Force Fed Films: The Last Starfighter

Jim forced me to watch “The Last Starfighter” today, and I have absolulety no idea what this movie is about. After quickly reading over IMDB, it seems to be some groovy 80’s (Whoo! 80’s movies!) about a kid who gets sucked into being the last hope for the survival of good in the universe. Now I really think I am going to like this movie: 80’s + Star Wars like story, it can’t be that bad...right?! Click more to see how it turned out.

We land in the middle of Starlight trailer park where Alex Rogan is playing the only arcade machine in town. Of course this arcade game is called “Starfighter”, and as he plays the hell out of it, he finally breaks the record with everyone cheering him on. Sadly, this is the only joy in his life, not only does he live in a trailer park but he was recently declined for a student load for a college. But later that night, Centauri, who is an alien of course, comes by in this wacky space car to pick up Alex. He explains that Alex is choosen to be a Starfighter to defeat the evil force. Alex figures out the video game he was playing all this time was just a simulator for the real deal! As Alex adjusts to becoming a Starfighter, he gets into some quirky situation and hilarity ensues, some not intentional.

Terrible looking ship, but does it remind you of another SCI-FI ship?

I really love 80’s movies; they are just so tacky and cheesy. Just when the movie started, it felt like a poor man’s Star Wars. It had the over the top orchestral theme, sci-fi adventure and the cooky characters. Sadly it lacked in budgeting (obviously), highly acclaimed actors and lastly the special effects. Luckily, Alex was played by Lance Guest who was in Jaws: The Revenge. A movie I really want to watch, because I’ve heard only terrible things from it.

But you know what, even with all the lack of polish I still enjoyed myself a lot. The story was the main reason; it was childlike and very 80’s. It was nothing too complex but enough depth to have fun with. Amazingly the humour was there and quirky, I did chuckle a few times with the corny jokes and “Haha, that only flies in the 80’s” moments. Lastly, as bad as the graphics were in this movie, they weren’t terrible. I assume for the early 80’s, these were on par with everything else that was coming out. But I couldn’t shake the feeling of StarFox 64 all over this movie. The graphics are comparable and the awkward 3D aiming was present and your trusty side kick Slippy (Grig in the movie) was always by your side hinting terrible advice.

Local store owner, Grig and Alex.

To sum it all up, I liked this movie but far from being loved. The cheesy effects and humour can be both enjoyed or hated, depending on what kind of person you are. If you like sci-fi movies, you should definitely check this one out. Because who knows, you might even like it. But try not to take this movie too seriously, because if you do, you will not enjoy it one bit.