Flash Gordon

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Flash Gordon

PG

1980

1h 50m

Sci-Fi

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Popcornmeter

83%

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53 Reviews

69%

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25,000+ Ratings

Although NASA scientists are claiming the unexpected eclipse and strange hot hail are nothing to worry about, Dr. Hans Zarkov (Topol) knows better, and takes football star Flash Gordon (Sam Jones) and travel agent Dale Arden (Melody Anderson) with him into space to rectify things. They land on planet Mongo, where the despot Ming the Merciless (Max von Sydow) is attacking Earth out of pure boredom. With the help of a race of Hawkmen, Flash and the gang struggle to save their home planet.

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Critics Consensus

Campy charm and a knowing sense of humor help to overcome a silly plot involving a spacefaring ex-football player, his adoring bevy of groupies, and a supervillain named Ming the Merciless.

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Charlotte O'Sullivan

London Evening Standard

Aug 10, 2020

4/5

Basically, whether laughing with this film, or at it, you'll have a blast.

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Peter Bradshaw

Guardian

Jul 31, 2020

4/5

Perhaps, like many a superhero film, this one flags just a little in the final battle sequences, but Von Sydow is always there to keep things bizarre, playing it absolutely straight.

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Anton Bitel

Little White Lies

Jul 31, 2020

a mid-air skirmish of corny old-fashioned retrofuturism and knowing postmodernism, even as its veneer of homespun innocence keeps being subverted by the corrupting powers of kink.

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Eddie Harrison

film-authority.com

Nov 30, 2023

5/5

...a deserved cult-classic with the widest of appeal. It’s camp, it’s silly, it’s funny and it manages to update the Boys Own charm of the original serials...

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Dennis Harvey

48 Hills

Sep 7, 2022

The movie itself is pure fun, and its status has only benefitted from the resurgence of interest in Queen, who wrote and performed the original score.

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Alan Jones

Starburst

Jul 26, 2022

If the character of Flash Gordon reminds you of Buster Crabbe's exploits in vintage 1930s serials, then this new version of Flash Gordon is definitely for you.

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Robert P

@Superbad Sep 3, 2026

The Songs by Queen were great, I loved the campiness of this movie!

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Max L

@RT64587319 Jul 26, 2026

This is a fun film to watch. From Queen's bespoke songs to the full on lean into the camp. It holds up well over time

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Daniel G.

@d_grady Feb 22, 2026

Should be a three star genre film on merits alone, but the art direction, wink-and-nod campiness and Queen soundtrack coalesce into something unique and fun.

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Joey A.

@TheJoe1991 Feb 12, 2026

Okay, I'm a homer, I grew up watching this movie and it's very nostalgic for me. Strangely enough I love this movie, before I even knew anything about the band Queen, and now they're my favorite band.

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Matt L.

@mattl Dec 26, 2025

I want you to picture the tone and mood of the Dark Knight Trilogy. Next I want you to bring to mind the most recent Dune series or Star Wars Rouge One. Now imagine the opposite of what your mind just conjured. This is the essence of Flash Gordon. So much color and and breathy joy is infused into this film. The story stays brisk and focused. I never wondered what the stakes were and despite the campy nature of the movie I always feel invested in what was going to happen next. There is a reckless courage that still amazes me each time I watch this. Tribes of hawk men, multiple words, space battles all on a “wing” and a prayer. This movie felt as though it was made by people who loved this genre and the source material. It took decades for movies to capture that love for comic / sci fi / campy / fun. At some point we have lost it again but, we will always have this movie to help point us back to the joy that Flash Gordon still brings.

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David T

@RT92378629 Nov 6, 2025

I think chronologically the best comic strip inspired style film since Barbarella. People seem to forget how ground breaking films like these paved the way for what are now considered mainstream franchises. In the UK they are still referencing this theme tune for a leading cleaning product on prime time TV, 45 years later...

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Mike Hodges

Director

Sam Jones

Flash Gordon

Melody Anderson

Dale Arden

Max von Sydow

The Emperor Ming

Topol

Dr. Hans Zarkov

Ornella Muti

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Synopsis

Although NASA scientists are claiming the unexpected eclipse and strange hot hail are nothing to worry about, Dr. Hans Zarkov (Topol) knows better, and takes football star Flash Gordon (Sam Jones) and travel agent Dale Arden (Melody Anderson) with him into space to rectify things. They land on planet Mongo, where the despot Ming the Merciless (Max von Sydow) is attacking Earth out of pure boredom. With the help of a race of Hawkmen, Flash and the gang struggle to save their home planet.

Director: Mike Hodges
Producer: Dino De Laurentiis
Screenwriter: Alex Raymond, Michael Allin, Lorenzo Semple Jr.
Distributor: Cinema Classics, Video Classics, MCA/Universal Pictures [us], Universal Pictures
Production Co: 20th Century Fox
Rating: PG
Genre: Sci-Fi
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Dec 5, 1980, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Jun 15, 2012
Runtime: 1h 50m
Sound Mix: Dolby, Magnetic Stereo 6 Track, Surround
Aspect Ratio: 35mm, Scope (2.35:1)

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