Terreur extraterrestre

"Without Warning" is a cheap American b-movie horror from 1980 about the terror striking the beautiful American countryside... some people are brutally killed and mutilated by an unknown stranger, and it's the turn of a bunch of teenagers and war veterans to find out that an illegal alien has landed and is hunting for humans for his horrible collection...

Although this movie shows lots of stereotypes and well-known topics from many horror movies from the 50's to the 70's like "It Came From Outer Space", "The Thing", Jack Arnold and Roger Corman cheapos, "Night of the Living Dead", "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre", "Three on a Meathook" and even "Alien" and the new wave of high school slasher movies like "Halloween" and "Friday the 13th", it's an entertaining and thrilling affair.

There are some old movie veterans like Jack Palance, Martin Landau, Ralph Meeker, Cameron Mitchell and Neville Brand involved with Palance and Landau playing the mad alien hunters, and a young David Caruso in his very first movie role. The alien is played by Afro-American actor Kevin Peter Hall who also played the monster in "Predator 2" (1990). Director Greydon Clark never had a big break-through movie, but photographer Dean Cundey had a big time in the nineties with jobs for "Apollo 13", "Casper", "The Flintstones" and the Spielberg hits "Hook" and "Jurassic Park".

All in all it's a nice midnight movie and a small highlight for fans of seventies' paranoia horror films in the wake of the remakes of old alien, monster and disaster film productions. No more, no less.

Without Warning gets to the point quickly with a hunter and his son being attacked by bizarre flying saucer bloodsucking aliens. 4 young friends head to a lake to have a little fun and find themselves attacked by the same creatures. By the 30 minute mark, Without Warning shoots its load and runs out of steam as only two of the 4 are left and they run around town trying to get people to believe them.

Without Warning might have worked better as a short film, because the middle part of the film drags with nothing of interest happening as the cast hides out a seedy bar with only Jack Palance and Martin Landau's mugging to keep ones interest.

Saw this one at the drive-in back in '80 and knew as I was watching it that I was watching a drive-in classic. I seem to recall (in my mind anyway)as 1980 being the last great drive-in horror movie year. I had already seen Humanoids From The Deep that summer and Phantasm there the previous year. I recall that the film had a nice updated 1950's sci-fi feel to it (like Humanoids, a little atmosphere, some laughs (frisbees etc.), hammy performances (Landau Palance) and Larry Storch. The ancient grainy Kingston Trio 'Things Go Better With CocaCola' ad at intermission seemed to fit in with it well. I can't recall what was on the bill with It Came Without Warning; but I recall leaving pretty satisfied. I've looked through many video stores to rent or buy it but can't locate it. Nice to see some other folks fondly remember this one and would like to see it on DVD,too.

I ,too saw this at a So-Cal drive-in, twenty odd years back.We got there after the film started and one of my buddies remarked "Hey ,isn't that Larry Storch hanging on that hook in the shed?"....It truly was "Magic Time"...AIP provided some kooky, grisly ,over acted gems back then. Where fine , but seemingly "washed -up" actors Palance, Landau, Brand ,Mitchell could still be on the "Big Screen" and show their chops.I remember mostly dark foggy woods and scared kids , and Hey ,don't go in the house! This "AIP Movie Era" was sadly coming to a close and "Without Warning" is a great example of this late lamented(?)style of cinema.I can still hear Jack Palance screaming "ALIEN!!!!!"................sigh..

An alien has landed and it's killing innocent humans! Why, you ask? If you're looking for a feasible explanation like harvesting humans for food or cleaning off this planet for future alien use, forget it. Here the bad guy is just looking for a fun time hunting humans to add to his burgeoning trophy collection. Aiding in his sport are hairy, fanged little parasitic suction-cup Frisbees he flings at victims that drink their blood. The fun and gooey make-up FX are by Greg Cannon.

If the campy, silly plot isn't enough to get you tuned in, keep in mind it costars Jack Palance as a grizzled gas station owner, Cameron Mitchell as a sadistic hunter and an out-of-control Martin Landau as a ranting, raving, insane Vietnam vet! David (NYPD BLUE) Caruso also puts in an early appearance and the alien is played by giant Kevin Peter Hall, who went on the play the monster in the PREDATOR films.

Fun flick!

Score: 6 out of 10