SCI-FI September!

[trebor8273]

The last starfighter. 7.6/10


Starchaser the legend Orin. 6.4/10


Tron . 7.5/10

The terminator 9.5/10

[MacBlayne]

Hi all,

I’ve been quiet as I just started college again and the workload is increasing tremendously which means I don’t have much free time. Anyhoo, before the end of Sci-Fi September, I’d like to submit some quick entries.

Universal Soldier: Regeneration
Universal Soldier: Day of Reckoning

Directed by John Hyams

After the underwhelming TV sequels and the dreadful 1999 theatrical sequel, the Universal Soldier series remained dormant for about a decade. In this time, Jean-Claude Van Damme’s career suffered a nosedive that he never fully recovered from. He began cropping up in DTV fare (like Derailed and The Order) that were a far cry from his big budget theatrical outings that dominated multiplexes in the 1990s.

Yet, this turned into something of a renaissance for Van Damme as he started taking some interesting parts. In the rather daft Replicant, he played both a misogynist serial killer and a clone with the mind of a child. In Wake of Death, he was a brutal mobster whose only redeeming aspect is that he’s not quite as bad as the people who killed his wife. Until Death was his Bad Liutenant, playing a drug-addled cop corrupt cop seeking redemption after a near-death experience.

These films weren’t exactly great but they were elevated by Van Damme’s stunning performances. Perhaps, since there was no a giant budget or studio behind these films, Van Damme was willing to take risks with his performances and not rely on the standard heroic tropes of his earlier films. He put his new-found talents to the test with 2008’s JCVD, an avant-gardist part-autobiography, part thriller and part satire that saw him play a fictionalised version of himself caught up in a post-office robbery.

The film won rave reviews and Van Damme received unanimous acclaim for his acting. Once again, the world was Van Damme’s oyster. So, imagine everyone’s surprise when it was announced that his next film was another sequel to Universal Soldier.

But, fools were we, as not only was Universal Soldier: Regeneration better than expected, but it was easily the best of the series. John Hyams (son of Peter) delivered something really special here. The first half is pretty much what you expect of the DTV action sub-genre (Russian / Eastern European terrorist cell kidnap the Russian President’s children with the help of a super-soldier), only that the quality of the acting and the cinematography were much higher than is regular. The music has a very creepy John Carpenter aesthetic to it and the action scenes are extraordinary too, with the opening sequence rivalling anything Michael Mann has ever shot

But, it’s the second half that truly transcends. When the military raid against the terrorists fails, the authorities are forced to turn to the only other known UniSol in existence, Luc Deveraux. However, this is not the same happy-go-lucky Deveraux we saw previously. Deveraux is a broken man, and Van Damme nails it. There is a heart-breaking moment in which Deveraux is informed of the mission. He doesn’t answer but a tear emerges.

It’s this moment that establishes the conscience of the film. While Deveraux has tried to leave his old life behind him, he has struggled and failed to find a new one. He was a man bred for violence. Now, he has been given a purpose but it means returning to that old, violent life, which he does with aplomb when he makes his one-man assault on the terrorist camp. Compare that to Dolph Lundgren’s Andrew Scott. Like Deveraux, Scott was created to be the ultimate soldier but he is one given no purpose. Eventually, he goes mad again in a desperate attempt to find a rationale for the brutal acts he meant to commit. Soon, everyone is the enemy.

Universal Soldier: Regeneration is a magnificent achievement. It shouldn’t be this good but thanks to some hard work by the filmmakers, we got a film that stood alongside 13 Assassins and Ip Man 2 as the finest action film of 2010.

As good as Regeneration was, Day of Reckoning was even better. No longer restricted by a generic script (the main flaw of Regeneration), John Hyams was given free rein to do what he wanted. What he wanted to do was create a masterpiece.

John (Scott Adkins) wakes up from a coma after a brutal attack on his home that left his wife and daughter dead. He is informed that he was the latest victim of a militia group that is led by Luc Deveraux, who has turned against the government. After recovering his strength, John sets out to find Deveraux. However, his search will send down a pathway that his worst nightmares could not have prepared him for.

Universal Soldier: Day of Reckoning is not a film – it is an intense experience. Imagine if Gaspar Noe did a modern remake of Apocalypse Now and Takashi Miike did a low-budget modernist take on Blade Runner. Now, imagine if David Lynch edited the two together to an Aphex Twin sounding soundtrack and you may be close to what Day of Reckoning has to offer.

While Day of Reckoning is loaded with well-choreographed action, it is more true to sci-fi horror than any other genre. The theme here is identity, and what influences it. But, the film is not just intent on making the characters question who they are, but it wants us to question ourselves too. The repeated flashing images (warning: if you suffer from epilepsy, be very careful), the pounding score that comes and disappears without much reason, the relentless bone-crushing violence and scenes that contradict what we have previously witnessed, puts the audience in a state of turmoil and forces us to think about what we remember. Even when you think you have figured out John by the end, it throws a major curveball that throws everything out the window and haunts you as the credits roll up.

I love Universal Soldier: Day of Reckoning. The acting, writing, direction, and production values put it leagues ahead of many bigger budget action films. I understand that it’s not for everyone as it is designed to be a challenging experience. But, I hope you are able to persevere as it sits alongside Only God Forgives as my favourite film of 2013 (speaking of Nicolas Winding Refn, he has hired John Hyams to do the remake of Maniac Cop). It is a ballsy, visceral adventure and shows the true power of cinema. Whatever your feelings are by the end, it is one you will never forget.

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Great reviews as ever, Mac.

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Slave Girls from Beyond Infinity (1987)

As time was getting on i wanted something short last night, so a rewatch of this 70 minute epic seemed ideal. A film i used to appreciate on vhs but wasn't too keen on when i first watched the dvd some three years ago.

Now slap bang at the end of Sci-Fi September, here i am watching Slave Girls from Beyond Infinity again and unfortunately there still isn't a lot to it really. Sub standard acting, risible dialogue, shocking effects and worst of all a vhs transfer.

A take on the classic story The Most Dangerous Game, this is easily the worst version i've seen. The plot is simple. Two slave girls escape from their prison, crash land on a planet, are taken in and fed then let loose and hunted down by the dastardly Zed, a Christian Bale lookalike without the acting talent. The film never creates any tension and the action scenes are amateurish to say the least. Finally to top it all, the girls aren't that great looking either, at least facially, although they do fill out their wash leather bikinis rather well. It's not just scantily clad girls though. There are robots of the very clunky variety and even a man in a rubber suit style monster.... Oh what's the point?

This is cheesy, smutty, but in the end mostly harmless fun. Almost the American version on the 70's British sex comedy. Films like this were churned out by the bucketload in the eighties and early nineties. I suppose if, like me, you remember films from this era on the racks of your local video rental shop then by all means relive those days, just don't go in, as a new viewer, with high expectations.

[Justin101]

Not a review as such, but last night at the cinema I saw a trailer for the forthcoming Sci-Fi film Arrival and I have to say it looks really good, in an Interstellar/Contact kind of vein and it's from the director Denis Villeneuve who made Sicario last year and is making the forthcoming Blade Runner sequel...

[trebor8273]

Krull. 7.7/10

Space camp 5/10

Space hunter adventures in the forbidden zone 7.4/10

[Inspector Abberline]

Robot Monster (1953, USA)

Ro-Man (you see what they did there) have come along and decided they does not like earthlings and there planet and wants to destroy humanity.Mind you ,you can hardly blame Ro-Man for being a bit grumpy,I mean he was born a gorilla with a diving helmet on his head,so its hardly surprising he was a bit miserable..But what about the human race I hear you ask,well do not worry as there still is a small beleaguered force still fighting to save humanity and of course the future of the planet.In fact the last of humanity does not seem that fazzed not until lizards and dinosaurs start fighting and bubbles appear. And with only eight people left on the planet,Ro-Man sure has his work cut out. Although he managed to wipe out every one else im not sure why 8 is causing him such a problem,oh yeah the last survivors have a gizmo that reflects there appearance so Ro-Man can not see them,simple's. Ro-man the robot is nearly on the verge of a nervous breakdown ,as his superiors lambaste him for making such a balls up of destroying the humans,so with a flea in his ear from his commander Ro-man has to do a darn sight better than he has been doing.Even when they plead with Ro-man to stop killing,he is deviant ,until Ro-man catches a glimpse of Alice the Professor's daughter and starts to get some rather un-Ro-man feelings towards her. For such a rather low budget film and ridiculed one to boot,it certainly has a high concept and confabulated plot,I mean not even Prometheus was this confusing or should I say this inventive.What ever the budget ,nothing seems to much for this movie,hey the director wants nuclear explosions,no problem,the director wants a bubbles machine,no worries.Phil Tucker,the director we on earth salute you sir,( if only there were out-takes of Alice and Ro-man doing the naughty). Never mind Blade Runner 2 and all that bollocks we need Robot Monster 2 in 3-D.

[trebor8273]

The Philadelphia experiment. 7.2/10

Now watching short circuit.

[bizarre_eye@Cult Labs]

Updated List:

Sep 1st:

Invaders from Mars (1953) - 68/100
The Man from Planet X (1951) - 52/100
First Men in the Moon (1964) - 59/100

Sep 2nd:

Track of the Moon Beast (1976) - 41/100
The People Who Own the Dark (1976) - 64/100

Sep 3rd:

Attack of the Puppet People (1958) - 63/100
Phase IV (1974) - 72/100
The Invisible Woman (1940) - 62/100

Sep 4th:

Prisoners of the Lost Universe (1983) - 38/100
Black Friday (1940) - 55/100

Sep 5th:

The Road (2009) - 70/100
Bride of the Monster (1955) - 46/100

Sep 6th:

Mad Max: Fury Road (2015) - 69/100

Sep 7th:

Deadly Eyes (1982) - 46/100
Watchers (1988) - 49/100

Sep 8th:

The Creation of the Humanoids (1962) - 68/100
The Earth Dies Screaming (1964) - 67/100

Sep 9th:

Barbarella (1968) - 69/100

Sep 10th:

Edge of Tomorrow (2014) - 71/100

Sep 12th:

Doomsday Machine (1972) - 51/100
Beyond the Time Barrier (1960) - 48/100

Sep 13th:

Master of the World (1961) - 63/100

Sep 15th:

Slaughterhouse-Five (1972) - 72/100
Upstream Color (2013) - 71/100
Westworld (1973) - 74/100

Sep 17th:

Futureworld (1976) - 54/100

Sep 19th:

The War Game (1965) - 90/100
Hard to Be a God (2013) - 84/100

Sep 20th:

Trancers (1984) - 45/100
Computer Chess (2013) - 55/100

Sep 21st:

Tetsuo II: Body Hammer (1992) - 72/100
Bride of Re-Animator (1989) - 68/100

Sep 22nd:

Four Sided Triangle (1953) - 62/100
The Cosmic Man (1959) - 50/100

Sep 23rd:

The Damned (1963) - 71/100

Sep 25th:

Sleeper (1973) - 36/100

Sep 26th:

Devil Girl from Mars (1954) - 51/100
Stranger from Venus (1954) - 47/100

Sep 27th:

Fahrenheit 451 (1966) - 71/100
The Brother from Another Planet (1984) - 66/100

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Baberellas (2003)

An evil alien queen intends harnessing all the earth's sexual power. It seems only an all girl rock group can stop her.

This isn't, worse luck, a parody on Barbarella. It's a stand alone movie, and i use the word movie loosely as it's more a sequence of vignettes that gets the girls to randomly strip off and show their ample assets. For example, the queen zaps them from space with the idea they should use sun block - cue the girls getting naked and rubbing oil... you get the picture.

It's cheap and tasteless and populated by E-list 'actresses' such as Julie K Smith, Shauna O'Brien and Regina Russell. However if in the right mood Baberellas is a bit of fun with at times outlandish mind expanding effects the likes of which are now only seen during Hawkwind concerts.

More fun than any space odyssey.