Rollerball (1975) is a dystopian science fiction sports film directed by Norman Jewison, starring James Caan as Jonathan E., the biggest star in a violent corporate-controlled sport. Set in a future where nations have been replaced by powerful corporations, the film follows Jonathan as his popularity becomes a threat to the system that created him. The sport of Rollerball is designed to prove that individual achievement no longer matters, but Jonathan’s refusal to retire turns him into a symbol of resistance. The film combines science fiction, political satire and brutal sports spectacle, and remains one of the most distinctive dystopian films of the 1970s.
The film used several European locations to create its corporate future world. In Munich, the BMW Headquarters appears as the Energy Corporation headquarters, with the building’s famous four-cylinder tower giving the corporation a cold, futuristic identity. The Rollerball arena scenes were filmed at the Rudi-Sedlmayer-Halle, now known as BMW Park, which was built for the 1972 Summer Olympics. The Palace of Nations in Geneva was used for the scenes where Jonathan visits the world library and consults the supercomputer Zero, while other material was filmed in England, including Fawley Power Station and Pinewood Studios.
BMW Headquarters
BMW Headquarters, also known as the BMW Tower or BMW-Vierzylinder, is best known from Rollerball (1975) and Suspiria (1977).
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