Hidden Movie Gem: “Ice Pirates”
Today’s Hidden Movie Gem guest post comes from Jon Stark.
Movie Title: Ice Pirates
Year: 1984
Writer: Stewart Raffill, Standford Sherman
Lead Actors: Robert Urich, Mary Crosby, Michael D. Roberts, Anjelica Huston, and Ron Pearlman.
Director: Stewart Raffill
Plot Summary: From IMDB: In the far future water is the most valuable substance. Two space pirates are captured, sold to a princess, and recruited to help her find her father who disappeared when he found information dangerous to the rulers. A real Space Opera with sword fights, explosions, fighting robots, monsters, bar fights and time warps.
Why I Think This Movie Is A Hidden Gem: A movie this good that only has a 5.3 star rating in IMDB has to be a hidden gem. Sure, it looks terribly dated now and my screening partner fell asleep during the opening credits and only woke up once to tell me it was the “dumbest movie ever made” but she didn’t like “Galaxy Quest” either.
This was a great pirate story set in space and felt fresh. You could substitute gold for water and Caribbean ports for the planets and say, “Oh, I’ve seen this.” There are plenty of twists and turns seasoned with comedy but overall it moves quickly along a single narrative line. This is no “Dune.”
It’s as 80s as “16 Candles” and I believe it’s what “Serenity” would have been if it had been released 20 years earlier.
My Favorite Moment In The Movie: I love the beginning of the climactic battle. There’s a huge fight going on and the crew is repairing robots just feet away. Actually, I love all the scenes with robots — nothing works in the future. It’s so cheesy you have to like it.
My Favorite Dialogue In the Movie: The dialogue was really about how the actors said their lines. There wasn’t anything especially memorable, certainly no “I’ll be back”, but the scenes themselves stay with you. This is typical of Jason and Roscoe.
Jason: The manifest
Roscoe: Box B-28
Jason: 28?… 25, 26, 27… B28… oh no
[hands egg to Roscoe]
Roscoe: What is it?
Jason: Space Herpe.
Roscoe: herpe?
Jason: Dormant form. uh — Keep away from heat and — uh — moisture. Extremely dangerous when activated. Antibody — oh boy — unknown.
Key Things You Should Look For When Watching This Movie: Max von Sydow. Blink and you miss him. There are a lot references to the early 80s that are easy to miss if you weren’t living in the US during that time. I was also struck by how easily you could insert the Serenity into this universe — update the dialogue and effects and instant sequel.
Movie Trailer:
Thanks, Jon! To show our gratitude for your guest post, here’s a dash of creative juju for you. Whoosh!
Tomorrow: Another Hidden Movie Gem!
Note: We filled up the month of October, so I don’t need any more guest posts. Thanks to everyone who participated!