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I think you have to be a little strange in the head to appreciate, enjoy and love this movie.  I did.  I thought the animation was beautiful. Also I liked the fact it wasn't chock full of gore and mindless trash.  Silvains female sidekick is a nice bonus.  If you asked any guy what he wants in a girlfriend I'd say she's pretty close to the perfect. I truely think this film has some deep socio-political commentary (metal men, mutants, female power to heal, etc.) Also. Before seeing the end of this film make sure you eat some hallucinagenic mushrooms. You'll better appreciate what the Mathmos has to say.

The first time I saw this movie, I think I was about 8 years old, I was mesmerized.  Since then I've seen it about twice.  Every time I think of the movie, I am filled with awe and amazement.  The wonderous landscape and engaging plot bring you into such an amazing world that you will be swept off your feet.  Recently I've been trying to get a hold of a copy of the movie because it truly is amazing, but there seems to be quite a limited amount.  Ah...oh well...If anyone knows of a digital copy of the movie or it's music, I'd be pleased to be informed of how to get it!  Definitely see it if given the chance...it's quite a movie.

I saw this movie when I was 13, it being one of about 500 movies my parents rented from their video store. (Yes, I had a blissful, movie-filled childhood, I admit it...)  Unfortunately, the copy my mother was able to get was missing about the first five minutes of the film.  I mean, you'd pop the tape into the VCR, and, immediately, you're thrust into Gandahar's strange little world, where a woman welcomes a dog-like animal springing from a plant and brings it to her breast to suckle.  I'm assuming, therefore, that I missed a tiny bit of exposition because of that, but I still really liked this flick.  As Andrew said, the hero is actually that - a hero.  He doesn't go running around getting into fights, doesn't insult people who are trying to help him, doesn't curse up a storm, doesn't use people to help him, then leave them to their own devices, and doesn't speak in an annoyingly, high-pitched, whiny voice! "pant, pant"  (Sorry, I just watched "Rush Hour 2", and I want so badly to shoot Chris Tucker in the crotch right now...I'll understand if this bit doesn't get printed, but, Godalmighty, that man is annoying!)  However, I digress.  This film was always a pleasure to watch.  It wasn't really what I'd call action-packed, but the characters made it interesting.  The whole idea of people thinking in terms of not only the past, but the future, as the means to the present was a bit confusing at first, but I really got into it.  Looking at the photos and clip on this site, I realize that the animation isn't as good as I remembered, but I still think it was beautifully done.  Anyway, I recommend it, it wouldn't be time wasted.

I saw this movie in the late 80s when a friend lent it to me. I had no idea what to expect, but I was pleasantly surprised.
The music is haunting, a web of eerie threads, and I loved it so much that I put the movie on AUDIO tape so I could listen to the various songs! (freak! lol)
The acting is almost...surreal. I felt myself really caught up in this future, and when I saw the Deformed, I knew I was watching a classic.
There is nothing about this movie that I did not like (except when Sylvain tells Arielle that he feels that they had been "chosen"...a guy will say ANYTHING to get a girl into bed...love it...lol).
If you havent seen it, see it!
Long Live Gandahar!!

Can you believe I actually saw this, when it first came out, and I do not remember anything about it? Maybe, because I have it down in my list of films seen, as "Light Year" and not "Light Years." Obviously, not as good as much of that put out by Bakshi or Disney, still it is worth checking out.
If for no other reason, then anything classified as adult animation is worth checking out. (IMHO) Enjoy

This movie is one of the very few sci-fi animated movies made in France. We don't make many animated movies, and even less sci-fi, bloody cartesians that we are.

But René Laloux, the director, is one of the Justs! ;) Before that one, he made "Les Maîtres du Temps" (1982, Time Masters) and "La planète Sauvage" (The Fantastic/Savage Planet, 1973). All three movies have in common the good but not great quality animation (for the time), and stories that are infused with a poetry that most Disneys lack thoroughly.

Gandahar is adapted from a novel by Jean-Pierre Andrevon, a French sci-fi novelist among the best. Although the story was his first, and the Time warps/paradoxes are... well. Let's just say they're even less logical than a ST:Voyager episode about time travel... It is still an excellent movie, that found its way into this Bad Movie site because it's French, poorly known, and old. Still, I'm not blaming Andrew, it's nice to see people know about this movie!

Don't dwell too much on the quality of the animation; remember budget was probably one tenth or one twentieth of what Disney used at the time, and that all these movies are old anyway. And check out The Fantastic Planet. It's worth 80 mns.

Not a bad film, really.  For some reason, it reminds me of "Heavy Metal" without all the big-name rock bands in the background.  

     I rather liked this movie, it's a animated movie that made me think, which I haven't run across too often. The Metal Men are interesting (love to have a WAV of their marching sound) and the Deformed are excellent. Actually I think this beats the pants off of any Disney story, at least plot-wise.

Okay, I don't even smoke. . that. . anymore. But watching this movie last night sure made me wish I did. Then it would have made sense, perhaps. Or perhaps not. It is a lot like old Heavy Metal - when it was Metal Hurlant. Anyway, it rocks, and my 9 year old son liked it too, although he was a little stunned by the advanced technology that yet has not invented the shirt. Well, everyone gets their own priorities.

   I liked this movie, it was interesting and much more watchable than most Disney movies. The world it presented was pretty believeable (except that if they didn't have any experience with evil, why have those little thornbush-making pistols?)

 Because even in a world without evil there was still things that would attack him, such as the birds and the big lizard.

Excellent movie!!!! Rented it lots, and now that it isn't available I purchased a copy from ebay.  Actually it mysteriously appeared in my mailbox--after much sleuthing found that my brother-in-law won it on ebay for me and anonymously sent it to me, knowing how much I had wanted it.
Light Years is out of the norm, goes beyond the monotony boundaries of most movies.  Beautiful animation, interesting story for those of us who can enjoy sci-fi/fantasy.
Not for most people kids, it really depends on if you find breasts offensive.

Why doesn't Light Years have an official web sight? (foot tapping...) Anybody? And why can't critics just... well,put it this way: Elvira Gulch for 23 years I've been dieing to tell you what I think of you and now, well... being a Christian woman I can't say it! Come on!
This movie is most assuredly a Class Act.  It is French Sci Fi for crying out loud!!  Need I say more. (Americans is sooo... uncultured, uncouth and uninformed.  They all want mindless animi... that stuff born of the rising sun.) Where can I get that Steve Howe like sound track??? What has Rene Laloux done lately? Where have all the flowers gone?  and www.badmovies???

My father picked up a copy of this when I was growing up and it became a staple of animation alongside the odiously-dubbed "Warriors of the Wind" (now thank gods re-released with its original cutting, title and a more appropriate dubbing).  Being one of the two movies that both Asimov and Weinstein worked on for the American release it amazes me that this has not yet had even a token re-release on DVD given the cult following and standing of the film.  Especially seeing as how both "Wizards" (1977) and "Fire and Ice" (1983) have had their silver moment in the digitalised sun.

If you find a copy HOLD ONTO IT.  Who knows when this, or any other forgotten, classic work may find the preservation it deserves.

I love this movie. I saw it in Polish, French and English and  it still amazes me after all these years. Worth watching !!!

Best animated movie of all time. Beautiful film.

    I like this movie a lot, and NOT just cause my darlings Penn and Teller were involved with it! The art is really interesting looking and does not rip off any other fantasy (unlike a lot of disney/LOTR/yellow submarine etc. wannabes.) I also like the fact the the mutants were the bravest characters in the movie, they help the hero w/ no questions asked despite the fact that his people have discriminated against them.

i grew up watching this movie.  i searched for it for years to own, or even to rent; but  live in a small town and any movie without jesus in the title is hard to find.  now i'm looking for novels by the man who wrote the novel, isaac asimov.

Isaac Asimov did not write Les Hommes-machines contre Gandahar (The Men-Machines Against Gandahar, the 1969 novel on which the film was based). That was by Jean-Pierre Andrevon. All Asimov did was adapt the translation into the English script – which isn't a very creative role; they only hired him so that they could put his name on the poster.

Gandahar, the original, French-language film, has been released on DVD with English subtitles in the UK (cat.# EKA40260; it's restored and anamorphic widescreen and so on). It's region-free (so doesn't require a multi-region player) but it is PAL-format, so won't work on all DVD players and TVs in America and Japan. See here for more info: http://www.eurekavideo.co.uk/moc/catalogue/gandahar

Also, the original soundtrack has been available on CD for some years now, on Gabriel Yared's Film Music Vol. 5 (cat.# CFY005). One can hear a few tracks from it here: http://www.myspace.com/gandaharlesanneeslumiere

And one more thing – here are a couple of links on Caza, the bande dessiner who designed the look of the film: http://www.lambiek.net/artists/c/caza.htm & http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caza
He also designed another animated film, much more recently, called Les Enfants de la pluie (Children of the Rain).

Merci.

Seriously, anyone with even a passing interest in animation and 60-70s era science fiction should buy themselves a VHS of this. I rented it repeatedly as a child and although the animation will seem stiff by today's standards, its story is still engaging.

One scene was cut out of the american version and it was a sexually suggestive scene involving Sylvain and Airelle in a pedal of a plant. Its not much missing so its not a big deal like part of the plot or action.

Great Movie! I first saw this movie in the early 90's. I found a vhs copy for sale in a video store and fell in love.
I picked it up because it was made by the same guy who made Fantastic Planet. Back then it was hard to find
Full length Sci-Fi animated films and Anime had'nt really been made available to general public. People might tend to forget this and judge this movie to harshly. This movie has a great plot and brilliant animation. A must see!
If you ever get the chance, the original French version has scenes that were cut from the American release.
I guess they thought them to graphic for the kiddies.

Does Glenn Close know that she was in this movie?  :bouncegiggle: