Dead Space

Nine years after “Forbidden World” (1982) – not exactly a masterpiece of sci-fi horror to start with – Roger Corman decides it’s time for a remake. So he goes from a cheap copy of “Alien” (1979) to a cheap copy of a cheap copy of “Alien”. Genius or madness?

The plot is practically identical to that of the prior iteration, except this time the actresses strip down a lot less, and we get to “savor” some even classier (if that’s actually possible) dialogue, such as this sparkling example: “The only way to combat an aggressive virus like Delta-5 is to create an even more aggressive virus“.

Fred Gallo’s direction does everything possible to hide a nonexistent budget: static shots, blinding lights, and smoke and fog at every turn, even inside the spaceship. Terrible special effects, with the creature’s various metamorphoses seemingly hand-picked to ensure a slot in the anthology of cinematographic trash (the virus-monster progresses from a sort of skinned calf to a homeless version of the xenomorphic queen from “Aliens” – 1986).

Among many scenes (un)worthy of note, a few rise above:

1. the battle when the hero throws a stool at the gigantic monster and beats it with a big stick;
2. right after the hero learns that the lead scientist is afflicted by a disease potentially lethal to the creature, he wastes no time handing the scientist to the monster who bites his head off for a snack.

On the bright side, being a hotbed of unintentional humor means the film isn’t boring, and if seen with the right company, it might even be good for a couple of smirks.