Retrograde - Krieg auf dem Eisplaneten

Dolph Lundgren vehicles have hit DVD every spring for the last few years. Apparently they have done well enough that some studio finally snagged this sci-fi time travel flick that has been sitting on the shelf since completion in 2003. John Foster (Lundgren) pilots a space craft from 2204 back to the 21rst century with the crew's mission to stop scientists from discovering plague carrying meteorites in Antarctica. Naturally, there are traitors on board who want to alter the future for their own personal gains and it is up to Dolph to stop them. This is pretty bad, thanks mostly to the flat direction by Christopher Kulikowski. The guy has no concept on how to stage or film a fight scene. And who casts martial artist Gary Daniels and doesn't give him a big fight scene? Even more disappointing when you see former PM Entertainment exec Joseph Merhi is a producer on this. The acting is uniformly bad with Joe Sagal (as a rich dude funding the scientific expedition) and Ken Samuels (as the boat captain) being the stand outs. Seriously, how do guys this bad get cast and maintain some semblance of a career? One has to wonder if working with such a poor director is what finally made Dolph decide to step behind the camera (his directorial debut was the film made right after this). He has directed 4 films since RETROGRADE and the three I've seen have been infinitely more entertaining than this.

Dolph In Space!....Now calm down.

So far unreleased in the U.S., (almost with good reason). It's for die-hard Dolph fans (like myself) only.

"Retrograde" is about John Foster (Lundgren) who has to stop a bunch of bad guys who are trying to take over a boat in the future. Yes, that sounds like a poor plot and it is, but deep down it looks like they were trying. The budget is low and the special effects are cheap, but Dolph and Gary put in decent performances.

The movie's worst sin was to not pit Dolph and Gary Daniels' characters to a fight to the death. That would've been awesome.

To tell you the truth, if you liked "Direct Action" you won't like "Retrograde", unless you are a Dolph completist.

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Yesterday I bought this DVD on sale in Blockbuster (Rio de Janeiro). The price was less than US$ 4,00 for an used DVD (called "previously seen"), which is very cheap for Brazilian usual prices. Unfortunately, I have just watched 10 minutes of the awfullest movie I have ever tried to see. Simply unbelievable how a producer can put his or her money in such a flick. Further, why the Brazilian distributor Europa bought such a garbage to distribute in Brazil? Meanwhile, in Brazil we have many important movies that have not been released on video or DVD, such as the work of Yasujito Ozu or "Fahrenheit 451" of Truffault. I saw another brave IMDb user that was capable of watching 30 minutes of this trash, and I would like to congratulate him for his courage. I would like to indicate this flick to "The Jerk of the Daily Votes". My vote is one.

Title (Brazil): "Retrograde"

I am a "Dolph completist" like another reviewer put so eloquently, yet this movie has left a bitter aftertaste. It could have been so much more, the story had potential to make the ultimate "The Thing"- meets-"X files" crossover, laden with spooky claustrophobia and an intriguing time-travel tale.

Alas, none of that has come about. The director is partly to blame for his total failure to bring focus and atmosphere to the story. Viewers are left less than ensnared. But what I found most appalling was the ACTING ! It's incredible how most of the cast just stands there, glazed over, rattling off their lines. How hard can it be to get a little immersed in the role ?

Dolph himself is enough of a professional to put in his routine quality, even when he finds himself in what looks like a high school project. I also enjoyed Jamie Treacher, who makes the most of his "pothead" part. And there's David Jean Thomas who manages to bring a natural performance as Doc. But the rest of the cast should be forced to attend drama school !

Nothing wrong with the script. I love time machine movies, And Dolph Lundgren is on a mission to save the world so the future will return back to normal.

That's all you need to know.

Acting is terrible if non existing at times, and the special effects are like something you'll find in cheap computer games from the 90's.

. This could have been a great movis with a different director, different budget and different actors.