Burt Reynolds was originally given the role, but subsequently declined the role due to illness.

The Brutal Zed becomes curious about Zardoz, and his curiosity forces a confrontation between the two camps.īoorman decided to make the film after his abortive attempt at dramatising The Lord of the Rings. It depicts a post-apocalyptic world where barbarians (the Brutals) worship the stone idol Zardoz while growing food for a hidden elite, the Eternals. Zardoz is a 1974 science fantasy film written, produced, and directed by John Boorman and starring Sean Connery and Charlotte Rampling.

Wizard of.oz scarecrow with gun