Screamers (1996)

'Screamers' is a very entertaining movie, albeit definitely of the B-Movie variety, as so many other reviewers have pointed out. This film reputedly had a budget of 11 million, and it seems like it should be a lot less than that, but no matter what it's got a real low-budget feel to it with a kind of a basic cable sci-fi show look to it. This is, of course, based on the classic Phil Dick short story 'Second Variety' and is also the only Dick adaptation that I am aware of that follows the story with any faithfulness at all, though the upcoming 'A Scanner Darkly' looks like it might change this trend. (Other adaptations being 'Blade Runner', 'Minority Report', 'Total Recall', 'Paycheck', 'Impostor' etc.) Of course, even as the most faithful adaptation they still make a lot of changes, but much of the general plot and major details remain the same anyway, which is nice. Anyway, this is the kinda movie that requires a very specific taste as it walks the line between effective drama and campiness, making it a movie that's kinda silly and wacky but one which I still take more or less seriously, as a whole. Anyway, I likes it.'Screamers' centers around a long-standing conflict between the the Alliance and the New Economic Block on some distant planet. (Sirius 6B, or something like that.) As the film opens a lone NEB troop walks into the Alliance base carrying a message. He's torn apart by the murderous, subterranean robots called Autonomous Mobile Swords or Screamers, but they still receive the message: The NEBs want to negotiate peace. Shortly thereafter Alliance commander Hendricks learns a dark truth about the war: The war on this planet is essentially over and has been for years, but it's important for the Alliance to keep the troops there and away from Earth for political reasons, so they've been kept in the dark. Needless to say, Hendricks isn't terribly pleased with the situation, and he heads off to negotiate with the NEBs and get the hell off of the planet. The situation proves a lot more complicated than this, however, as upon leaving the base Hendricks soon discovers that the Alliance-built Screamers are now truly autonomous, building new designs, imitating human forms and killing everyone they can get at, Alliance or NEB.I think this is a pretty damn good Sci-Fi Action/Horror plot. Not terribly new now, though it was probably a lot more fresh in 1952, but it's definitely still workable. The screamers themselves are just neat, kinda underground variants of the Phantasm orbs, and the whole, who is human, who isn't aspect of the film that comes into play later is fun, if, again, not terribly fresh anymore. We've got an entertaining pack of characters here, led by Robocop himself, Peter Weller, as Hendricks. I like Weller a lot, and he's in good form here, making a fine tough-guy action hero. I also particularly like Roy Dupuis as the nutty, sarcastic, Shakespeare-quoting Becker. He's pretty damn over the top, but I think he's entertaining enough. All the performances are entertaining, if in a kind of affected, B-movie way. Furthermore, the script, from famed Sci-Fi/Horror Screenwriter Dan O'Bannon, (Alien, Dark Stay, Total Recall, Dead & Buried etc.) is actually a fair bit sharper and more clever than you'd usually see in this kinda movie. This is, perhaps, no great compliment, but it's something, anyway.I think the film also creates some effective atmosphere, with burnt out cities and snowy, endless sand dunes, screamer tunnels appearing randomly here and there. The movie also manages to bring out a claustrophobic, paranoiac tone later on as the trust between the characters fades and they wander through the cramped, run down tunnels. Furthermore some of the ideas in the story are just too chilling to be much diminished by this sometimes over the top film. Spoilers Ahead: The murderous little kid screamers are surprisingly creepy, particularly their perennial call, 'Can I come with you?. I also like the endless, circular conversation between Hendricks and the his now dead home base. Finally, I just like how the Screamers more more less eat people. (And rats. Whatever they can find, apparently.) There's just something really bizarre and creepy about robots eating flesh.The film does falter a bit at the end, with a fairly silly last fight scene, but it's still entertaining in its way, and it doesn't diminish the impact of the film too much as a whole. And the final stinger, while pretty stupid, is also quite amusing, I think.Grade: B

Peter Weller he really act superb in this film many complements : the pace , the music , the script and dialogues, the intriguing atmosphere keep you hook till the end , despite about the CGI technique maybe some people will criticize about it... but hey focus in other things the entertainment is here and I found it interesting and amazing . sad about the sequel is not nearly good as this one

Awesome this film is finally on Blu Ray as it is criminally underrated. Great transfer and packaging. 5/5

I have to admit, I had a lot of fun with this film! Philip K. Dick"s novels were a bit hit-and-miss ("Blade Runner", or "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep" being the seminal novel of note), but this film, based on his novel "The Second Variety", is soooo entertaining in a "B" movie kind of way.SPOILER ALERT!! X X X X X X X X X X X X X X XEarth has been divided into two camps: The New Economic Bloc and The Rebel Alliance. The NEB apparently has a "slash and burn" policy to space exploration, leaving dead wasteland in the wake of their search for power in the universe. The Rebel Alliance fights the NEB to stop their unchecked "Scorched Earth" policy.Enter into the fray one Col. Joseph Hendrickson, the Rebel Alliance commander on the planet Sirius 6B, an outpost in the hind-end of space, keeping the NEB in check, on Sirius 6B. Our good Colonel has a few nasty friends called "Screamers", robotic mechanized Ginsu knives that protect the outpost.One fine sunny day, a transport ship crash-lands on Sirius 6B. Right on the doorstep (literally) of the Rebel Alliance outpost. The only survivor is a raw recruit with a deadly talent with small arms. Shortly after, an NEB soldier arrives at the outpost with a message for Col. Hendrickson. He doesn't get very far, as the Screamers do to him what you might see at a Beni-Hana Restaurant!PEACE! The NEB wants peace on Sirius 6B!! The only catch is, the Colonel has to go to THEIR base! Who better to go with, than a grunt who can drive tacks with any firearm you put in front of him!On the way there, they run across a boy who apparently has survived alone for some time. Things are not as they seem, however, as the boy reveals himself to be a Screamer! That is not the only surprise, as the boy does not care who's side the Colonel happens to be on! In their "Evolutionary Drive", the Screamers have lost all memory of who they were fighting for. ALL humans are fair game.What transpires next is pure Philip K. Dick!!X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X XThere were moments in the film that were a little over-the-top, a few dead spots, too, but this is what makes Sci-fi so great, with a bit of "technobabble", anything can be explained(look at "Star Trek"! They're the worst offenders!)! I particularly liked the Screamers, like little Happy Faces, or "Pacmen" with very sharp teeth! If you are looking for some fun, entertaining Sci-fi, you could do worse than Screamers!There isn't much in the way of extra features on the DVD, just the film. The transfer was done well, though.

"Screamers" is an interesting little movie, parts of it feel like 90s sci-fi TV and other parts of it feel like "Soldier" with Kurt Russell. Peter Weller is the star and he's great, I feel like he always does his best with the material. The script is fairly derivative and kind of cheesy, but overall -- taking the visuals, direction and action into account -- it's a really solid science fiction/horror B movie. It's one of those films you watch late at night; it's simple, fun and has a lot of cool set pieces. Peter Weller helps the movie feel grounded. "Screamers" knows it's a B movie but it's a very good, entertaining B movie.I recommend this for sure to people who like "Robocop," "Soldier," or "Event Horizon." "Screamers" fits well within those in terms of style and approach.In terms of the Blu-ray itself, I was amazed at how well they packaged and presented this little-known movie; there's a bunch of interviews with the people who made the film and the audio/visual quality is great!

Screamers is a science fiction B-movie based on a screen play from Dan O'Bannon of Alien fame and Miguel Tejada-Flores, a concept influenced by the 1953 short story, Second Variety by Philip K. Dick. The film stars Peter Weller of Robocop fame as well as other actors such as Roy Dupuis and Jennifer Rubin. The film was directed by Christian Duguay, features music by Normand Corbeil and some nice cinematography by Rodney Gibbons. The film was released through Triumph films in late 1995 and early 1996.The film sees a group of characters stranded on Sirius 6B. It was a planet once known as the main NEB mining hub for Earthlings. The mine whilst producing a highly sought after substance, it started to produce radiation . The mine workers started The Alliance in protest. The result was a planet bombarded with nuclear weapons by the NEB and left completely desolate with exception of the two warring factions. In the no man's land between these two factions, a recently developed weapon nicknamed "screamers" are running lose, attacking everything alive. Suddenly out of nowhere, NEB call for a truce. This truce is called into question after The Alliance communications are found to be falsified. This sets off Peter Weller's character to the main NEB compound to confirm whether the situation is real or not.The plot behind the movie is quite interesting. I've never read the short story by Philip K. Dick and I've read that this film doesn't actually do it justice. But, that's a common criticism from book snobs. I tend to ignore it. I thought the film was interesting enough to make a believable setting, interesting characters and a world that would be interesting to explore. The film is also reasonably well paced. It took a good amount of time to set up and to explore the situation with a reasonably satisfying the build up to the climax. The ending is a little bit rushed but I thought it was well done for the most part.The bluray copy of the film is pretty decent, all things concerned. It comes in a nice cardboard sleeve and even has an interesting booklet with it. The picture quality is a nice step up from the awful DVD that I use to have. It's not exactly the cleanest transfer. But don't let that put you off. It's still reasonably clean, it definitely maintains the film grain and overall look of the film. I'm sure someone will complain about it not being a major 4k transfer but I think it looks nice enough. I did however feel that the sound was a bit lacking in places. This film could do with a good 5.1 audio track. The one here just felt flat and didn't add to the film whatsoever.The high definition transfer doesn't help the dated special effects. Some of the shots look quite tacky in places. Despite their flaws, they're not entirely awful, I have seen considerably worse in the last twenty years. I quite enjoyed the limited use of stop motion in one scene. I will say though, the matte paintings shown through out the film still look fantastic. When (a very cold looking) Peter Weller is walking through the old ruined cities etc, there's a lot of beautiful scenery. They don't look fake by any means and for that to work on a high definition transfer, it really makes you appreciate how well they were done.Anyway, to round off the review. Screamers is by no means a classic film. It's a charming, reasonably well made and ambitious little movie that probably bit off more than it could chew. There's a lot to like here, even if it is a bit dated. I would definitely recommend adding this to your collection if you want a bit of sci-fi B movie horror.

The video of the blu-ray is not of more recent blu ray quality but it is good, nonetheless, and definitely a significant step up from the DVD. It's a favourite film of mine (how did Philip K Dick write such clever stories, so many of which were converted to films? Pure genius, one could say). I won't insert any spoilers here but it has a twist in the tale, as well as many twists in the ongoing story. Imaginative story that will keep die-hard sci-fi fans on the edge of their seats

I've always like Screamers as a Sci-Fi Action Film and when I saw this Limited Edition I wondered if there would be any improvement on Audio Visual and to my surprise there is, Picture was not grainy (But still older resolution) when played on a Blu-Ray Player and upscaled to my 4K TV, Sound is good too, All better than my older Screamers DVD.Nice Booklet.

Arrived on time 👍 ,Blu ray of sci-fi classic b movie , upgrade from dvd , has making of extra's , picture clearer than dvd, but no restoration ,sound ok, 😀👍

Top sci fi movie that doesn’t get the love it deserves. One of the best sci fi movies of the 90s.