Review of Battlefield Earth

Introduction

It`s the year 3000 and mankind is on the verge of extinction. A powerful race called the Pyschlos have controlled Earth for the past 1000 years and the planet is now nothing more than a barren wasteland which is slowly being drained of all natural resources. Man are classed as animals but when one of them gains knowledge of the Psychlos and their technology a plan is hatched to free mankind from it`s slavery.

Boasting an impressive line-up of personnel behind the scenes, including may of the crew from the original Star Wars trilogy, and starring John Travolta you think this would be a dead cert for some top sci-fi action. I suppose the alarm bells should start ringing when the only kind quote they could find to put on the back of the DVD box is "fantastic special effects", that and the fact that it`s well known as being a huge steaming pile.

Video

The anamorphic picture is very high quality throughout which makes it a shame that what you`re actually seeing is such a mess. The visual style of the movie comes across as a mish-mash of ideas that serve to add confusion more than aid the story telling.

There are numerous effects sequences which range from very impressive to appallingly bad, with most of the creature and makeup work falling into the appallingly bad category. The main complaint about the effects has to be the dreadful Psychlos. You won`t wonder how they managed to make them look in excess of seven foot tall as the use of stilts is blatantly obvious in the awkward and clumsy way they move about. It`s also cringe-worthy to see them hold a weapon as you can see that they are simply wearing some of the most obvious rubber claws you`ll ever have seen. We are talking real `B` movie stuff here.

Audio

The audio track is very impressive throughout. It`s very lively and all channels are put to excellent use. It has an extremely strong LFE channel that really adds some considerable weight to the onscreen action.

Features

This disc comes with an above average set of extras including Directors Commentary and several behind the scenes features. It`s just a shame that you won`t feel at all compelled to watch a single one of them.

Conclusion

Dear oh dear, what we reviewers go through in the name of DVD Reviewer :).

I`m struggling to find words to describe what I feel about this film as I really don`t want to have to resort to profanities. Simply put this is dreadful and I am struggling to think of a worse movie. Apparently the book on which this film was based is excellent however after having seen this film I can do nothing but doubt that. There are so many problems with this movie I don`t know where to start.

The story is a disjointed and totally implausible mess. I`m all for suspension of belief but when a group of savages can learn to fly Harrier Jet fighters inside of 21 days you can`t help but laugh. I really can`t see why the likes of John Travolta became involved with this project and watching the behind the scenes features becomes almost embarrassing as you listen to those involved saying what a great movie this is. I seem to recall some sort of religious reasons for Travolta`s involvement but even that would not be an adequate excuse for his complete loss of sanity.

What makes me shudder even more than watching this is the fact that there are firm plans for a sequel and a TV series, may God have mercy on us all!

I will freely admit to having been unfortunate to actually see this when it was on general release at the cinema and remember vividly the feeling of complete despair at having wasted an evening on this drivel. I was, however, keen to see the DVD as there are many cases where certain films tend to work better on the small screen and after a second viewing.

After having seen it a second time it is easier to understand and I did pick up on the storyline better however this makes it even worse when you start to realise that there might have been a story worth telling under all the crud. The quality of the DVD helps to make the time pass more pleasurably and the reduction in screen size helps as well, I seem to recall many of the effects shots looking a bit on the rough side on the large cinema screen. That said it`s still utter rubbish.

So a top quality DVD of a truly dreadful film that serves as a lesson in incompetence on so many levels. Highly recommended if you fancy taking the p*** out of John Travolta, or if you are short of coasters.