New World Pictures released Galaxy of Terror on 1 October 1981 in the United States. It only ever got a limited release.
I’ll be honest. This film is a rip-off of Alien. Yet it’s really good. Of course, “critics” generally hate it. Of course they would! Can’t appreciate a low-budget version of a beloved earlier film!
But it’s more than just Alien. It influenced Aliens. This is not surprising. James Cameron was second unit director and co-production designer.
What I most like are the practical special effects. Alien gets by without much because the whole thing is so dark. (Obviously, John Hurt’s chest explosion is the exception.)
But I understand why many don’t like this film. A lot of it is less realistic than Alien. But it ain’t like this earlier film couldn’t use a bit more color!
Strangely, director Bruce D Clark never directed again. And he never directed horror or science fiction. It goes to show: a film is a film is a film. I assume he just got tired of working on these films. But he did come back to produce a couple of direct-to-video films in the 1990s. Both were filmed in Washington state so I assume he retired up there. I hope he’s well!
Anyway, enough talk! Let’s watch this underappreciated gem:
Other 1 October Anniversaries
Filmmakers
- Ted Healy (1896-1937): Actor known mostly for creating The Three Stooges.
- Walter Matthau (1920-2000): Actor known for Charley Varrick, The Bad News Bears, and much more.
- James Whitmore (1921-2009): Actor known for Them! and Planet of the Apes.
- Tom Bosley (1927-2010): Actor best known as the dad on Happy Days but we love him for giving his eyes to Joan Crawford in the pilot episode of Night Gallery.
- Laurence Harvey (1928-1973): Actor known for House of Darkness and The Manchurian Candidate.
- George Peppard (1928-1994): Actor best known for the TV show The A-Team but who was also in films like Battle Beyond the Stars.
- Richard Harris (1930-2002): Actor known for A Man Called Horse, Unforgiven, and much more.
- Julie Andrews (1935-): Actor known for her roles in family films like Mary Poppins but also notably topless in SOB.
- Stella Stevens (1938-2023): Actor known for The Poseidon Adventure and Cruise Into Terror.
- Randy Quaid (1950-): Actor known for The Last Detail, Independence Day, and more.
Films
- The Brute Man (1946): A deformed man murders those who harmed him.
- The Brain From Planet Arous (1957): Space alien brain takes over a human in order to rule the world.
- Eating Raoul (1982): A couple turns to murder to fund a restaurant.
- Night of the Strangler (1971): Interracial romance spurs a string of murders.
- Dark Carnival (1993): Slasher in a Halloween haunted house.
- Freaked (1993): More or less a parody of The Island of Dr. Moreau.
- Night Terror (2002): College students summon a dead serial killer.
- Decadent Evil II (2007): A couple tries to save the homunculus’ son.
- Night of the Flesh Eaters (2008): Native American zombies.
- Case 39 (2009): A social worker rescues a child from abusive parents but there is something worse.
- House of the Wolf Man (2009): Five strangers are trapped in a castle with monsters.
- Let Me In (2010): A bullied boy makes friends with a girl vampire.
- Killer Sofa (2019): A recliner falls in love and goes on a killing spree.
- I See You (2019): A child goes missing and there seem to be supernatural things going on. But there aren’t.
- Under Wraps (2021): Basically ET with a mummy.
- The Curse of the Necklace (2024): An antique neckless has supernatural powers.
Galaxy of Terror poster via Wikipedia under Fair Use.
