Administrator KUNG FU BOB Posted November 7, 2017 Administrator Share Posted November 7, 2017 In the wake of huge blockbusters like STAR WARS and CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND, movies with big budgets and impressive special effects, came 1978's low-budget Sci-Fi schlock LASERBLAST. When intergalactic alien police (stop motion creatures by David Allen, Jon Berg, and Randall Cook) chase an alien criminal to Earth, they accidentally leave behind the creature's extremely powerful weapon. A put-upon teenager finds the device while wandering through the California desert, slips his arm inside, and it immediately changes his life dramatically. The movie has just been released on Blu-ray, prompting me to create this thread. Now before rushing out to get a copy, please keep in mind that my enjoyment of this movie is driven in part to tremendous nostalgia, and that it currently has a rating of 2.5 on IMDB! http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0077834/?ref_=nv_sr_2 I saw this in the theater way back in 1978, and I remember afterwards my parents sort of shaking their heads and rolling their eyes. My Dad asked me "Did you like it?" I emphatically answered "Yes!" They both smiled and he replied "Well that's all that matters then." Not long after that, they bought something that had a "LASERBLAST gun" shaped (at least in my mind) piece of Styrofoam packing in the box. After souping it up with some aluminum foil and Scotch tape (guided by my ever-creative Mom) I slipped my arm inside it and ran around like Billy, imagining blowing everything up. I hid it under my bed at night so that if those aliens showed up they wouldn't try to confiscate it! Back then I definitely didn't realize a distinction of LASERBLAST being an "independent film". However, when I saw it on video many years later I was very surprised at it's uh... questionable quality. As a kid, I was okay with the bad acting, meandering plot, etc, and the "loner kid finds a space gun in the desert" element seemed like the coolest thing that could ever happen. So... apologies and huge thanks to my parents for sitting through many movies like this and OCTAMAN for my endless amusement. That being said... I MUST get this Blu-ray! Couple of other notes/memories about the film... Weirdest casting ever? Eddie Deezen, who is the epitome of "nerd", and best known for playing the geeky characters Eugene in GREASE (1978) and Herbie, the guy with the ventriloquist dummy on top of the Ferris wheel in 1941 (1979), plays a bully in LASERBLAST! In the film (Spoiler alert) Spoiler the spirit of the dead alien begins to possess the teen, and it's amulet necklace fuses to the kid's chest. The effect of it stuck in his chest really freaked me out. I remember not long after seeing the movie (man, hadn't thought about THIS since forever!) taking off a crucifix I had been wearing, and seeing in the mirror that it had left a weird greenish impression on my neck and chest. I immediately thought "Is this necklace trying to merge with my skin like in LASERBLAST?!" Not too far fetched, as I certainly related it in part to the nuns that taught me at catechism, who were at least as scary as the bad alien. I showed my Mom, in a near panic, and she explained that it was because it was a cheaply made piece of jewelry that I had been wearing while swimming in the pool. The chlorine had worn off the finish. What a relief! Good review over at bluray.com: http://www.blu-ray.com/movies/Laserblast-Blu-ray/190894/ Have any of you guys ever seen this flick, and if so, what do you think of it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member ShaOW!linDude Posted November 7, 2017 Member Share Posted November 7, 2017 Pretty sure I watched the MST3K treatment of this on Netflix back in the spring. (The only way I would ever be able to sit through it.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrator KUNG FU BOB Posted November 7, 2017 Author Administrator Share Posted November 7, 2017 19 minutes ago, ShaOW!linDude said: Pretty sure I watched the MST3K treatment of this on Netflix back in the spring. (The only way I would ever be able to sit through it.) I can't stand MST3K. I could barely make it through 5 minutes of it when I tried it. It seems like something I would enjoy, and many of my friends are fans, but it is just not for me. @ShaOW!linDude how did you make it through any version of LASERBLAST which features no martial arts fight scenes? LOL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member AlbertV Posted November 7, 2017 Member Share Posted November 7, 2017 I remember seeing the film years ago when it was on Channel 11 on a Saturday afternoon back when I was in New York. I really enjoyed it and I agree...Eddie Deezen as a bully was actually hilarious casting! The SFX when Kim Milford's face changes was actually pretty good for its time and the aliens reminded me of something Ray Harryhausen could have done. I definitely will want this on Blu-Ray too! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrator KUNG FU BOB Posted November 7, 2017 Author Administrator Share Posted November 7, 2017 56 minutes ago, AlbertV said: I remember seeing the film years ago when it was on Channel 11 on a Saturday afternoon back when I was in New York. I really enjoyed it and I agree...Eddie Deezen as a bully was actually hilarious casting! The SFX when Kim Milford's face changes was actually pretty good for its time and the aliens reminded me of something Ray Harryhausen could have done. I definitely will want this on Blu-Ray too! Yes, he looks pretty scary. That makeup work was done by Steve Neill (he's very talented, and went on to do work on STAR TREK: THE MOTION PICTURE, GHOSTBUSTERS, FRIGHT NIGHT...) and Ve Neill (KINGDOM OF THE SPIDERS, THE SWORD AND THE SORCERER, BEETLEJUICE...), so no surprise that it's so effective. The guys that created the stop-motion animated aliens were all inspired by the work of both Ray Harryhausen and his mentor Willis O'Brien. BTW, the guy that created the spaceship for LASERBLAST, Greg Jein, did the same for CLOSE ENCOUNTERS and also made the miniatures for 1941, and many STAR TREK movies. So a lot of talented technicians worked on this at the beginning of their careers. The problem with this movie is the director (never made another film) and the writers. At least one of the two screenwriters, Frank Ray Perilli, went on to do the story for ALLIGATOR (1980). Definitely a redemptive move as far as I'm concerned. In fact, I just revisited ALLIGATOR last week. Robert Forester it great in it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member AlbertV Posted November 7, 2017 Member Share Posted November 7, 2017 Had to do it Sadly, lead actor Kim Milford passed away on June 16, 1988 from complications after heart surgery. He was 37 years old. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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