Review of 'Dark Star'

It is not a surprise to learn that this film started out as a university student film project as both the effects and the quirky humour scream university student from the slobby crew quarters to the alcohol abuse and philosophical, existential arguments with the computer bomb controller.

In the late 22nd century, a spaceship manned by four misfits, commander, Talby (Dre Pahich; voiced by John Carpenter) spends all of his time in a bubble on the top the ship staring out into space and paying little attention to the others. The other crewmen, Sgt. Francis Boiler (Cal Kuniholm), Lt. Doolittle (Brian Narelle) and Sgt. Pinback (Dan O'Bannon) spend most of their days shouting at each other in the overly cramped control room. Their job is to deploy computer-controlled missiles, ostensibly to destroy unstable planets…though the commander is more interested in simply making big explosions. They have captured a large beach-ball alien (Nick Castle) that causes some problems for Pinback when it escapes while the overly-eager bombs are determined to blow up at the drop of a hat. The crew relax in their room playing music on empty drink bottles but little do they know, or perhaps care, there is damage to a laser machine that threatens them all…

If it sounds like a silly film, it certainly is. I can see the satirical aspects of it but I can't say I could relate to any of the characters who are, frankly, quite boring. I feel this is an important part of a well-rounded film. The special effects are, appropriately cheesy looking, which is part of the whole thing about being a school project. It was just never really part of a lifestyle I ever had and it has not really dated that well. So, I didn't like the characters and could not relate to them, never mind the silly special effects which I can live with if the characters are interesting, but this was the case. Oh, I have not talked about the story which, frankly, does not exist other than as a series of quirky events though, eventually, something does happen that results in one of the astronauts surfing to his death in the atmosphere of a neighbouring planet. Yeah, as you do.

Silly with no trace of any substance, turn off your brain (no, seriously) and enjoy if you like that sort of thing - I can see it being something that a bunch of university students would show off to their drunk friends. For me, I would skip it entirely.

Rating: “Not great, but not the worse”

Review Date: 2024-12-22

Directed by: John Carpenter

Studio: Jack H. Harris Enterprises

Year: 1974

Length: 83 minutes

Genre: Science Fiction

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0069945/

• The Thing (1982)
• Big Trouble in Little China (1986)