Lifeforce (film)

Infobox Film | name =Lifeforce


caption = Movie poster
director = Tobe Hooper
producer = Yoram Globus
Menahem Golan
writer = Novel:
Colin Wilson
Screenplay:
Dan O'Bannon
Don Jakoby
starring =Steve Railsback
Mathilda May
Peter Firth
Frank Finlay
Patrick Stewart
cinematography =
music = Henry Mancini
editing =
distributor = Tri-Star Pictures "(U.S.)"; Cannon Film Distributors "(non-U.S.)"
released = June 21, 1985 (U.S. release)
runtime = 116 min. / USA:101 min. (edited version)
language = English
budget = $25,000,000 (estimated)
amg_id = 1:29280
imdb_id = 0089489

"Lifeforce" is a 1985 science fiction film directed by Tobe Hooper from a screenplay by Dan O'Bannon and Don Jakoby, from the novel "Space Vampires" by Colin Wilson. The film starred Steve Railsback, Peter Firth, Frank Finlay, Mathilda May, Patrick Stewart, Aubrey Morris, Michael Gothard, and Nicholas Ball.

Plot

While investigating Halley's Comet, a space mission aboard the space shuttle Churchill finds a large spaceship hidden in the comet's nucleus. Upon entering the spacecraft, the shuttle crew finds three human bodies, two male and one female (played by Mathilda May), in suspended animation in the spacecraft. The shuttle starts the return trip to Earth with the three beings. On Earth, Mission Control loses communication with the shuttle. As it nears Earth, a rescue mission is conducted. The rescuers find the Churchill gutted by fire, except for the three suspended animation cases bearing the aliens. The three are taken to earth where they eventually unleash havoc. They are actually members of a race of space vampires that consume the lifeforce from living beings and send it to their ship.

The three vampires escape from confinement and proportionally transform most of London's population into zombies. Once transformed, the victims cycle into living-dead every two hours and seek out the living, absorbing the life force from their bodies. These people then also become vampires and the transformation process releases their life force which the male vampires direct to the female vampire who transfers it to the waiting spaceship in Earth's orbit.

The shuttle mission's only survivor, a British colonel and a scientist attempt to destroy the space vampires before they subjugate the planet.

Box office

"Lifeforce" was released on June 21, 1985 to disappointing box office. The film opened in fourth place, losing the head-to-head release battle against the Ron Howard sci-fi film Cocoon. In total, "Lifeforce" earned $11,603,545 [ [http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?page=weekend&id=lifeforce.htm Lifeforce (1985) - Weekend Box Office Results ] ] at the US box office, a poor return on the estimated $25 million dollar budget.

Production notes

*The first film of Tobe Hooper's three-picture deal with Cannon. The other two films are the remake of "Invaders from Mars" and "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2".

* The film was edited for U.S. release by Tri-Star Pictures to a 101-minute version that was partially re-scored by Michael Kamen (a majority of Henry Mancini's original music did remain). The original 116-minute international version (with all the footage and the entirety of Mancini's music) is available on DVD.

* Colin Wilson has a very low opinion of this screen adaptation of his novel, The Space Vampires. He writes in his autobiography ("Dreaming To Some Purpose", 2004, p.332): "John Fowles had once told me that the film of "The Magus" was the worst movie ever made. After seeing "Lifeforce" I sent him a postcard telling him that I had gone one better."

* The film features special effects by Academy Award winner John Dykstra.

* An up close look at the ribbons and medals on the U.S. Air Force uniform Steve Railsback wore, reveals his Colonel Carlsen character is a Vietnam War veteran.

See also

* List of films recut by studio

External links

*imdb title|title=Lifeforce|id=0089489

References