Don't be fooled into watching some science fiction extravaganza, this is strictly action-adventure fodder packed with plenty of shoot-outs and buggy chases through desert locations which seem to have been simply inspired by the exploits in MAD MAX 2. Thanks to the short running time the usual prison clichés are brought up and gone through at speed, and the film-makers just can't wait to get to the action parts of the story hence the lack of any likable or realistic characters at all and the incredibly high death toll of just about the entire cast by my reckoning, with the one exception (I mean who the heck has Farnsworth got left by the end of the movie?). The special effects are limited to a couple of dodgy model spaceships but there's the usual quota of not-bad explosions and some well-executed stunts and shoot-outs for action fans to enjoy.Although the sets and props tend to look cheap, the low budget action is handled pretty well and the film is nicely violent, with lots of bloody bullet impacts and sadistic murders. The somewhat recognisable cast tend to come off badly though and you could say that this is a film where everybody simply phones in their performance. Michael Pare is an unlikable sadistic villain and plays it woodenly whilst John Laughlin is awful as the young, carefree hero bounty hunter who snaps when his wife is shot dead. As for Richard Farnsworth, well he plays his usual hard-mannered stubborn old self and is the best thing in the film. Thanks to the wealth of action, this film is never boring - instead, just dumb. Only of use if your brain has had a hard day and you need something painless and totally lacking in plot motivation or twists of any kind to keep you engaged with repetitive violence and lots of deaths. Otherwise, look elsewhere.

It is remarkable sometimes, how much space can look like the prairies and desert of the American Midwest. But just add a few odd shaped buildings and drive around in dune buggies, and suddenly you're on another planet. Well, they just don't make these kind of low budget sci-fi flicks anymore. And it is a shame, because despite their faults, and bad effects, they got their own charm.Not much unlike a western, the bounty hunter Walker and the retired old "sheriff", the Colonel, must team up to stop the violent and extremely dangerous Grange to lead a prisoner rebellion off the planet.Bad props, bad effects, a overuse of explosives but good fun none the less. Simply put, it got good thoughtless action. And because of it is entertaining almost from the start. So, a lot of good fun. But to call it good would be a stretch.4/10

The question is, can a movie this entertaining really be considered a "bad" movie? My husband and I picked this up at a used video store for 99 cents simply because of the title and the fact that the box had the words "Vestron Pictures" on it (Vestron has been highly regarded as a mark of quality ever since I first acquired the legendary films "Suburbia" and "Class of 1984"). We were not expecting a movie as full of win as this one was. Your basic plot as is follows: Grange, this goombaesque thug from planet Earth, robs "the bank of the Moon" and is sentenced to a penal colony on a remote planet (I don't even remember the planet's name) to mine for bauxite and other minerals. The "governor" of said colony and the owner of the mine are exploiting the prisoners for labor. Walker, a bounty hunter (apparently one of only three on the whole planet) reminds the prisoners that there is no escape, because there's only one shuttle out of the whole planet and they'd have him to deal with. Then there's the nameless "Colonel", a retired bounty hunter who suffers from a haunting reoccurring nightmare. Much of the movie centers around "futuristic" car chases (dunebuggies with plywood slapped to the sides) with explosions galore. The planet itself looks suspiciously like Hemet, CA or one of those other dusty Inland Empire outposts. But what makes the movie truly shine is a surprisingly awesome soundtrack featuring several LA punk bands of the mid-80s. I seriously doubt that this soundtrack was ever pressed to vinyl, but it's definitely worth buying the movie just for the soundtrack. I can't even remember the names of the bands (they're listed in the credits) other than Exploding White Mice, because that was the only one I'd heard of before I saw this movie, but I'm definitely looking into them.Basically, the movie is definitely not a waste of your time and would be best enjoyed with a 12 pack of beer and a few of your closest friends.

Richard Farnsworth is one of my favorite actors. He usually gives solid performances, such as in The Straight Story, and The Grey Fox. He also does fairly well here, but the rest of the film suffers from a low budget, poor writing, and so-so photography. The Miller-Movie formula gives it a 4. Richard gets a 5.