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Battlefield Earth

Battlefield Earth

List Price: $14.98
Your Price: $13.99
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: How could you go wrong! :D
Review: Three parts Scientology + 1 part John Travolta in a Predator costume + 1 part 'Project X' - 1 part that stinky Matthew Broderick = CINEMATIC GOLD

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Could It Really Be That Bad?
Review: Based on a portion of the L. Ron Hubbard sci-fi pulp bestseller, BATTLEFIELD EARTH presents the story of earth some one thousand years after it has been colonized by invaders from outer space, who seek to rob the earth of its precious metals. The human race has been almost eliminated: most have been exterminated, a few have been kept for slave labor, and a handful survive in pockets of tribal communities. When one member of a tribal society (Barry Pepper) is captured for slave labor, a combination of circumstance and personal heroism provide him with the opportunity to lead a revolt.

All that sounds very well, but there are three things wrong with the movie: John Travolta, the script, and everything else. Travolta's work has always been up and down, sometimes great and sometimes truly dire, but his appearance here as the evil invader Terl is easily the single worst performance he has given in his entire career. No matter how you look at the thing, Travolta is as much like a bad guy from outer space as banana pudding--and really, I do believe that any self-respecting dish of banana pudding could have done a better job.

As for the script, it's really one of the strangest things I've ever heard. In scenes with the aliens (called Psychlos), the dialogue actually sounds rather like a bad parody of a Noel Coward drawing-room farce. The dialogue for the humans is equally absurd, playing out like a cross between BRAVEHEART and the more uninspired pages of a Barbara Cartland novel. And while I'm willing to suspend disbelief to a certain extent, the plot has zero plausibility--even to the point of insulting viewer intelligence.

As for everything else, to give the film its due there are occasional design ideas and shots that seem interesting--but they are buried under a ton of very bad ideas that have been very badly executed. The costume and make-up designs for the Psychlos look rather like bad drag at a leather bar for the fashion-challenged, the lovely braids of our hero and his tribe seem to have been lifted from Malibu Barbie, and all the big-scale special effects are very obviously miniatures. Now, I wouldn't go so far as to say that I'd gouge my eyes out with a kitchen spoon before I'd sit through this debacle again, but I will say this much: someone would have to pay me, and even then I'd demand a remote control with a fast-forward feature.

As for the DVD package, the transfer is okay--but I did notice that the soundtrack was noticeably off for several minutes of the film, and oddly (and typically) I wasn't entirely sure if this was a flaw in the DVD or if the director/producers actually intended it to be that way! There are also several short documentaries, all of them very repetitive and very ironically self-congratulatory about what a great film BATTLEFIELD EARTH is. As for the audio commentary track, I really couldn't be bothered to sit through the movie a second time to listen to it. My recommendation? Well, if you're like me and you just have to see the film to find out if it's really as bad every one says it is... go ahead. But for all others, just trust me on this one, okay?

GFT, Amazon Reviewer

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Big Budget 'Plan 9' Remake!!!
Review: For starters, every single terrible thing you have heard about this film is 100% true! And while that may be bad for Scientology cult disciples and any other half wit who invested money in the films production, it's brilliant for lovers of so bad they're good flicks.

The plot/plot holes: It's 1000 years into the future and earth is over run by an invading 9-foot tall alien race called 'Psychlos' (umm? 'psychos' and don't expect the difference in height to be as well filmed as in the LOTR trilogy, psychlos are created by having 'actors' stumble around in shoulder pads on obvious platform shoes), man-animalkind is made up of slaves and other living like cavemen in tattered clothes (not bad wear considering their clothing should be 1000 years old plotwise), man-animal Barry Pepper ventures out to be captured and enslaved. Cut to scenes of ridiculous alien banter about 'leverage' and of them double crossing each other (how did such an unorganized race take over the world in 9 minutes?!), scheming psychlo Travolta wants to secretly mine gold (aliens value gold too?) in a zone aliens can't go (alien air reacts badly to radiation?) so he expands Pepper's mind by a laser light show and teaches him to fly?! (it's not enough that they leave the slaves working unsupervised and not under guard around control panels but they have to teach one to read psychlo and fill his head with useful info). Born again scientologist Pepper (after his education he starts spouting Hubbard's mantras like "maths in the universal language") doesn't really mine but merely picks up gold from fort Knox (after 1000 years of alien occupation they still haven't found the gold at Fort Knox?) of course psychlo Travolta not only believes that half a dozen man animals mined a few cubic meters of gold in 14 days but they also melted in down to perfect bars in their spare time? Given 7 more days to mine Pepper and fellow man-animals hatch a plan to liberate the planet using guns and planes (which are of course in perfect working order after 1000 years), man-animals learn to fly the jets (in 7 days flat using 1000 year old flight simulators which still have electricity). Of course the alien aircraft which took over the world in 9 minutes are no match for cavemen in jump-jets (but then again these cgi jump-jets are capable of hovering in hollow building and making hairpin turns!?). They then destroy planet psychlo by beaming up a nuclear bomb. Many scientology activists will plead with you to believe that the book isn't as bad as the movie, but my little bro read it and yes it contains all of the basic plot holes and stupidity of the film and them some.

The 'director' of this film (about now he's probably flipping burgers or cleaning toilets) tried to make the film stylish with countless jump cuts and other slick editing but that just deepens the cheesyness. Its pure hilarity too when they try to steal from other flicks: planet psychlo looks like the opening of 'Blade Runner' and also the running through glass scene from BR is repeated here too (Barry Bob Pepper however emerges from this feat without any lacerations!?), a speech reminiscent of 'BraveHeart' about "freedom" is given at one point by Pepper too (made even funnier by the fact that a man-animal in blue facepaint is in the background). And the idiotic screen wipes which are used! Obviously an attempt to emulate the good 'StarWars' movies (the original ones) they use doubledoor opening screens wipes in EVERY single scene transition! When the last scene cuts to the credits and they use a double door closing screen wipe, I was laughing so hard it hurt!

The fact that this is a big budget film means that you get to see a-list actors making fools of themselves on screen. Real life scientology cult member John Travolta, who you may remember from the period-costume drama 'Saturday Night Fever', puts in the single greatest comedy performance in film history! He reads ever single inept line of dialogue like it was pure Shakespeare in a dead serious manner that comes across as pure camp genius. Genuinely good actor Pepper is shamed too but not so much by his performance but by a script that had him making ape noises in a standoff! If only they had of cast true scientology fanatic and non-actor Tom Cruise in Pepper's role and spared Barry the embarrassment, I'm sure the film would have got even worse (if that's possible?).

While I only gave this film 1 star for pure comedy viewing this film definitely earns 5 stars! During the entire 2 hour running time you will be in a state of constant laughter, more so than can be generated by any comedy movie put out in the last 10 years. In fact there is something almost surreal about viewing 'Battlefield Earth' in that unlike any other so bad its good movies this one was made on an enormous Hollywood budget. While all big budget flicks made in Hollywood are bad by default, none come close to the virtuoso ludicrous insanity that is 'Battlefield Earth'!

While it is good for a hearty laugh and satisfying to see what should be a triumph for scientologists go down in history as one of the most absurd film blunders of all time (LOL not mention the substantial fanatical losses inflicted on all parties involved), I can't help feel bad that the money that went into production of this trainwreck of a film could have gone a long way in fighting cancer or world hunger or any other worthy cause.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Watch it once...you'll have a great time bashing it
Review: One of the most maligned films of the last decade, "Battlefield Earth" actually isn't QUITE the worst film ever made. However, it proves once and for all that vanity projects are not a good idea (see my review for Star Trek: The Final Frontier).

What is wrong with this film has largely been covered both by other reviewers and the Amazon.com description. However, it does deserve a brief summary. The film is a disaster on almost every conceivable level. The camera angles and whole filming method are bizarre, and there are gaps in logic that any five-year old could spot. In fact, if I played a drinking game that said I took a shot for every plot hole I spotted, I would be passed out within the first 30 minutes. The actors are all on different levels. Forrest Whitaker huffs and puffs, but he can't inflate a leather balloon. He at least seems to realize he's in a camp fest, but John Travolta and Barry Pepper as the two leads play their roles embarrasingly straight-faced. The special effects are adequate at best, and the action is incredibly sloppy. There actually is a good battle sequence at the end, but by that point the film is beyond the point of any redemption (hence the one-star rating). In order to believe what is happening on the screen, you must forget any lessons in science or basic reasoning that you have been taught since fourth grade.

Luckily, "Battlefield Earth" was DOA at the box office (maybe Americans aren't quite as stupid as we sometimes seem) and was roasted by critics. The two people that can be blamed for this film are director Roger Christian and John Travolta, and I demand punishment for them. I think poor Christian has paid enough- his beloved sci-fi "summer hit of 2000" lost more money than many of us make in a lifetime, and he's been unable to find work ever since. Plus, he was just a hired gun- this whole thing was Travolta's idea from the start, and he still doesn't get it. As if to pour salt on an open wound, he continued to defend the film for months after its release, and even threatened to make a sequel- surprisingly, he didn't find a lot of people willing to fund it.

So yeah, I saw this movie once, and that was enough. I would never buy it. Wait a second- if there was a commentary from Travolta and it was nothing but him saying "I'm sorry, I'm sorry..." over and over again, then I would consider buying it. Meanwhile, just rent it for a few unintentional laughs and let it forever languish as a financial loss to all those involved in it.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: A Joke Film
Review: This has to be one of the worst sci-fi movies ever made. John Travolta overplays his role and looks just ridiculous in his pseudo-Klingon costume. What were people thinking when they did this movie?

Somehow humans couldn't overcome these aliens when they were at the peak of their technology but are able to do it when they're living in caves? Please. Don't waste your time and money on this joke film.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: I laughed so hard at this wretched film!
Review: I know that Battlefield Earth was supposed to be some grand sci-fi film about Scientology or some thing, but all it really is is a joke of a film. There isnt a single good thing about it. But, by being so remarkably terrible, its a real hoot to watch if you like bad movies. The aliens (one of wich is played by John Travolta) look like giant Klingon action figures, and the acting in this movie would be better suited for an actual parody film. There is also tons of bad effects (the cow being shot in the field by Travolta is the funniest thing I've ever seen) and inconsistancies (how the aliens guns fire and how they are held; the size of the aliens). Oddly enough, though, the story itself wasnt TOO bad. It wasn't confusing or any thing. Granted, the story wasnt very good, either, but it could fit any typical sci-fi flick.
So if you can enjoy a bad film, this is really the movie for you. But if you can't stomach seeing bad acting and lame costumes, stay as far away from Battlefield Earth as possible.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Restore Its Original Length
Review: The movie I saw at the theater was so different from the chop and hack version I saw released later for the home. No wonder no one likes it. Yes, you must suspend belief, it really does have huge stretches. But until I saw this movie on VHS I really did not understand the revulsion.

Re-issue this in its uncut version and a few more people will find it acceptable, or at least mildly amusing. The best parts were cut from the original.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Battlefield Suck
Review: wow, this was a great movie, NOT!!!, horrible performances. Travolta's performance is smashed by other stupid supporting characters. I got bored 20 minutes into the movie and it never got better. way obnoxious, by anymeans

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: terrible!
Review: Battlefield Earth is failed attempt to popularize scientology through bad film making. Go to rottentomatoes .com and read the reviews--96% of movie critics panned this Travolta bomb.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Gary Zukav must have been the movie science advisor
Review: This is defiantly a one star picture a many levels. Yet it deserves maybe another just for effort. And another just because it is worth saying I watched it. Of course admitting this may be a negative.
The "bad guy" costumes were plausible for space aliens nowadays as most anything goes. However the man creatures' attire was totally inappropriate for the situation and bordering on the reticules.
People have run the mental range from morons to illiterate to excelling down through the ages. But to think that you take someone who has trouble rubbing two sticks (one stick too many) together and teach him Euclid in 5 minutes is really stretching anyone's credibility. Putting "goat guy" in a flight simulator must make Air Force pilots feel special. Interesting that all this weaponry in the hands of professionals only take nine minutes to get defeated; but if you are ditzy you can give the bad guys a run for their money (gold) with a handful of the very same (mysteriously operable) weapons.
You would have gotten more action waving the flag (everyone knows what a flag is) then deciding a casual glance at the declaration of independence is going to inspire nomadic people that already have their society organized and relative freedom. For that matter are you going to inspire people with a mushy speech about a paper that has no relevance to them?
It did have the "Let's go get-um" feel and action of the movie "Independents Day"


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