They're hip! They're hilarious! Earth will never be the same! It's a close encounter of the hilarious kind when five of the universe's coolest aliens crash-land on planet Earth! Piloted by an ultrahip Martian, the cosmic c... more »rew ends up in a sleepy Midwestern town. Unfortunately, it's Halloween night and the citizens mistake these spaced invaders for harmless trick-or-treaters. Instead of the global invasion they planned on, these misguided Martians bungle their way into a series of madcap misadventures! Get set for an outrageous blast of intergalactic fun and outlandish special effects in this wacked-out comedy-adventure!« less
"On my first viewing of Spaced Invaders I made a tragic mistake: I took it seriously. When renting it later just for the heck of it I realized that it's supposed to be just as goofy and unbelievable as it is. It's not just a funny movie; it's a forgotten classic. The first time you see it you're likely to be distracted by the sappy ET-style friendship between Arianna Richards and a cute little robot-thing, but make no mistake: This movie is not just another Mac & Me.The story: The Martian Empire is attacking Arcturus under the command of enforcer drones whose inflexibility turns the entire fleet into cannon fodder; a civilian asteroid patrol with five loony Martians and a drone of their own picks up what they think is a cry for help from the embattled citizens of Earth. What they don't know is that the little town of Big Bean is merely broadcasting "War of the Worlds" on Halloween night, so their efforts to join up with the invasion force after a crash landing get them mixed up with a bunch of trick-or-treaters, a costumed mob of gun-toting rednecks, a farmer obsessed with getting pictures for the tabloids, a new Sheriff out of his depth, and their own enforcer drone.The dialogue in this film is sharp and wittily delivered, set amongst small but incredibly humorous moments that could be missed the first time through but reward second and third viewings trmendously. Little things from a dog changing film in a camera offscreen to the "Duck!" scene make the movie special, and crazy elements like Vern "Zorro" Pillsbury, turned from zero to hero via a Martian robot slave transformation, keep things nutty. Brian the duck is a show-stealer who actually does remind us at times of Daffy--right down to the accent--while old man Wrenchmuller and his trusty dog Jim try to deal with the Martians in their barn like any cartoon character would: with mousetraps and dynamite.Forget that it's silly to have five Martians voiced as celebrity parodies--it's supposed to be silly. Sit back and watch it with your family this Halloween, and remember not to put tab A into slot B when you assemble your world domination kit. As for me, I can't wait for this one to hit DVD."
Great, vastly underrated movie for the family
Lee Gaiteri | 02/22/2004
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Like the great classic Bugs Bunny cartoons, this movie has humor at different levels. I just introduced this to my 10 year old daughter and 11 year old son. Both enjoyed the movie - busting out laughing quite a few times... and my daughter is not much of a sci-fi fan. The movie kept me laughing despite having seen a few times... the adult-level humor (that is, humor that adults will get simply because of greater life experiences, not baudy or R-rated to be found here) keeps the movie equally enjoyable for adults. For example of the adult level humor, the Martian voices are based on characters of different movies/actors. The Martian pilot, Blaznee, has the voice and mannerisms of Jack Nicholson; the scientist, that of Peter Seller's Dr. Strangelove. The special effects are surprisingly good for this film. The lack of top 10 actors actually works in the movie's favor and the actors/actresses play their part well - in fact I would say the producers picked out actors and their skills for the roles' needs over box-office draw power (an excellent example is Wayne Alexander's "Vern" character). I had to write this review... the kids are playing this for the 3rd time in 4 days over dinner right now. Good for a rainy day or a late night weekend there's-nothing-on-and-I'm-bored movie."
You did it again! You put tab A into schlot B, didn't you?!
Lee Gaiteri | 07/15/2004
(5 out of 5 stars)
""Spaced Invaders" is a priceless comedy! I first saw it when I was 7 and 13 years later it still keeps me in stitches. This has got to be the funniest portrayal of alien invasion ever, with "Men In Black" and "Mars Attacks" being a close second and third. Sure the concepts that the aliens speak English and can breathe unaided on Earth WOULD be farfetched if you think of this movie as strictly sci-fi, but it's princiapally a COMEDY!! Accept that and everything else falls into place. The sight gags, jokes, performances, and even special effects are stupendous! My favorite unspoken joke is Blaznee's (the Pilot) sporting of an LA Lakers t-shirt (apparently Mars gets pretty good reception of Earth cable stations like ESPN.) :-P [Sidenote: Whoever it was that said this movie was too scary for kids was either being a smart@$$, recalling a different movie, possesses no spine whatsoever, or severely needs their head examined.]P.S. For all that own this movie, just for fun try counting all the times Lt. Digiwig says "Come back/Prepare to die Earth scum!""
"They're not really bad, they're just . . . stupid!"
John A. Kuczma | Marietta, GA USA | 12/09/1999
(4 out of 5 stars)
"So says young Kathy Hoxly (played by Arianna Richards) and that about sums it up. A five-martian crew on asteroid patrol intercepts a halloween radio broadcast of Orson Wells'"War of the Worlds" and, thinking it's the real thing, decide to hit the Earth, which they do, literally. Between slapstick sight gags, some slick comic dialogue and some truly unique trick-or-treating, this Sci-Fi spoof hits on all cylinders, or whatever they call them in that space thingamajig. Royal Dano is excellent as Mr Wrenchmuller, who thinks his pictures of the invading Martians are just the ticket to save his failing farm. Unfortunately, its hard to tell who's the brains of the team, Mr Wrenchmuller or his dog "Jim".The Martian crew, led by Captain Bipto and his sidekick "Ferndroid", bumble their way through the invasion, pursued by the irate inhabitants of the town of Big Bean and an equally irate "enforcer drone" who's out to see that they succeed or die trying (or is that frying?). The action moves at a hectic clip, accompanied by the frequent commentary of cynical Navigator/Pilot Blazney.A bewildering display of alien technology is displayed, or at least referred to, including heat rays, donuts of destruction, fried megaspazz redundancy piles, bruised boo-boos and a loveable polypropelene droidlet called "Shortstuff", all accompanied by the frantic war cry "Prepare to die, Earth scum!"The wildly disparate plot elements come together for a clever, multi-tiered ending that is both comical and emotionally satisfying.Two suggestions: Don't eat before watching this movie, and leave yourself plenty of rug to roll around on."
Way Too Funny
John A. Kuczma | 12/10/1999
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Totally funny. This movie appeals to both adults and kids. Many of the jokes adults will get, but kids will not. But on the other hand, the other jokes the kids will love...and the adults wish they could laugh at without the kids in the room. If you want the story line, read another review, If you want fun, get this movie. The martian characters bring life to the movie, as well as a few of the town folk characters. The one liners that pop up will get ya. The visual gags are also great. I will admit I had to see the movie three times to get all the visual gags since they appear so quickly. Enough said."