Zone Troopers (1985)

Another film from the 1980s that I didn’t get to see back when I was constantly being drawn to the VHS box art (an alien figure replicating the Uncle Sam “we want you” iconography), Zone Troopers is a title I have always had a lot of affection for. But now I have actually seen the film, which means my level of affection for it isn’t what it used to be.

It is WWII and a number of American soldiers in Italy get themselves involved in a skirmish that involves both the Nazis and some alien visitors. The Nazis want to make use of alien technology to help them win the war, but the Americans just want to get out of the area alive.

The first film directed by Danny Bilson, co-written by himself and Paul De Meo (and the duo also wrote the scripts for Trancers and The Eliminators at about this time), Zone Troopers is a fun idea that is hampered by the low budget, and a lack of creativity to compensate for that low budget. 

One or two moments stand out. There’s a nice bit of production design showcasing a crashed spaceship that at least adds a bit of vibrant colour to the film, the third act has a set-piece that makes up for the dodgy special effects with a child-like glee and enthusiasm, and the very end of the film features a “punchline” that feels quite sweet. That is about all I can praise though. The script is pretty weak, there is never a proper feeling of the time and place, and you would get more authenticity if you stumbled across a group of LARPers conducting a war-based campaign on their designated special Sunday.

The cast help a bit. Tim Thomerson has a lead role, playing Sarge, so it has that going for it, and Timothy Van Patten is fine as someone sharing a lot of the screentime with him, playing a soldier imaginatively named Joey. Art LaFleur and Biff Manard make up the rest of the core group, both doing well enough in roles that don’t exactly ask for complexity and nuance. 

Overall, I was really hoping to like this more. Part of that is to do with me having yearned to see it for over three decades. Part of that is to do with the premise having the potential to be so much more fun. I didn’t hate it, and I will definitely rewatch it at some point (when I may end up enjoying it more without the weight of my own expectation working against it), but it’s not one I highly recommend, even to fans of sci-fi b-movies.

4/10

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Christmas Do-Over (2006)

It's a Groundhog Day Christmas, that's all you need to know about Christmas Do-Over. It's also enjoyable enough, if you're in the mood for it, and not quite as sickly sweet as so many other movies that have been created to fill up the schedules on the run up to the big day.

Jay Mohr stars as Kevin, the selfish sonofabitch who is invited to a Christmas that he ends up spoiling for most of the people around him. Those people are his ex (Daphne Zuniga), his son (Logan Grove), the people who used to be his in-laws (Tim Thomerson and Adrienne Barbeau) and the man that his ex is now dating (David Millbern). It's far from the best way to spend Christmas day, so you can imagine the frustration that Kevin feels when he's forced to keep reliving the day over and over again, for no apparent reason. I wonder if changing his ways might help.

Directed by Catherine Cyran, and written by Trevor Reed Cristow and Jacqueline David, this is a very effective timeloop comedy. It delivers everything you expect it to deliver, and it does provide some moments of amusement. The opening sequence sets up the main character, and how careless he can be, while the first run through of the big day then places all of the markers that viewers can use to keep track of the progress (if any) made by Kevin on each subsequent re-run of events.

Mohr is fine in the lead role. He's fairly amusing, especially as he grows more exasperated, and has fun when his character indulges in moments of more extreme selfish douchebaggery. Zuniga is required to look puzzled and exasperated, depending on the scene, and she does that perfectly. It's a shame that she wasn't required to do much more though. Thomerson is a treat as the grumpy ex-father-in-law, Barbeau tries to remain civil and pleasant at all times, and Millbern is, unsurprisingly, the butt of a few unpleasant surprised. Grove also does well, whether he's hiding disappointment or laughing at the actions of a childish dad.

You get snow, you get carol singing, you get a Christmas market, you get people trying to give each other decent gifts. Basically, you get everything you see in pretty much every Christmas TV movie ever. Someone gets hit with a snowball, of course. Someone starts to realise the important of non-material goods, of course. And there are some horrible items of clothing on display.

Barring one awful, cringe-inducing sequence that shows the main character helping to make a song and dance routine "hip and cool", this is actually quite far from the bottom of the tree. It may not be a beautiful yule log, but it's much better than a lump of coal in your stocking.

6/10

http://www.amazon.com/Christmas-Do-Over-Jay-Mohr/dp/B000UAFDRA/ref=sr_1_1?s=movies-tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1416355190&sr=1-1&keywords=christmas+do-over&pebp=1416355191757

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Near Dark (1987)

Near Dark is a revisionist vampire movie from director Kathryn Bigelow, who also co-wrote the script with Eric Red, that didn't really do as well as it should have upon its initial release for one main reason*. The Lost Boys. I have made peace with the fact that I love both movies, but back in 1987 it was The Lost Boys that had the mass appeal, that quickly wormed its way into the popular culture of that generation (thanks to the hot stars and the cracking soundtrack) and that ruled the box office roost. Thankfully, Near Dark never disappeared, thanks to a small, loyal fanbase that would continue to recommend the film to those who had missed it while being dazzled by Keifer Sutherland and Jason Patric.

A small, loyal fanbase, however, can only do so much for any movie. What ends up gaining a film a cult following is usually one thing, it's really quite a good film. Okay, there are also terrible films that gain cult followings so there are two things. The film has to either be really good or really bad. Near Dark is really good. REALLY good.

It starts off with a young man named Caleb (Adrian Pasdar) picking up a lovely young woman named Mae (Jenny Wright). Enjoying the company as he drives Mae home, Caleb then tries his luck for a kiss. He stops and won't go any further. Mae ends up biting Caleb, and then things get strange and dangerous as Caleb gets pulled into Mae's "family", a group of vampires who initially consider just killing Caleb but then decide to give him a chance. IF he makes his first kill within the allotted time limit then he will join them. If not, he'll be killed. Confused, ill, repulsed and worried, Caleb just wants to get home.

With an absolutely fantastic cast (many of whom helpfully taken from the cast of Aliens), a nice mix of vampire genre elements with some Western tropes and an aesthetic arguably unmatched by anything else in Kathryn Bigelow's impressive filmography, Near Dark is an easy film to recommend to horror fans after something that reeks of quality. A lush score from Tangerine Dream, and other musical treats such as a cover of "Fever" by The Cramps, as well as a script full of some fine one-liners makes this just as pleasurable for the ears as the eyes. The film takes its time in between the memorable set-pieces and there are one or two ideas that may not sit well with those who like things a bit more traditional, but neither of those things bothered me at all.

Pasdar and Wright are easy to like as the ill-fated lovers. Lance Henriksen and Jenette Goldstein are both at their best in their sorta-parental roles, Jesse and Diamondback, respectively. Bill Paxton puts his shit-eating grin (sorry, I can't think of a more appropriate phrase in this instance) to its best use as the obnoxious and dangerous Severen and young Joshua John Miller proves constantly fascinating as the young boy, Homer, with mood swings varying between a need for childish companionship and a thirst for blood. Tim Thomerson (who will always be Jack Deth to me and so many others) plays the concerned father of Caleb and Troy Evans has a very small role as an undercover policeman.

At the end of the day, this is the most important thing to remember: it's okay for you to own, and love, The Lost Boys. But you should really leave room on a shelf for Near Dark too.

9/10

*There WERE other reasons, but the simplistic approach suits my simple mind.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Near-Dark-Disc-Special-Edition/dp/B000KRNMQM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1369771634&sr=8-1&keywords=near+dark

Trancers 5: Sudden Deth (1994)

Following on immediately from the events of the last movie, and they were (unsurprisingly) filmed back to back, Trancers 5: Sudden Deth sees Jack Deth (Tim Thomerson) still stuck in an olde worlde time and place and still stuck with a bit of a trancer problem to deal with, as well as figuring out just how to get back to when and where he really belongs.

Everyone is back from the previous movie, including director David Nutter and writer Peter David, and it's not easy to see that the two movies together would have made for a decent, if slightly overlong, feature. This one barely qualifies as a feature, surely, with the runtime being about 72 minutes including a summary of the previous movie that runs for about 5 minutes. Oh well, at least it doesn't outstay its welcome.

It's the weakest of the lot, which is also something quite unsurprising by this stage in the franchise, but I can't say that I wasn't still kept entertained for the most part. Every gruff line uttered by Thomerson usually raises a smile and the adulation that his character receives is enjoyably comedic in its excess.

The cast once again includes Stacie Randall, Ty Miller, Terri Ivens, Clabe Hartley, Mark Arnold and Alan Oppenheimer and, once again, they prove to be a mixed bag, making up for in enthusiasm and energy what they lack in actual acting skills. Hartley is the best of the lot, mainly because he's a fun villain, but he's sorely underused here and the film decides instead to follow Jack Deth as he goes on a quest to find the means to go home. This means that it's just not as much fun as any of the previous movies, there are less action moments and the series goes out on a whimper instead of the bang it deserved (there IS a 6th instalment but it's not tied in with the "official" franchise for reasons that will become obvious when I get the review of it up here).

These movies were always fairly cheap and more about fun and adventure than absolute perfection and polish but this instalment is the first one in which the low budget really shows up in almost every scene and starts to feel just a bit lazy and slapdash. Hey, they already did a great job in taking Jack Deth on so many great adventures so I won't hold it against them but it's a point worth noting, and perhaps helps to explain why this outing just isn't as easily entertaining as the previous movies.

5/10

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Trancers 4: Jack Of Swords (1994)

I am as surprised as anyone else would be by what I'm about to say. I almost gave this movie, the fourth in a b-movie franchise, a 7/10. Almost. I came so close and argued with the little voices inside my head for quite some time before accepting the fact that there were just too many flaws here to allow me to rate the movie as very good. The logic is even flimsier than it was in the preceding three movies (and it was already very flimsy indeed) and the plot is almost wafer-thin this time around.

Here is the plot, in one simple sentence - Jack Deth (Tim Thomerson again, he's like a cross between Tom Atkins and Clint Eastwood) is again due to head into the past for a mission but he ends up going too far and finds himself in ye olde worlde setting just in the right time and place to fight some trancers that keep local commoners living in fear.

That's really all there is to it and that's all it needs. The Trancers series has never quite reached greatness but it's also never been less than enjoyable. That's due, in no small part, to the witty writing, the central character of Jack Deth and the way he is portrayed by Thomerson.

Clabe Hartley plays the main villain this time around and he's at least a lot of fun but, sadly, the rest of the cast just lack a certain something. They're not bad, exactly, but they just don't seem to have the spark inside that would make them fun to watch onscreen. Lochlyn Munro is probably the most recognisable face onscreen but Alan Oppenheimer, Mark Arnold, Stacie Randall, Terri Ivens and Ty Miller all join in with the fun.

Peter David is responsible for the thin, but fun, screenplay while David Nutter (more well-known for his work on some great TV shows than his few features) does a fine job as director. Transalation = the camera is pointing the right way most of the time and nobody walks into any of the walls (at least, not as far as I could see).

It's a slight step down from the preceding three movies but Trancers 4: Jack Of Swords is still tremendous fun, which is all the more surprising considering that it IS a fourth instalment of a movie series that should have given up and expired under the sheer weight of its own paradoxes well before now. It just goes to show how important a sense of humour and a fun approach to the material is, qualities that this series gets right every time and that makes everything a lot more enjoyable for the viewer.

6/10

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Trancers-Definitive-Collection-II-III/dp/B000K6L9CM/ref=sr_1_1?s=dvd&ie=UTF8&qid=1343852448&sr=1-1

Trancers III (1992)

Jack Deth returns and he's after Trancers once again. If you don't know the backstory by now then I encourage you to check out the first two movies and start enjoying one of the most enjoyable and enjoyably ridiculous b-movie franchises that I've seen in many years. Three films in and there's no major drop in quality. I'm actually kicking myself for not listening to my many friends who advised me to watch this series sooner but now I finally get to write up reviews for them and recommend them to one and all.

For this third adventure, Jack Deth (Tim Thomerson) is once again being moved around time to try and head off the threat of a Trancer uprising. Trancers are people who can enter a heightened state when called upon, it makes them stronger and deadlier but also takes away their humanity. They're basically zombie soldier types. The only thing worse than a bunch of zombie soldier types is a bunch of zombie types being led and strengthened by an ambitious Colonel (Andrew Robinson). Yep, it doesn't look like poor Jack is getting to take it easy yet and there's no end to the time-travelling part of his job either.

C. Courtney Joyner takes over the writing and directing duties this time around but a lot of other familiar faces return to stick with a fun franchise. Thomerson is, of course, the key element in the lead role but it's good to see him supported once more by Helen Hunt (in a much smaller capacity), Megan Ward and Dawn Ann Billings. Melanie Smith doesn't do badly in her role (a soldier trying to expose the Trancer program), Ed Beechner is just fine as Lt. Ryan and Andrew Robinson is as good as ever in the role of Col. Daddy Muthuh. There's a suspicion that his character was given such a strange name just to allow for one line - "come to Daddy" - that references Hellraiser but maybe that's just me being overly suspicious.

There are a number of decent one-liners peppered throughout the script, the special effects range from the okay to the charmingly cheap and there's rarely a dull moment. I was seriously considering just rating this one on a par with the two preceding movies but it suffers slightly from a further build up of paradoxes and illogical moments and the fact that each instalment stretches the initial premise thinner and thinner. Despite the faults, all is forgiven when the fun begins and you get to see Deth warmed up.

6/10

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Trancers-The-Definitive-Collection-III/dp/B000K6L9CM/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1342720797&sr=8-2

Trancers II (1991)

For anyone interested, my review of the first movie is on Flickfeast here.

Jack Deth (Tim Thomerson) returns to take on more Trancers in this hugely enjoyable sequel. Helen Hunt is also back, as Lena, and the film continues on from the events of the first movie, albeit six years later. Yes, Jack has been settled in the past now for six years and he's quite happy but he can sense something in the air, some vibe that somehow lets him know that Trancers are in the vicinity. What are Trancers, you might ask? Well, you have to watch the first movie to make sure that you're fully informed.

This sequel starts off a bit uncertainly but quickly hits its stride and then never pauses long enough for all of the nonsense to spoil the sense of fun. After an opening sequence that introduces the situation and characters and briefly tries to make the science stuff believable it's all about fun with the Deths and the people who end up having their lives saved by Jack.

With Charles Band directing once again, and Jackson Barr returning for the writing duties, there's certainly no big gap between the tone of this movie and the tone of the original. Deth is still a gruff guy, happier shooting a gun than trying to verbalise any emotions, and he's still a great central character.

Thomerson excels yet again in the lead role, and Hunt is also just as enjoyable as she was in the first movie. Art LaFleur and Telma Hopkins return, albeit briefly, and Biff Manard and Megan Ward have fun with their roles. Richard Lynch puts in a decent performance as the main villain while horror fans will love seeing supporting roles for Martine Beswick, Jeffrey Combs and the lovely Barbara Crampton.

There are a number of moments when the low budget becomes a bit obvious but that can't detract from the sheer sense of fun that fills every frame once Jack Deth sets his sights on baddies that he can happily blast away. Some additional emotional complication (Megan Ward's character is the future wife of Jack Deth, which displeases Helen Hunt, his wife in the present) is largely played for comedy value but adds a satisfying heart to all of the gunfights, gadgetry (the long-second watch returns) and paradoxes. If you liked the first movie then I see absolutely no reason why you wouldn't enjoy this sequel just as much.

7/10

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Trancers-2-DVD/dp/B00006LSGS/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1341596821&sr=8-1