Screamers - Fun but flawed little sci-fi film

Okay, there's probably no way I would ever have watched this, but, growing up in the eighties and being a big fan of 'Robocop,' I couldn't help but try and 'support' its leading man, Peter Weller, in whatever he chose to do after hanging up his metal suit.  Therefore, when I found 'Screamers' in the video store with his name on, I figured I'd give it a try.

I watched it the once.  Now, over twenty-five years later, I've decided to give it another go.  It would be fair to say that it left much of an impression on me.  The only thing I remember was that it was a science-fiction film set on a far away planet with metal things ('Screamers') that burrow under the ground and kill you.  Seeing as I've just watched it, I guess I can now say that there's more to it than just that.  But not an awful lot more.

The far away planet is in the midst of a civil war and there are more than just the underground little robot killing machines (which my girlfriend kept referring to as 'murderous moles!') to worry about.  So Weller must lead a rag-tag bunch of humans across the desolate planet (which is probably just a patch of desert in California) to try and discover the source of the new threat, or just escape - whichever comes first.

On my second (2021) viewing, I noticed in the opening credits that it was based on a story (which I haven't read) by the (hugely talented) Philip K Dick ('Total Recall' anyone?) and the screenplay adapted by Dan O'Bannon (the screenwriter of the almighty 'Alien').  Based on these two sci-fi heavyweights, I was surprised that it hadn't left more of an impression on me.

I won't go into any more detail as there are some elements that you might not see coming.  But at least I can see why I haven't revisited it for all this time.  It's just... okay.  It's a B-movie and, for what it is, it does it's best.  It doesn't have the budget, nor the actors (sorry, Peter, you'll always be the 'true' Robocop) and some bits don't really make sense.  There are some nice sets here and there, but the special effects seem to be very 'hit and miss.' They're either actually pretty good, or laughably bad.  Although it is nice to see a film that doesn't rely completely on computer-generated effects and greenscreens.  It's no 'Robocop, Alien, or 'Total Recall,' however, if you're in a forgiving mood and you just want a slice of B-movie, sci-fi fun - it'll kill an hour and a half of your time.  Just don't expect to remember much about it in twenty-five years time.  I sure didn't.

7/10 if I woke up on Groundhog Day and had to watch this again, I could live with that