I was the co-production designer on GALAXY OF TERROR, so Jim doesn't have to take all the blame. I did, primarily, the exteriorsr (and a few interiors), and Jim, mainly, the vast majority of the interiors.
@@THeilman Thank you so much! Low budget film making is really challenging and can take a big toll on health and well-being (and ALIENS actually WAS low-budget relative to what had to be done). It means a lot to know people remember the film (and some of these other/lesser--and far lesser--ones!!Good wishes!
Oh man...I was 12 when that came out and remember the amazing ad in the paper for it! I somehow finally got to see it on HBO a couple of years later, you guys really pulled no punches on the horror aspect 😁 I've never forgotten it! Terrific atmosphere and production design for what you guys were working with, great job!
@@Kenshiroit GALAXY was filmed in LA, not England, so, no, no props of any kind were used from ALIEN. But, of course, GALAXY was inspired by the British film, so similarities in the look of the Quest shouldn't be much of a surprise.
Lifeforce is the greatest B movie ever made. It’s genuinely fantastic. I remember watching thinking the only thing missing from this movie is zombies and then zombies appear 😂
@@ComicGladiator Yes, Mathilda May! Yes, Mathilda May! Yes, Mathilda ... oh sorry, forgot where I was. That groveling aside, it is a little awkward (especially by today's post Hollywood Weinstein trials) that Miss May was just 18 at the start of shooting. But she did turn 19 a quick month into the shoot, making Mathilda's scantily clad performance one for the sexual revolution(?) space(?) ages. There's a joke in there, somewhere.
I don't know if you would consider it an "Alien" ripoff but "Time Walker" (1982) aka "Being From Another Planet" has the vibe of an "Alien" ripoff in that the creature comes from an ancient source (an Egyptian tomb), and it is lethal to any human it comes across -- BUT it looks like a rejected alien suit idea from "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" and the movie is strictly by the numbers. I bring it up because you didn't list it, even though it was mocked on "Mystery Science Theater 3000."
I never thought I’d see a thoughtful critical video essay with both ‘The Suckling’ and ‘Roots Search’ being featured , even the most jaded bad movie fiend can appreciate your work and learn something , cheers
The best part of this is searching up these movies and watching them on UA-cam. Having watched the "talking to the bomb" and "I want to eat your face" I can now say my life has improved dramatically.
That interview with the 'Xtro' director reminds me of how the late George A. Romero would mess with interviewers who would gush about the social commentary of 'Night of the Living Dead', only for George to tell them it was all accidental and he'd really been trying to make a gore-fest instead.
I lose it every time I see that scene from 2016, because it features not only low-quality T-800 and Xenomorph doing their best The Matrix routine, but also music from videogame F.E.A.R. It's simply majestic. You can tell the director of this film has impeccable taste.
This content is exactly why UA-cam was made, and why I love UA-cam. The amount and level of research, editing and narrating is above and beyond. New subscriber here! Greetings from Norway.
@@virovac885 If you don't need blistering action, cutting edge fx, or a story full of endless tricks and turns, and instead you're drawn to a movies with a slower burn, dark atmospherics, camp but never clownish, creativity triumphing over a lack of budget, and actual storytelling and filmmaking, then I would indeed recommend Life Force for you. If you've liked other Empire/Cannon films, that's also a plus. I loved some of those B-movies like "Robot Jox", "Arena", "Cobra", and the 'Ninja' series of films. Life Force isn't the type of movie that ends up getting the attention of the mainstream, but it has enough interesting innate qualities that it will remain cult classic type of movie at least for the foreseeable future.
@@Tsotha Heavens, I didn't want to imply in any way that it was ever boring! I'd consider it well paced if anything, it's just not knocking you over the head with explosions and fight scenes every 30 seconds.
@@tommytwotacos8106 Both "Alien" and "Aliens" for that matter have a very deliberate pace, slowly and meticulously building up the plot + establishing the setting and characters, this is something the makers of "Lifeforce" paid attention to. I do understand why a lot of people don't like "Lifeforce" as it expects the viewer to suspend a lot of disbelief - not often you see a film which starts as a take on "Alien" then gives the vampire mythology an Erich von Däniken treatment THEN turns into a zombie apocalypse in the 3rd act.
It's worth pointing out that 'Lifeforce' is based on a pre-existing novel by Colin Wilson, so whilst it might have got it's funding as a result of Alien's popularity it isn't a rip-off of the story.
It's a movie I've always wanted to love more than I do. It has a lot to offer, and I watch it every ten years or so, but the middle section is pretty boring.
I was lucky enough to find Star Crystal on VHS. I usually explain the plot as, "It's like Alien, until the alien reads the bible on the ship's computer, and learns to love." I usually omit the hilariously underwhelming ending.
seriously. thank you for all that you do. this channel is so much fun to sort through. It is also the gift that keeps on giving, simply because i love rewatching your content....especially when im having a shite day and/or I want to view various tidbits of exploitation cinema with some sort of connective theme. im going to donate before the holidays, i swear
Alien is my all-time favorite movie and to be honest, I'm glad it inspired a ton of other, mostly cheesy Sci-Fi films. I still love them, especially Inseminoid, DeepStar Six, Star Crystal, Creature, Galaxy of Terror. I've read somewhere that Alien is the 2nd most imitated movie of all time (behind only Die Hard). Besides low-budget films Alien influenced some really great films like The Thing, Event Horizon, Life and Underwater. Thanks for a very interesting video!!!
@@zimriel The Thing (1982) is NOTHING like The Thing From Another World (1951). Have you even seen the original? The monster didn't even have the ability to imitate humans. The Thing (1982) is also unique but it definitely took inspiration from Alien & Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978)
LifeFore is awesome. I remember watching it in the cinema and thinking the zombies who got their life force sucked out of them looked like Eddie from Iron Maiden :D I still love this movie to this day and I don't think it's an Alien knock off.
It was a really a big budgeted project production, Directed by the director of the Poltergeist and Texas Chainsaw Massacre, with one the best Special Effects at that time. A Anglo-French cooperation. It just had a a very convoluted story and un-inspired script that is more an episode of Dr. Who than 2001 ASO. A shame really.
@@inisipisTV I think script was ok. I actually thought some of the effects were a bit bad - like the zombie dolls, other effects were pretty good, like the space ship & the astronauts. I don't know what you mean by the script, but the original book idea of life force sucking space vampires that are really higher dimensional energy beings and at one point take possession of the Prime Minister.... My reaction : "that's not a fiction, that's a true story". :) I'm actually reading the book right now and I'm @ page #30 and I'm absolutely enjoying it!
Great channel, well written with a good dose of British Sarcasm. Seeing all these movies in their groups are so entertaining and bring a real sense of nostalgia. Brilliant.
That movie is the only movie that makes me laugh every time because the humor doesn't work at all. It's so unfunny and boring that it's super funny because of that. I don't honestly know any other movie that does the same. Like a horror movie that's scary because it's not scary 😂
After a while the bad movies start to blend together. I went to look for your video about Robocop, I even remember some parts, then I remembered that you haven't done it yet
Knock off movies are fascinating, was it made with genuine passion? Did the staff/crew know they were making a knockoff movie? How much did they spend on it? There's so many unanswered questions but then we get gems like Xtro and the director just flat out saying "we added it just because", I love it
I find it fascinating that Galaxy of Terror, Forbidden World and Creature all featured special effects and production crews who ended up working on Aliens itself. In fact, I believe that a lot of sets from Creature were reused for Aliens.
even though so many of those movies are bad, the fact that a lot of them released in theaters is part of what I feel is missing from cinema nowadays. you don't get a dozen low-budget films where every now and then you find a funny or intriguing gem. streaming and direct to vod just doesn't feel the same. and I'm tired of everything needing to be a big budget blockbuster. sigh... ah, well.
Watching this is interesting, because I watched several of these movies before ever watching Alien, and even though they're supposed to be comedic whenever a proper Alien moment happened it freaked me out. The Creature Wasn't Nice was especially freaky, because it felt like some really bizarre nightmare to me. Including them dancing the creature into the airlock and it popping out of the table at the end, and all the death being off-screen. And don't get me started on the Spaceballs chestburster. Goes to show just how tremendous Alien is for even the moments played for parody and comedy being scary.
I saw LifeForce in the theater at an age I shouldn’t have with my mom. On Nickelodeon a show called Standby…Lights, Camera, Action (hosted by Leonard Nimitz) featured this movie and its special effects. So we decided to go see it when it was at our theater. Wasn’t the movie we thought it was going to be.
I think a true appreciation for Alien is a clear sign of someone who understands film. Not just the quality execution, but the execution of it as a trade. Alien still looks incredible today. It takes it's time, and the people feel genuine. The art of Giger and the final implementation of the Xenomorph is so original and authentic in every way. It's a demonic entity that still seems very natural and evolutionary. Nothing about it is beautiful or akin to life on earth. Even the name is aptly about fearing the unknown.
@ 7:05 actually Galaxy of Terror was actually the original script for ALIEN Ridley Scott rejected and sold to Roger Corman. As you pointed out Corman was working on other projects so it wasn't until 1980 he could start production on it.
I just stumbled onto your channel; I don't know how I haven't seen it yet. I grew up in the 80s and bad scifi & horror movies were always a favorite pastime with my friends -- we'd challenge each other with finding the worst. Scanning through your uploads, it looks like I've got quite a bit of good stuff to watch. 👍👍
This is one of my favorite channels and was waiting for my 1st new video as a subscriber to come out. Your content is always insightful and funny. Great work!
A new video! YOU'VE MADE MY NIGHT! Rob, have to mirror an earlier comment...one of the most under appreciated channels on YT! Your videos never fail to either remind me of some great old b-movie I rented or copied back as a teenager in the 80's...or one I've never heard off. When you do that, you've never failed to impress me. Thanks!
Inseminoid might actually be the most famous film on this list, in a weird sense, due to its contribution to a DIFFERENT director named Scott. Scott Cawthon, of Five Nights at Freddy’s fame, used a rather horrific scream from this movie, (probably from a sound library somewhere) as the jumpscare sound effect in the franchise’s first game.
Ironic that there are now a couple of movies ripping off the FNAF premise, like that weird Banna Splits movie and another one that had Nicolas Cage in it.
I'm surprised that so little time was dedicated to the work of H.R. Giger. After all, the design of the Xenomorph was not prepared only for the movie, but was an important part of the creations of this artist creating "biotechnological" works. Arts clearly drawing inspiration from Egyptian period of the Pharaohs (which makes sense, since elongated skulls in those days signified aristocratic descent). The movie was just an add-on and an coincidence and this was back in the days when no one even thought about "Aliens" series.
I like Forbidden World. Despite being cheap as hell (they use styrofoam takeout containers to decorate the set walls) there is some really nice cinematography in the movie.
As a self proclaimed expert of cheesy movies myself I completely appreciate everything you include in your videos , they're extremely great at blending actual facts mixed with your comedy and dry wit the movies are just the blasting off point and I LOVE them. I sincerely hope your channel gets the subs and views it deserves!!!!I bet you'd be great at a riffing outfit like the original mystery science theater 3000 or cinematic titanic❤
"THE INTRUDER WITHIN"!!!! THANK YOU!!! I must have seen a bit of that movie when I was a kid, because the image of that multiple-color-shadow-thing (at 14:01) has been stuck in my head ever since! I just had no idea where it came from! I knew I clicked on this video for a reason! Thanks again!
At 5 years old, I came into the living room while my mother was watching Alien. Watched against the protest of my mother for a few minutes, and then Dallas got caught in the tunnel. Safe to say, I broke into tears and told her this movie wasn't safe, crying all the way to my room.
2:56 - that wipe was really cool! And THANK YOU for including my favorite line from Creature: “I zee you like gahns. What else do you like?” And no mention of the Galaxy of Terror worm scene? BTW, softcore auteur Zalman King is in it too.
Can we make it a law that Ernie Hudson has to be in at least one scene in every bad movie? He can even do his bad English accent from Congo! 😂 I love his commitment! But how you sit through all of these is baffling. I love a good bad movie, but to go through most of this and pluck out the good bits has to be tedious work! You’ve earned every piece of money you received on Patreon and I hope your channel continues to grow. Speaking of bad movies, Strike Commando staring Reb Brown is one of my all time favorite Rambo clones. To me, it’s a hilarity that can only come from taking your material seriously, but misunderstanding what you’re trying to imitate. You should look into doing Rambo knock offs at some time if you haven’t already. Cheers
On Galaxy of Terror, it is rarely mentioned that it seemed to have taken inspiration in at least some of the set piece from the original screenplay "Star Beast". Corman was absolutely falimiar with the script as he was about to produce it till star wars broke big and everyone started scooping up what scifi scripts were out there. Also in a strange turn of events some of that shit made it back into prometheus.
Don't know how I missed this channel. Been more than happy to put that right this evening--I've watched just about everything! Thank you, Rob. This has been so entertaining 😊
I probably shouldn't admit this, but I actually like Lifeforce, I've always thought of it as a space vampire movie and oddly enough re watched last night ( on prime ) Species at least the first one, is also favourite of mine
Very happy to have discovered this channel - absolutely lovely, in-depth but efficient cavalcade of cinema history, and with a decent critical evaluation that can outline the positives in even some of the ugliest nonsense. Certainly don't admire you for having watched all of these flicks! I thought I was a silly bean for having watched Leviathan several months ago, but that's just the tip of the iceberg here.
Yet again another top draw addition to your fantastic channel. I've watched every video you've put out and can't wait for part 2 and 3 of this series. Keep up the great work ✌️✌️✌️
Late 70’s early 80’s TV movies were great. I remember watching Intruder Within as a kid. Got a DVD-R of it later and was as awesome as I remember it being.
I've always hated the Blockbuster clones. Many of the free streaming services have these horrible movies on their lists. Even Amazon has gotten a little out of hand bolstering their lineup with such garbage. Thanks for showing these. A few I remember from when i was a kid but I couldn't place a name or particular scene until now.
The Creature Wasn't Nice! Our family loves that movie!!! Bruce Kimmel hams it up, Leslie Nielsen is awesome, Patrick MacNee is so kind and naive, and Cindy Wilson is cute as a button. The song is a classic, as are the movie parodies. Also... "This is Cooking with John. I'm John." "No s**t, Sherlock."
I thought you might have said a bit more about The deadly Spawn seeing as it was actually first released as 'Return of the Aliens' to piggy back off of the success of the movie but never mind, it was an enjoyable watch all the same :)
I was waiting for an Alien one of these. Other than The Road Warrior and maybe Escape from New York, I've probably seen more low budget ripoffs of Alien than any other film.
Gremlins had quite a few knockoffs, as did E.T and Raiders of the Lost Ark. I miss the days when directors ripped off good movies instead of constantly making bad remakes of good movies.
"Mutant on the bounty".For the longest time I've tried to locate a film a watched in the 90s in wich a guy got a telephone stuck in his head due to a teleportation accident. Your videos are usually great but this particular one just scratched an itch I was carrying for a long time. Thank u.
I watched aliens before I watched alien.......and was immediately smitten with LT Ellen Ripley ....her character was a boss and everyone around her was boss as well .....a master piece indeed
"...phenomenon continued into the 90s, where it was equally determined not to make any sense" 🤣 I watch your videos for exactly this kind of humour only! 🤣 Love it! Your research and collection of clips is extremely admirable, but it's our jokes that I look forward to the most! Keep going! Wish you the best!
I am unsure whether to be proud or ashamed of just how many of these movies I have seen, and like... Got a soft spot for old Ciro Ippolito's Alien 2 - it was the first VHS I ever rented [as a secondary schoolboy no less!] based on the cool VTC 'big box' cover with the mutilated head on it. I rented Contamination the week after. I totally agree with you about Inseminoid, but for an altogether more fundamental reasons - it has got Judy Geeson in it, who is just so whiny and pathetic and tearful in everything that you just wish someone would introduce her to a large sack and a canal and have done with it. The Intruder Within [aka The Lucifer Rig] is one of my favourites though - there were some great horror TV-Movies back in the day [Killdozer, Dark Night of the Scarecrow...] and many of them had the same plodding ominous Gil Melle synthesizer tune in them [which also appeared in more well known movies like Michaels Winner's The Sentinel, and Jeffrey Bloom's Blood Beach]. Leviathan is [apart from The Kindred] is the only Alien / The Thing / Body Horror 'hommage' that gives me a real 'ick' feeling in the back of my throat - plus it wipes the non-slip decking with Deepstar Six. Plus George Cosmatos' son grew up to be the director of the excellent Beyond The Black Rainbow, which is as visually stunning / messed up as you could possibly wish for. BRING ON PART 2..!!!
You should do a checklist for the movies you show, for us fans to have nights to watch and check them off FYI - I d but a blu ray of all your episodes, good fun documentary episodes
Great video! I was hoping to see an old movie on this list that we rented in the 2000's whose monster was very obviously a guy in a gorilla suit. It was about a crew that wakes up from cryogenic sleep on another planet (maybe the moon) and are terrorized by the gorilla monster. I don't remember much else, but I've been searching for it for a while and haven't found it yet. It looked like it was from the 80's if I had to guess.
And this is what I subscribed for... No, really. I literally subscribed to this channel seven months ago, specifically for when they got to cover the sub-genre of Alien and Aliens knockoffs. This is going to be glorious...
I was the co-production designer on GALAXY OF TERROR, so Jim doesn't have to take all the blame. I did, primarily, the exteriorsr (and a few interiors), and Jim, mainly, the vast majority of the interiors.
You guys did a hell of a good job all things considered ($).
@@THeilman Thank you so much! Low budget film making is really challenging and can take a big toll on health and well-being (and ALIENS actually WAS low-budget relative to what had to be done). It means a lot to know people remember the film (and some of these other/lesser--and far lesser--ones!!Good wishes!
Oh man...I was 12 when that came out and remember the amazing ad in the paper for it! I somehow finally got to see it on HBO a couple of years later, you guys really pulled no punches on the horror aspect 😁 I've never forgotten it! Terrific atmosphere and production design for what you guys were working with, great job!
A curiosity but have props used for Galaxy of Terror re used in Alien? Ie the interior of the Quest reminds me the interior of the Nostromo.
@@Kenshiroit GALAXY was filmed in LA, not England, so, no, no props of any kind were used from ALIEN. But, of course, GALAXY was inspired by the British film, so similarities in the look of the Quest shouldn't be much of a surprise.
That ‘unbirth’ scene from The Suckling, starting at time mark 17:05, is about the most comically bizarre thing I may have ever watched - LMAO
Sick as hell!😊
11:12 That sign at the end of the log got me.
You just know this is how so many captain's logs would start in the real world.
Lifeforce is the greatest B movie ever made. It’s genuinely fantastic. I remember watching thinking the only thing missing from this movie is zombies and then zombies appear 😂
It's unique, and strange, and well done. A great combination of horror and sci-fi.
Not to mention Mathilda May...
not often you see a film giving vampires and zombies the Erich von Däniken ancient astronaut treatment!
That was a horrible movie.
Loosely based on the book SPACE VAMPIRES
@@ComicGladiator Yes, Mathilda May! Yes, Mathilda May! Yes, Mathilda ... oh sorry, forgot where I was. That groveling aside, it is a little awkward (especially by today's post Hollywood Weinstein trials) that Miss May was just 18 at the start of shooting. But she did turn 19 a quick month into the shoot, making Mathilda's scantily clad performance one for the sexual revolution(?) space(?) ages. There's a joke in there, somewhere.
Fun fact: The song is Star Crystal was sung by the original voice of Daphne in the first season of Scooby-Doo, Indira Stefanianna Christopherson.
Part one of a three-part series! 'Alien in the 90s and Beyond' and 'Aliens' to follow soon.
Thank you for the suspense, seems rather appropriate.
I can't wait.
I don't know if you would consider it an "Alien" ripoff but "Time Walker" (1982) aka "Being From Another Planet" has the vibe of an "Alien" ripoff in that the creature comes from an ancient source (an Egyptian tomb), and it is lethal to any human it comes across -- BUT it looks like a rejected alien suit idea from "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" and the movie is strictly by the numbers. I bring it up because you didn't list it, even though it was mocked on "Mystery Science Theater 3000."
I never thought I’d see a thoughtful critical video essay with both ‘The Suckling’ and ‘Roots Search’ being featured , even the most jaded bad movie fiend can appreciate your work and learn something , cheers
Waited so long for a new video, and you've got a trilogy lined up?? Incredible.
The best part of this is searching up these movies and watching them on UA-cam. Having watched the "talking to the bomb" and "I want to eat your face" I can now say my life has improved dramatically.
Mel Brooks *wishes* he'd thought of the "I want to eat your face" scene.
But "hello my baby" was almost as good.
That interview with the 'Xtro' director reminds me of how the late George A. Romero would mess with interviewers who would gush about the social commentary of 'Night of the Living Dead', only for George to tell them it was all accidental and he'd really been trying to make a gore-fest instead.
I lose it every time I see that scene from 2016, because it features not only low-quality T-800 and Xenomorph doing their best The Matrix routine, but also music from videogame F.E.A.R. It's simply majestic. You can tell the director of this film has impeccable taste.
I didnt even notice the fear music lmaoo
This content is exactly why UA-cam was made, and why I love UA-cam. The amount and level of research, editing and narrating is above and beyond. New subscriber here! Greetings from Norway.
Agreed! So much content from our childhood memories.
Life Force is genuinely good. Cannon somehow managed to release a disproportionate amount of my favorite movies as a kid.
Never seen it but hear praise how it manages to combine multiple vampire archetypes into one movie
@@virovac885 If you don't need blistering action, cutting edge fx, or a story full of endless tricks and turns, and instead you're drawn to a movies with a slower burn, dark atmospherics, camp but never clownish, creativity triumphing over a lack of budget, and actual storytelling and filmmaking, then I would indeed recommend Life Force for you. If you've liked other Empire/Cannon films, that's also a plus. I loved some of those B-movies like "Robot Jox", "Arena", "Cobra", and the 'Ninja' series of films. Life Force isn't the type of movie that ends up getting the attention of the mainstream, but it has enough interesting innate qualities that it will remain cult classic type of movie at least for the foreseeable future.
"Lifeforce" is many things but never boring!
@@Tsotha Heavens, I didn't want to imply in any way that it was ever boring! I'd consider it well paced if anything, it's just not knocking you over the head with explosions and fight scenes every 30 seconds.
@@tommytwotacos8106 Both "Alien" and "Aliens" for that matter have a very deliberate pace, slowly and meticulously building up the plot + establishing the setting and characters, this is something the makers of "Lifeforce" paid attention to. I do understand why a lot of people don't like "Lifeforce" as it expects the viewer to suspend a lot of disbelief - not often you see a film which starts as a take on "Alien" then gives the vampire mythology an Erich von Däniken treatment THEN turns into a zombie apocalypse in the 3rd act.
Don't diss Lifeforce. The book it's based on was published three years before Alien came out.
Just came here to say that 👍
It's worth pointing out that 'Lifeforce' is based on a pre-existing novel by Colin Wilson, so whilst it might have got it's funding as a result of Alien's popularity it isn't a rip-off of the story.
It's basically a gender-reversed Dracula story when you think of it.
It's a movie I've always wanted to love more than I do. It has a lot to offer, and I watch it every ten years or so, but the middle section is pretty boring.
@@derkeheath5172 The structure is kind of strange
same story with the 1982 "The Thing", which probably got greenlit becuase of the popularity of "Alien"
I was lucky enough to find Star Crystal on VHS. I usually explain the plot as, "It's like Alien, until the alien reads the bible on the ship's computer, and learns to love." I usually omit the hilariously underwhelming ending.
This channel is one of the most underrated channels on UA-cam. I love these.
Agreed! 💯
💯 So good!
agree
Agreed.
Totally agree, the amount of research is commendable!
seriously. thank you for all that you do. this channel is so much fun to sort through. It is also the gift that keeps on giving, simply because i love rewatching your content....especially when im having a shite day and/or I want to view various tidbits of exploitation cinema with some sort of connective theme. im going to donate before the holidays, i swear
I absolutely adore low budget films like these because Evil Dead has the same beginnings and with good writing you can make any film great.
The commentary and editing on this is hilarious. Great job mate!
Definitely was not expecting a Boards of Canada reference. Cheers !
You have singlehandedly unlocked so many great core memories from movies that I've long since forgotten. Amazing work, as always!
I had the absolute fuzziest memory of seeing Star Crystal as a kid and had until now zero luck trying to find out what that movie was. THANK YOU!
So happy to have found both this channel and Stam Fine. Love these huge long form videos. Do 4 hour ones and I'll watch.
I'm kind of the opposite of that. Follow Stam Fine for a while but only found The Bad Movie Bible a few months ago. Both brilliant
In Space, no one can hear you possibly rip off a classic. Gotta love the pretendomorphs. Fab work as always Rob.
Alien is my all-time favorite movie and to be honest, I'm glad it inspired a ton of other, mostly cheesy Sci-Fi films. I still love them, especially Inseminoid, DeepStar Six, Star Crystal, Creature, Galaxy of Terror. I've read somewhere that Alien is the 2nd most imitated movie of all time (behind only Die Hard). Besides low-budget films Alien influenced some really great films like The Thing, Event Horizon, Life and Underwater. Thanks for a very interesting video!!!
Conan and Mad Max should be high on that list of imitated movies too I think?
@@conradhartgmx Mad Max is definitely there (#4 or #5). Not sure about Conan tho
Personally, Aliens is my favorite
The Thing was a remake from a movie done decades before Alien tho'.
@@zimriel The Thing (1982) is NOTHING like The Thing From Another World (1951). Have you even seen the original? The monster didn't even have the ability to imitate humans. The Thing (1982) is also unique but it definitely took inspiration from Alien & Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978)
LifeFore is awesome. I remember watching it in the cinema and thinking the zombies who got their life force sucked out of them looked like Eddie from Iron Maiden :D I still love this movie to this day and I don't think it's an Alien knock off.
It was a really a big budgeted project production, Directed by the director of the Poltergeist and Texas Chainsaw Massacre, with one the best Special Effects at that time. A Anglo-French cooperation.
It just had a a very convoluted story and un-inspired script that is more an episode of Dr. Who than 2001 ASO. A shame really.
@@inisipisTV I think script was ok. I actually thought some of the effects were a bit bad - like the zombie dolls, other effects were pretty good, like the space ship & the astronauts. I don't know what you mean by the script, but the original book idea of life force sucking space vampires that are really higher dimensional energy beings and at one point take possession of the Prime Minister.... My reaction : "that's not a fiction, that's a true story". :) I'm actually reading the book right now and I'm @ page #30 and I'm absolutely enjoying it!
Great channel, well written with a good dose of British Sarcasm. Seeing all these movies in their groups are so entertaining and bring a real sense of nostalgia. Brilliant.
These Borrowing Blockbusters videos are fantastic!
So glad you included the all time best worst Alien copy/homage: Red Dwarf’s Polymorph. So good!
The musical alien scene in Naked Space was genuinely funny. It's a shame that it was wrapped around such a terribly executed parody
The musical scene in Spaceballs, however, was pretty funny... "Check please!"
That movie is the only movie that makes me laugh every time because the humor doesn't work at all. It's so unfunny and boring that it's super funny because of that. I don't honestly know any other movie that does the same. Like a horror movie that's scary because it's not scary 😂
Most of my favorite rip-off film dramas of all time is alien Galaxy of terror and Forbidden world are my favorite and other ones as well.
After a while the bad movies start to blend together. I went to look for your video about Robocop, I even remember some parts, then I remembered that you haven't done it yet
Xtro is one of the weirdest films I have ever seen. Thank you for including it here (and Lifeforce!)
Knock off movies are fascinating, was it made with genuine passion? Did the staff/crew know they were making a knockoff movie? How much did they spend on it? There's so many unanswered questions but then we get gems like Xtro and the director just flat out saying "we added it just because", I love it
Your channel/delivery is perfect. Cheers from Chicago.
I find it fascinating that Galaxy of Terror, Forbidden World and Creature all featured special effects and production crews who ended up working on Aliens itself. In fact, I believe that a lot of sets from Creature were reused for Aliens.
likewise some of the sets for "Aliens" were reused for Tim Burton's "Batman" as they were filmed at the same studio
even though so many of those movies are bad, the fact that a lot of them released in theaters is part of what I feel is missing from cinema nowadays. you don't get a dozen low-budget films where every now and then you find a funny or intriguing gem. streaming and direct to vod just doesn't feel the same. and I'm tired of everything needing to be a big budget blockbuster. sigh... ah, well.
There’s never been more of a video that needs to be recommended to me. Thank you, UA-cam Lords
Just found your channel 2 days ago and already a new Borrowing Blockbusters 🙏
Watching this is interesting, because I watched several of these movies before ever watching Alien, and even though they're supposed to be comedic whenever a proper Alien moment happened it freaked me out. The Creature Wasn't Nice was especially freaky, because it felt like some really bizarre nightmare to me. Including them dancing the creature into the airlock and it popping out of the table at the end, and all the death being off-screen. And don't get me started on the Spaceballs chestburster.
Goes to show just how tremendous Alien is for even the moments played for parody and comedy being scary.
Must take days/weeks to put these great videos together. Much respect!
The cat being the secret android in Lily Cat is so genius, I can't believe it's never been stolen by any other Alien imitators
The novel Space Vampires(which Lifeforce was based on) was published in 1976, 3 years before Alien was released.
I saw LifeForce in the theater at an age I shouldn’t have with my mom. On Nickelodeon a show called Standby…Lights, Camera, Action (hosted by Leonard Nimitz) featured this movie and its special effects. So we decided to go see it when it was at our theater. Wasn’t the movie we thought it was going to be.
The last act is absolute insanity, and was complete ripped off by the Tom Cruise Mummy film
@@MrNegativecreep07 A Tom Cruise Mummy Film? Im pretty sure such thing doesnt exist.
You watched Lifeforce with your mom? That must have been akward considering all the nudity
I think a true appreciation for Alien is a clear sign of someone who understands film. Not just the quality execution, but the execution of it as a trade. Alien still looks incredible today. It takes it's time, and the people feel genuine.
The art of Giger and the final implementation of the Xenomorph is so original and authentic in every way.
It's a demonic entity that still seems very natural and evolutionary. Nothing about it is beautiful or akin to life on earth.
Even the name is aptly about fearing the unknown.
@ 7:05 actually Galaxy of Terror was actually the original script for ALIEN Ridley Scott rejected and sold to Roger Corman. As you pointed out Corman was working on other projects so it wasn't until 1980 he could start production on it.
I just stumbled onto your channel; I don't know how I haven't seen it yet. I grew up in the 80s and bad scifi & horror movies were always a favorite pastime with my friends -- we'd challenge each other with finding the worst. Scanning through your uploads, it looks like I've got quite a bit of good stuff to watch. 👍👍
This is one of my favorite channels and was waiting for my 1st new video as a subscriber to come out. Your content is always insightful and funny. Great work!
A new video!
YOU'VE MADE MY NIGHT!
Rob, have to mirror an earlier comment...one of the most under appreciated channels on YT!
Your videos never fail to either remind me of some great old b-movie I rented or copied back as a teenager in the 80's...or one I've never heard off. When you do that, you've never failed to impress me.
Thanks!
Thank you very much.
I rewound the singing alien in Naked Space multiple times. It's legit hilarious
Inseminoid might actually be the most famous film on this list, in a weird sense, due to its contribution to a DIFFERENT director named Scott.
Scott Cawthon, of Five Nights at Freddy’s fame, used a rather horrific scream from this movie, (probably from a sound library somewhere) as the jumpscare sound effect in the franchise’s first game.
Ironic that there are now a couple of movies ripping off the FNAF premise, like that weird Banna Splits movie and another one that had Nicolas Cage in it.
@@brandonlyon730 Willy’s Wonderland had its moments.
Nice to see multiple Red Dwarf cameos in this 🙂👍
He and Oliver Harper often mention Red Dwarf in their commentaries, as well.
I'm surprised that so little time was dedicated to the work of H.R. Giger. After all, the design of the Xenomorph was not prepared only for the movie, but was an important part of the creations of this artist creating "biotechnological" works. Arts clearly drawing inspiration from Egyptian period of the Pharaohs (which makes sense, since elongated skulls in those days signified aristocratic descent). The movie was just an add-on and an coincidence and this was back in the days when no one even thought about "Aliens" series.
That lounge song about face-eating made me lol for real.
I like Forbidden World. Despite being cheap as hell (they use styrofoam takeout containers to decorate the set walls) there is some really nice cinematography in the movie.
As a self proclaimed expert of cheesy movies myself I completely appreciate everything you include in your videos , they're extremely great at blending actual facts mixed with your comedy and dry wit the movies are just the blasting off point and I LOVE them. I sincerely hope your channel gets the subs and views it deserves!!!!I bet you'd be great at a riffing outfit like the original mystery science theater 3000 or cinematic titanic❤
"THE INTRUDER WITHIN"!!!! THANK YOU!!!
I must have seen a bit of that movie when I was a kid, because the image of that multiple-color-shadow-thing (at 14:01) has been stuck in my head ever since! I just had no idea where it came from!
I knew I clicked on this video for a reason! Thanks again!
At 5 years old, I came into the living room while my mother was watching Alien. Watched against the protest of my mother for a few minutes, and then Dallas got caught in the tunnel. Safe to say, I broke into tears and told her this movie wasn't safe, crying all the way to my room.
2:56 - that wipe was really cool!
And THANK YOU for including my favorite line from Creature:
“I zee you like gahns. What else do you like?”
And no mention of the Galaxy of Terror worm scene? BTW, softcore auteur Zalman King is in it too.
Woohoo! Have been looking forward to the next in this wonderful series of yours. Have discovered countless gems thanks to you.
Can we make it a law that Ernie Hudson has to be in at least one scene in every bad movie? He can even do his bad English accent from Congo! 😂 I love his commitment!
But how you sit through all of these is baffling. I love a good bad movie, but to go through most of this and pluck out the good bits has to be tedious work! You’ve earned every piece of money you received on Patreon and I hope your channel continues to grow.
Speaking of bad movies, Strike Commando staring Reb Brown is one of my all time favorite Rambo clones. To me, it’s a hilarity that can only come from taking your material seriously, but misunderstanding what you’re trying to imitate. You should look into doing Rambo knock offs at some time if you haven’t already.
Cheers
28:53 oh hey, its the prop with the two glowing red tubes again, you could see it a lot on Star Trek over the years.
Always happy when i see this channel uploaded another video!
On Galaxy of Terror, it is rarely mentioned that it seemed to have taken inspiration in at least some of the set piece from the original screenplay "Star Beast". Corman was absolutely falimiar with the script as he was about to produce it till star wars broke big and everyone started scooping up what scifi scripts were out there.
Also in a strange turn of events some of that shit made it back into prometheus.
I didn't realise Bobby Ball (of Cannon and Ball fame) starred in 'Galaxina'! :;
Don't know how I missed this channel. Been more than happy to put that right this evening--I've watched just about everything! Thank you, Rob. This has been so entertaining 😊
I probably shouldn't admit this, but I actually like Lifeforce, I've always thought of it as a space vampire movie and oddly enough re watched last night ( on prime ) Species at least the first one, is also favourite of mine
When a movie spawns this many imitators, you know it was a good one 😊
Very happy to have discovered this channel - absolutely lovely, in-depth but efficient cavalcade of cinema history, and with a decent critical evaluation that can outline the positives in even some of the ugliest nonsense.
Certainly don't admire you for having watched all of these flicks! I thought I was a silly bean for having watched Leviathan several months ago, but that's just the tip of the iceberg here.
The only channel I turn my notifications on for and these videos to me at an event lol
Yet again another top draw addition to your fantastic channel. I've watched every video you've put out and can't wait for part 2 and 3 of this series. Keep up the great work ✌️✌️✌️
The “I Want to Eat Your Face” song? Comedy gold. Made me laugh out loud.
Fantastic video, subscribed! I hope to see more "Borrowing Blockbusters" videos in the future, this is so fascinating!
"What...???" is a recurring, pleasant thought everytime I watch this channel.
Late 70’s early 80’s TV movies were great. I remember watching Intruder Within as a kid. Got a DVD-R of it later and was as awesome as I remember it being.
Alien 2 was released in the USA under the title Strangers. I think it was a limited release by Cinema Shares International.
I've always hated the Blockbuster clones. Many of the free streaming services have these horrible movies on their lists. Even Amazon has gotten a little out of hand bolstering their lineup with such garbage. Thanks for showing these. A few I remember from when i was a kid but I couldn't place a name or particular scene until now.
The Creature Wasn't Nice! Our family loves that movie!!! Bruce Kimmel hams it up, Leslie Nielsen is awesome, Patrick MacNee is so kind and naive, and Cindy Wilson is cute as a button. The song is a classic, as are the movie parodies. Also...
"This is Cooking with John. I'm John."
"No s**t, Sherlock."
4:50 Look at that adorable baby Snoke-in-a-jar!
Carnosaur 2 had plenty of Alien Elements, and it was a Corman film as well.
Bad movies? Horror? Boards of Canada reference? Instant subscribe.
Rob Thanks for another great video. Can't wait for Part 2 and 3 to come out.
I thought you might have said a bit more about The deadly Spawn seeing as it was actually first released as 'Return of the Aliens' to piggy back off of the success of the movie but never mind, it was an enjoyable watch all the same :)
I was waiting for an Alien one of these. Other than The Road Warrior and maybe Escape from New York, I've probably seen more low budget ripoffs of Alien than any other film.
Gremlins had quite a few knockoffs, as did E.T and Raiders of the Lost Ark. I miss the days when directors ripped off good movies instead of constantly making bad remakes of good movies.
"Mutant on the bounty".For the longest time I've tried to locate a film a watched in the 90s in wich a guy got a telephone stuck in his head due to a teleportation accident. Your videos are usually great but this particular one just scratched an itch I was carrying for a long time. Thank u.
I watched aliens before I watched alien.......and was immediately smitten with LT Ellen Ripley ....her character was a boss and everyone around her was boss as well .....a master piece indeed
"...phenomenon continued into the 90s, where it was equally determined not to make any sense"
🤣 I watch your videos for exactly this kind of humour only! 🤣 Love it!
Your research and collection of clips is extremely admirable, but it's our jokes that I look forward to the most!
Keep going! Wish you the best!
I am unsure whether to be proud or ashamed of just how many of these movies I have seen, and like... Got a soft spot for old Ciro Ippolito's Alien 2 - it was the first VHS I ever rented [as a secondary schoolboy no less!] based on the cool VTC 'big box' cover with the mutilated head on it. I rented Contamination the week after. I totally agree with you about Inseminoid, but for an altogether more fundamental reasons - it has got Judy Geeson in it, who is just so whiny and pathetic and tearful in everything that you just wish someone would introduce her to a large sack and a canal and have done with it. The Intruder Within [aka The Lucifer Rig] is one of my favourites though - there were some great horror TV-Movies back in the day [Killdozer, Dark Night of the Scarecrow...] and many of them had the same plodding ominous Gil Melle synthesizer tune in them [which also appeared in more well known movies like Michaels Winner's The Sentinel, and Jeffrey Bloom's Blood Beach]. Leviathan is [apart from The Kindred] is the only Alien / The Thing / Body Horror 'hommage' that gives me a real 'ick' feeling in the back of my throat - plus it wipes the non-slip decking with Deepstar Six. Plus George Cosmatos' son grew up to be the director of the excellent Beyond The Black Rainbow, which is as visually stunning / messed up as you could possibly wish for. BRING ON PART 2..!!!
Awesome survey of the great and the somewhat less than great. So much love goes into this!
Another fantastic video, looking forward the the next two parts.
Outland now that's a name I haven't heard in a long time. I love that one!
So happy to see some new videos! I absolutely love your stuff! ❤👍🏾
This channel is pure GOLD. Entertaining, informative and most importantly, FUN! Subscribed and binge-watching this weekend!
I was close to the end wondering if there’d be an underwater section! Great job❤
As always, great video with great research and a great sense of humor. Greetings vom Germany.
You should do a checklist for the movies you show, for us fans to have nights to watch and check them off
FYI - I d but a blu ray of all your episodes, good fun documentary episodes
Great video! I was hoping to see an old movie on this list that we rented in the 2000's whose monster was very obviously a guy in a gorilla suit. It was about a crew that wakes up from cryogenic sleep on another planet (maybe the moon) and are terrorized by the gorilla monster. I don't remember much else, but I've been searching for it for a while and haven't found it yet. It looked like it was from the 80's if I had to guess.
And this is what I subscribed for... No, really. I literally subscribed to this channel seven months ago, specifically for when they got to cover the sub-genre of Alien and Aliens knockoffs. This is going to be glorious...
I adore these, truly some of the best work on UA-cam👏👏👏👏
2:54, 3:58 - Man, I recognize this voice from other Italian films dubbed into English. I mostly recall "Puma Man".
"It! The Terror from Beyond Space" was directed by Edward L. Cahn, not Roger Corman. Corman never directed for Allied Artists.