Starship Invasions

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Starship Invasions
Directed by Ed Hunt
Produced by Ed Hunt
Written by Ed Hunt
Starring Robert Vaughn
Christopher Lee
Distributed by Warner Bros.
Release dates
  • 14 October 1977 (1977-10-14) (U.S.)
  • 25 November 1977 (1977-11-25) (Toronto)
[1]
Running time 89 minutes
Country  Canada
Language English
Budget $1 000 000[2]

Starship Invasions is a 1977 Canadian science fiction film produced by Ed Hunt and filmed in Toronto, Ontario.

Production and release

The film had to be retitled twice. It originally was titled War of the Aliens, which closely resembled the 1977 blockbuster Star Wars. The title was changed to Alien Encounters, which resembled the 1977 blockbuster Close Encounters of the Third Kind.[3] Hal Roach Studios producers Earl A. Glick and Norman Glick bankrolled the production with $1 million.[2]

The music soundtrack was composed by Gil Mellé (Andromeda Strain).[4]

Starship Invasions was released in VHS format by Warner Home Video.[5] It was also released in 1987 on video in the United Kingdom by Krypton Force under the title Project Genocide.[6]

Its French-language title was L'invasion des soucoupes volantes.[7]

Synopsis

The plot concerns the black-clad Legion of the Winged Serpent, a rogue group of human-like aliens led by Captain Rameses (Christopher Lee) who wish to invade Earth with their fleet of flying saucers before life on their own planet becomes untenable because their sun is about to go supernova.

They plan to kill all humans on Earth through the use of an orbiting transmitter whose signals prompt people to commit suicide. Opposing this plan is the Intergalactic League of Races, another highly advanced group of bald, big-headed aliens based in a golden pyramid deep beneath Earth's ocean.

Due to acts of assassination and sabotage that leaves their robots destroyed, their forces depleted and their base in enemy hands, the League of Races seeks help from UFO expert Professor Allan Duncan (Robert Vaughn) to save the Earth. Their efforts culminate in a battle between the League and Rameses' saucers deep in space.

Critical reception

Toronto Globe and Mail reviewer Robert Martin panned Starship Invasions, likening the film to "those dubbed Japanese movies usually seen on Saturday afternoon television".[3]

Trivia

None of the aliens in this film are shown speaking, rather their voices are dubbed in to simulate telepathy.

Many elements of the film, including the design of the robots and the winged serpent emblem the black-clad villains wear, are taken from actual UFO accounts.[8]

Cast

  • Robert Vaughn as Professor Allan Duncan
  • Christopher Lee as Captain Rameses
  • Daniel Pilon as Anaxi
  • Tiiu Leek as Phi
  • Helen Shaver as Betty Duncan
  • Henry Ramer as Malcolm
  • Victoria Johnson as Gazeth
  • Doreen Lipson as Dorothy
  • Kate Parr as Diane Duncan
  • Sherri Ross as Sagnac
  • Linda Rennhofer as Joan
  • Richard Fitzpatrick as Joe
  • Ted Turner as Zhender
  • Sean McCann as Carl
  • Bob Warner as an Air Force General

References

  1. ↑ The Globe and Mail, as per movie listings around this date.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Martin, Robert (10 December 1977). "No more cheap sex films, Hunt is big budget now". The Globe and Mail. p. 34. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Martin, Robert (30 November 1977). "Alien futures market active". The Globe and Mail. p. F9. 
  4. ↑ "Gil Mellé". IMdB. Retrieved 14 February 2011. 
  5. ↑ Starship Invasions (VHS) info on Amazon.com
  6. ↑ Project Genocide at BBFC
  7. ↑ L'invasion des soucoupes volantes (Starship Invasions) at Regie du Cinema Quebec
  8. ↑ Huyghe, Patrick "The Field Guide To Extraterrestrials", pg. 20-21 & 60-61. Avon Books, 1996

External links

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