Lifeforce (1985)
Lifeforce (1985)
Directed by Tobe Hooper
Screenplay by Dan O’Bannon and Don Jakoby.
Based on the novel “The Space Vampires” by Colin Wilson.
Rated R
The 1980’s was a time that has been called by some as period of creative excess. There were a lot of big budget Sci-Fi, action, fantasy, horror or mixed genre films that all tried to cash in on the growing blockbuster craze that came about in the 1970’s following the successes of films like Jaws (1975), Star Wars (1977), Superman (1978) or even Alien (1979). Some movies, such as Ghostbusters (1984), Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) and Back to the Future (1985), were big successes on release while others, like Blade Runner (1982), Big Trouble in Little China (1986) and Labyrinth (1986) to name a few, were initially box office bombs but have developed strong followings over the years. Directors such as David Lynch, John Carpenter, Jim Henson and others have all tried with varying degrees of success to not only make big bucks off of a film but also try to expand their canvas in ways they couldn’t before. Tobe Hooper was among them.
In the long run, Tobe Hooper will always be remembered for The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974) and Poltergeist (1982). The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, despite the title being a bit of a misnomer, is one of the most influential and iconic horror titles to ever make its way to the silver screen. While I can’t really say it was a fun sit, I do admire how it delivers its scares through its unrelenting and punishing atmosphere, overall good performances from the actors, especially Marilyn Burns, and it’s very limited use of gore.
Poltergeist is another movie that scared the crap out of me as a kid, and it was an effective and overall entertaining film. There is a debate on whether or not Hooper completely directed the film as Steven Spielberg has been considered both a co-director or sole director, depending on whom you talk to. Nevertheless, Poltergeist seemed to get Hooper attention, particularly from Cannon Films. If Cannon Films sounds familiar to any of you out there, that is because they gave the world such cinematic "masterpieces" as Death Wish 2-4, The Missing in Action series, Invasion U.S.A. (1985), Breakin’ 2: Electric Boogaloo (1984), Superman IV: The Quest for Peace (1987) and so on. Most of their films are either terrible schlock or awesome schlock but, regardless, Cannon Films wanted to make big blockbusters to compete with Hollywood. They saw Hooper as a talent to bank on so they hired him onto a 3 picture deal with Lifeforce being the first one made. Lifeforce is quite possibly the best film that Cannon films ever produced and it is in my not-so-humble opinion the best movie Tobe Hopper ever made.
Never heard of this movie? Well you’re in good company. I’ll admit I never heard about this movie until I saw reviews on YouTube from Good Bad Flicks and Brandon Tenold , both you should check out because they’re awesome. The film didn’t perform well at the box office upon release in the US due to the fact that it was up against films like Rambo First Blood Part II (1985) Cocoon (1985), and The Goonies (1985) and about 15 minutes were removed for its US release which, from what I heard, derailed its momentum and made an already crazy movie somewhat confusing. It apparently fared better in Europe according to the actors and crew in interviews probably because they got the full version.
Go figure.
Here is what you are getting yourself into.
While on a mission to observe Haley’s Comet, the crew of the joint UK/US space shuttle Churchill led by Tom Carlsen (Steve Railsback) find a 150-mile-long alien spacecraft in the coma of the comet and thus go in to investigate as it will be the only chance to do so for roughly 70 years. In the ship, the astronauts find dead bat-like creatures and other weird stuff but what catches their attention the most are the perfectly encapsulated humanoids (2 males, 1 female) and they take them back to the ship. Communication is lost with the Churchill and when a separate shuttle goes up to investigate, they find the crew dead as a result of a fire but find the 3 humanoids still in pristine shape. When brought back to Earth for study, the female (the heart-stoppingly gorgeous Mathilda May) awakens and begins to drain life from various victims and causes a zombie like outbreak of space-vampire-life-suckers. Carlsen is found to be sole survivor who escaped in the escape pod on the Churchill. He relates what happened and admits he has a strange bond with the Space Girl (by the way that is really what she is called in the credits). Carlsen must then work with SAS officer Colin Cane (Peter Firth) to put an end to the outbreak in London brought about by the space girl and her two male cohorts before it spreads to the rest of the world.
As was the case with Dark City, I won’t go too much further into the plot because this is another case where it is best to go in knowing as little as possible and, just like with Dark City, I watched the 116 minute director approved international cut for this review. I have not seen the US cut and I don't care to. Let's move on.
I’ll be honest and say that a plot that involves space vampires starting a zombie like apocalypse in London is really silly but it is well told. The dialogue is pretty believable even with some silly lines here and there, the characters are smart, the film is well shot and the narrative is played out in an efficient and understandable fashion. It’s told in a serious manner that is required to make a silly sounding science fiction premise believable to the audience and it is helped by the fact that the actors help sell it. I really liked that this movie didn’t cast the biggest name stars from back then. The actors cast were perfect and they weren’t the overly famous stars that usually get cast to get a certain movie attention. Casting actors like Steve Railsback, best known for his role as Charles Manson in the TV movie Helter Skelter (1976), Peter Firth and others can really sell it better since the actors are more normal people that the audience can relate to. The face most people today will recognize is Patrick Stewart as the head of an asylum but this was pre Star Trek: The Next Generation so it doesn’t count. To put it another way, it wouldn’t be believable to put the cast of The Breakfast Club, who were very popular in their time, in a movie like this. That’s probably a bit of an exaggerated example but I think you get my point.
Then, of course, there is Mathilda May as the space girl. I have to say for an actress who spends most of her screen time naked she is quite scary in the film. As a former ballerina, she gave an eerie, sort of other worldly feel to the Space Girl that conveys that while she may be gorgeous, she will kill you in seconds. Now I did mention she is mostly nude throughout the film (and I will be honest, she looked great and to this day still looks great) she is not filmed in an erotic fashion. It was done very matter of fact and the actors in the film sell confusion and eventually terror upon encountering her so don’t expect any 70’s-80’s porno snyth beats in any scenes with her.
Lifeforce is essentially a B movie on a huge A movie budget and it is glorious. I can safely say that every penny of its 25-million-dollar budget is up on the screen. The visual effects by John Dykstra (who won an Oscar for Star Wars), the make-up effects by Nick Maley and the animatronic effects are top notch and you can tell that Cannon was going all out with this one. From the opening with the alien craft to the ending apocalypse scenes with what Hooper calls “the walking shriveled” sucking life out of people and spreading the space vampirism while buildings and buses explode, this film looks great. Combine all that with Henry Mancini’s excellent score, this is truly an epic sci-fi hybrid film and really isn’t like any of the previous movies Cannon made before or after this one. This is really one of the best representations of good old-fashioned 1980’s visual effects done well and anyone who is even remotely interested in movies from the 1980’s shouldn’t miss this one.
The film is not without its issues though. It does kind of drag a little bit about midway through the film when Carlsen and Caine begin their search for the space girl and there’s also a reveal about a certain character (sorry, no spoilers) that isn’t really explained very well (a bit more clarity would have been nice) and the film ends a tad too abruptly. None of these things are really a problem for me because I have a blast every single time I watch it.
Lifeforce definitely falls in the latter category of big 80’s films that I mentioned earlier and from what I understand is getting a bigger following as time goes by. Big budget movies like this one are usually the kind that kill careers and after this Tobe Hooper has never been able to get the level of success he had with films like Poltergeist. The other movies that he made for Cannon, namely The Texas Chainsaw Massacre Part 2 (1986) and Invaders from Mars (1986), were also box office disappointments even though they have developed a cult following over the years. Nowadays he has mostly been doing direct to video films which I hear range from decent to pretty bad. That’s a pity because although I admit that he wasn’t necessarily what I would call a grand visionary or anything like that he really did make entertaining and memorable films. I personally would love to see him deliver one more wild cinematic ride before he inevitably leaves us. Lifeforce may have killed his mainstream career but at least he went out making something very fun and very memorable.
This is the kind of film that could only be made in the 1980’s. Nowadays it would be told in an ironic fashion and it would likely be a really bad comedy but Tobe Hooper and Cannon films created something truly awesome with this film. How often nowadays do you hear of a science fiction/space alien/zombie/vampire/apocalypse hybrid movie? You would more likely get them from brave and inventive independent filmmakers or perhaps The Asylum but not necessarily from Hollywood. Oh well, it’s probably best to not give Hollywood or The Asylum any ideas. Let’s just cherish what we have.
The 116 minute Tobe Hooper approved cut of Lifeforce is on iTunes and is available on Blu-ray and I highly recommend anyone interested to check it out as soon as possible. That is the best version to see.
Bored with today’s movies? Want something crazy, over the top and absolutely fun? Check this out. You won’t regret it.
No really. You won’t!
