Message from Space (1978)

A film with more than the usual spoiler issues. Talking about it in any detail feels akin to handing you a gift-wrapped present and saying, "I hope you like it -- It's a thriller about a diabolical secret experiment."

Ok... Let's be honest. It cannot be the best movie but is quite enjoyable. The movie has the potential to develop a great plot for future movies

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

The biggest problem with this movie is it’s a little better than you think it might be, which somehow makes it worse. As in, it takes itself a bit too seriously, which makes most of the movie feel kind of dull.

Equally stupid as SW, and dubbing made things worst. I never avoid watching a movie up to last minute, even stupid ones like this, so i had to break it in four parts in order to be able to finish it.

Vic morrow appearing with Japanese professional wrestler Thunder Sugiyama should give you an idea about the craziness of this movie.Residents of planet Jirusia who are losing a war against the invading forces of Gavanas sends a princess, and 8 glowing balls to earth, to seek for help.If you've seen "The Legend of the eight samurai", you'll notice that eight glowing balls idea is strait out of that movie.Kinji Fukasaku always brings cheap, and crazy atmosphere to his movies. This one is no exception. I have no idea why he's considered a great director in his country. He's one of the worst director I know who's movie is guaranteed to look cheezy, and schizophrenic. His son is even worse director.The movie is like amalgamation of Star Wars and the Legend of Eight Samurai, done in worst possible way. Actors are pretty good, but their talents are wasted on this movie.I guess the international casts were put in place so the movie has appeal for audiences in both Japan and USA, but instead they succeeded in making a movie that has appeal maybe only to little children.

Okay, fans, here's a few clear-up moments for you.How did Vic Morrow get in this movie? He needed the money and wanted the vacation. Like Nick Adams before him, he wasn't exactly at the top of his career. He had little inkling though that The Twilight Zone movie was in his near future..Did Star Wars rip off anything from this movie? NO, since it was already made. The Japanese control distribution very carefully, and when they saw the grosses from SW they were in shock. They then summarily blocked it from the Japanese market for long enough for this film to be made. And by the way, the "Death Star Trench" was stolen from the British film "633 Squadron" along with some of its dialog. So, in fact, STAR WARS ripped of this and a bunch of other movies that people who really have seen a lot of movies could name.As for Philip Casnoff, I met him in NY when he was doing, of all things, SHOGUN - THE MUSICAL. I saw him at the stage door (he was wearing an exquisite calf-length coat and a matching hat..) and gave him (again, of all things..) a SHOGUN WARRIORS Liabe (the main ship in the movie). He said "Where the hell did you get this?" and went back through the stage door. I hear him saying "Hey you gotta see this. Some guy just gave me a miniature of a ship from some shitty Japanese movie I did years ago!" Then he came back out and we had a long talk about the movie. Keep in mind, this is the same guy who payed (and sang) the most authentic Frank Sinatra in USA TV's biopic.Is it a bad movie? What does that mean, objectively? I like it. I actually liked it enough to see it four or five times, once in a '70s sticky-floored Times Square theater populated by the first generation of Americas' crackheads and 40 drinkers.It doesn't have the best special effects of its era, but I thought the Bengal tigers in Gladiator looked like cartoons. I love the fake silver stuck-on nose on the warlords' mom's face..the extensive pyro effects, especially the Alliance space carrier. Enjoy it for what it is: an action adventure space opera created to drain off some STAR WARS money.Post Script: I got a chance to see the Japanese original version of this movie, subtitled. It's a completely different movie,mostly because the translation corrects and explains a LOT.Spoiler alert: like, why Philip Casnoff's character doesn't want to fight...why the rich girl is rich...and a whole lot of other stuff that would raise the rating of this movie by a point if viewers had seen the CORRECT version instead of the shortened (but not by much) and mistranslated version seen on TV and in the movies. It's literally a whole different movie.

This is one of those jaw dropping bad films that is absolutely hilarious! I had no idea what was happening for a lot of this film(!) but the main story has a planet being taken over by the Gavanas which are nothing more than Clingons. And they send out 8 plastic walnuts to locate the chosen ones that will come and save them. Somehow a good actor like Vic Morrow ended up in this film and the rest are unknowns. At least in America they're unknowns. What can you say? Its a blatant Japanese rip-off of "Star Wars". Why is it that Japan can produce some wonderful and intricate gadgets but just have no clue how to produce decent special effects for films? Vic Morrow has a little robot as a sidekick that says lines like "Hot Dog, Master"! and "Only hurt when laugh" and when Morrow discovers a plastic walnut in his glass of booze he mutters, "I've been selected as a chosen one" which makes his robot react with "Hooray"! There is bright colors used throughout the film and the color red is very prominent. One of the flying ships in the film is just a big boat with sails! In another silly scene Morrow shows up to talk to the head of the Gavanas wearing a Napolean like outfit and challenges one the warriors to a duel! The scene is pointless. The special effects are so cheap and low budget that the monster movies like "Mothra" look like Spielberg made them. These are so terrible that every wire can be seen and every type of ship is a bad plastic model. The sets look like it was made by third grade stage producers. Cheap paint looking very colorful is everywhere. The costumes are everything from Samurai outfits to spandex space outfits and one leading Japanese character looks like a geisha. If Sid and Marty Krofft took acid and got drunk at the same time this is what they might have produced. Peggy Lee Brennan is cute and spunky and I remember her episode of "MASH" and she was fun to watch in this film but when she is flying the space ship and sticks her tongue out of the corner of her mouth to interpret that its serious business, you have to laugh! And Laugh! One of those rare "So bad its good" movies that absolutely requires multiple viewings. Plastic walnuts???