Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, July 16, 1994 TAG: 9407190002
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: B-10 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Mike Mayo
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
The problem is the title; it's accurate enough, but it sounds like a kid's movie. In fact, though, this 1964 film is quite good. The special effects may not look too impressive compared to today's technical wizardry, but there's nothing wrong with them. Compared to a lot of science-fiction, the plot is refreshingly realistic, and, most important, the movie is fun to watch.
It begins when an oribtal ship, Mars Gravity Probe 1, is forced to make an emergency landing on the planet's surface. Commander Kit Draper (Paul Mantee) faces the immediate problems of limited supplies of air, water and food. ``Hard'' science purists may not approve of the solutions he finds, but that's not a problem. In many ways, the film is more about loneliness anyway.
In creating a believable alien world, director Byron Haskin did a fine job. He combined sets and models with well-chosen Death Valley locations to create an effective Martian landscape. Despite the fact that it's 30 years old, the film has an unusually contemporary look. One of the key props is a prototype camcorder, and Draper is often dressed in what appears to be baggy pants, high-topped boots, T-shirt and a gimme cap. Some elements are a bit campy now. As the liner notes point out, Friday (Victor Lundin) looks like an extra from ``The Ten Commandments,'' and the footage of the attacking spaceships is overused. On balance, those are minor flaws.
In preparing this new videodisc version, the people at Voyager did their usual exemplary work, preserving the wide-screen ratio. Supplementary features include separate commentary by writer Ib Melchior, excerpts from the original script (including scenes never filmed), etc.
So, put aside the preconceptions that come with the title. ``Robinson Crusoe On Mars'' may finally find the audience it deserves. (It is not yet available on cassette.)
``The Horror of Frankenstein'' was one of the Hammer studio's last variations on the famous tale. It's obvious all the way through that everyone involved in this 1970 production was more interested in having fun with the material than in telling a serious story.
This Victor Frankenstein (Ralph Bates) is an amoral libertine who blithely kills his father and then moves in with Dad's mistress (Kate O'Mara). When he gets around to his ``experiments'' he hires a comic bodysnatcher (Dennis Price) who steals the movie. This time out, the monster is played by David Prowse who went on a few years later to play Darth Vader in the ``Star Wars'' films.
In retrospect, it's easy to see that writer/director Jimmy Sangster, an old hand at this kind of material, was playing off the generational conflicts of the day. The film is enjoyable if you're in the mood for fairly heavy-handed gallows humor, particularly in the last reel. But it's far from Hammer's best work.
Two caveats: (1) Other sources list the running time of this title at 95 and 93 minutes. The new Republic edition is 91 minutes long, though there are no obvious deletions. (2) It's recorded at the slower EP speed, under the trademarked QEP mode, and the clarity of the picture isn't as sharp as conventional SP tapes.
``Deep Red'' is new science-fiction adventure that borrows freely from such hits as ``The Terminator'' and its sequel. The subject is immortality. The structure is a chase with a genuinely mad scientist hunting for a little girl and her mother. The story opens with a variation on the standard tough-guy approach. Joe Keys (Michael Biehn), a burned-out bodyguard, accepts a questionable assignment and finds himself in the middle of a gunfight involving killer milkmen.
Joe also provides the voice-over narration that explains D. Brent Mote's complicated story. Veteran director Craig Baxley handles the action crisply, and makes effective use of a limited special effects budget. Several well-placed touches of humor help a lot, though the s-f elements of the plot aren't expanded as fully as they might have been. The ending suggests that this might be the pilot for a TV show or the first in a series of films.
In any case, it's recommended for s-f fans.
Next week: Environmental awareness, wilderness preservation and bikinis - only on home video!
New releases this week:
My Father, the Hero * 1/2
Starring Gerard Depardieu, Katherine Heigl. Directed by Steve Miner. Buena Vista. 90 min. Rated PG for subject matter.
This labored little comedy begins with a dubious premise and then slides steadily downhill. What would you expect of a Disney remake of a French sex comedy? Divorced dad Andre (Depardieu), takes his nubile 14-year-daughter on a vacation in the Bahamas. She tells the first cute boy she meets that Andre's her lover, setting up some unfunny bits of physical comedy.
On Deadly Ground: turkey
Starring Steven Seagal, Joan Chen, Michael Caine. Directed by Seagal. Warner Home Video. 100 min. Rated R for violence, strong language, brief nudity.
Steven Seagal decided to make his producer-director debut on this environmental action flick, so he has no one to blame but himself. The movie is just a mess, an unintentional comedy punctuated by dark, poorly staged fight scenes and with a weird, but apparently sincere conspiratorial coda tacked on to the end.
The essentials
Robinson Crusoe On Mars ***
Voyager. 110 min. Unrated, contains no objectionable material.
The Horror of Frankenstein. **
Republic. 91 min. Rated R for violence, subject matter, sexual content.
Deep Red ***
MCA/Universal. 85 min. Rated R for violence.
by CNB