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Spaceman
Directed by: Scott Dikkers
Starring: David Ghilardi
Genre:
Science Fiction
Run Time: 88
min.
Release Date:
June 1997
On The Web:
Unofficial Site
Teaser:
Movie Trailer
Reviewed by
Byron Merritt |
Trying to convince you
(those who choose to read this) that this movie is worth every minute of
your time will be my toughest job here, as I'm going to say some things
that will seem at odds with each other when referring to this film. But
I'm going to give it a go anyway and hope that you bear with me for a
few moments...
If you watched the TV series Batman (starring Adam West) and thought the
BAM! BOOF! and CRASH! pop-ups were cool whenever he and Robin got into
fights with the Riddler, the Joker or some other dastardly villain, or
if you didn't mind the fact that the early rocket propulsion system of
Flash Gordon was accomplished by a fourth of July sparkler, you're the
right person to watch SPACEMAN. I'm not saying you need to be a
simpleton in order to watch this! Quite the contrary, you just have to
be the type of person who's not overly-critical of such things.
Spaceman is ...I'm not sure how to put this without sounding ridiculous
...um ...it's the best B-movie, low-budget, science fiction, romance,
kung fu/gangster film I've ever seen.
I stumbled upon Spaceman when nothing else was on TV. I was looking for
something different, something refreshingly out-of-the-ordinary, but I
had no idea what I'd clicked onto when I found Spaceman. At first
glance, I was ready to turn it off. The production value was obviously
very low. The filming was grainy or overexposed in places and the
costumes were immediately laughable. But I decided to give the story a
try. I'm very glad I did.
It's the story that pulls you through and makes this film a definitive
triumph. The script is sheer genius and the acting is good.
Spaceman (David Ghilardi) starts out as a four-year-old child who is
abducted from his front yard by aliens. Twenty-five years later,
Spaceman crash lands back on Earth and finds himself unprepared for a
world he barely remembers. His brain has been altered, and he is trained
for combat and submission to a "commander". Any commander will do,
really. So, in order to make himself feel more comfortable, he finds a
job so that he has a commander (a boss). His first job is as a stock boy
at a supermarket. But problems quickly arise as Spaceman has to
improvise when his commander (boss) isn't around. When he witnesses a
shoplifting, he takes matters into his own deadly hands and injures the
thief, thus getting himself fired. Spaceman tries other locations for
possible employment, including the military, the FBI, and the Mob, but
none will have him.
During all of this, there's a love story building between Spaceman and a
pretty apartment neighbor named Sue (Deborah King). She's drawn to his
physical nature ...even though Spaceman can't procreate without orders
from his commander.
Back to the FBI and the Mob ...
The FBI find out about Spaceman and try to capture him and his family
and friends, only to find that Spaceman is no one to mess around with.
His deadly demeanor ends any conflicts he encounters. Trying for a job
as a hit man, Spaceman is even rebuffed by the Mob ...for a while. Sound
interesting? It really is.
Give Spaceman a try. And trust me, you're going to want to turn it off
after the first fifteen minutes. Don't! Watch closely, enjoy the story
and be thankful that this film isn't trying to be some big blockbuster
movie on half a shoestring budget. It never tries to do that. It pays
homage to a time when rocket ships didn't have blue screens with CGI and
had to tell a story about people; those funny, threatening, flawed, and
ridiculous people!
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Image from Spaceman
DVD cost: $10.99
Purchase:
BestPrices.com
Film Review Stew
Favorite?
Yes.
Stew Poo-Poo? No.
Newsworthy:
The film was made on a
shoe-string budget and was nominated for a Feature Film Award at the
Austin Film Festival.
Movie Quote: "Abducted
by aliens as a child ...he returns to Earth as an outer-space killing
machine."
Other Actors/Actresses
from Spaceman
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