The Bubble (1966)

Given the time period for the sci-fi genre, and the fact the film was originally shown in 3-D, you might think this film could be awful cheese... but actually it is a surprisingly good film.

Mark (Michael Cole) and Catherine (Deborah Walley) are trying to get to a hospital before Catherine gives birth. Their private plane is caught up in a strange storm and lands in a mysterious small town. Everyone in the town seems to act like zombies, repeating the same lines and the same actions over and over again and living in a trance. 

Together with their pilot Tony (Johnny Desmond) they try to escape the town but find it is surrounded by a clear impenetrable barrier. Every seven days a mysterious light in the sky plucks someone to an uncertain but likely to be unpleasant fate up into the heavens above...

The film builds a creepy and mysterious world slowly. We don't really see the aliens (apart from perhaps in one scene) but their presence is everywhere. The leads do well in portraying a growing sense of eerie unease and paranoia. Much remains unanswered but thats no bad thing with a film like this.

The Day the Sky Exploded (1958)

One of the earliest Italian science-fiction movies and truly isn't that good.

McLaren (Paul Hubschmid) is chosen to be the first astronaut into outer space in a multi-national mission. The launch goes as planned but soon disaster strikes and asteroids are sent hurtling towards the Earth causing disasters all over the world! 

The only way the world can be saved is by the West and the Soviets working together and using their nuclear arsenals for good...

The movie has some good ideas, and some of the plot points will re-appear in later films. However, this is all rather odd and poorly made and the poor special effects (though fairly standard for the time) are overly padded out with stock footage. The film is what it is, and is worth watching for the curiosity value and for the plot being quite novel in many ways.

The Brain Machine (1972)

Confusing and with a low budget, this is probably not going to go very well.

A group of people (including James Best as a priest) are selected to take part in a mysterious experiment led by Dr Roth (Doug Collins), the purpose of this experiment is never made clear but the fact the previous head of the programme ran away and ended up being executed by government agents does not bode well. 

During the experiment the patients are trapped in a room and then things take a turn for the worse, as the experiment is hijacked by secretive government agents. The patients are driven crazy, and in some cases want to kill...

The film does not make much sense, it probably needed a good edit and a bit of clarity in the plot. The paranoia builds nicely though and psychological terror in the last act is quite effective though but it takes a deal of tedium and many static shots of a swimming pool (for some unexplained reason) to get there. The IBM computer equipment is probably the real star of the film (for me anyway).

Light Blast (1985)

An insanely violent 1980s crime/science fiction film.

Dr Soboda (Ennio Girolami) is a renegrade scientist who has developed a death ray. He uses it to blow up a train and melt the unfortunate couple getting it on inside a boxcar. Soboda wants millions of dollars from the San Francisco authorities otherwise he will use his death ray again. He indeed does use this at a race track to deadly effect.

Supercop Inspector Ronn (Erik Estrada) is tasked with stopping Soboda. His investigations consists of getting into a string of fights including in a morgue! In fact there are a lot of fights in this, many many fights and many many deaths.

This is a fun 1980s action romp, full of stunts and action scenes and doesn't make a lot of sense. Not a film for character development, much in the way of plot or any logic. But the film is highly enjoyable as a mindless action romp so who cares?

The Cosmic Man (1959)

An interesting, if well worn, sci-fi tale. The story has been seen before, usually with a bigger budget!

A mysterious globe arrives on Earth near a US military base. Dr Sorensen (Bruce Bennett) is tasked with trying to discover what this globe is and if it contains any secrets which can help the US military. Colonel Matthews (Paul Langton) becomes impatient as Sorensen and his team continue their painstaking investigation. Meanwhile, a mysterious shadowy figure begins to terrorise the local town. A mysterious man (John Carradine) also makes an appearance and shows a lot of interest in what is going on...

This is a perfectly reasonable science fiction tale, the story of a visitor arriving from outer space is of course very familiar. This film lacks any whizz bang special effects though can be a little more thoughtful than films of this genre at the time often were. It does lack much in the way of any real excitement or drama but is a decent watch. 

Dimension 5 (1966)

A rather flimsy 1960s spy film with some time travel nonsense tacked on.

A Chinese Communist faction are trying to smuggle a nuclear bomb into America and blow up LA. Justin Power (Jeffrey Hunter) is an agent of a secret US agency who is tasked with stopping them, he is helped by fellow agent Kitty (France Nuyen) and they begin a search for the head of the faction in the US, Big Budda (Harold Sakata). 

Assisting them with their endeavours is a time travel belt which can allow them to jump forward and backwards in time, though despite this apparently game changing technology Power and Kitty still end up having a fist fight with the bad guys in a fireworks warehouse...

This is what it is, a low budget and very campy spy romp. It has all the cliches of the genre and of course is helped out by Oddjob (Sakata) appearing - even if he is terribly dubbed and spends the film in a wheel chair (which rather negates his impressive physical presence). The film is not very good though is pretty watchable and enjoyable if approached in the right way as a 1960s piece of spy film cheese.

1984 (1956)

The George Orwell classic, remember Big Brother is watching you.

In a future dystopia, Britain is now ruled by a totalitarian regime which ruthlessly controls it's citizens via propaganda, rewritten histories and facts and endless lies (backed up by secret police and torture if that doesn't work!) Winston Smith (Edmond O'Brien) is a low level functionary of the regime whose job is to rewrite history to reflect the "truth" which Big Brother wants. However, in a land where love is forbidden (unless it is for Big Brother) he rebels by falling in love with fellow regime officer Julia (Jan Sterling).

The pair maintain their secret affair away from the prying eyes of Big Brother, they also get recruited by high ranking official O'Connor (Michael Redgrave) who apparently is part of an underground resistance. Unfortunately, this is a lie too, Winston and Julia are arrested and end up being brutally tortured and reconditioned. What will happen when they meet again?

A bleak and brutal tale, a crushing and cruel tale always under the watchful eye of Big Brother. It couldn't come true of course, well it hasn't yet anyway. 

Colossus: the Forbin Project (1970)

A complete geek fest of retro computing and a very relevant warning for today.

The US have handed over control of their nukes to a computer designed by Dr Forbin (Eric Braeden) called Colossus. No sooner is Colossus activated then things start to deviate from Forbin's carefully worked out plan. Colossus tells them it has a counterpart in the Soviet Union called Guardian. Colossus demands to be able to contact Guardian. This is allowed but when the two computers start to communicate using their own language humans cannot understand then the communications are cut off. Colossus and Guardian launch nuclear missiles and tell the humans to restore communications or else...

The two computers are now in control, Forbin kept under constant surveillance by Colossus. Forbin has to resort to having Dr Markham (Susan Clarke) pretend to be his girlfriend so she can give him information via some naked pillow talk, the only way for Forbin to communicate without Colossus knowing. The US and Soviets devise a secret plan to stop the computers but the computers are always steps ahead...

This is a great film, full of tension as Forbin and Colossus play the ultimate cat and mouse game, unfortunately for Forbin he is definitely the mouse. The ancient computer hardware is a treat but in a world where there are real fears about AI and what it could do to us the story resonates today. 

The Satan Bug (1965)

A surprisingly good and tense biological horror.

A theft takes place at a US government facility, unfortunately the theft is of some biological agents which have been developed at the facility, one of which (the Satan bug) could potentially wipe out all life in Earth! Former agent Lee Barrett (George Maharis) is bought in to lead the desperate effort to locate who is behind the theft and the weapons. Lee thinks the ringleader is still at the facility and is vindicated when Dr Hoffman (Richard Basehart) is followed and leads him to the weapons.

However, Hoffman is always one step ahead and a desperate race against time ensues across California, Lee assisted by Ann (Anne Francis), and Hoffman seems to have aides and henchmen all over the place...

A highly entertaining film with the tension continually ratcheted up and various swerves and surprises to keep the action fresh. The good cast do very well too. Well worth a watch.

The Brain from Planet Arous (1957)

Fifties science fiction cheese, though with some interesting twists.

Steve (John Agar) and Dan (Robert Fuller) head out into the desert to investigate some mysterious radiation readings. They encounter a cave that shouldn't be there then encounter a bizarre floating brain. Steve returns to his fiancé Sally (Joyce Meadows) but he has changed, for a start he is horny! He also has some maniacal plans to conquer the world. Steve indeed has been possessed by a giant alien brain and has the power to detonate atomic explosions with his mind.

Steve forces the world's powers to bow to him, he plans to use Earth to conquer his own home planet. Meanwhile, an agent from his planet contacts Sally and her father John (Thomas Browne Henry), he tells them Steve has been taken over by a criminal but there is a way to save him...

This isn't a bad film at all, though very low budget. The special effects are few and far between though are pretty effective, the brain itself looks like an overgrown bee. An interesting and fun story.

Howard the Duck (1986)

This is either something completely awful or a work of genius (twisted admittedly).

Howard (voiced by Chip Zien) is just an average duck on a world of ducks but then he is bought to a world of humans (Earth!) when a science experiment by Dr Jenning (Jeffrey Jones) goes wrong. Howard is trapped in a strange land, the only friend he has is Beverly (Lea Thompson), the singer in a failing rock band. 

With the help of Beverly and her friend Phil (Tim Robbins), Howard tries to find a way to get home but that might be the least of his troubles when the experiment goes wrong again and unleashes an extraterrestrial evil on the world...

This is a really crazy film, the star being a sarcastic anthropomorphic duck! The special effects, especially Howard's puppetry and suit work, are pretty decent and the film has some good action set pieces including a microlight chase, some good sassy humour, and even a human-duck sex scene! Once you reassure yourself that you are really seeing such a film and not having an acid trip then there is much here to enjoy, and occasionally cringe over. 

Invasion of the Neptune Men (1961)

This is a very strange and rather creepy science-fiction film.

Cone helmet wearing invaders from the planet Neptune have landed on Earth. The world can only be saved from these slow moving and clumsy invaders by cape wearing Space Chief (Shin'ichi Chiba) and a bunch of Japanese schoolchildren...

This is pretty weird and awful stuff, the cheese factor is high though. Space Chief drives a rather suspicious looking "rocket car" and fights the invaders with a series of energetic though flimsy looking chops and judo throws. 

The Black Hole (1979)

Epic science-fiction mixed with a touch of the macabre.

A space mission led by Captain Holland (Robert Forster) encounters a ship thought lost on the edge of a black hole but somehow resisting the massive gravitational forces. After Holland's ship is damaged they land on the mysterious ship and encounter menacing robots as they are taken to Dr Reinhardt (Maximilian Schell). He tells Holland and his crew that he is the only survivor of the original crew. He built an army of robots to replace them and now plans to fly his ship into the black hole and discover the ultimate secret of the universe...

Holland and his team - which includes Anthony Perkins, Yvette Mimeux, Ernest Borgnine but the jolly robot VINCENT (Roddy MacDowall) - soon discover everything is not as it seems. Reinhardt's crew of "robots" are something much darker, and his chief robot Maximilian silent, evil and deadly...

This is a spectacular film with superb sets which really give a sense of scale. The science fiction is fixed with some dark religious imagery. There is also a lot of action, though Reinhardt's robots obviously went to the same shooting school as Imperial stormtroopers. The story can be a bit simplistic and slow at times but the film is a great watch and highly underrated.

Futuresport (1998)

It is the future (2025 to be exact), the big geo-political questions of the age seem to be decided through a rather ropey looking "future" sport.

Hawaii wants to cede from the USA, a group of separatists gate crash the final of Futuresport, which has apparently replaced other sports like basketball to become the most popular in the world. 

Hot shot player Tre (Dean Cain) takes time out from an interview with his ex Alex (Vanessa Williams) to chase the separatists away with a ball. However, later he decides the best way to solve the Hawaii problem is to hold another game of Futuresport between a US and a Hawaiian team, the winner gets the country! Unfortunately for Tre, his opponents are street smart and led by the game's creator Fixx (Wesley Snipes)...

A strange film though the plot has some interesting if odd aspects to it. The world building is interesting and makes the most of a limited budget though this TV movie has many flaws. The game Futuresport itself is a bit of a dud though with it's odd mix of hockey, handball and skateboarding and has a placeholder for a name. The execution is pretty patchy but the film is not that bad. Just not that good either.

Escape from DS-3 (1981)

Very low budget science fiction, which is surprising good even though not that much happens.

In some future nightmare where everyone wears matching bright polyester outfits, intelligence agent Lavette (Jackson Bostwick) is framed for a crime and sent to an orbital prison. After a short tour of the prison (which includes brutal future electro torture by sadistic guards, constant surveillance and scheduled sexbot sessions) Lavette decides to escape. He concocts a complicated plan with his three of his fellow prisoners including Bubba Smith who would later star in Police Academy.

This is a very cheaply made film, the future seems to consist of endless grey corridors and matching jumpsuits. This film does not have a great deal of action until the very end and then the film concludes quite abruptly. Before that we have a lot of slow build-up and tension as Lavette prepares for the escape. 

Somehow this is quite an enjoyable and watchable film, despite everything.

The Incredible Melting Man (1977)

Low budget, average thrills, high unintentional humour in this sci-fi horror nonsense.

Steve (Alex Rebar) is the only survivor of a mission into deep space. However, he may have survived but he has been horribly deformed... literally melting flesh. He is also driven crazy with a taste for human flesh, after eating a nurse he escapes the hospital. Dr Nelson (Burr DeBrenning) is tasked him tracking down Steve (who apparently is radioactive as well as melting) before the secret of Steve's fate reaches the public... and before he wiped out too many people. Dr Nelson is under pressure from General Perry (Myron Healey) who seems to like eating his breakfast in a power station control room.

This is a ridiculous film with many strange scenes including one where Nelson speaks to a colleague while travelling on a large flat bed trolley, the engine sound almost drowning out the dialogue! The attack scenes by Steve are very silly but it can be scary at times as well. The title is the best bit of the film though.

Timelock (1995)

A terribly poorly made low-budget science fiction film that somehow is brilliant.

We are in the future and prisoners serve their time on brutal prison asteroids. Riley (Arye Gross) is on a prison transport to serve his time but his fellow cons including Villum (Jeffrey Meek) have dark plans to take over the prison and release the hyper dangerous McMasters (Jeff Speakman). Riley has to team up with the transport pilot Teegs (Maryam d'Abo) in a desperate battle for survival.

This is complete nonsense and has the budget of a cheese sandwich. The lack of budget is hidden in that time honoured way by making sets as dark as possible. So, this film should be awful but because the performances of the leads range between highly charismatic and downright camp the film is very watchable and the sheer craziness of some of the events is quite compelling viewing. 

It really shouldn't work but somehow..

God Told Me To (1976)

Somewhat confusing maybe, and switches between more genres than you can count, but somehow its brilliant.

A number of horrific random crimes are being committed in NY, the perpetrators all saying that "God" told them to commit the crimes before they usually die themselves. Detective Nicholas (Tony Lo Blanco) thinks there is something more than meets the eye to this and begins to track down the mysterious Bernard Philips (Richard Lynch) who has been seen speaking to the perpetrators and indeed may even be directing matters.

Nicholas' investigation goes into really strange territory when it includes alien impregnation! Nicholas also begins to discover some shocking details about his own life too...

So, the film starts off like it is going to be a gritty 1970s crime story, then becomes a horror with elements of the supernatural, then sci-fi. Then the film switches back to crime with a blaxploitation-esque sub-plot about a pimp (George Patterson) who kills a cop on the take. 

Oh, there is also a sub-plot about Nicholas and the two ladies (Deborah Raffin and Sandy Dennis) in his love triangle! The story is confusing, but fast moving and multi-layered. Its great!

The Handmaid's Tale (1990)

A dark dystrophia, that in the thirty odd years since release doesn't seem quite so far fetched any more.

We are in the near future and it's dark times. America has fallen, replaced by the religious fundamentalist Gilead (though a civil war seems to be raging so not everywhere is under Gilead's control it seems). Pollution has wiped out much of human fertility, those women who can still give birth are now a valuable commodity, not that they see any of that value themselves of course. Women like Kate (Natasha Richardson) are trained to become obedient "handmaids", basically given to rich families to bear their children for them. 

Kate is given to the Commander (Robert Duvall) and his wife Serena (Faye Dunaway). Rough unpleasant sex with religious ceremonial overtones follows. Kate also strikes up a friendship with the Commander's driver Nick (Aiden Quinn). There is more to Nick than it at first seems, indeed more to Gilead's supposedly strict religious society than it at first seems too...

The world of Gilead is monstrous, especially because of so much that goes unexplained as much as what we see. Hypocrisy and violence is of course at the centre of the society which is well portrayed here. An excellent film.

Fallout (1999)

What a great idea for a film, though the execution leaves a lot to be desired.

We are in the future (well for this film anyway, 2015 is the past now). Russia have invaded a former Soviet country (oh that sounds familiar). However, despite being from the country being invaded Federov (Frank Zagarino) is still going to command a space shuttle mission on the behalf of the Russians to the international space station (or a more advanced version which conveniently has artificial gravity). Also going on the mission is Amanda (Teri Ann Lynn) who is going to fix the space station's computer.

However, on the station things soon go wrong. Federov seizes control of the station and also a Russian nuclear attack satellite constellation. He tells Russia that they must withdraw from his homeland or he will start firing these nuclear satellites at US cities! The US responds by sending maverick pilot Hendricks (Daniel Baldwin) aboard an experimental new space ship, which has yet to make a successful flight...

The story is great though the budget and execution is unfortunately not up to the job. The acting is nearly as flimsy as some of the sets do, one of which makes Mission Control look like it's been relocated to a caravan. The action mostly consists of firing assault rifles on a space station. This does not seem the wisest thing to do to me...