L'invasion des soucoupes volantes

I saw this film once on afternoon television in the late 70's . I've never seen it screened, rented or sold since. It seems to have sank into obscurity. I remember being disturbed in parts, so as bad as it may be, it could be provocative for ten year old latch key children, home alone in the late 70's. One interesting thing to note, reading the plot summary offered at IMDb, I've seen some of the same elements in UFO abduction lore & accounts. There are some who believe that there has been an extraterrestrial culture occupying the bowels of the Earth for some time, a federation of races I believe, that use this symbol of the winged serpent as their identifying mark. Some believe that this federation ultimately does want control of the Earth and humanity, and will reveal themselves following some type of cosmic or nuclear calamity on the Earth. Also, the ability to exert remote and irresistible control of the human brain through superior technology is a theme I've read frequently in reports, as well as this film's attention to the commonly reported telepathic ability of the ET's. I mention this because it seems like most cinema avoids some of the more fantastic elements of abduction accounts, and concentrates on other elements to the point of cliché. X-files hit on a lot of themes one can find in the reports, to be sure. I'd like to see this movie again, for nostalgia's sake. Sadly this isn't the UFO lore Epic I want. I'd like to see some talented writer/director do for modern abduction accounts what Spielberg did in Close Encounters with Project Bluebook reports. Some of the stuff they predict/report is genuinely terrifying, like, the apocalypse of mankind. The stakes don't get any higher. Perfect for Hollywood. A rich vein for creative exploration and sadly this little low budget film is about as close as it gets at the moment.

I have to agree with the people who say this movie's bad, but disagree with the ones who say it isn't so bad it's good. This movie is completely hilarious! I can only hope warner pulled SI out of distribution because they're working on a 30th anniversary DVD edition with lots of making-of featurettes where the director details how much crack he was on while he was making it. (It's out of circulation now and amazingly it's going for 150 bucks on amazon, this movie. Fortunately my video store happens to have an old copy.) Wait till you see the part with the pocket calculator! In this movie a guy uses a 70s style pocket calculator to compute flightpaths for a flying saucer. I rather would have thought that interplanetary trajectories would be a bit complicated for a pocket calculator, but what do I know? I remember when SI came out pocket calculators were a huge fad, along with digital watches. Everybody was all, now we can finally achieve world peace, because there are pocket calculators.

And the overacting family in the huge car! "look! it's a flying saucer! For god's sake DON'T MAKE THEM ANGRY!!" And the robots who look like trash cans...

And the sadistic kid who squashes the tomato...

Believe it or not I remember seeing this thing 29 years ago when it came out. I was all, wow, that really sucked, mommy. And my mom was like, yeah, I don't know what to tell you. So hilariously stupid and trashy. it's got goofy flying saucers, lots and lots of cheesecake, christopher lee losing every scrap of his dignity, tons of mind-controlled people acting really zombified and stupid, space battles that look like they were lifted straight out of "mars attacks!", possibly the most ridiculous costumes of all time, and the real coup de grace -- one actually extraordinarily talented actress (Helen Shaver, the wife of the UFO researcher guy) caught in the middle of it all, trying valiantly to salvage this whole mess. oh, and the soundtrack kicks. and yet is completely inappropriate for the subject matter.

I know, I know, you probably didn't find this review helpful.

The film studio responsible for the old "OUR GANG" serials cranked out this science fiction film in 1977. The film, STARSHIP INVASIONS drew inspirations off of the wave of space warfare films coming out at that time. The film tells the tale of a ufo menace to earth that is combated by friendly aliens who ask humans for help. A fun point in the plot is the ERIC VON DRAKEN plot point involving hidden ufo bases and ancient astronauts. I don't believe this in real life it was as I said fun. The film was a good family movie and a great "pop corn and coke" film. The special effects at times were creative and others dreadful yet the film is worth viewing. I if you are into UFO lore you will like this film. The film plays like a modren incarnation of a old BUSTER CRABBE serial.

While there's no denying the poor production value and cheap special effects (this is a B movie, after all); I feel the story behind this movie has some value. The motivation of the bad guys is well established. They are not simply evil, but are in a bit of a tight spot themselves. Also, the primary method they use to achieve their goal (a suicide ray) is rather chilling. The use of telepathic communication between the aliens was a nice touch. The cheesiness of this film can easily be embraced as enjoyable camp. It's not a great film, but I think you'll find that it sticks with you after you watch it. The story is fairly rich, with lots of details and connections filled in along the way. It truly has some meat to it. I first saw it as a kid while growing up. Now, over 25 years later, I finally tracked it down and watched it again. I'm still charmed by it.

For years I had hoped to run across this film again as I find that certain images of the flying saucers have stuck in my imagination throughout my adult life. Actual recollections of storyline are nil as it seemed to be crude in its storytelling but my impression is that for whatever reason I believe this to be an important film in terms of its longterm effect on the impressionable minds (like mine at the time) who watched it on its release. Robert Vaughn who so memorably appeared in other low budget films (notably Teenage Caveman, a Corman classic), adds to the overall impression that here was something to be enjoyed throughout ones life. Despite its obvious flaws, you should overlook the films limitations and enjoy the fact that here is a film that at its core is about flying saucers. Apart from Forbidden Planet, no other film has remained with me with such a powerful grip on my imagination.