Battle Beyond the Stars
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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Battle Beyond the Stars is a Roger Corman-produced science fiction film, directed by Jimmy T. Murakami and released in 1980. The film is notable in that the screenplay was partly written by John Sayles, the score was by James Horner and the special effects were directed by James Cameron. Several of the effects shots were re-used for other films throughout the 1980's. An example of this can be seen during the movie theater fight scene at the end of Bachelor Party. Additionally the space ship models and effects were re-used in the film Space Raiders.
Production
Prior to production, a Hollywood trade paper announced that John Wayne would star in the film under the direction of Ingmar Bergman. In all likelihood this was a joke either by the trade paper or the film's publicist. At the time of its release, it was the most expensive film produced by Roger Corman - much of the budget allegedly went toward paying the salaries of George Peppard and Robert Vaughn.
- Some of the audio effects such as laser blasts are re-use of sounds from the "Battlestar Galactica" series.
- One of the main star ships seen in the movie was noted for appearing to have a breast-shaped front to the ship. (As seen in the movie poster)
Cast
- Richard Thomas ... Shad
- Robert Vaughn ... Gelt
- John Saxon ... Sador
- George Peppard ... Cowboy
- Darlanne Fluegel ... Nanelia
- Sybil Danning ... Saint-Exmin
- Sam Jaffe ... Dr. Hephaestus
- Jeff Corey ... Zed
- Morgan Woodward ... Cayman of the Lambda Zone
- Marta Kristen ... Lux
- Earl Boen ... Nestor 1
- Lynn Carlin ... Nell (voice)
- Lara Cody ... Kelvin2
- Steve Davis ... Quepeg
- Julia Duffy ... Mol
Plot
The story is a pastiche of Akira Kurosawa's film Seven Samurai and its western remake, The Magnificent Seven. The farmers of the peaceful planet Akir, named in honor of Akira Kurosawa, are threatened by the space tyrant Sador (played by Corman regular John Saxon, carrying the old Eli Wallach role). Richard Thomas plays Shad, who sets out to recruit a band of mercenaries to fight Sador. This band includes Gelt, played by Robert Vaughn in a part that is essentially a reprise of his role in The Magnificent Seven with many of the same lines of dialogue; George Peppard (who was originally considered to play Vin, Steve McQueen's character, in The Magnificent Seven) as a space cowboy; and Saint-Exmin, a member of the alien Valkyrie race, played by Sybil Danning.
The film contains many of the clichés that came to dominate sci-fi films following Star Wars including giant spaceships, exotic aliens and the finale of a suicidal assault on a space fortress.
Footage from the movie was used in the creation of the laser disk game Astron Belt.
