Laserblast

I was expecting Laserblast to be awful, judging by its position in the "Mystery Science Theater 3000: 10 Worst Movies They Riffed" list and its reputation. It is a bad movie- though I can see why people would find it entertaining to watch- but it is much better than the likes of Monster A-Go Go, Manos the Hands of Fate, The Wild World of Batwoman, Merlin's Shop of Mystical Wonders and Hobgoblins, and in general there are far worse as well. The best asset of Laserblast is the music score, which pulsates through the movie with great energy and atmosphere that is not matched with the rest of the movie. Cheryl Smith is sweet and sympathetic and Keenan Wynn is appropriately gruff. And I personally though the stop-motion and the aliens were quite good, of any of the movies on the "10 Movies they Riffed" list it is Laserblast that has the best special effects. Everything else comes up painfully short though, Roddy MacDowell is wasted to the point that you question why was he even in it, and Eddie Deezen has to be the most annoying bully ever seen in film. The story is a real drag as well, it makes very little sense if at all, has so much overlong filler that adds nothing to the storytelling and is one of those instances where the plot summary pretty much sums up the whole movie. It also doesn't know what to do with itself and takes forever to get going, it is half-an-hour until anything of the sort happens and then when the gun is found the rest of the movie is just stuff getting shot at. At best, the camera work and editing are haphazard, the dialogue is hysterically bad and the characters are not developed anywhere near enough or characterised very effectively to be believable or likewise. In conclusion, Laserblast is a bad movie that is rather dull and senseless and wastes McDowell but a great score, better-than-average stop-motion and effects and two decent performances make it not as bad as all that. 3/10 Bethany Cox

I cannot believe the low rating this film has. First of all, I have to give credit to the stop-motion animation. When I first saw this in 1978 in the theatre, I was impressed, just a touch below Harryhausen quality. Too bad if you disagree! Second, the adolescent setting is just fine. Teen angst, bullying, small-town doldrums in the 1970's. I remember the 70's and it was about this dirt-poor culturally. We didn't have Internet, plasma TV, cell phones, or CD's. We had portable tape players and we used pay phones. Third, you have to love Kim Milford's impression of a cooked Mark Hamill. Come on! Fourth, Eddie Deezen is about as annoying as you've ever seen him. High marks. Fifth, the story is good. Aliens returning for their lost weapon. Gives us all hope. I've seen the movie several times and it's always a satisfying time. 8 of 10

This may well be the worst movie ever made. It has no perceptible story line, very little, if any plot, and some really poor acting. I can't think of a single positive thing to say about it at all, really, and I have no idea at all why I sat through the whole thing, but I did, and didn't feel cheated at the end, which I also cannot explain. Looking back on the experience, I think there are parts of two or three not-too-bad sci-fi films, just loosely cut together, with scenes that seem to have been edited out of some other movies, and just inserted here and there in the movie, and maybe that was its vague appeal to me. A sort of da-da approach to film, that almost worked.

I swear every time I see that Star Wars billboard get blown up I almost wet myself. What more can you ask of cheap Sci-Fi than Laserblast? Granted it doesn't have that 50's kitch like Angry Red Planet, but it WAS the 70's. Personally I love and own this film. If you can see the true beauty in astoundingly bad film making, then you should see Laserblast. I mean one character gets mutated into a green laser-blasting monster by a salt shaker he wears around his neck!! and there's bad stop-action aliens!! YES! it took 2 guys to write it!!! 2!!! and they called it LASERBLAST!

I think if you consider the general aesthetic of the seventies, you will see that this is the ULTIMATE 70's movie. I regret never seeing it at a drive in.

To my surprise this is actually a Fullmoon movie, the company well known only for cheesy horror films. Apparently they do sci-fi even worse.

Laserblast presently sits with a 2.6 rating on IMDB, which is astoundingly low. I didn't think for a second it would be that bad, it actually is.

It tells the story of a young man who finds a laser cannon in the desert, after wielding it and the necklace that came with it he is periodically transformed into a creature hellbent on destruction.

Looking at the cover you'd think the "Creature" was Gary Busey, in the film it's more an early Romero zombie.

The special effects are embarassing even for the time, the plot is riddled with holes and the whole thing comes off amateurish.

One of the worst films every made? No. Deserving of 2.6? Absolutely.

The Good:

Erm.....

The Bad:

Looks hideous

Just can't take it seriously

Things I Learnt From This Movie:

Aliens are just giant turtles without shells who wear shiney gloves