Chad

Undeadcow

For a film about nude space vampires the cast takes it remarkably serious and it pays off. The blue electric light effect is brilliant used to give more gravitas and a nicely scifi bend (of which the spaceship sequence is a great setup). The 'body snatcher' tropes feel a little cliche now. Lifeforce smartly updates the Dracula mythos while keeping some many of the core elements down to it's own Demeter and Reinfeild.

Lifeforce's vampires are overpowered and too multifaceted (body changing, hypnotizing, zombie creating, body projecting, luminous, near metaphysical, etc etc etc) but they stop just short of being invincible. Their sort of disproportionate and manufactured weakness is one of my least favorite horror monster loopholes (so a guy while the right sword can just plow them down). Superhero movies are sometimes called 'disaster porn' because excessive carnage, Lifeforce is the disaster porn of 80s horror.

I think it's interesting that the female vampire is a leader and that she uses sexuality as a weapon - which is the age old argument of if this is exploitation or empowering (perhaps some of both). Even more so that the vampires can switch bodies,"our bodies are unimportant," but this lead vampire always seems distinctly female (even for example when Patrick Stewart) and bodies especially important.

Gnarly vampire corpse effects, and the blood materialization effect on the helicopter might be one of the coolest things I see all month. The music have a great 'gothic' feel to it.

I'd be curious to see how it compares to the source novel.

Trevor

Great comments there Undeadcow.

This has always been a favorite. I have sometimes called it a guilty pleasure, but not anymore. Screw it, this is a good film.

I occasionally regret that this isn’t a 31 film horror challenge, with an emphasis on detailed exploration of a film, instead of a mass viewing month. Don’t get me wrong, I obviously love marathoning, but I’d love to spend the whole day with this BD and articles on the film. Yeah, I know, nothing stopping me from doing that, but the 100 goal and checklist OCD becon.

Gobear

The novel that Lifeforce is based on is The Space Vampires, by Colin Wilson. The basic plot (warmed over Bram Stoker) is the same in the book and film, although there is no climactic plague of zombie/vampires in the book. The book is much more overt with the vampire lore, and we learn where they came from and who they are. It's not a great book, but it's worth a read. You can get it on Kindle for $7.55.

I really like Lifeforce, although the ending seems like it was plagiarized from Quatermass and the Pit (5 Million Years to Earth in the US). The acting is solid, as it usually is in British horror films, so Steve Railsback's screaming and over-the-top histrionics are hard to take seriously.

numbercrunch

Greatest set of breasts in movie history. nuff said.

it is a great film and Tobe Hooper doesn't get enough credit for this one.

Mondo Kane

Yeah, that's my main complaint from this re-watch. I could've swore it was a lot more simplified when I first saw this as a kid But man, I still LOVE the practical FX done on the first re-animated guard.

3onameathook

This was one of those films that I never gave a chance to from the films release. I finally decided to give it a shot with my undivided attention, and surprisingly I enjoyed the film more than I ever had in the past. My tastes in films must be changing. I wouldn't say it's a classic but if you give it a chance it will entertain.

pagefrance

Can we talk about Henry Mancini's awesome score, especially the main title theme? This has got to be one of Mancini's best and for years after Lifeforce came out that theme was used in trailers for many other movies.

jholmes

***SPOILERS***

This was my first time seeing the film. In fact, I've never heard of it, which is surprising given how much horror I've watched. Well, I was in college when it came out, so I had an excuse for being busy!

Overall it was entertaining, but not something I'd choose to see again. The biggest issue I had with it was the lead actor, Steve Railsback. I know this is totally unfair, but his role as Charles Manson in Helter Skelter was so iconic -- I just kept feeling like I was watching Charles Manson playing an astronaut captain. Especially since he used the same "quivery-intent-manic" voice/acting he did as Charles Mason. Constantly. So that really detracted from the film for me, which is a shame.

Also, his character came off as a misogynist and general asshole, the way he keeps beating the suspected alien carriers (to be fair, one was Patrick Stewart).

The weird little sexual tension thing between him and Patrick Stewart was really strange. Because Patrick Stewart.

This felt like it would be better appreciated by guys, yet I can't put my finger on why.

Also, I think what Undead Cow said rings true in retrospect -- the alien's powers were a little too much and all over the place. She inhabits various bodies but then she's also lying in a cathedral in London. And materializes in blood on a helicopter. Cool effect but story wise a bit "hmmm".

Best parts were the "sucking life force" and drained bodies effect. Very cool.

Agree with Undead Cow too that the ending "overpowering these nearly omnipotent space vampires with a stake in the heart" was sort of lame.

Overall, I gave it a 5/10 and I'm glad I watched it.

WillieMLF

This movie has everything: guns, boobs, space vampires, and piles of bodies. They didn't have enough money to simulate weightlessness in space, so they are testing a new gravity simulator on the Churchill. How convenient.

I believe this was a first time viewing of this movie in one sitting. Growing up, this was forbidden fruit due to the nudity my parents deemed excessive. Seemed like the GoGo boys had a very slim wardrobe budget for May.

On the whole, I really enjoyed how this movie tried to please everyone with something. I am looking forward at some point to diving into the extras on the Shout disk.

Dick Laurent

First hour I'll call a guilty pleasure, but it seems eveytime I watch this I forget about anything that happens from Stewart through the end. It's like the first hour is a cool indie Sci-Fi romp, and the last hour is World War Z.

JAX036

This was a first time watch for me and I honestly have only a fuzzy recollection of what happened towards the end of the movie. I think a rewatch may be required for full appreciation.

Something bugs more about the scenes in London. If it takes 2 hours to regenerate and start needing to suck lifeforces, why aren't there more bodies just lying around?

DaveyJoe

Man, this movie was wild. I was disappointed at first because I assumed this would be an Alien clone and would be about a space vampire hunting down a crew aboard a space ship. When the story returned to Earth and introduced a bunch of stuffy British guys I felt let down. It's almost like the movie knew that they were boring the audience to tears so they threw some titties up on the screen to win everyone back.

I was not expecting the final act to be so... apocalyptic. I really appreciated the chaotic turn of the ending and there were some cool effects with the bat-like creature. So despite the film lagging a bit at times, I really enjoyed it. Glad I picked up the recent Scream Factory, and for the record, I watched the Director's Cut, which is significantly longer.

Undeadcow

They establish that when Nude Girl is in hiding she is switching bodies and looking for people to feed small amounts of energy off of so as to stay undetected; therefore she should be able to avoid this whole mess by just staying low key. Does the film ever establish why she just has to go and start an apocalypse ultimately ending in her demise?

Also with the end segment, did they ever explain the sex scene or was that just to look cool? Carlsen cannot decide if he wants to kill or procreate with the vampire, not unlike my own marriage.

jholmes

wishbone

Probably why it was popular on mid-'80s cable. You won the internet today.

orlmac

I have always loved this movie and I still feel the same way. I loved the idiots guarding the place after space aliens are brought in (eating sandwiches, playing games on the computer, etc.). It was a very nice touch in the middle of the action.

rbrown498

I'll be my usual contrary self and say that I've never liked this movie. I saw it in its theatrical release, and everybody left the theater with a "meh" attitude. That still pretty much sums up my opinion of it. I was hoping that the longer version would make it better, but it didn't for me. I would rank this one very, very low in Hooper's filmography--maybe not dead last, but not too many notches above it.