This is a really interesting 1991 Mexican drama concerning the eight-year long journey (1528 - 1536) of Alvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca, who was shipwrecked in Florida and enslaved by Indians, but who found a career as an itinerant Indian shaman, and eventually, after an endless journey through swamp and desert, ultimately found his way back to Spanish civilization. Cabeza de Vaca's few traveling companions, most notably the Moor Estebanico, helped fuel rumors of the Seven Cities of Cíbola, which led directly to the 1540 Coronado expedition and the first Spanish encounters with the Pueblo Indians of the Rio Grande Valley of New Mexico. Cabeza de Vaca's story is one the greatest personal survival tales in world history, and it made him one of the very, very few people who could fully appreciate the tragedy of Spain's conquest of the peoples of the Americas. The movie is in Spanish with English subtitles, but there is actually little Spanish at all, since Cabeza de Vaca is often alone or isolated, with no one to speak to. He is just as lost as the audience, in a world of Indian dialects.

The director Nicolás Echevarría greatly simplified, even over-simplified, Cabeza de Vaca's journey. The movie suggests the shipwreck was in Florida, but that was actually the journey's first bloody stopping point. The final shipwreck occurred somewhere west of the Mississippi Delta, and Cabeza de Vaca's enslavement likely occurred somewhere near Galveston, Texas. Why leave that part out? Well, it's complicated, and ultimately for director Nicolás Echevarría may have been unimportant. Echevarría had something else in mind. The important part was that Cabeza de Vaca was thrown into a hallucinatory world of abasement and privation. Cabeza de Vaca carried a Christian cross, and his initial captors decided he should be sent to a shaman who also wore a cross, and be put to work tending the needs of a spoiled armless gnome. What a horrible existence! The hallucinatory quality is reminiscent of the magical realism pioneered by author Gabriel García Márquez and subsequently used by directors like Mel Gibson in "Apocalypto". Cabeza de Vaca's real existence may have been as a turtle-egg collector on the Texas beach, but instead the movie shows him apprenticing the shaman craft with his captors. Cabeza de Vaca's vision-laden emergence as a successful healer is the movie's best moment.

The transition from swamp to desert is very abrupt, indicating that Echevarría wasn't much bothered by notions of continuity. Indeed, he had only two Mexican filming locations: the desert (in Coahuila) and the swamp (in Nayarit). As far as I could tell, the Indians were less like the real Indians of the northern Gulf of Mexico coast, and more like the Indians of Mexico. Then I remembered my history of Mexico ("Mexico" by Michael D. Coe, third edition, p. 146):

"Into this uneasy political situation stepped the last barbaric tribe to arrive in the Valley of Mexico, the Aztecs, the 'people whose face nobody knows'. They said that they came from a place called 'Aztlan' in the west of Mexico, believed by some authorities to be the state of Nayarit, and had wandered about guided by the image of their tribal god, Huitzilopochtli ('Hummingbird-on-the left'), who was borne on the shoulders of four priests. .... We next see the Aztecs following a hand-to-mouth existence in the marshes of the great lake, or 'Lake of the Moon'. On they wandered, loved by none, until they reached some swampy, unoccupied islands, covered by rushes, near the western shore; it was claimed that there the tribal prophecy, to build a city where an eagle was sitting on a cactus, holding a snake in its mouth, was fulfilled.

The director suggests discreetly, by his choice of filming location in the Nayarit swamps, through simplification and also perhaps by conflation of the Texas Indians with Aztecs, and by using a dash of magical realism, that Cabeza de Vaca's real story is about the tragedy of Mexico's conquest by Spain. And Cabeza de Vaca's story is about that, partly at any rate. The film is a meditation about Mexico's tortured birth as a Spanish colony. A powerful film and well-worth watching!


Amazingly weird (or weirdly amazing?) movie of an odyssey of Spanish conquistadores through Central America 1582. Beautiful images, unseen collection of freaks and outcasts, strong and sometimes disturbing episodes. The plot has a few flaws, but this is a visual movie:

Werner Herzog meets Fellini in the Mexican jungle, definitely worth seeing.


For the time this film is set, which is 1528, that's a very early era of western exploration (only 36 years after Columbus). I personally would love to see the Americas (North and South) before the full arrival of Europeans. Not because Europeans were "bad" but simply to see something before it's changed dramatically. Unfortunately for many of the early explorers and visitors -- English and Spanish -- a trip to the New World didn't give a feeling of wonder but of life in hell. I'm also aware of the fact that most extant written history of exploration of the New World was written by English authors so it's probably: bad Spanish explorers, good English explorers. But apparently not for this particular story.

As for this film I can only recommend its first hour, which is its best.

The first hour of this film does an excellent job of showing the problems these early explorers faced and how something so promising could turn so bad. Once Alvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca (a copy and paste on that name!) leaves Florida it loses its sense of adventure and mystery (well a good part of it) and the film moves too quickly from Florida to the western shore of Mexico. So quickly you'd think Florida had mountains or terrain that looks like Colorado. The lead character also spends the rest of the time walking about like he fried his brain on drugs. For me, I'm more interested in and want to see and know about the journey and the people on the way.

I would love to talk to these early explorers or see what they saw and I admire them for their courage and sense of adventure, and if they still exist somewhere, how funny it all must seem to them now. Just wait 400+ years and you've got an area with beaches people flock to and Disney World. Does one man's hell eventually becomes another man's vacation spot ?!?!

This film's first hour does surpass all of "Aguirre: The Wrath of God" (1972) but loses something when it turns into a Conquistador "Apocalypse Now" (1979).

If anyone out there knows of any other good films about early exploration of the New World then e-mail me. Thanks.


Tick Tock was a lot of fun to watch and kept me interested throughout. Two main roles are played by beautiful actresses that give very good performances. Carla (Kristin Minter) and Rachel (Megan Ward) scheme to kill Rachel's wealthy husband, Holden (David Dukes), to get the whole inheritance. All they need is a patsy who would do the dirty work for them. Carla's lover, Travis (Linden Ashby), seems a perfect choice. The two female characters have strikingly different personalities - Carla is devious and cold-blooded, she does the planning and keeps her cool when things go out of hand. She's the mastermind of the scheme. Her partner Rachel, on the contrary, is tearful, unsure of herself and loses her cool whenever something goes wrong. She completely depends on Carla for instructions what to do. She gets a bit annoying when she is constantly saying things like 'Now what?' 'Now what's the plan?' 'Are you sure?' 'What are we doing now?' 'Do you think that's a good idea?' 'I don't know,' I was thinking that maybe we should wait?' I don't think I can go through with this,' 'I don't think I can keep this up,' 'No, I can't, I can't, Carla,' 'What are we doing?!' and ... 'I think I peed my pants.'

The events in the movie are not presented in order but the series of flashbacks provides the viewer with a more comprehensive insight into the intricacies of the plot and make the movie more intriguing.

I enjoyed watching Tick Tock even though it has some flaws, the ending being the major one. Why would indecisive Rachel want to kill Carla when throughout the movie it was Carla who planned and managed the whole thing and encouraged Rachel to keep at it every time she was about to chicken out? What was she trying to achieve by doing so? Now that she's lost her smart partner she completely blows her chances of getting away with the crime. At that moment the movie lost logic to me. And it is beyond me why faint-hearted Rachel would hack Travis to death bashing him hard so many times with a shovel if earlier in the movie she was clearly disgusted at the way Carla killed Holden. Also, there was only one scene showing that Carla and Rachel were lesbians. The motivation for the crime would be more convincing if their relationship was developed better. Aside from the ending, Tick Tock is great fun to watch.

I found the soundtrack pretty good.


Viewed this film which was called "A Friendship to Die For", and through out the entire picture you noticed a clock in quite a few scenes and I wondered why, now I find out the picture was really called "Tick Tock" and it makes more sense. There seemed to always be a rush against the clock in this film about two females who were great friends and had a wonderful deep love for each other which was boiling over and over. Megan Ward, (Rachel Avery), "Mirror Man",'03 and Kristin Minter,(Carla),"Pissed",'05 were the two lovers who had a clever plan and a poor sucker of a guy gets roped into all kinds of situations. There is a private detective who drives around a beat up piece of junk something like a "Colombo" style vehicle only Worse. All kinds of murders happen and bodies are transported here and there. You will simply love the ending, which I thought was simply Great. Enjoy


I caught this on the Lifetime Movie Network and watched it because Megan Ward of "General Hospital" was in it. It's a pretty clever story with the device of showing the actions of a certain character, then showing a clock moving backwards and showing the actions of another character leading up to the same point. The movie has quite a few interesting twists.

The acting isn't much, and obviously the budget wasn't very big - the biggest name here is David Dukes, who plays Ward's wealthy husband. He doesn't have much to do, and it's surprising that he took the role. Apparently this was a feature film, which I find hard to believe - maybe it went straight to video. It's a strictly TV cast, particularly Ward and Linden Ashby.

If you see it's on and you like mystery and suspense films, you'll probably like it. Or you might want to rent it because the sex stuff is cut on TV.


I caught this movie on Lifetime Movie Network. I really only watched it because it's opening screen was the Bakersfield street sign. As a new Bakersfield resident, I was fascinated to find out how many places I could recognize in this movie. Not much. But I do believe it captured some of the "Nashville West" culture, with the cowboys, the country-western bar, Tony Llama sign. It also shows that the typical "armpit of America" slam I sometimes hear about Bakersfield does not take into account the many affluent citizens who own high-dollar extravagant homes. As for the movie, it kept my attention until the end, which is rare in my case for TV. I enjoyed the ending, where the ditsy blond turned out to be cold as ice. And the kinky twist, how she was in love with her female friend was revealed as she shot her to death. Oh, and of course, you had to love the gory handcuff scene in the end! This must have been along the road somewhere heading to Kernville, along the Kern River. That's it, pretty good movie, a cold-blooded Thelma and Louise.


This is a nifty, no nonsense thriller that starts out almost like Thelma & Louise and then veers sharply into darker territory. Megan Ward gets top billing but the movie is driven by a strong performance from Kristin Minter (E.R.) as a bad, bad girl. The plot is the usual tangle of cross and double cross that typifies the genre, but director/writer Kevin Tenney keeps the audience on its toes with some clever editing that yanks the viewer around in the timeline and shows events from the viewpoint of different characters. There's plenty of blood and violence and some dark humor. There's also an unexpected and quite gratuitous nude scene by Kristin Minter but, hey, who's complaining. Worth a look.


The only reason I watched this film was because of Megan Ward but I'm glad I did. The film is good to pass the time I like these types of flicks. I think it can be compared to 'Wild Things' its got a ton of plot twists and some twisted humor.

Well worth the watch. The cast is good as it needs to be with the two female leads doing well. All the film needed was an actual 'scary' bad guy figure none the actors came across that way.


I found the film to be pleasingly acted and very well crafted. It seems to set out as an old fashioned "who dunnit, mystery plot, blackmail plot,etc" but with very modern twists. The director really hit the mark. The ending was excellent, in its own right, understated, but still able to put its point across towards its audience.


this movie had a great premise, but failed to develop it in an intelligent manner. the crazy time shifting was the main frustrating element. the best performance was given by the sly pi, and since he wasn't a central character - this gives you an indication of the films quality. the plot was developed so plainly, it was almost insulting to the intelligence - leaving nothing to the imagination. the time shifts were also guilty of this - leaving the viewer frustrated "get on with it!!!". a great movie for those who have trouble working out difficult plot construction - ie six year-olds, but the violence precludes this unfortunately.


Caught a screening of this last night in Berlin. Cinema was completely packed, not a spare seat in the house, and the crowd really seemed to enjoy it. I thought the film was great, really cool genre pic that comes across as a nice mixture of Predator/Braveheart/Beowulf, all the while managing to feel quite original on its own. Nice cast, Nice Script, and everything is handled a hell of a lot more intelligently than what you'd expect from a movie which is essentially 'Giant Alien Vs Vikings'. Why this is only getting such a limited release is beyond me, I think it could actually do quite well if given the chance. Basically anyone who enjoys Sci-Fi Action/Adventure done well should be looking forward to checking this one out when and if they get the chance.


Like a previous reviewer I don't know why this had a limited release. It is MUCH more value for ticket money than a number of other recent offerings and its faults are minor compared to the good qualities.

The story is basically a sci-fi plot but since the lead character's space ship crashes in the Iron Age, among Vikings, you can understand that most of the movie takes place with Viking themes and scenery.

The basic plot is quite sound and for the first 40 minutes the movie is VERY gripping. It tends to go a little flat at the end of the middle act and the start of the third act but effects, gore and very tense action compensate for those not too engrossed in the intricacies of the story. A pity about that because it looked like the story had more to offer and was chopped up somewhat to fit in a bunch of set pieces. I realize this is now making the movie sound a little lame: it isn't Lord of the Rings, but it is definitely worth the price of the ticket. See it expecting to be entertained for about 95% of the time and you wont be disappointed.


I was very skeptical before watching this film. Even if it got John Hurt and Ron Perlman in it, I just couldn't believe the SciFi/Norse legend combination would work. My instinct told me that this was going to be another of those horrible B-movies with a stupid story, sub-average effects and mediocre acting at best. I was, however, pleasantly surprised. Not that it is a masterpiece. The background story could have been a tad bit more elaborate, the plot more original and the final outcome a little bit less predictable, but all in all one has to acknowledge the decent effort to make this movie convincing and suspenseful. The end result is a solid piece of entertainment, with ample effects, directing I'd call 'by the book', workmanlike acting and a few kicks and thrills along the way. So if you happen to like action movies and don't ask for too much depth in the story, this will provide you with a 90 minutes amusement worth the time.


I managed to see this in Spain over Christmas. It's a really fun movie and gave me just what I was looking for. Great SF, plenty of action and a bit of drama in the mix as well. The sets, music and cinematography were good too. James Caviezel was excellent as usual as was Sophia Myles - to think of it, there wasn't a bum note in the cast and the script was fine. The battle scenes were very well done and the monster was as good as anything else i've seen on the big screen. Aliens, Vikings and Spacemen..come on! It's one of those movies I would buy on DVD and i've had a look on the official site etc..The positive feedback i've seen lately seems to have had an impact because the straight to DVD option has been shelved and the UK distributor has changed the release date from Feb to the Easter break. With any luck they will beef up the marketing and give this canny film the boost it deserves. If you like 13th Warrior or AVP type movies then this'll do for you.


I watched this film today with fingers crossed that it would add up to a decent enough film. However this film ended up exceeding those expectations, with a pretty good plot, a cast which was decent enough (with a few minor blips that I'm willing to overlook) and action sequences that are quite creative and thrilling to watch. At times parts of this film reminded me of The 13th Warrior, with a little Beowulf sprinkled on top. You certainly won't get bored watching this film. I'm surprised that this film did not get a little more attention, as it deserves it, but there you go. If you like to see aliens get hacked away by men in beards, this is the film for you!


I stumbled upon this move by accident, but being a sci-fi and fantasy nerd, I watched it, despite the fact that sci-fi movies nowadays tend to be rather poor.

The story begins with Kainan (James Caviezel) crash landing his spaceship into a lake, in the middle of Viking-land, in 709 AD. With his co-pilot dead, and his ship in ruins, sunken to the bottom of the lake, he uses his only working piece of technology to teach himself the norsk language. (I laughed my head off, when the first word he utters in Earth language is the "F" word :D) Wandering around in a forest, he is found by Wulfric (Jack Huston) and brought back to his village. They think Kainen is responsible for brutally ransacking a nearby village, and when Kainen tells them he is hunting for a "dragon", he is labeled as a liar and enemy. When in fact, the "dragon" he is referring to, is a monster from another planet, now hunting the viking populace and fauna of the land. Soon, when the villagers start vanishing and turning up as mutilated corpses, the vikings realize that Kainen might be telling the truth after all...

I gotta say, combining space marines and alien monsters with a fantasy Viking setting intrigued me to no end. Outlander is the living proof, that such a combination can result in a very good and entertaining 115 minutes. Although the story is a little shallow, lacking in huge plot-twists and deep character development, but it is enough to keep the attention between the awesomely gory fight scenes.

The acting is good enough, with the Christian Bale look-alike Caviezel, and the great but short performance of Ron Perlman, it manages to be captivating. We see far more swordplay than pulse rifle shoot-outs, so the sci-fi part of the film is largely suppressed to make way for the epic battle between the vikings and the moorvens, but that's just how it must be in this movie. The fight scenes are nicely choreographed and acted, the special effects are more than awesome, and the whole is movie is just great.

I'd like to point out, that the Moorven is most astonishing space monster I've ever seen. With the clever colored pulsing and the well thought-out anatomy of the beast, it manages to be best so far.

It's not the best movie I've seen, but it's still great, and every sci-fi and fantasy fan should go see it.


"Outlander" is a great surprise by director Howard McCain - honestly never heard of him before, but I'll be keeping an eye on his work from now on! The movie opens with a spaceship crashing down on Earth, Norway 700 AD. The only surviour from the crew, Kainan (James Caviezel), is soon captured by vikings, who blame him for the slaughter in a nearby village. The outworlder claims he is not responsible and he has come to these lands hunting for dragons. The vikings don't trust a word... until their own village is attacked by a mysterious creature - something that Kainan brought with him from outer space...

Proving himself in battle Kainan gains the trust of the vikings and gets himself some trusty friends... and some interest from the King's daughter Freya (Sophia Myles). Together they have to face the alien beast Moorwen and find a way to destroy it. But Kainen is hunted not only by a monster, but by guilt and memories as well. He couldn't protect his beloved wife and son from the very same creature.

The story is simple and yet gripping. The idea that a pack of vikings and a spaceman battle an alien beast was exciting enough to make me interested and willing to see the movie. I approached it with no great expectations and I found myself pleasantly surprised! The movie is in fact very entertaining and involving. Jim Caviezel is an excellent choice for a tragic hero haunted by his past - a true Beowulf from outer space. The rest of the cast does a good job as well. I loved Sophia Myles in "Tristan & Isolde" and I was pleased to watch her again, this time as a bold Viking princess. In the supporting cast we have John Hurt and Ron Perlman (they've collaborated before on the Hellboy movies).

The Moorwen is designed by Patrick Tatopolous and if you're familiar with his work you can sense his style in it. I'd say there is some Godzilla-nuance to the Moorwen, but the luminous abilities of the creature were something new and exciting.

The production design, the sets and the costumes were also very good, but what really impressed me were the flashback sequences of Kainan's life before falling down to Earth. The Moorwen planet war scene is truly great and the only thing I regret is that they were not longer - I can enjoy out-of-this-world landscapes anytime! The CGI was impressive. I would play the movie again just to watch them once more.

The movie could use some faster pace at times and I find it slightly longer than it should have been, but by no means boring or trying. "Outlander" delivers an excellent sci-fi action-adventure - something we don't see too often these days!


In its genre: fantasy and sci-fi this is a guaranteed winner. Yes, it IS Alien vs. Highlander... and if you don't think that sounds awesome, well then you're missing out.

What lifts this though is a great cast, tight filming, good production, and above all that some heart and soul that's been missing.

Honestly this is straight-out entertainment - the Alien is seriously bad, and the Nordic stuff is just how you'd want it to be. Just violent enough, with some horror, but nothing OTT it is very, very good at achieving its objectives.

All in all a great film and a definite Sci-Fi / Fantasy con favorite in the making...


In 709 DC, in the Iron Age, a spacecraft crashes in Norway in the Viking kingdom of Herot, and the pilot Kainan (James Caviezel) survives. He turns the beacon on; learns the language and culture of the planet using a machine; and finds that the predator called Moorwen that he was transporting had escaped. While chasing the alien monster, he finds a village completely destroyed and he is arrested by the warrior Wulfric (Jack Huston) that believed he killed the locals and is brought to Herot as prisoner. But sooner he proves his innocence and courage to King Rothgar (John Hurt) and his daughter Freya (Sophia Myles) falls in love for him. Kainan and Wulfric become friends and together they chase the Moorwen.

"Outlander" is a wonderful adventure and a great surprise for me indeed. The cast is excellent, leaded by James Caviezel; the lovely Sophia Myles, from "Tristan + Isolde" and "Hallam Foe"; the veteran John Hurt; the always efficient Ron Perlman; and the unknown nephew of Anjelica Huston Jack Huston. The engaging story has elements of "Starman", "Beowulf" and "Predator", and is developed in a perfect pace. The special effects are decent and this movie is a great entertainment. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "Outlander  Guerreiro Vs Predador" ("Outlander  Warrior Vs Predator")


Outlandish. Howard McCain's Outlander may be the best B movie you never saw. This release dumped unceremoniously into theaters in the early year scrap heap is certainly a movie that is fully aware of its preposterous nature and approaches it with a straight face, a talented cast and premier production values that all work oddly well to produce an entertaining if far from perfect Sci-fi cult classic.

Originally slated for a normal wide release, a series of setbacks plagued production to an extent where it was deemed no longer feasible for such distribution. Why is this important you may ask? Well, thanks to the original and best laid plans producers threw a whopping $50 million into the film which provides us with some damn good effects for a film you would all but assume to be a low budget, straight to DVD release.

The plot is as tantalizing as they come; an alien, Kainan played by James Caviezel crash lands in ancient Nordish territory in the age of the Vikings. But along with his technology he brings a foreign parasite, a deadly creature known as the Moorwen. Caught in the middle of two warring Viking clans headed by Rogthgar (John Hurt) on one side and Gunnar (Ron Peralman) on the other, the primitive tribes must ban together to defeat their new common foe. oh yeah, it is in fact that awesome. The 'modern' story is framed by an interesting if slightly preachy back-story of past betrayal and genocide throughout the history of Kainnan's homeland.

After all this financial mumbo-jumbo is put to the side, what we are left with is a deliciously acted, well made period/sci-fi/creature feature/action film that only works at all due to all originality and the bizarreness of the plot. A few elements keep Outlander from being a cult-masterpiece however; it is too long, there are too many false climaxes and the goofy plot only just holds up. That being said the good news is that this film will make a quick trip to your local movie store bargain bin which means that you can score it for about the cost of a rental. Outlander is worth a look and even if you don't like it, you can't deny how perfectly it defines the so-bad-it's-good adage.

Read all my reviews at: http://www.simonsaysmovies.blogspot.com


Outlander is a movie who deserve better than the lack of interest around. Caviezel and Miles show a lot of power play and carve two strong characters from scratch, building up the momentum to the last confrontation between vikings and aliens confused with dragons. Kainan (Caviezel) is from outer space, a military officer responsible, along with others of his humanoid species, to the destruction of a race called Moorwen with fire. After terraforming, Kainan's people settle without knowing some Moorwen are still alive and loose their families to the vengeance. Eventually his ship, with a Moorwen aboard, drift into space and crash land on Earth, without any explanation why. The rest of the movie is a fast paced action, worthy to see instead of explaining, playing the Norwegian vikings an Kainan against the rampant dragon look alike alien. Ron Perlman is ,as always, a force of nature and John Hurt a perfect king - intelligent, tired and full of hope. In the end i have to mention the interesting look of the Moorwen species, a mix of legendary dragons and Alien from the movie with the same name.


I liked the concept, very much. While the film has some very special moments I do feel that with extra funding this could have been very special indeed. With so many films today being based on generic content the time is well overdue for a new IP. It reminded me a little of both Silicon Knight's 'Too Human', and 'Beowolf' all to the good. My heart went out to both John Hurt and James Cavaziel both excellent actors who with better direction and script could have made this film far more memorable.

All in all a good effort.

Moorwen!

End transmission.

TB


I must say that this film was a great surprise, not only because of my personal taste for sci-fi / fantasy flicks, but because this production is flawless.

I believe Howard McCain is set to be a true revelation as film maker and screen writer. There is no single bad moment in all the film.

Great work in photography and editing make of this film a visual accomplishment.

James Caviezel, John Hurt and Ron Perlman performances are excellent.

All FX are achieved, and the score by Geoff Zanelli is one to remember.

Maybe is something that we all have seen before, but never with this kind of achievement.

For all sci-fi / fantasy fans, this one is a MUST!


When my friend brought this over and described it to me my first reaction was "What the hell!? Man, this is going to suck." But I'm a sport and usually will give indi-movies a chance. You never know when they will surprise you. Equalibrium is a good example of this. Shortly into the movie I knew this was turning out to be pretty good. By the end, I realized this film was a complete gem.

OK, so the CGI wasn't major budget for 2008, fire was made obviously by a mid-grade generator. It was still well within my acceptance level of good CGI and some of the background compositing was awesome. I know that the artist who worked on this put nothing less than love into what little they had for tools.

I call the story Groundbreaking in that NO ONE ever before has truly combined Sci-fi and Vikings, and pull it off so well. Yes, I could see a lot of Borrowed ideas such as Predator, Pathfinder, Alien and Beowulf but that only added to the fun, beauty and down right authentic, Pagan and Scientific styles that are blended. The story was in depth enough to keep you interested and well mixed with action. Ron Perlman once again demonstrates how great an actor he is. Like always, you do not see his prior roles (There's no Hellboy or Reinhardt here). Also the very HOT Sophia Myles made a great love interest to create a spiritual pull between the two heroes.

This is the best Straight-to-DVD movie I have seen in years.


I had never seen the trailer of this movie nor any much publicity whatsoever,but it came as a clear surprise for me after getting to watch it,i liked it very much.So sad that i ended up watching in a DVD. You have the Viking battles,good storyline,very good CGI and special effects,with equally complementing soundtrack. The actors have rendered their skills to the best,the screenplay was great and overall the characters are well delivered. The story is of an Outlander from a different planet who ends up in a ship crash on NORSE territory-planet earth!But the ship has brought along an alien trouble-a species called Moorven/Moorwen.Kainan(James Caviezel) is treated as an Outlander,he has to prove his worth and also tell the vikings of the alien trouble he has bought along.And henceforth the plot flows. The Movie has got breathtaking locations,viking costumes,"the shields" game,all was just entertaining.It has abundant gore too,of course its a viking movie after all! Anyways guys its a perfect perfect perfect snack for your pop corns!Rent it or buy it!


I never would have believed it, that you could combine Spaceships and futuristic races with Norse Mythology...yet, here it is in one GREAT movie! I liked 13th Warrior...it was OK, I liked Predator, but this movie...it's like they took the BEST from both movies and put it into one really well acted, well scripted movie! I picked this up on sale at Blockbuster...WOW what a GREAT movie! I like action movies, I like Lore movies, like Lord of the Rings, I like Sci-fi movies, but this is like getting ALL those genres wrapped into one, and it's NOT hokey or fake-comical, it's all very believable and wonderfully acted by James Caviziel, and Sonia Myles, with John Hurt, and the guy who played Hell Boy...wow, it has sword fighting in it, great sets...I just really enjoyed this movie from the very beginning to the very end! If you like all the genres that I listed...then you MUST see this movie!


I give it a 9 out of 10 because nothing is perfect. My partner who never watches these movies decided to sit down for this one afterwards said that was a great fantasy alien thriller. Woohoo there is hope for him yet. Jim Caveziel is so perfectly cast or was that acting omg yes he did do a super acting job in this as does Sophia Myles, John Hurt, and the always a pleasure to watch be the brute Ron Perlman whose part was to short. This is one of those rare finds a well written and directed film, small on budget big on thrills. Original script, very very good top notch FX, the alien creature is ghastly and convincing. You just have to see it, I don't like spoilers, pop some corn, put it in and crank up the sound.


At first I thought aliens in prehistoric times; this is going to be one hell of a non-sense. I was very pleasantly surprised though. There is no hi-tech jargon or far-fetched sci-fi plot, everything is neat and straight to the point. And the most importantly there is no meaningless dialogue or cool stupid one-liners.

Kainan (James Caviezel) lands on Earth in his chase of an alien monster which killed his family. The year is something hundred BC, there is nothing superhuman or extraordinary about him, armed just with a gun version of a lightsaber , soon he is captured by the local tribe. The prehistoric people are nothing out of the ordinary either-a wooden fortress, animal-skin clad villagers and monarch based ruling system. I really liked the political element in the tribe's interactions with the opposing tribe and the logical tactical choices made by its leaders. It comes to show that politics in its essence is just a plain and simple common sense for the people's well-being.

The two fighting tribes eventually join forces against the common evil-a pretty red illuminated monster that kills and eats everything on its way. The monster is CGI but it is given almost a human name Moorwen, I have to admit very well done CGI. It blends very well with the rest of the sequences and the monster itself is quite original. All the encounters with it are really gory, though, so I do not recommend it for the faint-hearted. There is the must-have love story as well, between the outlander and the daughter of the king of the tribe, who eventually took over his throne after the monster, killed him mercilessly. There is a little cameo from Ron Perlman doing what he does best as a ferocious leader of the opposing tribe, i.e. acting really tough.

This movie has everything you want in one aliens, great action sequences, politics, pretty female, romance with the pretty female, a bit of gory horror and a happy ending with an inevitable casualty of a loved one-what not to like?


I really enjoyed this movie. It had all the aspects you could look for in a action epic movie. The CG was very well done and highlighted the intense scenes between the main character and the Morwen. I really recommend this for a night of popcorn and great excitement. Jim was believable as the hero, not to mention he's not that hard on the eyes :) Sophia Myles was fantastic as always. Somehow she is totally believable in every character she portrays. In conclusion this movie was like Alien/Brave heart/Predator/and Lord of the rings all in one. Some may find it hard to conceptualize but those with imagination will fall for this one. 9/10!


It's a real shame I haven't seen a single preview or a billboard for this movie. Whatever, though - the box office opportunity was wasted because someone or other didn't have faith in humanity (I mean seriously, anyone with a droplet of testosterone in them would find this highly entertaining, so of course there's a market for it), but this movie's cult status is assured.

Spaceship carrying terrifying bloodthirsty monster and a mysterious hero (well, not that mysterious) crash lands on Earth during Viking times. I repeat - Vikings! Swords, battles, mead- drinking and all-around Norse badarsery are featured prominently. The acting is good for the most part, the writing isn't stupid and formulaic, and the director keeps a brisk pace throughout the film. And the space monster is simply terrific, imbued with the perfect amount of personality.

If I was 10 years old when I watched it, I would have been running around on the ceiling for months. Being the mature and responsible grown man I am now, I didn't exactly do that - instead, I recommended it to all my friends and watched it 3 times.


I saw this here in my home town last night, and was pleasantly surprised at how good it was. I hadn't been expecting much, to be honest (the trailer does the film a disservice), but I was really taken with what they did, considering they had to make it on a smaller-than-intended budget (no WETA Digital/Industrial Light & Magic, folks). The story was very compelling and it had some great performances, including Jim Caviezel as the hero. Mr. Caviezel was excellent, and I wish we saw more of him, he's like a rock in this picture. But the rest of the cast are every bit as good: Sophia Myles, John Hurt, Jack Huston  brilliant! The trailer did something of an injustice to the cinematographer Pierre Gill, with it looking rougher than the badger's proverbial. This bears no relation to the finished product, which is so beautiful as to be jaw-dropping, and then some. And, while SPIN VFX is no WETA or ILM, their work was great enough that I didn't miss them (although the baby Moorwen wasn't as good as the big one). All told, it was a great film that is much better than the crummy marketing and support would suggest. Give it a go and, on this score, I can't wait to see what all you guys do next!


Never going to be nominated or presumably anything else. But it deserves recognition for the maturity of the fantasy.

The main reason is that as long as a movie delivers something that I really enjoy, then I don't rank after critical review, but through share enjoyment.

The main character at first, posing with a futuristic plastic-like toy in a ridicules way made me snicker, but only shortly as the whole took me comfortably through the most. Now others may associate and whine, simply reflecting their own general attitude, that there are similarities to other movies, as if the writer had himself intently watched some crappy movies and diddled down some elements to bring into play. Now now. Lets looked at it , for what it is:

An all to serious portrayal of a man that had lost everything and led, graciously, to vengefully seeking for what could be more of necessity and redemption than the eager willingness to shed blood over lost loved ones, is cast into a intelligently woven landscape of fiction, that offers more than childish play between good and evil.

One can see the maturity of those involved to endow us a jewel, because when you think of how the dilemmas and dramas intermix in rivalry from different clans, the characters are all blessed with the intelligent mindset of the makers of this movie. Complexes that make big men being slightly retarded is nonexistent, which is a relief. I enjoyed the alliance in dire circumstances that led them without words to know they were on the same boat. And as the future king looks bluntly down on the corpses of what had healed ill feelings towards, now giving the sense that he morned that he had to bury his ill feelings towards the deceased with a feeling of loss of an comrade.

I was content to see that every character that led me to be intressted in everyone, and the outcome in its ending, being dangerously clische, still led a humble road to something which balanced on the edge of not knowing how it would actually end. The so called hero melded into the likes of peasants and kings alike, as to become insignificantly overvalued as not to definitely imply the obvious that he would decide the outcome, which he also didn't. There was other heroes, and no one was made insignificant.

Next highlight. In one scene, in midst of darkness something is slipped to the hands of a strong woman, who plays her role as the equal of men. That must have been the must stunning capture of what most movies fail in doing, when portraying a woman. Simply because it probably didn't overdo it, like a uncertain pleader who would try to hard to convince it with fancy words and show, rather then solid statements. Thank god for that! ( The atheist said )

There are more highlighting that could be made, to just overstate the simplicity of a fast paced thrill, but the share enjoyment this one offers, I believe it simply has to be judged by yourself.

It was far greater than expected in entertainment. Im in the same mood as i reviewed a drama a couple of hours ago, so don't think I'm being generous, because i shat on that so called 10 star flick. Im simply saying. It made me say "Coool!" in one or two scenes. That doesn't happen to me often nowadays.


John Hurt has plays so many roles it is difficult which he personally would select as his best. For Me, I've seen him play mad emperors, tyrant Dictators and pleasant storytellers all with the same conviction of a true Thespian. In this film " The Outlander " his role is relegated to playing the courageous Rothgar, the Danish Chiefton of the Northland Vikings. From out in the distant galaxies and far from his own home world, comes 'Kainan' a space traveler (James Caviezel) who's spacecraft has been damaged and sent careening towards Earth. Upon crashing, he discovers he is on 'Old Earth' circa 10th century, Norway. Unfortunately, he quickly ascertains one of the creatures he was battling in space has joined him when he lands. Here he must not only adapt to the Viking way of life, but hunt down and destroy the last of a race of creatures called the 'Moorwen.' Sophia Myles plays Freya, the chieftain's strong willed daughter and Wulfric (Jack Huston) the brave heir apparent. Ron Perlman is Gunnar and displays some excellent acting as does young Bailey Maughan who is Erick. The movie is a surprising blend of Alien, the 13th warrior and Beowulf. The dramatic action theme is way above par, while the physical confrontational scenes and special effects are incredible. A superb movie and a worthwhile entry on it's way to becoming a memorable Classic. Highly recommended for all! ****


This is definitely the greatest science  fiction surprise of 2008 , little advertised, having been made on less than a modest budget, but still having all that a good movie of this genre requires , namely : visuals ( Fantasy II ) ,acting ( J. Caviezel in the leading role , perhaps the most underrated actor in H-Wood today ! ), and , believe it or not , a story that IS quite original : a space craft crashes on Earth ,and only one survives , well, two , but the other thing is nonhuman , very nasty and rather horrifying- H.R.Giger would be proud - and , yes , has a huge appetite for humans, but even that is brilliantly explained , as the human race in its quest for resources obliterates anything that lives on any planet,and not asking any questions , but simply sending the fleets of colonizers after the campaign 's been done ! All well and peachy unless you find yourself somewhere in the Scandinavia in the 10th century without any fleshy super zap guns or any other useful electronic device that would give you an edge!Briefly , a hodge-podge of classic movies from The Dark Star, Alien series you simply can˙t beat that  to Predator , combined with none other than the literary classic Beowulf , and it takes quiet a lot to do that ! H.McCain is a first time director to be watched closely!


I rented this one and it languished on my Apple TV for two weeks before I decided to see if I would be very disappointed for a half-hearted Beowulf knockoff.

Surprise! No Beowulf. No Grendel. No Bad, cheesy FX.

Space Marine crashlands in 6th Century Norway and brings along with him a alien enemy that starts tearing havoc through the primitive viking people there.

The story is simple enough, but the execution is VERY GOOD. The lead character is solid, believable and likable. The Viking hold that takes him prisoner is actually pretty believable with a lot of nice historic touches (If you can excuse the British accents here and there). The angle about the Beast stirring up a feud between settlements makes a lot of sense. And they carried over the acceptance of the Space Marine (Outlander) into the clan in a manner that made social sense-- at least as far as Sci-Fi films go)

The FX were very well done, especially the back story where you are filled in on how the Hero came to marooned on this planet-- and the delving into remorse on the part of the spacers for what he did to the creature's homeland was an interesting sideline. . .it added character to the script.

The Monster. . .now the monster was GREAT. Menacing and Dangerous with excellent use of darkness and light to accentuate it's pure animal rage.

Like the Viking on the Stockade murmured in awe: "Now that's no bear."

This one is a STRONG Monster Hunt flick that's well-done. Give this one a go for Saturday night.


"Outlander" doesn't fit squarely into any one or two or five genres, but I think it's best described as a creature feature. And it's a damn good one. Blending science fiction, fantasy, horror, adventure, and Viking mythology, the film is highly entertaining. More importantly, though, is that the film is competently made.

"Outlander" opens with the character Kainan - played by Jim Caviezel - crash-landing his spaceship somewhere in Norway during the time of the Vikings. Alone and forced to forge an alliance with some belligerent Vikings, Kainan has some work to do...namely, killing a vicious beast called the Moorwen, which had stowed away in his ship and is now wreaking havoc in Viking Land. If you're anything like me, you're already predisposed to liking the movie just by reading that much about the premise. To say anything more about the story would certainly lead into spoiler territory, but I will say this: there are a couple of great game-changers, one of which enhances the man-vs.-beast angle of the plot in the best possible way.

Caviezel is solid as the lead, ably projecting angst, confidence, regret, and hurt whenever called upon to do so. All of the other characters are pretty much one-note, so there's no single standout performance among the supporting players. But there's also no laughably-bad one, either. John Hurt was a welcome presence in this one as the aged King Rothgar, and it's always a pleasure when Ron Perlman shows up anywhere - here, he plays Rothgar's brutish rival forced to ally himself with his enemy to fight the Moorwen. The beautiful Sophia Myles is great eye candy, but she has a thankless role as the rebellious king's daughter and hence not a lot to work with. Overall, the cast isn't great, but it's perfectly adequate; the same can be said for the characters.

The CGI and makeup effects in the film are generally terrific. The Moorwen is wonderfully realized and doesn't look cheesy at all on its own. I was very, very impressed with the design and function of the monster. It definitely doesn't scream "low budget," which is kind of what I was expecting. Happily, it defies those expectations informed by so many terrible SciFi Original Movies ("Frankenfish" or "Manticore," anyone?). Additionally, some flashback scenes in the second half of the film that explore Kainan's "home" planet are very cool to behold.

The one bone I'd pick with the effects comes when the Moorwen interacts with the human characters. The CGI kills, specifically, are typically neither creative nor convincing. Again, though, the rest of the effects are good enough to cover for this slight blunder.

"Outlander" borrows heavily from other films in the genres it crosses, but don't hold that against it. It's really an inspired effort that doesn't come across as a work of imitation at all. It's not perfect, and some moments will have you rolling your eyes, but you won't find yourself laughing at things that aren't supposed to be funny and you won't be checking your watch.


This was the first time I saw that movie, but I'll comment while the good impression still there. I didn't understand why I'd never notice when movies like this are release in Mexico till I saw movies like Minotaur, Anaconda 2, Snakes on the plane/train, etc.

I like when I'm not expecting anything pleasurable or funny in a movie and then they come with this. This is a very well done movie, action-packed, nice drama and the best part: Its not senseless.

Simple like this: Kainan is a traveler from another world/galaxy/universe, who used to be a member of a greedy and conqueror kind (very similar to the humans), whose starship crash into our world, in the Vikings Age, bringing with him a violent and uncontrollable creature (a "Godzilla" looked Dragon) named Moorwen, thats searching revenge against the exterminator of his breed. Afther Kainan is accepted by a Viking community that is being attacked by the Moorwen, he decide to help them kill that beast by the old way (no guns).

Probably the special effects seems to be very old, like ten years ago, but the action is not affected for it. I'd like the way the Moorwen was made, in some cases it almost look cleaver. Its not the typical killer creature and if its not a completely serious matter in the movie... well, I guess the name of the movie is Outlander, not Outlander and the Moorwen.

And about the outlander, I think that Jim Caviezel is to much for the role. He did a good job and he brings some prestige to the film (not enough, thought). He plays Kainan, the alien guy who become prisoner of the Viking who hate him and reject him. At the beginning he's just trying to warn the beautiful King's daughter (Sohpia Myles) from the trouble they're facing with. Time after, he falls in love with her, he becomes part of the village and earn the King's trust, and thats why he fight for their protection. Thats all the drama I need, not the perfect drama of course, but this is not a perfect film, just way to good. The action is the best reason to watch this film... and maybe the best is see it thinking it will sucks, it work for me.

Again, this s just the first impression but like I said, I was not expecting the best picture, just a few action, a few drama and how to spend my time. Ya, I like it.


I had been interested in seeing Outlander ever since I heard it described as a fantasy re-telling of the Beowulf legend. It did not disappoint in this regard. From beginning to end, Outlander is an action-packed genre mash-up that manages to make Beowulf more fun than any retelling in recent history (including The 13th Warrior). All of the above having been said, there are some things to keep in mind before viewing Outlander.

First, the film is not historically accurate. Anybody who goes into a film that features aliens and spacecraft in its advertising and expects a faithful historical reproduction of Beowulf will be disappointed with Outlander  rightfully so, I might add. A lack of historical accuracy in a film that showcases spacecraft and aliens? How unexpected!

Second, Outlander is an action movie first and everything else second. This being the case, some laws of physics have been suspended in pursuit of entertainment. Anybody going into Outlander expecting to see a detailed, painstaking, recreation of real world physics or a seminar on the chemical properties of whale oil will be just as disappointed as the aforementioned history buffs (and, again, rightfully so).

Outlander has never claimed to be a history text or a physics class and it (unsurprisingly) fails at being both of these things. Outlander is, on the other hand, an entertaining piece of action cinema. If the idea of Vikings fighting aliens sounds like fun to you, go see Outlander. If you're looking for a historical docudrama or recreation of Viking Age warfare, go see something else.


Let me start by saying that negative comments motivated by it being a reinterpretation of the Beowulf story and not being historically correct are simply mistaken.

All movies that exist are influenced by old tales, some rip them off blindly, some even claim to tell "the true story" (King Arthur*shudders*). But looking for historical correctness in a movie that says "Aliens vs. Vikings" is like going into an Helly Kitty movie expecting some good action scenes and blood.

You choose what movies to watch, stick with the genre you like, then you will not be disappointed so often.

_Now to the movie itself_ I expected this movie to be cheap, cheesy and uninteresting but watching it together with my even more skeptical girlfriend changed our both minds. This movie is well done, well shot, well produced, the props look good enough, the sets are good enough, the CGI is well done and the actors do a decent job.

The Screenplay seems to be cut just right, it does not have too many lengths or shorts, the conversations have the needed information without venturing off too far into the romance story within the action. I like that most of the romance is portrayed simply through visuals and not words. The action is well cut, though i would have liked it to be a bit less "shaky" but it seems this trend will have to develop to its extreme before it starts to vanish again (hopefully soon i wanna see the effort the actors and stuntman put into their swordplay more clearly!).

**Minor spoilers** The story has some nice tones to it, especially an untypical rivalry between the main character and a male side character, that does not include the typical "i will kill you if you touch her" or the typical fistfight and alcohol to make them friends again, very well done! :D The background story to the beast and its motivation close before the final and the portrait of it really gave the whole thing more depth to it and i liked it very much, because that way you can just be all "alienhating" over the course of the whole movie and get this slight "oh noes i feel bad for them" feeling right before it ends :D I like that the viking cast does not only consist of 2 meter man with 1 meter broad shoulders grunting and shouting, but that they are more displayed as humans, normal men (unlike Pathfinder / King Arthur), which i honestly had expected to happen, because of the "B-movieish" kind of nature of the main idea for the movie.

As i said in the beginning, this movie is just cinema at its best. It does not have many faults, most of them are because of the lower production values of the movie, but they really pushed themselves and I wish this movie the best of success and want to see more of this kind of well-done-entertainment!


All i can say is give it 11 out of 10! Its got so much gore and alien homeworlds and broadswords, and yet im sure if you took your wife/girlfriend or religious father to see it they would nod and smile at the end and say 'i didn't think id enjoy that''but it was quite good actually'

I haven't felt so excited watching a film in years! especially not an action/fantasy film. The alien was SWEET and truly magnificent, the cgi was top notch. The director needs a big pat on the back.

I haven't felt this way since i was a kid, it emulated all my favourite childhood films ALIEN, HIGHLANDER, PREDATOR....with a touch of WILLOW

So SO good! im gonna see it again!

LOVE IT LOVE IT LOVE


**SPOILERS** Experiencing nightmares walking in her sleep and missing time since she was 4 years old Judith English's, Markie Post, teenage daughter Katie,Candace Cmeron, is now going through the same things! Is it genetic or is it something else something with no earthly explanation?

The made for TV movie "Visitors of the Night" explores the modern day phenomena of alien abductions that has, since the first reported case back in 1961 involving Betty and Barney Hill, gone from dime store novel material to being taken seriously by millions of Americans as well as tens of millions of people all over he world.

Time just seems to stand still for young Katie as she loses touch with her surroundings and finds herself miles from the places that she was last at. One evening walking out of a friends home during a party when she came back in,in what seemed to be a fleeting moment,Katie finds that the party was over and that three hours had mysteriously passed by! Katie for some strange reason fears the night and covers the window in her bedroom to keep the night-lights, and whatever comes with them, out. One evening she again disappears minus her eyeglasses, which Katie can't see a thing without,and is found a day later miles away in a deserted wheat-field unhurt and with 20/20 vision. Katie also got very bright during her sleep-walking disappearances knowing more about politics in getting her dad Bryan ,Stephen McHattie, who's running for city councilman elected then his entire election staff put together.

Judith having recurring nightmares goes to psychiatrist Dr. Matt, Susan Hogan, for help only to find out that what she's having are not nightmares at all but suppressed memories from her past. She also finds that their somehow connected to what her daughter, Katie, is having now. Fairly good film about alien abductions that not only convinces Judith and her daughter Katie that there not figments of their imagination but the real deal.

At the conclusion of the movie we get an explanation from Judith on a spaceship with her alien captors, what the real reason for this strange enigma really is: It has to do with genetic engineering on the aliens part. The aliens are trying to create a race of alien/human hybrids and the the one thing the aliens need that millions of years of advanced science, over the human race, hasn't given them: human emotions.

Without a newborn baby being loved and cared for by his, or her, mother it loses it's ability and will to survive. That's the reason that women all over the earth, like Judith and Katie,who were abducted and impregnated by the aliens, are needed by the spacemen to nurture these hybrid babies and give them a reason for living. It's those human emotions that the aliens, no matter how advanced that they are, can never duplicate or instill in themselves.

Hard to follow at first with a lot of sub-plots that it really could do without but when "Visitors of the Night" gets to the core or "Heart and Soul" of it's story it's very hard not to keep your tear-ducts from filling up and then spilling over.


Just caught this on late night Lifetime channel. I know it's usually a women's channel but I have always found Markie Post to be very attractive & she was smoking in this film. Made for TV movie also featuring Candace Cameron who is repeatedly abducted and probed by space aliens is desperate for help. Markie Post is reliving nightmares as well and then it comes to her that she also was abducted and probed by these evil space aliens. They then realize a common thread regarding the abductions and join forces to stop them once and for all. Post manages to get abducted in Cameron's place and finds out exactly what these pesky aliens are up to and pleads with them to stop their research and things get quiet...for a short time...Must see movie.


If you like drama, there's not enough of it in this movie to intrigue you. If you like suspense, you'll certainly not suspend your nap as this movie "progresses." If you appreciate science fiction, there's precious little science and even less imaginative fiction to warrant watching this mess. In other words: this movie has nothing for everyone.

Spunky Candace Cameron Bure (she played the oldest daughter in the TV series, "Full House.") plays Katie English, a somewhat rebellious child (she can't even act rebellious), is repeatedly abducted by aliens, draws some pictures of it, and yells at her mother (the lovely Markie Post). But Mother, after being hypnotized, recognizes these tell-tale signs in her daughter, including puncture marks that looked like they were inflicted by a tri-fanged vampire, that remind her of her own alien abductions. There's a lot of crying, arguing, yelling, etc., and the movie deftly meanders, whining forth for over 2 hours.

Our little "Rebel" also prances atop a figurative soapbox a couple of times, spouting environmental doomsday pap. This has absolutely nothing to do with the plot of the movie, but was apparently put there for the viewers "benefit" and "education." This 1995 script has Katie telling her classmates how "civilization as we know it" will collapse by the year 2000 (The same drivel that teachers back in 1980 told children would happen before 1990; the same claptrap that's vomited in classrooms across America today).

Finally the viewer gets to see the aliens. These entities are the quintessential mouthless, big-eyed, naked, mind-communicating creatures we've come to expect. But that's okay, they're a welcome relief in the movie. Yes, they're a welcome relief, but they are, however, rather incompetent scientists: they can't get their experiments right. But nonetheless I couldn't help but feel sorry for them for having repeatedly abducted such crybabies as specimens. In fact, I kept hoping they'd abduct me so that I wouldn't have to finish watching this horrible movie.

I strongly recommend that you neither rent the video release, nor watch this movie should it again rear it's boring head on TV.


I was unfamiliar with the story of Stella Dallas, so when I first sat down and began to watch the 1925 version, I was expecting a simple, and light hearted silent; 'a fun way to spend an hour, but will soon be forgotten', type of film. By the very end, I had tears in my eyes, and I suddenly wanted to run up to my mother, hug her close, and never let her go. Stella Dallas took a completely unexpected twist, and turned out to be one of the most moving, and bittersweet dramas of the silent era.

A believable and extremely talented cast, molds this film into the finest it can possibly be. Belle Bennett absolutely steals the show from everyone else. Her performance is unforgettable and heartbreaking. Even though her character makes some mistakes in the beginning, she has a big heart, and lots of love for her beloved daughter. We cry and grieve with her, as she tries to set things right, and fights for her daughter's happiness and well being. Her daughter, Laurel Dallas, is played by the soft, sensitive, and purely pretty actress Lois Moran. She struggles between the love for her mother and her beau (played by a young and handsome Douglas Fairbanks Jr.). Ronald Colman is a natural at pantomime, and brought his character (Laurel's father, Stephen, who lives away in New York) to glowing life. Alice Joyce is a great actress, it's always nice to see her, and in this she plays the true love of Stephen Dallas. Unfortunately, her part is just a tad too small, but very effective.

If mother-daughter stories touch you, be sure to bring at least one whole box of tissues, because you WILL need them. I guarantee you, that by the time The End appears across the screen, you'll have teared up at least once or twice. One deeply feels for the characters and their troubles; not to mention, the famous ending is haunting.


The first film version of the Olive Higgins Prouty best seller.

Despite third billing, Belle Bennett stars as Stella and is very good in the role of her career. She does an amazing job of aging over a 20-year period and is very effective.

Ronald Colman stars (and gets tops billing) as Stephen Dallas, and Alice Joyce is Mrs. Morrison.

Lois Moran gets the role of Laurel and is excellent, starting out as a 10-year-old. Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. plays the boy friend. They were both 16. Jean Hersholt is Ed Munn, Vera Lewis is a gossipy teacher, and Beatrix Pryor plays Fairbanks' mother.

Bennett never got another good role and died of cancer in 1932.


Without question, the finest version of this classic "tearjerker". Belle Bennett will break your heart. The finale (watching the wedding in the rain) is an epiphany comparable to the end of IKIRU... This is a work that should--no, must--be made available for film lovers around the world.


I think Miss Stanwyck was a great actress, but when I look at the version of STELLA DALLAS that King Vidor directed her in twelve years after this silent version..... well, something always bothered me about it. WHY was she supposed to be such a monster? She was Barbara Stanwyck. All right, she wasn't dressed as beautifully as she was in THE LADY EVE, but being a little bit frumpy isn't against the law, especially when you look like Barbara Stanwyck.

But when Belle Bennett dresses up in this movie, she is a well-meaning horror, wearing stripes, frills, lace, feather, rings on her fingers, probably bells on her toes..... and a fat suit. You couldn't have gotten Miss Stanwyck into a fat suit. She had her eye on her career. But Belle Bennett had her eye on making this movie as good as possible, so she becomes a fat monster, loving her daughter and utterly clueless. It's a great performance.

Also great is the way Henry King directs the sequences that take place in the mill town. No one had a better eye for the details of small town life than Henry King, from TOL'ABLE David through WAIT TILL THE SUN SHINES NELLIE. Jean Hersholt also has a good role as Ed Munn, and a lovely comic turn on the train into the city. Ronald Colman is fine, exuding the melancholia that he used throughout the 1930s whenever he had to run away to the Foreign Legion or face the guillotine. Alice Joyce is sedate and charming, a fine counterpoint for Bennett. Lois Moran, as Stella's daughter is adorable, and Douglas Fairbanks Jr., in his first real role, is excellent.

There are a number of plot points that must be gotten through and which are better indicated in Frances Marion's script than in the 1937 version ... even though some points seem to be skipped over, they are butchered worse in the sound version. Something always seems to be missing from these weepers. It may be that it is simply that I am not able to appreciate the fine points of these things, but there you go.

However, despite these minor failings, the above-mentioned virtues, as well as the classic final shot of Stella watching the wedding through the window, make this is a great film, and it is only my annoyance at some of the minor failings of the translation from book to film that keeps me from considering this perfect.

But it is ten times the film that the sound remake is. Even if the voice I hear in my head when Miss Bennett moves her lips is that of Barbara Stanwyck.


It was a very moving experience for me to finally view this movie. It is definitely, without, a doubt superior to the already great 1937 version. Belle Bennett is absolutely brilliant in this role. It is only the second silent film that, not only brought tears to my eyes, but overfilled them, until almost bawling. It is that good. Even without the spoken word, the actors were able to display the emotions even better than actors whom had spoken their words.

I have been begging TCM for a couple of years, now, to please, air this movie. Mainly, because, I would love to know more people out there would get the chance to see this movie. If you haven't had the pleasure to see this movie, try to find a way. It won't be a waste of your time.


A great thriller, the film kept me guessing till the end. Robinson Stevenin was fantastic as Bo Ancellin. I saw the film when it came out in France and am glad somebody finally decided to bring it to the United States. Robinson Stevenin won a Cesar Award for his performance as a transvestite accused of a series of murders in Brussel's underground in this exciting, murder mystery film. It's rare to see a film which features a trans-gendered character as the lead actor, especially in a film theatrically released in the United States. The director, Francis Girod did an excellent job bringing the story to life. There was never a dull moment in Transfixed. Two thumbs way up, see this film!


The aria from Donizetti's 'L'elisir d'amore' plays a significant role throughout this fascinating, intelligent, well made thriller by Francis Girod based on a novel by Brigitte Aubert and adapted for the screen by Girod and Philippe Cougrand. 'The secret tear' takes on many meanings as this complex story set in Brussels unfolds in the same manner as 'Diabolique'. Only this film takes even more risks and succeeds resoundingly.

Presented as simply the main character instead of an oddity, transsexual Bo (Robinson Stévenin) works as an entertainer in a drag club in Brussels. His best friends are other transsexuals, especially Maeva (William Nadylam), who perform with him. Some are also prostitutes and are falling prey to a serial killer who disfigures each of his victims in a vicious way. Bo, we learn, left home at age 13, unable to cope with sexual molestation from his father (Marcel Dossogne) and the suicide of his mother, and lives quietly in a humble apartment. Her interest is peaked when a handsome young Johnny (Stéphane Metzger) moves in next door and she fantasizes an affair with him. While Johnny appears to be infatuated with Bo, he has his dark side, living with a roommate with whom he provides sexual services for older unattractive but rich women.

The police, headed by Huysmans (Richard Bohringer) investigate the serial killings and in some way Bo is always at the scene or is familiar with the victims. The story revolves around the cat and mouse game of surveillance and complications of information regarding the killing spree. An interesting sidebar shows Bo's father arrested for sexual harassment and Bo is interrogated by the police about his childhood traumas with his father. How Bo weaves through all of the events - longing for Johnny, attempts for a consignation with Johnny which teeters on the possible versus the sadistic, gay bashing, gaining courage to speak against his father, etc - is the maze the story pulls us through. The identity of the serial killer is successfully revealed at the very end of the film.

The excitement of the suspense drama is heightened by Girod's stunning direction and by the completely convincing acting of Robinson Stévenin, but also by the superb characterizations by Richard Bohringer, Stéphane Metzger, William Nadylam, Frédéric Pellegeay, Ginette Garcin, Stéphane De Groodt, and Charlie Dupont. The musical score by Alexandre Desplat is one of this fine composer's best, and the cinematography by Thierry Jault finds just the right flavor of the seamy streets of Brussels to make the story as creepy as it should be. So with all this praise why only 8 stars for the DVD? The subtitles (the film is in French) are so out of sync with the film that they completely destroy the important conversations, so much so that many times the subtitles are finishing off a scene that is no longer on the screen! If these were corrected it would be clear to everyone why Robinson Stévenin won the French Cesar Award for best actor and why it is such a success for the daring director Francis Girod. Highly recommended...just be aware that the English subtitles will frustrate you - unless you speak French! Grady Harp


Francis Girod began his career with a scandalous movie:Romy Schneider,who was looked upon as a Madonna by most of the FRench audience became one the most disgusting criminals an actress had ever played.Since he watered down his wine and subsequent works were much more moderate ("Lacenaire""la banquière") when they were not drastic failures ("descente aux enfers" " passage à l'acte".

"Mauvais genres " is a return to form for Girod.He has never been so nefarious since his debut.Two actors give stunning performances:Robinson Stevenin plays a transvestite ,a part so difficult -he is on the screen from the beginning to the end- it's a miracle he could pull it off so brilliantly.But Richard Bohringer's cop is even more impressive:his character speaks in a croaking voice ,close to a whisper.Meava the transsexual is probably the most humane character in the whole movie.

The plot is so complex it will demand several viewings.A lot of elements interfere :a serial killer who kills male and female prostitutes ,a transvestite whose father has just been arrested for pedophilia -which might or might not lead his son (Stevenin) whom he abused to lead such a life-; the "sens interdit" (one-way street) gay club where you can see a drag act , the "twin duet" featured in Demy 's "les demoiselles de Rochefort" ;elements of melodrama : the past of the characters recalls those endless novels from the nineteenth century when the characters did not know exactly who their father was;and a love the hero feels for a so-called straight mover (who's also a gigolo) .

But more than the story,it's the atmosphere which matters.Girod creates a destabilizing world which leaves the viewer panting for breath.And it's not sexist.The monsters are not necessarily the non-straights.


This film was recently recommended to me on a forum discussion concerning the best LGBT cinema. But Mauvais Genres is so good that I wouldn't say that it appeals only to such interest groups. It is excessively Hitchcockian (an adjective used far too often, but utterly justified in this case) in it's outlook. Indeed there are so many MacGuffins in this thriller involving props such as a microfilm or a heart-shaped box that you feel it edging almost into the territory of parody. As it is the movie stays at a more gleeful, vital, tone, revelling in homage. It is glossy enough for us to suggest that its tone comes from Hitchcock via de Palma. The music though seems directly inspired by such classic Hitchock scores as that in Vertigo.

There are in my opinion two characters in this movie of outstanding interest. First we have Bo, a transsexual entertainer, played by Robinson Stévenin, in what has to be one of the most outstanding performances that I have ever seen (winning the Cesar for best new actor). She is such an alive and beautiful person that it is truly painful when we see her subjected to violence. There is a subplot in the film concerning the fact that she was abused as a child and there are implications that her retreat into femininity is a coping strategy for dealing with that abuse. I'm in no way qualified to examine the risibility or otherwise of such claims, but certainly these thoughts may have been filtering through her mind and leading towards self-destructive behaviour.

The meat of the movie, which is only ostensibly a serial-killer thriller, is her love for Johnny, a clearly violent and handsome young man who has very mixed thoughts concerning transsexuals. Her love for him is so blind as to verge on self-immolation, her approaches undeterred by even a broken arm. I watch film to see excesses of emotions, and in her love for this psychotic individual, Bo's love becomes a fiery inferno that inundates her.

Johnny is also a very interesting character, he joined up in the foreign legion to see the tropics but, we are told, ended up waiting table at headquarters in Avignon. Metaphorically speaking perhaps that's what happens to most men in modern society. And you can certainly sense the frustration in this 'red-blooded' man for whom society is effectively a cage.


I didn't plan to write a comment, but there are only five, and all their ratings are high. I totally disagree with them, therefore, I wrote the following comment.

I don't speak French, so I had to watch the subtitle. I checked out the DVD from a local library. The first half of movie was fine, but the subtitle starts to appear about 5 seconds later than the actual dialog. So it was getting confusing to tell who said what.

There were all kinds of people who got killed with different backgrounds. , they simple don't make much sense. It seems that director just made all those killings to make this movie more "interesting".

For example, after a black guy was killed. The detective did not take a heart shaped box the first time he searched the house. The detective came back to that house the second time, and went directly to the place where the box was stored. How did the detective know about this box the second time, and if he already knew about it, why didn't he take it the first time?

After a man was stabbed by the killer, Bo went to that apartment. The man pointed into his pants, Bo was able to get a roll of film. Instead of giving it to the police, s/he actually kept the film himself. What for? He is not the detective, and he doesn't know what is in the film, why would he wants to keep the film? Then he went to someone s/he knows, asked him to develop the film for him. And that guy didn't even bother to ask Bo why s/he has those graphic pictures?

Overall, there were lots of scenes that don't make sense at all. It is a confusing movie.


I would have rated Red Dwarf 10/10, but unfortunately, when rating the show in its entirety, you must consider the final two seasons/series.

Series 1 - 6 will always be what I remember about the show. It was funny and original. You could relate to all characters (all the actors deserve the highest praise), and although there were plenty of plot holes, and continuity problems, there was a classic blend of good story lines, mixed with classic British-style humour.............it was unlike anything else before or since. Pure quality. Every episode was a classic, and I can watch them all again and again and laugh until I get a stitch.

Then after series 6 (one of the best series') Rob Grant left the show, the production budget increased, and series 7 was given that stupid 'film look'. Also Rimmer was replaced halfway through the series with Kochanski (Listers long lost love). Basically it seemed like someone had pressed the show's self destruct button, and its never been the same since. All the humour seemed forced, and the story lines got so deep, you actually forgot you were supposed to be watching a Sci-Fi comedy.

.......Then things got worse. Series 8 came out. The less said the better. I know there are hard core fans out there who say that series 8 isn't that bad. But try watching episodes from series 3, then watch series 8 and you'll realise how much the show went into freefall.

Its such a shame because in the early days of Dwarf, there simply wasn't anything better on TV.


"A sci-fi comedy? nah...that'll never work." That's what many people originally thought about the comedy classic Red Dwarf when the idea was first brought up in the mid 80's. But little did they know it would be so unexpectedly successful that it would actually have a cult following from all over the world.

The brain child of Rob Grant and Doug Naylor, Red Dwarf is unlike any other comedy. It has a unique British humour, and its sprinkled with dry wit and hilarious one-liners, but any fans of this show will know that there's something more to Red Dwarf than any other comedy ever made.

The characters are the most mis-matched bunch of low lifes in the cosmos, but put them together and they work perfectly! Rimmer: the most misunderstood man in the universe? perhaps, but its more likely he's just a great big jerk. He has no redeeming qualities what so ever, and yet it's impossible not to love him.

Lister: 50% Space scum. 50% Barely human slob. 100% Absolutely hilarious. The last man alive and he can't even microwave his own socks? Cat: whose 3 main traits are vanity, stupidity and, well, vanity, cat cares only for himself and finds his crew mates disgusting.

Kryten: where would the crew be without the humanoid Kryten? I absolutely love this show and have seen all 8 seasons several times, and I plan to watch them many times more. Watching Red Dwarf not only makes the viewer laugh, but the characters are so likable that watching it gives a deeper form of entertainment because the characters almost become like friends. The characters and actors do make this show, who could imagine anyone as Rimmer other than Chris Barrie? Or a better Lister than Craig Charles? The writing is truly very clever and incredibly unique, with subtle jokes as well as obvious rip offs and hundreds of hilarious one-liners.

This is one amazing, fantastically unique show that will never be equalled.


'Red Dwarf' took a little time to get into focus. But once it did there were few shows that matched it for hilarious sketches. The dynamic foursome of Lister, Cat, Rimmer and Kryten were too good to miss. Each represented one particular vice - sloth, vanity, pride and stupidity.

Every week the Grant/Naylor writing team concocted some of the most bizarre situations that nevertheless still had some foundation in science. Some of the lines were priceless, but the timing was also important and the team must take full credit for their part.

The blokes-in-space format worked wonderfully. Unfortunately; somebody somewhere decided that it was no longer politically-correct for men to have fun by themselves any more, and a former girlfriend of Lister's found her way into the script. A comedienne might have fitted the bill, but instead we had a straight actress trying to do 'blokish' humour, and it fell absolutely flat. The show devolved into a 'four naughty boys constantly chastened by bossy matriarch' format, which seems to be the modern standard-bearer of new anti-male presentation. Each programme seemed to be an issue of sexual politics.

The fun was over; feminism had arrived. As Wilfred Thessiger once remarked 'Women spoil everything'. Well, they certainly spoilt this.

Attempts to re-make the series will almost certainly fail. It was great while it lasted, but the idea ran its course. If you really want more - watch the DVD's.


For me Red Dwarf was an enigma. I saw some of the episodes aired on a public TV station and then nothing for years. NETFLIX membership allowed me to watch _all_ of them, from the start, and at my leisure. Wonderful ... until series 7 - it hit the fan and stayed there all gooey and smelly.

I had to do some research b/c I knew something went wrong on the creative side of the show. Rob Grant and Doug Naylor (thus the nom de plume: Grant Naylor) wrote the first 6 series and then split up. The show took an obvious turn which was not to my liking at all.

First of all we had 4 buds who, despite their incessant irritating and obvious issues, got along with each other. No matter what trouble they got in they were always there for each other - through thick and thin. It was a wonderful ride following these guys get in and out of trouble. The first 6 series are just such a wonderful pleasure that I felt I knew them. It was clearly a 10/10 performance.

After that the show was quirky in a bad way and annoying to watch. The thrill, adventure and pure fun was gone. Beyond that these series aren't worth mentioning.

So for me the Red Dwarf is stuck in Series 6, floating in space 3,000,000 years in the future and maybe, just maybe, one day, I might run into them.

A bientôt mon amis.

-LD

______________________________________________

my faith: http://www.angelfire.com/ny5/jbc33/


Some people do not 'get' this show and I'm not sure why. I always think that they haven't watched enough to get to know the characters or they can't quite relate to the abstract brilliance of it all. Well I'm not one of them for sure, as this show has provided me with more laughs than any other. From the disgusting habits of Lister to the delightful cheekiness of The Cat to the smug remarks from Rimmer the comic moments just go on and on. And yes, the Grant-Naylor partnership was possibly key in maintaining the subtlety of the gags. Yet, I do not necessarily agree that Series 7 and 8 were a pointless waste of time. For me, these two series were worth it just for Kryten alone. His eccentricity and corruption sort of 'blossomed' in a way and I felt Robert Llewlelyn took his character in the right direction. This is a point that will probably be hounded but you only need to see the psychiatrist scenes from the final series to see what I mean.

Sadly, the other characters in the latter series seem to lose some of the magic they so brilliantly weaved in front of a live audience. However, the stories were still good enough to entice my viewing throughout all 8. My personal favourite series is series two. Even though this was when they were still (pretty much) confined to the Red Dwarf ship, the scripts and dialogues were absolutely fantastic. 'Thanks for the Memory' is so brilliantly constructed I think of it as the best half hour of comedy ever written. The way it begins with the drunken starbug flight back and ends with the discovery of what Lister has done with Rimmer's memory is pure genius. Then you have that brilliant moment where Danny John-Jules nails a one-liner so sublimely that you just have to cackle. Rimmer (played by the ace Chris Barrie) attempts a ridiculous explanation to how they've ended up with unusual predicaments after a late night party (for example broken legs) and tries to ease everyone's worries by suggesting it was alien communication. Then Cat (Danny John Jules) simply says "I wouldn't want to be around when one of these suckers is making a speech".

Anyway, I could go on and on with the praise, so I'd just like to say to everyone involved in the show.............. thanks for the memories!!


I admit I'm not a fan of the last two series, but to produce 36 episodes of consistently good quality has to be recognised as an achievement, anyway. My current favourite episode is "Legion", although today is a Monday, so this choice is subject to change within the next 24 hours... ! Each member of the crew has their own instantly definable personality, and I just love it that even when greeting members of other civilisations, the toadying Rimmer cannot help but bluff about his high level of sophistication:

(Paraphrasing)

Rimmer: "Ah, an excellent example of modern art, no doubt. Note the precise cubic structure and its bold, sweeping lines... What is it?"

Legion: "My light switch".

R: "Can I buy it?"

L: "Not really. I need it to turn my lights on and off... "

I'm torn between whether I prefer on the whole the stark, bleak and basic environment of the first two series, or the polished, more modern look of series 5 and 6. In the beginning, the drab and ordinary nature of the sets allowed the focus to be more on character comedy, but in later years the more colourful design went hand-in-hand with ever more bizarre and interesting stories. Although the writing style changed as we became more comfortable with the characters, in half a dozen runs the quotient of laughs was kept remarkably high. This is the most important thing for a comedy, and above all, the clever and rapid-fire jokes are what helped "Red Dwarf" to achieve its own unique and seismic impact.


This series was just not working for me - Neither characters, cast, storyline, nor jokes did it for me. Sorry. I would like to stop here, but since IMDb requires 10 lines of text in every comment, here goes... The series bugged me, but maybe that's because I'm not too fond of series and fond of sci-fi movies. I think, in order to have anything work in a sci-fi setting, you have to make an extra effort to put in something new for the geeky outfits etc. to work. For me, Star Wars pulled it off most of the time (although my wife would probably argue), Star Trek never quite did it for me ["Captain, we've never seen anything like this life force before" -"Oh, well I have, last episode"] Red Dwarf doesn't pull it off, it's neither funny, nor new in its sci-fi ways, but it takes the price as the only blend of Space Balls, Eastenders, herbal tea, and James Brown. And since sci-fi comedy series has not been done a lot, I guess there is something new here after all - so I give it a 3. Cheers.


Red Dwarf is, without a doubt, my absolute, all-time, favourite TV program. I absolutely love everything about it. The performances are brilliant, and considering when Craig Charles joined the crew it was his first acting job, that's not to be underestimated. The story writing is superb. The jokes are sharp, witty and extremely hilarious. I wouldn't go as far as saying that it's the funniest thing I've EVER seen, but that isn't all that makes it my favourite program.

I have every series on DVD and watching them repeatedly is somewhat a hobby of mine. The way the characters are developed is brilliant and every single story of every episode is genius, clever and brings you into the Dwarf world more and more. Other than making me break out in fits of laughter every other line, it also offers intense entertainment through its action and adventures. Despite the fact that Lister's a 25 year old Liverpudlian space bum, Kryten is a robot, Rimmer is a hologram and the Cat is, well, a Cat, Rob Grant and Doug Naylor wrote every episode and every series so beautifully that I can really relate to the characters and feel like I'm a part of their world when I watch it.

This is no doubt one of a long line of classic British comedies that I would love to see brought back to life, the only difference is that this SHOULD be reborn. The eighth series ended with a terrible cliff hanger that was, sadly, not to be resolved, and I really think that the BBC should pull it's finger out of it's cavity and commission a ninth series to give the show the full, complete conclusion that it deserves. It was a waste to let the Red Dwarf era fizzle out all those years ago and I hope to god that something gets done about it.


The WHOLE series is great. 1st was great, 2nd was better, 3-6 were almost as good, seven was more about drama than comedy, but 8 was funny. People keep complaining that '6-8 were crap, not funny, boring, wah wah wah'. SHUT UP!!!! Just because it didn't have as many laughs as the other series doesn't make it crap. If two runners in a race were less than a second apart at the finish, the lesser wouldn't be considered crap, just not as good. Series seven was still funny, but it was more about drama and story. Series eight was funny because the seriousness of seven wasn't needed anymore, besides, Holly was back. Red Dwarf is still a classic series, and will remain so for years to come. I can't wait for the movie.


Red Dwarf is undoubtedly a classic, with its perfect blend of extraordinary sci-fi plot lines and down to earth British humour proves a great combination for sci-fi fans and general TV lovers alike. The show is set in the future and is based around the scruffy Dave Lister (Craig Charles), the pessimistic coward Arnold Rimmer (Chris Barrie), the mutant cat (Danny John-Jules) and the clumsy android Kryten (David Ross and Robert Llewellyn) and their adventures in space when they are trying to find there way home. Countless are the times when you will be watching red dwarf and you will literally have to pause the DVD because you are laughing so much. I personally recently purchased the entire Red Dwarf collection and I am very content with my purchase. The only thing left to say about it is that young or old you will easily fall in love with "The Boys From The Dwarf"


I was a bit hesitant about renting out "Red Dwarf" the first time one of my friends recommended it too me but I got it out anyway because I always like finding a new fantastic show, and this was definitely all that and more. While in the early series having a tiny budget used on props and the sets it still managed to produce fantastic story lines and new characters every episode, it was when they got a bigger budget(Season 3 or 4 and over) that they really let their creative style loose going to different funny dimensions, meeting equally funny new character's and with jokes about what different dimensions existed they still had great character jokes, which really made the humour of this show something to be reckoned with.

The character's in the show are a great example of how character interaction alone can make a show 100 times better, and in this we see such a wide range of character's, lead and co starring that make this show great on its own even without all the other dimensions (This was, as I said earlier most of what the first 2 or 3 seasons were like). First there is Dave Lister, who is a slob but is also a deep down very caring and compassionate guy and to the writers credit, they really make it so that just when you think Dave is just a useless slob they write an episode which reveals more about that character and how he is really a good guy. Then there is Rimmer, and prude sort of fellow who has always wanted to become an officer but, not being able to, due to being a complete incompetent worker and a general nuisance to be around has convinced himself that he is a great worker, but has not been promoted due to being so good at what he does (Head Vending Machine Maitenence man). Anyway, as the series progresses he is one of the best walls to bounce jokes with between him and Lister, and while they are always fighting deep down they both don't hate each other and Lister is actually quite understanding of the fact that Rimmer is a complete and utter Smeghead. After that there is Kryten, one of my favourite character's in a TV show in the 20th centuries, from him trying to be more human to his pathetic whining he is another great wall of jokes with all the character's. Last of the main character's from the early seasons (Kochanski replacing Rimmer for a small time in season 7) is the obnoxious but oddly lovable Cat, who is a descendant from a cat Lister smuggled aboard (Which is the reason Dave was put into stasis and how he became the only human alive) who has now become a human looking and sounding up himself cat mutant who has an odd addiction to fashion. All these character's make the show what it is and what it always will be.

Overall the time has become a classic that will (Hopefully) live on forever bringing in new waves of followers. Red Dwarf Forver!!!.


It is hard to believe it is just over twenty years since 'Red Dwarf' blasted onto our screens. I watched the first episode for two reasons; firstly, it was the work of Rob Grant and Doug Naylor, writers I knew from their work on 'Carrott's Lib' and 'Spitting Image', and secondly, it combined two life-long interests of mine - comedy and science fiction.

The premise is this - mining ship 'Red Dwarf' has suffered a disaster in space, meaning that most of its crew are dead. The only survivor is Dave Lister ( Craig Charles ), a slob who loves getting drunk and eating curry. Also around are a life form descended from a cat he smuggled on board, called 'Cat' ( Danny John-Jules ), who acts like James Brown, and Arnold Rimmer ( Chris Barrie ), a hologram of an unpopular technician. There's also a talking computer called 'Holly', played first by Norman Lovett and then Hattie Hayridge.

I was disappointed by the opening episode, so like the Smeghead that I am did not bother with the show again until it reached its third season. 'Backwards' opened with a hilarious conversation between Lister and Cat in which the former expressed a secret desire for Wilma Flintstone. It convinced me that the show had changed for the better ( I later caught up with the ones I had missed, and found they were not bad either ). The same episode brought in as a regular 'Kryten' ( David Ross, then Robert Llewelyn ), a robot who speaks in a Canadian accent and who by his own admission looks like Herman Munster's stunt double.

The show could have been called 'Lads In Space'. The cast were superb, particularly Barrie as the conceited 'Rimmer', the scripts cleverly exploited the fine line between comedy and sci-fi, and for my money it was one of the best sitcoms of the '90's, alongside 'I'm Alan Partridge' and 'Father Ted'. Among the many first-rate episodes were 'Demons & Angels' ( the boys meet evil versions of themselves ), 'Gunmen Of The Apocalypse' ( the boys in a space western ), 'Timeslides' ( Rimmer tries to change the course of his own history ), 'D.N.A.' ( Kryten learns what it is like to be human ), 'Dimension Jump' ( Rimmer meets a heroic version of himself - 'Ace' Rimmer ). Best of all was 'Back To Reality' in which the boys think that their 'Dwarf' experiences have all been part of a Virtual Reality game. Cat's cries of 'Dwayne Dibbley!' were hilarious! With such a strong cast and production crew, the show attained a peak of perfection unseen in British comedy for years previously - and some would say, not since. It was also a hit in America, and they attempted their own version, from all accounts it was not very good.

Sadly, Naylor and Grant parted company, and the seventh season was written by Naylor and other writers such as Kim Fuller. Robert Llewelyn himself co-wrote one. The absence of Grant, plus a move onto film, and Chris Barrie only appearing in a handful of episodes, resulted in Season Seven looking a bit patchy. The inclusion of a new female character - 'Kochanski' ( Chloe Annett ) made things worse. She was to the boys from the Dwarf what Zeppo had been to the Marx Bros.

Things perked up a bit in Season Eight. Rimmer came back full-time, Norman Lovett returned as 'Holly', and Naylor wrote every episode alone, ensuring the comedy was more consistent. Bringing back the entire crew, including the Captain, was a mistake though ( as was the retaining of Kochanski ). The show simply did not need them.

And that sadly is where the 'Red Dwarf' story ends. It is now ten years since the transmission of Season Eight. Naylor has tried to get a 'Dwarf' feature film made but without success. I wish he had instead devoted the time to writing more television episodes.

'Sky Television' have announced a pair of specials for transmission sometime in the year. Hopefully they will feature the original cast. The idea of a bunch of nobodies as 'Rimmer', 'Cat', 'Lister' et al does not exactly thrill me.