tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12380553.post4380316780803592918..comments2024-03-28T14:49:36.133-04:00Comments on John Kenneth Muir's Reflections on Cult Movies and Classic TV: CULT MOVIE REVIEW: Spacehunter: Adventures in the Forbidden Zone (1983)John Kenneth Muirhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15629979615332893780noreply@blogger.comBlogger15125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12380553.post-41232294555818086542018-02-08T12:04:17.714-05:002018-02-08T12:04:17.714-05:00To this day (I'm 46) my younger brother and I ...To this day (I'm 46) my younger brother and I would watch this movie with laughter when it seemed like it was on HBO every other day. We'd wrestle we each other while trying to force each other to say the phrase "I like her....I like her for the maze!" in a raspy robot-like voice. Every time one of us would get out the "I like her..." part. But then during the next part we'd start laughing. We would pause the movie and scrutinize Overdog & his gang. My younger brother would point out things like "First off, you cant have a fireplace blower thing on your chest that pumps life into you". We'd also laugh at the part where he orders the girl undressed but adds "SLOWlY!". This movie has provided like almost 30 years of enjoyment but not in the normal sense of enjoying a film. We've enjoyed it all these years a'la Mystery Science Fiction 3000 style :)Ron S.https://www.blogger.com/profile/03209627370215186888noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12380553.post-38417448498118499302013-12-19T19:33:19.593-05:002013-12-19T19:33:19.593-05:00Oh, and I forgot to mention Ironside! There are no...Oh, and I forgot to mention Ironside! There are no truly bad films with Michael Ironside.Kaitainnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12380553.post-89697724874683818482013-12-19T19:31:32.865-05:002013-12-19T19:31:32.865-05:00No mention here for Elmer Bernstein's score, w...No mention here for Elmer Bernstein's score, which is excellent. It moves between the rousing main theme, wistful flute cues that emphasize the broken-down nature of this world at the fringes of colonized space, and the jaunty, western-style tracks for which Bernstein is famous (and in many ways this is indeed a western). <br /><br />I always had a soft spot for Spacehunter. It's low-budget and slightly kooky, but it's full of memorable scenes, Strauss, Ringwald and Hudson are way better than the C-listers you usually get in this kind of fare, and there is real menace in the death maze and the final confrontation with McNabb. Lots to like: classic 1980s VHS genre fare.Kaitainnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12380553.post-87061308379179180182010-12-07T18:50:11.507-05:002010-12-07T18:50:11.507-05:00It's always great to meet another who enjoyed ...It's always great to meet another who enjoyed Spacehunter, but utterly delighting when I read a review as well-considered and articulated as this one, John. <br /><br />An absolute pleasure to read!!<br /><br />As may be evident, Spacehunter is my all-time favourite film, for the reasons you have given above and some others not so evident... <br /><br />Peter Strauss has since become my favourite actor thanks to Spacehunter, so it comes as no surprise that the original script was a very different film from the final release. There were a lot more touching Straussian character moments in the original cut, but alas these were dropped in one of the studio's more creative moments. I can only imagine what a film this would be if they'd only left those scenes in!<br /><br />It was the studio's idea to release this right before Jedi, mainly to capitalise on the general sci-fi bandwaggon. Also, it was not intended to be in 3-D until the aforementioned studio got creative (why can't they leave film making to the film makers?) and hopped on the bandwaggon. <br /><br />The sudden leap in workload led to the dismissal of the first director and a large number of the crew. When production resumed a lot of other crew members had been forgotten and had to be replaced at short notice. In particular, 3-D expert Dan Symmes was one of those forgotten and although his last minute replacement, Ernest McNabb, did his best the results were inconsistent to say the least. <br /><br />Lamont Johnson took the helm with just five days to get acquainted, a release date already set and pretty much an entire movie to rewrite and get filmed. <br /><br />It's a miracle this film is still even around, much less being enjoyed to this day. As Michael Ironside said, when I asked him to sign my original Spacehunter VHS copy, "Oh my God - YOU'RE the one who bought this??!! I heard someone did!!".<br /><br />But as mentioned, this is still by far my favourite film. Even though the magic of Star Wars has faded and Lightsabres no longer blaze in my fantasies, Spacehunter still makes the same simple sense it always did. All I really want now in life - all I ever truly wanted is to be a galaxy-hopping garbage man driving a nice 4x4 (with a rocket launcher on the back) and a sexy robot companion... But if she happens to fail and melt, I'm sure Molly Ringwald will come along to fill the gap!!<br /><br />If it's OK, I'd like to take this opportunity to invite all who enjoyed this film to hop by our new Spacehunter forum and share your thoughts:<br />http://spacehunter.phpbbhosts.co.uk<br /><br /><br />Thanks again for writing such a fantastic review!Woodyhttp://spacehunter.phpbbhosts.co.uk/index.phpnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12380553.post-72287355466135982202010-11-17T09:59:05.815-05:002010-11-17T09:59:05.815-05:00JKM:
And we also share an interest in Cyberpunk-e...JKM:<br /><br />And we also share an interest in Cyberpunk-esque futureworlds depicted on film! I might just take you up on that request to cover CHERRY 2000 now that you've got me thinking of it again and I just happened to tape a widescreen copy of it last time IFC showed it. Thanks for the inspiration!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08164105442273577128noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12380553.post-42923387484774249352010-11-17T06:40:34.317-05:002010-11-17T06:40:34.317-05:00SFF:
I totally understand your dilemma.
I don&...SFF:<br /><br />I totally understand your dilemma. <br /><br />I don't know that I would actually recommend a purchase of Starhunter, sight unseen. Maybe a rental first, to see if it is your cup of tea. <br /><br />Spacehunter is enjoyable and fun, and cheeky, politically incorrect and sleazy..so making a clear-cut recommendation on this is hard. It will probably strike different people different way. But knowing your love of good genre visuals, I do think you would dig the look of the film, and many of the vehicles (like the Scrambler).<br /><br />Great comment! <br /><br />All my best,<br />JKMJohn Kenneth Muirhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15629979615332893780noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12380553.post-20478382622961959432010-11-17T02:36:52.841-05:002010-11-17T02:36:52.841-05:00This has to be one of my all time favorites! Quite...This has to be one of my all time favorites! Quite good selection of films which I have looked http://bit.ly/d7JKuNAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12380553.post-20129422038770593902010-11-16T22:40:34.193-05:002010-11-16T22:40:34.193-05:00I never saw this one. My reaction when I saw you ...I never saw this one. My reaction when I saw you covering it was immediately "so funny" because I had recently added it to my possible purchases list.<br /><br />I guess I never saw it for the same reasons you mentioned after seeing it at 13 years old or as Jim Blanton mentioned, because we were so influenced by Star Wars.<br /><br />Your picture choice of that steam ship boat train is indeed cyber punk. Right on!<br /><br />I definitely like the Mad Max or post-apocalyptic low budget look. I like that aesthetic but I'm still not sure. Based on your fine and most likely dead on the money review, I'm still not sure I want to part with mine. : )<br /><br />Thanks John<br />All the best<br />SFFSFFhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04256589316922398158noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12380553.post-57139609401513073322010-11-16T17:09:15.445-05:002010-11-16T17:09:15.445-05:00Jim,
Hello my dear friend! I think we probably s...Jim,<br /><br />Hello my dear friend! I think we probably shared a similar journey with this film, based on your comment.<br /><br />As a teenager reared on Star Wars, I didn't quite know what to make of Spacehunter. <br /><br />Now, I get it, and kind of love it for all the reasons I posted in my review, and all the reasons you enumerate.<br /><br />The movie is...cheeky. It's a little sleazy. <br /><br />But it really gets the pulp angle right; and it really points to the Cyberpunk direction of later films such as Hardware and Screamers. <br /><br />You're right that divorced from the context of the day (and a comparison to the Star Wars juggernaut), this movie seems a lot better (and a lot more unique) than critics and audiences gave it credit for.<br /><br />Great comment, buddy. And as always, nice to see your name here! <br /><br />Regards,<br />JohnJohn Kenneth Muirhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15629979615332893780noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12380553.post-58965475205037345752010-11-16T16:52:53.608-05:002010-11-16T16:52:53.608-05:00Hey John,
What fascinates me more and more in hind...Hey John,<br />What fascinates me more and more in hindsight as I get older with movies like Spacehunter, is the context in which they arrived. Someone watching this now might scratch their head a little but as you mention it came out on the heels of Jedi in the full boom of the 3D resurgence. In that context it makes sense that a movie like this, meant to capitalize on two trends, exists in the first place.<br /><br />I remember seeing this on opening day and being underwhelmed after my rearing on Star Wars. Now though I see this as the type of movie Star Wars was paying tribute to in the first place. Like you mention it recalls pulp sci-fi, in many ways more accurately than that which it seeks to imitate. As a result it ends up being a really fun movie when given a fair chance all these years later, removed from the shadow of the Lucas saga.<br /><br />And how about the cast. Strauss is a great bargain Han Solo (the character we all wanted to be), Ringwald is at her perky best, Ernie Hudson is there and reliable, and Michael Ironside as Overdog is perfection. The effects and production design also have that interesting cyberpunk quality you identify, making this all the more worth remembering.<br /><br />If there's anything to be upset about, it's that the 3D wasn't all that great as I recall (the norm for the vast majority of those films). But that hardly matters now . . . the kitschy comin' at ya moments just add to the charm. And its head and shoulders above its brethren (I'm looking at you Jared Syn) - I think we all can agree on that!<br /><br />As a bit of trivia I don't know if you remember this, but the movie definitely came out with some fanfare. I distinctly remember Starlog had a big Spacehunter contest where you could win one of the obese bat suits! Seriously what would you do with one of those things?!? That would be creepy as all get out to have displayed. Wouldn't you love to know one of the winners of that contest : )<br /><br />Long live Wolff (with 2 f's thank you very much) and Nicki!<br /><br />Best, JimAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12380553.post-13044768301023804302010-11-16T15:59:51.022-05:002010-11-16T15:59:51.022-05:00Hello friends,
Myra: This is a weird movie, and i...Hello friends,<br /><br />Myra: This is a weird movie, and it IS strange that Molly Ringwald (a very young Molly Ringwald...) is in it. <br /><br />But if you like -- and have patience for -- 1980s genre movies, you might get a kick out of this. Guilty pleasure territory, perhaps...<br /><br />J.D.: I am not sure I ever saw Cherry 2000, and now I absolutely must do so! Especially because i have always liked Melanie Griffith. But we dig the same thing: the idea of a cobbled-together future; put together by scavengers.<br /><br />Any chance we'll see Cherry 2000reviewed at RH?! Please! :)<br /><br />All my best to you both, and thank you for writing!<br /><br />best,<br />JKMJohn Kenneth Muirhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15629979615332893780noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12380553.post-53278983884901162372010-11-16T15:50:38.749-05:002010-11-16T15:50:38.749-05:00I remember seeing this as a kid in 3D and also bei...I remember seeing this as a kid in 3D and also being drawn to "the unusual "garbage"-punk-styled world it presented with such dedication and flamboyance" as you so eloquently put it. I'd be curious to see the film now, after all these years and see how its aged and if nostalgia makes me look at with fondness.<br /><br />I think that CHERRY 2000 mined similiar material/look/themes more successfully AND with better production values, cast, etc. but that's just me. ; )Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08164105442273577128noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12380553.post-5537765577726801312010-11-16T14:39:16.486-05:002010-11-16T14:39:16.486-05:00wow, never heard of this until now. I can't be...wow, never heard of this until now. I can't believe molly ringwald was in this.MPKhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11995862785687647013noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12380553.post-41484651028738221422010-11-16T14:30:08.933-05:002010-11-16T14:30:08.933-05:00Davidfullam:
Yes, you aren't kidding...
bes...Davidfullam: <br /><br />Yes, you aren't kidding...<br /><br />best,<br />JKMJohn Kenneth Muirhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15629979615332893780noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12380553.post-51178292559236710482010-11-16T13:16:15.417-05:002010-11-16T13:16:15.417-05:00Spacehunter and the Overdog sure love the lolitas....Spacehunter and the Overdog sure love the lolitas.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com