Three of the crack minds from Mystery Science Theatre 3000 (Mike Nelson, Bill Corbett and Kevin Murphy) return for a second round with their new project 'The Film Crew' and continue their proud tradition of mocking the weak.
For people who missed the first release 'Hollywood After Dark' the film crew are three men who have been hired to create commentary tracks for DVDs that don't have any. Each week (or month depending on how frequently they plan to release these discs) they are sent a new awful film to which they provide the full attention it so richly deserves.
This time out they are sent the B-movie classic Killers from Space starring a young and wooden Peter Graves. MST3K fans are sure to remember another Graves outing 'Beginning of the End' being one of the high points of the last series and this one does a great job living up to it. The plot involves a scientist who disappears during a bomb test and shows up later with a large scar on his chest and no memory of what happened. After his bosses find him leaving some secret information in the desert they are forced to drug him so he can reveal all that he knows. If you have seen the title you may have guessed that his disappearance may be linked to some killers who are perhaps from space. The aliens plans are quite simple. Release giant bugs and animals to destroy the world and then take over but the good Doctor will have none of that and comes up with a plan to save the human race. The only problem is getting anyone to believe him.
Okay the story sounds pretty stupid (which it is) but that script is just one of the films many flaws. Thanks to Peter's stiff performance (just try to ignore that), the directors decision to have seemingly random close ups, repetitive action and the terrible alien make up and flying effects the guys have no shortage of targets to aim at and they don't let anything slide.
A big step up this time is the quality of the host segments. Things seemed a little off in the first one but everything is definitely clicking now and they manage to deliver some laughs while giving everyone a break from the film. Hopefully this improvement is going continue with any future releases.
Anyone who either enjoys MST3K or just likes listening to Smart Asses tee off on something will get a big kick out of 'The Film Crew'. I can not wait for the next one.
For people who missed the first release 'Hollywood After Dark' the film crew are three men who have been hired to create commentary tracks for DVDs that don't have any. Each week (or month depending on how frequently they plan to release these discs) they are sent a new awful film to which they provide the full attention it so richly deserves.
This time out they are sent the B-movie classic Killers from Space starring a young and wooden Peter Graves. MST3K fans are sure to remember another Graves outing 'Beginning of the End' being one of the high points of the last series and this one does a great job living up to it. The plot involves a scientist who disappears during a bomb test and shows up later with a large scar on his chest and no memory of what happened. After his bosses find him leaving some secret information in the desert they are forced to drug him so he can reveal all that he knows. If you have seen the title you may have guessed that his disappearance may be linked to some killers who are perhaps from space. The aliens plans are quite simple. Release giant bugs and animals to destroy the world and then take over but the good Doctor will have none of that and comes up with a plan to save the human race. The only problem is getting anyone to believe him.
Okay the story sounds pretty stupid (which it is) but that script is just one of the films many flaws. Thanks to Peter's stiff performance (just try to ignore that), the directors decision to have seemingly random close ups, repetitive action and the terrible alien make up and flying effects the guys have no shortage of targets to aim at and they don't let anything slide.
A big step up this time is the quality of the host segments. Things seemed a little off in the first one but everything is definitely clicking now and they manage to deliver some laughs while giving everyone a break from the film. Hopefully this improvement is going continue with any future releases.
Anyone who either enjoys MST3K or just likes listening to Smart Asses tee off on something will get a big kick out of 'The Film Crew'. I can not wait for the next one.