Verdict
Summary
Space Wars: Quest For The Deepstar is a fun throwback to the science fiction space epics of the 70s and 80s, in particular, channeling such Roger Corman films such as Battle Beyond The Stars.
Review by Greg Espinoza
Plot:
In the far-flung future, death is eliminated by a method that can extract the human soul, a blue liquid called essence, and with it, a person can be restored in a hybrid cyborg body. The process, however, requires enormous wealth to pay for it.
Review:
Father and daughter scavengers Kip Corman (Michael Pare) and his daughter, Taylor, (Sarah French) are on the run from the ruthless tyrant, Elnora, (Sadie Katz) after Kip steals a rare artifact from her. Kip and Taylor are attempting to amass the funds necessary to bring back Kip’s beloved wife, Lysette, (Alena Dawn) to bond her essence to a new body. They happen upon a remote space station and rescue Jackie, (Anahit Setian) a Celestial Cartographer who holds the key to the location of a legendary lost ship, The Deepstar, which may contain a vast treasure. By aiding the woman, Kip and Taylor run afoul of the ruthless Dykstra, (Olivier Gruner) who’s leading his group of mercenaries, Nina, (Rachele Brooke Smith) Wade, (Tyler Gallant) and Manx The Merciless (Jed Rowen) in pursuit of the woman. As it turns out, Dykstra is also working for Elnora. Fortunes change as the mercenaries take control of Kip’s ship and strand him aboard Dykstra’s ship, The Sador, with its systems failing. Taylor is taken hostage but escapes in a space pod heading to the location of The Deepstar, forging an uneasy alliance with the unpredictable Wade, with Dykstra in hot pursuit. Kip and Jackie, must fend off the attack of the vengeful Elnora. Who will make it to The Deepstar first, and what danger awaits them?
Space Wars: Quest For The Deepstar is a fun throwback to the science fiction space epics of the 70s and 80s, in particular, channeling such Roger Corman films such as Battle Beyond The Stars. (which I consider as part of an 80s Roger Corman trilogy with Galaxy Of Terror and Forbidden World). Space Wars is a modestly budgeted indie science fiction epic with a lot of ambition. It has space ship battles, big monsters, killer droids, and a heart behind the spectacle.
Director Garo Setian (Automation) and writer Joe Knetter (Desert Moon) demonstrate a tremendous amount of affection for those Corman films, along with nods to vintage sci-fi flicks like The Angry Red Planet and Attack Of The Crab Monsters, as well as such films as Starcrash, Spacehunter, Metalstorm, and a little science fiction film from 1977 called Star Wars. Lots of little Easter eggs, like the space station named after Stella Starr, and Dykstra’s ship named after John Saxon’s villain, Sador, in Battle Beyond The Stars. And, I think you know who Gruner’s character is named after. Garo Setian previously directed and co-wrote (with Rolfe Kanefsky and Matthew L. Schaeffer) the excellent sci-fi killer robot film, Automation. He also previously directed such films as The Drifter, and has worked primarily as an editor. Joe Knetter is a writer and an actor who has written such films as Nutcracker Massacre, (2022) Desert Moon, (2021) and most recently co-writing, That’s A Wrap (2023).
Michael Pare is very good as Kip Corman, giving a charismatic performance. He works well with Sarah French, creating a believable Father/Daughter partnership. Pare has more than 200 film and TV credits, is best known for films such as Eddie And The Cruisers, (1983) Streets Of Fire, (1984) The Philadelphia Experiment, (1984) Moon 44, (1990) Bad Moon, (1996) 100 Feet, (2008) and many more. Pare also starred in the science fiction space series, Starhunter (2000-2003).
Olivier Gruner is very good as the villainous Dykstra. Gruner is an action film renaissance man who is a former naval commando, producer, director, actor, martial artist, and pilot. He made his film debut in the 1989 film Angel Town, but made his action hero mark in director Albert Pyun’s 1992 cyberpunk sci-fi auctioner, Nemesis, Other films include, Automatic, (1994) Savate, (1995) Mercenary, (1996) Interceptor Force, (1999) and Gunfight at Rio Bravo, (2022) among others. I have a certain affection for his Die Hard-on-a-spaceship film, Velocity Trap from 1999.
Sarah French previously worked with Garo Setian on his film, Automation. She does a lot of the heavy lifting during several action scenes, and carries many of the film’s big set pieces. And as I mentioned, she has excellent chemistry with Pare. Recent 2023 films include, Bloodthirst, That’s A Wrap, and Bermuda island.
Jackie is played by Anahit Setian, the woman who knows the location of the Deepstar, and longs for the sense of family she sees between Kip and Taylor. She also supplies some of the film’s comic relief. Anahit also co-starred in Automation. Other films include, The Summer Of Massacre, (2012) and The Drifter (2005).
Tyler Gallant is solid as Wade, one of Dykstra’s mercenaries. His tenuous alliance with Taylor keeps you guessing as to his character’s motives. He’s co-starred in indie films such as Desert Moon, (2021) Blind, (2019) and Alpha Wolf (2018).
Rachele Brooke Smith plays the treacherous Nina, Dykstra’s right hand, who takes an instant, murderous disliking to Taylor. Smith has acted in films such as The Last Exorcist, (2020) Psycho Stripper, (2019) Saltwater, (2018) The Nice Guys, (2016) and Iron Man 2 (2010).
Sadie Katz plays the vindictive Elnora, who also previously worked with Setian on Automation. Hunter Setian played Ezekiel, tasked by his Mother, Elnora, to kill Kip.
I was quite impressed with the the VFX for the film by Steve Clarke and Paul Knott, from their visual effects house CKVFX. I liked that the ships had the look of actual miniatures and particularly liked the design of Kip’s ship. I wondered if actual miniatures were used, or just CG modeled? I was especially impressed with a sequence with an asteroid chase in the film. It looked amazing to me for such a low budget.
Excellent score by Joel Christian Goffin, who give the film a propulsive feel, not unlike Elmer Bernstein’s score to Spacehunter. Here’s hoping we can get eventually get a download of his score to this film. Goffin also scored Setian’s film, Automation.
Prop designer Ted Smith supplies an array of interesting looking weapons and props for the film.
According to the DVD commentary, principal photography was shot in roughly 12 days in Nevada, and Pahrump. Director of photography, Michael Su gives these locations an otherworldly tint, particularly the Death Planet, evoking the previously mentioned Angry Red Planet. Su previously worked with Setian on Automation (2019). Other films by Su include Pool Boy Nightmare, (2020) Art Of The Dead, (2019) and Bus Party To Hell, (2017).
Space Wars: Quest For The Deepstar is a modestly budgeted indie science fiction film, that is a little rough around the edges. Some of the acting by the minor actors is a bit amateurish. A few of the CG FX are also a bit rough. The principal actors are all solid and the story kept me engaged. This crew did a great job of making the most of their budget, bringing a MacGyver-like aesthetic to solving problems. I’ve been involved with a few small productions. Making a movie is hard. These days, far too many people online criticize a film with little idea of what it takes to get to the finish line.
