As far as killer robot stories go, this one isn't bad. It's not up there with the classics of the genre - films such as THE TERMINATOR, WESTWORLD, and 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY, but there are some genuinely spooky atmospherics as Douglas and Fawcett are chased around some dingy corridors by a psychotic robot. Although the set design and action seems to have been partially lifted from the previous year's popular ALIEN, this film still has enough different slants to keep you watching.
For a start, there are only three main actors in this film (apart from a supposed blink-and-you-miss-it cameo from Ed Bishop) so they have a lot of work to do between them. This isn't helped by having some major miscasting - namely the role of the film's masculine hero, Adam, being played by a far-too-old Kirk Douglas. We're supposed to imagine that old-man Douglas is capable of strenuous physical activities and getting his head smashed in to little effect. The film really needed an actor twenty years younger to fill the part. Douglas also feels a little too over-qualified for a simplistic thriller like this, as both he and Fawcett have little to do apart from fighting the unstoppable robot.
Fawcett herself is little better. I'm sure she's a good actress and all, but she never becomes more than two-dimensional here. The camera enjoys lingering on her naked and scantily-clothed body (and, more disturbingly, Douglas' too) so perhaps that's the reason for her casting. Thankfully, at least there is one effective actor on screen, a young, menacing Harvey Keitel as a murderer who eventually falls foul of his own creation. The film kicks off with Keitel murdering the real captain and taking his place (sucking him through an airlock and blowing him apart outside, quite literally), then travelling to one of Saturn's moons where Douglas and Fawcett reside. We never do learn of his past, or his motives, and this makes his character even more mysterious. Despite Keitel simply doing his patented twitchy routine, he's still very effective and a little frightening.
The killer android itself is a mixed bag. For a start, it's a good head taller than the other actors, to allow for an operator to fit inside, of course. It certainly looks good on the outside, a mixture of hydraulics, crushing pincers, and some cute little lights for a head. On the downside, it's not exactly a difficult foe to foil, seeing as it gets repeatedly pushed into pits of water, electrocuted, and disassembled during this film's length. There are some brief gory bits to add to the horror, including a decapitated dog and the robot "wearing" the battered head of Keitel, as well as cutting Keitel's hand off, but I would much rather face this slow-moving enemy than an alien or a velociraptor, for example.
I did like the ending, which is kind of clichéd but has a good bit where Douglas realises he has been partially assimilated by the robot when he discovers a hole in the back of his neck. The final destruction of the android is a huge explosion, shot by apparently throwing buckets of water about along with some body parts, and it's very arty. Please don't ask me to explain the epilogue, which shows Fawcett watching a spaceship return to Earth, as I have no idea of it's relevance. This isn't a brilliant film, but it passes the time nicely.
For a start, there are only three main actors in this film (apart from a supposed blink-and-you-miss-it cameo from Ed Bishop) so they have a lot of work to do between them. This isn't helped by having some major miscasting - namely the role of the film's masculine hero, Adam, being played by a far-too-old Kirk Douglas. We're supposed to imagine that old-man Douglas is capable of strenuous physical activities and getting his head smashed in to little effect. The film really needed an actor twenty years younger to fill the part. Douglas also feels a little too over-qualified for a simplistic thriller like this, as both he and Fawcett have little to do apart from fighting the unstoppable robot.
Fawcett herself is little better. I'm sure she's a good actress and all, but she never becomes more than two-dimensional here. The camera enjoys lingering on her naked and scantily-clothed body (and, more disturbingly, Douglas' too) so perhaps that's the reason for her casting. Thankfully, at least there is one effective actor on screen, a young, menacing Harvey Keitel as a murderer who eventually falls foul of his own creation. The film kicks off with Keitel murdering the real captain and taking his place (sucking him through an airlock and blowing him apart outside, quite literally), then travelling to one of Saturn's moons where Douglas and Fawcett reside. We never do learn of his past, or his motives, and this makes his character even more mysterious. Despite Keitel simply doing his patented twitchy routine, he's still very effective and a little frightening.
The killer android itself is a mixed bag. For a start, it's a good head taller than the other actors, to allow for an operator to fit inside, of course. It certainly looks good on the outside, a mixture of hydraulics, crushing pincers, and some cute little lights for a head. On the downside, it's not exactly a difficult foe to foil, seeing as it gets repeatedly pushed into pits of water, electrocuted, and disassembled during this film's length. There are some brief gory bits to add to the horror, including a decapitated dog and the robot "wearing" the battered head of Keitel, as well as cutting Keitel's hand off, but I would much rather face this slow-moving enemy than an alien or a velociraptor, for example.
I did like the ending, which is kind of clichéd but has a good bit where Douglas realises he has been partially assimilated by the robot when he discovers a hole in the back of his neck. The final destruction of the android is a huge explosion, shot by apparently throwing buckets of water about along with some body parts, and it's very arty. Please don't ask me to explain the epilogue, which shows Fawcett watching a spaceship return to Earth, as I have no idea of it's relevance. This isn't a brilliant film, but it passes the time nicely.