Night of the Comet (1984)
March 27, 2009
DVD, Seattle, WA
*** / ****
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By Scott Muoio
B-movies come in
many shapes, sizes and span numerous genres yet all share one particular
characteristic: awkwardness. Whether
that awkwardness results in the film’s oddness mesmerizing an audience as they
groan happily and laugh hysterically, or rather, bores them to tears as they
doze off it is precisely what separates good bad movies from the atrocious
stinkers.
For the first three
quarters of its run time, Night of the Comet is an extremely
entertaining, awkward bit of science fiction B-movie bliss. The last bit however is precisely what makes
films of this ilk rarities that few ever see. The result is a mixed bag yet still one of the best of the
unseen 1980s sci-fi oddities.
The story: a comet from the dinosaur age passes earth
for the first time in millennia, wipes out everyone save a few clueless
teenagers and evil scientists, a silly chase scene ensues between said
survivors, and finally the triumphant kids form a new “family” moving the human
race into the 1990s. Throw in a few
half-baked zombies, red dust for the vaporized humans, valley speak, and a
minor obsession with classic horror films and video games and you’ve got a film
that knows what it wants to be and materializes as just that.
The good in the
film is quite a lot. The heroes are all
cuties, the villains silly/creepy, and the embellishments just knowing enough
to recall favorite past movies without bastardizing or completely ripping them
off. The dated music, the film’s red
tint, the costumes, and the ability of the production team to create a baron
Los Angeles are all effective and enjoyable.
Nothing takes itself too seriously and yet everything is serious enough
to keep the fun going without it becoming stupid. Yes, the face-off/chase at the end is lame but then nearly every
movie of this type has that exact problem.
Overall you will be hard-pressed to find many ‘80s sci-fi flicks this memorably awkward.
Director: Thom Eberhardt
Producer: Andrew Lane, Wayne Crawford
Writer: Thom Eberhardt
Starring: Catherine Mary Stewart, Kelli Maroney, Robert
Beltran
Original
Music: David Richard Campbell
Cinematographer:
Arthur Albert
Editor:
Fred Stafford
Copyright 2009, Scott Muoio and Undependent Media. You may link to this review but may not reproduce it in full for your own means.