Scénario:
John SaylesPhotographie:
Daniel LacambreMusique:
James HornerActeurs·trices:
Richard Thomas, Robert Vaughn, John Saxon, George Peppard, Darlanne Fluegel, Sybil Danning, Sam Jaffe, Jeff Corey, Morgan Woodward, Lynn Carlin (plus)VOD (1)
Résumés(1)
Science-fiction tale about the harmless inhabitants of the planet Akir, whose tranquility is suddenly threatened by a wicked tyrant who plans to take over their planet. To prevent this, a noble young man sets out to find a few good soldiers who will help him defeat the cruel overlord. Will the underdogs succeed? (texte officiel du distributeur)
Critiques (2)
Les Mercenaires de l'espace est un effort de série B que le producteur Roger Corman a sorti en réponse au succès de La Guerre des étoiles (l’original) de Georges Lucas. C’est une variation colorisée et superkitsch sur Les Sept mercenaires et Les Sept samouraïs qui ne dément pas ses sources d’inspiration et, au contraire, leur fait des clins d’œil (Robert Vaughn, l’un des sept mercenaires, y occupe un rôle secondaire et la planète qui est au centre du conflit s’appelle Akira). Le scénariste John Sayles a truffé l'œuvre d’une multitude d’extraterrestres en tous genres, ce qui est finalement l’aspect le plus intéressant de celle-ci. Quant à l’intrigue, c’est juste une enfilade terriblement banale de tous les clichés imaginables surjoués par des acteurs qui prononcent des dialogues bateaux ; pourtant, c'est fun à regarder ! Ce qui est marrant aussi, c'est la facilité avec laquelle le héros principal parvient à assembler sa bande de despérados dans sa croisade contre le mégaméchant John Saxon (parmi les « courageux », on retrouve également George Peppard, membre de l’Agence tous risques et rôdé dans de nombreux westerns classiques, et la sexbomb autrichienne Sybil Danning dont la spécialité serait plutôt les décolletés interstellaires). Soulignons que ce film est l’un des premiers sur lesquels le compositeur James Horner a fait ses armes et que James Cameron, alors âgé de vingt-six ans, y a travaillé sur les miniatures des vaisseaux spatiaux.
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Among the films riding the coattails of Star Wars, the Roger Corman-produced Battle Beyond the Stars is entertaining, yet surprisingly self-conscious meta trash. Everyone knows that Lucas borrowed the essential elements of his story from Akira Kurosawa’s The Hidden Fortress, so this time the filmmakers helped themselves to the master’s greatest classic, The Magnificent Seven, i.e. Seven Samurai ;). They did not conceal the model they followed and thus the central planet is called Akira and the cast even includes Robert Vaughn from The Magnificent Seven, who almost literally copies his character from the classic western. In addition to that, Battle Beyond the Stars is as entertaining as a naïve fairy tale tacked together in a frenzy which, instead of the epic and spectacular nature of Lucas’s saga, places its bets on hackneyed clichés, a handful of superficial jokes, attempts at pathos and, primarily, an absurd squad of characters. The cast itself is a source of considerable amusement, when the more deserving, or at least more experienced, actors such as Robert Vaughn, John Saxon and George Peppard coast along, while naïve young performers like Richard Thomas, star of the TV series The Waltons, and Sybil Danning dressed in silly costumes act as if their lives depend on it, because they think this will be their big break. The most surprising thing is the momentary flashes of creative ingenuity, which, thanks to the disjointed episodic narrative, come completely unexpectedly, such as the motif involving Sador’s hand. The film’s primary weakness is the space combat scenes, which, despite the ridiculously zealous acting of all involved, simply lack a spatial concept, since Corman did not splash out on the budget, so action shots couldn’t have more than one ship at the same time. In the end, as with a number of other Corman films, it is appropriate to remember that the king of B-movies actually built modern Hollywood – the future renowned animator Jimmy T. Murakami, John Sayles, James Horner, James Cameron and Gale Anne Hurd first came together behind the camera on the set of Battle Beyond the Stars.
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Photos (63)
Photo © New World Pictures
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