Watching this little movie after a decade or more , gave me the creeps again , still fresh , original , where the talent and actors' dedication , attention to detail , and the story count , and another proof that young directors must learn their ropes from the scratch ,and not from a 100 - million budget hand-outs , that turn their product into mush and the material to eternally laugh about! The movie is based on the shenanigans of a large weapons manufacturer corporation called Chaank, which has been accused of using children to produce super warriors and their new executive appointee , brilliantly portrayed by a little known E.Pouget with a tiny personal secret, who is determined to find out what exactly ' s been happening in the bowels of the beast , under the leadership of a brilliant young prodigy appropriately named J.Dante , played by B.Douriff ,and you have got to see this character , a sort of post-punk hippie with dreadlocks and an insatiable appetite for porn in all forms, who has secretly devised an ugly gadget ,and then the whole business gets very nasty , when every access and door is hermetically sealed,and the Dante guy sets a few conditions ,the most important being ' to interface ' with his unrequited blond obsession, or else the beast will get you ! If this movie reminds you of some other classics , namely –Hardware , Alien , Carpenter's movies ,you are on the right track , as all the actors even bear the familiar names ,e.g. Scott Ridley , Yutani , Carpenter etc. Briefly , still fresh , amusing , and above all, hardcore , and utterly bleak !
67 Reviews
Off-beat or just 'off'. Doesn't matter - great fun!
mstomaso16 January 2011
This horror/psycho thriller/sci fi story pits a hard-nosed, naive and ethical businesswoman against the existing power structure at a very large defense contractor, Chaank Industries. What Hayden Cale (Ely Puget) does not know is that, underlying most of what she knows as Chaank Industries, is a murderous maniac - Jack Dante. Dante is played by the remarkable, under-rated, Brad Dourif (One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Eyes of Laura Mars, Blue Velvet, Dune, Wild Blue Yonder, Lord of the Rings, etc etc). Dante will do ANYTHING to avoid having his sick little world disturbed... anything. The plot and characters are a string of clichés, but the movie does not take itself very seriously, and what results is a campy, intelligent, self-parody. Direct homages are paid to off-beat directors who frequently use comedy to liven up sci fi and horror stories - There are major supporting characters named Sam Raimi, John Carpenter and Scott Ridley.
Dourif, the deft pacing of the film, and the cleverly written script make this predictable farce thoroughly enjoyable. Richard Brake makes a very good impression in a support role, and lead Puget is charismatic and manages to play her role laudably straight as a counterpoint to Dourif's utterly bizarre behavior.
Death Machine was Stephen Norrington's directorial debut. Norrington has done and continues to do a lot of visual effects and robotics work on major releases which require substantial, cutting edge, effects. He also directed the decent but disappointing League of Extraordinary Gentlement and is now working on a re-make of The Crow.
Dourif, the deft pacing of the film, and the cleverly written script make this predictable farce thoroughly enjoyable. Richard Brake makes a very good impression in a support role, and lead Puget is charismatic and manages to play her role laudably straight as a counterpoint to Dourif's utterly bizarre behavior.
Death Machine was Stephen Norrington's directorial debut. Norrington has done and continues to do a lot of visual effects and robotics work on major releases which require substantial, cutting edge, effects. He also directed the decent but disappointing League of Extraordinary Gentlement and is now working on a re-make of The Crow.
Interesting B-movie concoction of early Euro cyberpunk.
ericjcant-19 November 2020
Death Machine is B-movie SF of the early Euro cyberpunk variety. Probably got some of its inspiration from the artists of the French comic anthology series Metal Hurlant. I saw this when it first aired in the states, which was one of the several early SF channel indie flicks of the 90s (if anyone remembers those days...) This movie is a good bang for your buck...but not exactly original, although it does have cool details and great characters. I also have to state for the record that this movie has a pretty funny pot smoking scene, that I honestly did not see coming, and still enjoy every time I see it... But all around, Death Machine is a fun, pulpy, very French SF inspired film, with fun details and pure B-movie volition as it handles its derivative ideas with relative flair and humor. The acting is fairly solid too with nods to Ely Pouget, John Sharian, and Brad Dourif for putting in solid characterization.
So far over the top it vaults over the wall
thunderpuppy21 August 2000
One of the characters yells at his friend: "You just knew Ho-Ho was going to turn out to be the fat, sweaty, desperate psycho!" And of course, we all did too...
There is no question what this movie was. There are even characters named Scott Ridley, Sam Raimi, and John Carpenter. While the surface of the film is a long-corridor (Aliens) horror movie, what lies beneath is sort of a manic, director-oriented comedy that reminds me more of Evil Dead 2 than anything else. The hyper sound to dead silence, the overly dramatic lighting, the first-person Missile Cam, the cool line followed by backlit explosion... it all leans towards a wild but fun ride through all of the most common camp in these types of movies. It's a satire subtle enough to pass as just another bad horror movie, if you're not paying attention.
Brad Dourif (who was B-B-B-B-Billy Buh-Bibbit, a long time ago, and the voice of Chucky-- and might become a little more prevalent in film after being in the upcoming Lord Of The Rings trilogy) is the great shining spot in this film, and alternates from acting well (check out his outpouring at the end) to completely terrible (awful references to hacking... "Molebdenic composite"?). And all of the best subtle jokes are bad guy parodies-- my favorite example is his inability to get his threat right over the monitors: "Turning me off won't turn you off. No. Wait. Turning you off--" click.
But the real flair here is in the direction. None of this would work if it wasn't played half serious with the sights and sounds. As the climax builds, the ambient noise cuts out completely for the doors to chime "Welcome!" cheerily. The HUD from the machine's point of view displays 1P and Hi Score. The Robocop-style machine whirring in the Hardman gear as Raimi actually gets into a fistfight (!) with the machine... there is never any "set 'em up, knock 'em down" standard cue that *these* are the jokes... but there they are. Dig in.
There is no question what this movie was. There are even characters named Scott Ridley, Sam Raimi, and John Carpenter. While the surface of the film is a long-corridor (Aliens) horror movie, what lies beneath is sort of a manic, director-oriented comedy that reminds me more of Evil Dead 2 than anything else. The hyper sound to dead silence, the overly dramatic lighting, the first-person Missile Cam, the cool line followed by backlit explosion... it all leans towards a wild but fun ride through all of the most common camp in these types of movies. It's a satire subtle enough to pass as just another bad horror movie, if you're not paying attention.
Brad Dourif (who was B-B-B-B-Billy Buh-Bibbit, a long time ago, and the voice of Chucky-- and might become a little more prevalent in film after being in the upcoming Lord Of The Rings trilogy) is the great shining spot in this film, and alternates from acting well (check out his outpouring at the end) to completely terrible (awful references to hacking... "Molebdenic composite"?). And all of the best subtle jokes are bad guy parodies-- my favorite example is his inability to get his threat right over the monitors: "Turning me off won't turn you off. No. Wait. Turning you off--" click.
But the real flair here is in the direction. None of this would work if it wasn't played half serious with the sights and sounds. As the climax builds, the ambient noise cuts out completely for the doors to chime "Welcome!" cheerily. The HUD from the machine's point of view displays 1P and Hi Score. The Robocop-style machine whirring in the Hardman gear as Raimi actually gets into a fistfight (!) with the machine... there is never any "set 'em up, knock 'em down" standard cue that *these* are the jokes... but there they are. Dig in.
Kill them already, and end this monstrosity
stack-1118 October 2008
Warning: Spoilers
In a nutshell, skip this movie, it's that bad. In short, this movie is about a weapons factory where secret weapons are being developed. Because they make bad things, they aren't popular so to speak. A new female CEO comes in to clear things up, and make sure the reputation of the company will be improved. She does this by leaking company confidential information to the press... Do you believe this? Furthermore she starts to fire people she has never seen. Incredible uh? A pacifistic group tries to destroy the company's mainframe, because there are the blueprint located of those secret weapons. This mainframe is located in the bottom of the building hidden in a kind of vault. Of course the movie would not be complete without the mad scientist and a robot which is the ultimate killer machine, which resembles like an 'Alien' from the Alien movies. The mad scientist likes the female CEO.
The mad scientist instructs the robot to kill everyone, and so protects his job, rise in chain of command, and make the movie interesting. The pacifists team up with the CEO and another person of the board of directors to escape from the robot. Further down the line they agree to blow up this evil computer mainframe, whilst avoiding the robot. They also discover that the factory was developing a part man, part machine soldier. They can erase a persons memory and replace it by a veteran soldier's one. One of the pacifists is transformed in such a soldier and will hunt the killer robot. I guess the mad scientist also wrote the script of this movie. This super soldier looks and acts much the same as Robocop, though not as funny.
It boils down to this. People are running, being chased by a killer robot, are hurt by it, but they do not seem to troubled by that, besides limping a bit, and of course the female CEO is the leading character of this movie, and cannot be killed, i.e. survives every attack, explosion, you name it. I won't bother you by the chase, let's skip to the end. They have lots of weapons, yes the pacifist too and they know how to use them. When they're at the roof of the building they empty all there weapons upon the killer robot. They step into an elevator which is used to clean outside windows. And then the female CEO knows some magic as well, at the roof she was complaining about being out of bullets, and like magic the gun is reloaded. This way she can shoot the cables and let the elevator plummet 70 stories or so, and let it stop right above ground surface by pulling the brake. And to top it all off, the police is waiting there for them. The robot jumps after them, and kills the cops. Hilarious no? The robot chases them down the vault where the mainframe is, and when finally the robot is so close to her, that he can touch/kill her, it stops. Because the mad scientist did not want her to be killed. A better name for this guy would be the idiot scientist. Although he is the one who made this movie watchable. At this moment I was already pulling for the killer robot to finish them all of, so the movie would end.
I cannot believe that this movie rates this high, and this is why I wrote this comment. Avoid this movie like the plague. It's a monster, and I'm not talking about the Death Machine.
The mad scientist instructs the robot to kill everyone, and so protects his job, rise in chain of command, and make the movie interesting. The pacifists team up with the CEO and another person of the board of directors to escape from the robot. Further down the line they agree to blow up this evil computer mainframe, whilst avoiding the robot. They also discover that the factory was developing a part man, part machine soldier. They can erase a persons memory and replace it by a veteran soldier's one. One of the pacifists is transformed in such a soldier and will hunt the killer robot. I guess the mad scientist also wrote the script of this movie. This super soldier looks and acts much the same as Robocop, though not as funny.
It boils down to this. People are running, being chased by a killer robot, are hurt by it, but they do not seem to troubled by that, besides limping a bit, and of course the female CEO is the leading character of this movie, and cannot be killed, i.e. survives every attack, explosion, you name it. I won't bother you by the chase, let's skip to the end. They have lots of weapons, yes the pacifist too and they know how to use them. When they're at the roof of the building they empty all there weapons upon the killer robot. They step into an elevator which is used to clean outside windows. And then the female CEO knows some magic as well, at the roof she was complaining about being out of bullets, and like magic the gun is reloaded. This way she can shoot the cables and let the elevator plummet 70 stories or so, and let it stop right above ground surface by pulling the brake. And to top it all off, the police is waiting there for them. The robot jumps after them, and kills the cops. Hilarious no? The robot chases them down the vault where the mainframe is, and when finally the robot is so close to her, that he can touch/kill her, it stops. Because the mad scientist did not want her to be killed. A better name for this guy would be the idiot scientist. Although he is the one who made this movie watchable. At this moment I was already pulling for the killer robot to finish them all of, so the movie would end.
I cannot believe that this movie rates this high, and this is why I wrote this comment. Avoid this movie like the plague. It's a monster, and I'm not talking about the Death Machine.
Good but missing at places
LivingDog28 February 2003
I was bored at first, but stayed with it and the movie turned out to be better than I expected. However, no matter how hard it tried to be a great movie, it only succeeded in being ok. I gave it 7/10 b/c it has a real effort to it. So stay with it and you'll probably enjoy it.
The production was reasonable. The effects were fair to very good. The direction and editting were very good. The writing was weak at first, but improved in the middle to the end. The acting, especially toward the end, was believable. The sound track was well done.
So overall I think this movie is lacking something - it's look is "cheap." E.g. it's name "DeathMachine" is a poor attempt at being scary. (Maybe "War Beast" would have been better?) And so I think it's the cheapness of the cinematography - it didn't look professionally made - that weakened this otherwise good movie.
Kudos to the writer/director: Stephen Norrington
The production was reasonable. The effects were fair to very good. The direction and editting were very good. The writing was weak at first, but improved in the middle to the end. The acting, especially toward the end, was believable. The sound track was well done.
So overall I think this movie is lacking something - it's look is "cheap." E.g. it's name "DeathMachine" is a poor attempt at being scary. (Maybe "War Beast" would have been better?) And so I think it's the cheapness of the cinematography - it didn't look professionally made - that weakened this otherwise good movie.
Kudos to the writer/director: Stephen Norrington
- Zafoid
Brad Dourif's career sinks to a new low ..............
merklekranz26 September 2010
Brad Dourif has made some pretty strange movies, but none as grievously annoying as "Death Machine". Do not, I repeat, do not let Dourif's presence entice you into seeing this pile of junk. He is fun to look at wearing an atrocious wig, but that's it. The acting and character development are excruciating, and the dialog is even worse. The entire film comes across as nothing more than a bad 1990s video game. Another annoyance is that the movie gives a feeling of claustrophobia, as if it was shot through a magnifying glass. Actors shouting at each other, plus the unending closeups is headache inducing. ...................... - MERK
Fun straight to video fair from the good old days.
jhpstrydom9 May 2009
I first saw DEATH MACHINE, back when it came out on VHS, I never thought to much about it other than it was okay, not to long ago I found it on DVD and figured why not buy it and add it to my old film collection, so I did and of course I watched it expecting it to be dated which it was, but I actually had more fun watching it now than when I first saw it VHS, because in way it was refreshing to see a film that wasn't overblown with today's CGI effects, and the cast were really into their characters you just couldn't help but actually go along for the ride.
The film also featured a lot of likable characters, such as Hayden Cale the strong female executive, Sam Raimi the leader of the small band of humanitarians on a mission, Yutani, crazier than a loony toon and obsessed with street fighter, and the other good quality about this film is that the characters all have distinctive personalities, unlike a lot of other films where characters tend to feel one dimensional especially with films in the same genre.
Overall, it was a fun trip down memory lane and is a film that I enjoy more now than I did before.
The film also featured a lot of likable characters, such as Hayden Cale the strong female executive, Sam Raimi the leader of the small band of humanitarians on a mission, Yutani, crazier than a loony toon and obsessed with street fighter, and the other good quality about this film is that the characters all have distinctive personalities, unlike a lot of other films where characters tend to feel one dimensional especially with films in the same genre.
Overall, it was a fun trip down memory lane and is a film that I enjoy more now than I did before.
A terrible attempt to rip off Aliens.
lord-blade20 November 2020
It's one thing to be inspired by something and to create a new idea based off it. It's another see a movie that did well, try to copy it at the most basic level, with no real class or skill, and pass it off as a new creation.
Death Machine is an Aliens ripoff. But it's surprisingly well funded for one, with expensive sets, relatively costly actors... but no really skill at writing or scene layout or any real creativity. Everything in it is basically just a lazy copy, mostly from Aliens, but a few other things are ripped off as well (like the gun drop from Beyond Thunderdome, the odd Terminator reference, and a few others). But really, it's the robot that is shaped a lot like a xenomorph, that even has a lot of the iconic moments from the good movie copies in sloppy fashion, and even two characters called Weyland and Yutani. You can't get much more on the nose than that.
It would be one thing if this was done as an homage, but it's clearly not. It's just pathetic.
And what's worse, even while trying to imitate a great movies (with a lot of ripoffs have done well), this movie just does a terrible job of it. The writing is terrible, the lines are idiotic, the character decisions make no sense, and the actors just ham it all to hell.
Give this movie a hard pass.
Death Machine is an Aliens ripoff. But it's surprisingly well funded for one, with expensive sets, relatively costly actors... but no really skill at writing or scene layout or any real creativity. Everything in it is basically just a lazy copy, mostly from Aliens, but a few other things are ripped off as well (like the gun drop from Beyond Thunderdome, the odd Terminator reference, and a few others). But really, it's the robot that is shaped a lot like a xenomorph, that even has a lot of the iconic moments from the good movie copies in sloppy fashion, and even two characters called Weyland and Yutani. You can't get much more on the nose than that.
It would be one thing if this was done as an homage, but it's clearly not. It's just pathetic.
And what's worse, even while trying to imitate a great movies (with a lot of ripoffs have done well), this movie just does a terrible job of it. The writing is terrible, the lines are idiotic, the character decisions make no sense, and the actors just ham it all to hell.
Give this movie a hard pass.
This one probably gets overlooked...
RacerX-135 July 1999
At first glance, people will probably pass this off as one of those cheap saturday afternoon action flicks that TBS or UPN likes to show...and to a certain extent it is. Upon taking the time to watch it, I found that it wasn't actually that bad at all and Jack Dante is undeniably creepy! A better villain I had not seen for quite some time. Overall I gave it a seven because it is still kind of cheesy but Dante seriously creeped me out.
Boring but falsely promising
mrdonleone29 December 2019
Is there any videos I did grow up seeing this movie in certain scenes of it and I saw it again and again and again all this time that I saw it again and of course that the family I did see the big movies so many years and who almost 15 years and then we can of course and that's all we can say about this movie
Superb straight to video - capped by Dourif's excellent performance
TTKKane16 August 2007
When people ask "What are some good straight to video horrors?", Death Machine is usually top of my list. Its a great blend of sci-fi/horror that borrows heavily from others but still emerges as a cool flick nonetheless.
The simplified plot leaves some good guys (and gal) trying to stay alive in a sealed corporate skyscraper, while being hunted by a robot controlled by the fantastically OTT Brad Dourif. There are a few sub-plots to keep things interesting between the characters.
The heroine of the piece is the very cute Ely Pouget, who gives a terrific performance. She is joined by a couple of would-be terrorists - Martin McDougall and John Sharian (who some may recognize from his role in The Machinist).
The plot is good, if a little far-fetched (hey I did say this was sci-fi/horror), and director Stephen Norrington skillfully constructs an effective sense of fear with tongue-in-cheek humor, which belies this being his first time at the helm (he would later go on to direct Blade and the less-than-stellar The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen).
The effects are very good for what must have been a small budget, and the robot (which is reminiscent of a alien/terminator hybrid) is well designed.
There are "strong influences" from movies such as Universal Soldier, Alien and Hardware...and most of the death scenes are quite vicious, though its not really that gory. Also many of the characters are named after horror directors - John Carpenter, Sam Raimi, Scott Ridley etc - not so much as a wink to them but rather a 10 foot neon sign - but it kinda adds to the charm.
Final word goes out to Mr Dourif, who steals every scene he is in. He's funny, creepy, pathetic and totally manic. I have a feeling Norrington just let Dourif go wild in the role.
TTKK's Bottomline - If you like sci-fi/horror mixed with a bit of cheese and some laughs, you can't go wrong with Death Machine
The simplified plot leaves some good guys (and gal) trying to stay alive in a sealed corporate skyscraper, while being hunted by a robot controlled by the fantastically OTT Brad Dourif. There are a few sub-plots to keep things interesting between the characters.
The heroine of the piece is the very cute Ely Pouget, who gives a terrific performance. She is joined by a couple of would-be terrorists - Martin McDougall and John Sharian (who some may recognize from his role in The Machinist).
The plot is good, if a little far-fetched (hey I did say this was sci-fi/horror), and director Stephen Norrington skillfully constructs an effective sense of fear with tongue-in-cheek humor, which belies this being his first time at the helm (he would later go on to direct Blade and the less-than-stellar The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen).
The effects are very good for what must have been a small budget, and the robot (which is reminiscent of a alien/terminator hybrid) is well designed.
There are "strong influences" from movies such as Universal Soldier, Alien and Hardware...and most of the death scenes are quite vicious, though its not really that gory. Also many of the characters are named after horror directors - John Carpenter, Sam Raimi, Scott Ridley etc - not so much as a wink to them but rather a 10 foot neon sign - but it kinda adds to the charm.
Final word goes out to Mr Dourif, who steals every scene he is in. He's funny, creepy, pathetic and totally manic. I have a feeling Norrington just let Dourif go wild in the role.
TTKK's Bottomline - If you like sci-fi/horror mixed with a bit of cheese and some laughs, you can't go wrong with Death Machine
Cheesy but fun
spam-153 August 2000
Amazing, how many people seemed to take this movie so seriously, and even the folks at IMDB failed to classify it as a comedy. The truth is, the movie has a decent amount of serious horror and action at the first glance, but everything is done with tongue held firmly in cheek. This movie has some real suspense, as the evil machine thing looks dangerous, well animated and FAST; on the other hand it has some absolutely hilarious laugh-out-loud moments, especially in the "Terminator"-style HUD display shots later in the movie. Come on, who still thinks this is movie is a serious but bad effort after the scene where the (anti)heros disarm the villain of approximately 15 handguns and, literally, a rubber chicken? The dialogue, especially the villain's, is quite entertaining; the acting varies from pretty good to bearable and the special effects aren't too shabby at all. All in all, it's a great movie to watch & make fun of, with some beer and a bunch of friends.
Brad dourif is excellent
Serfes8413 January 2021
They missed the point.
sen-52412 April 1999
The point is: This movie is a blatant *tribute* to Aliens, Die Hard, Evil Dead, Terminator, Predator, Rocky, and numerous other action/horror movies. The characters are even named after famous action/horror directors (see trivia). The plot is a brilliant rehash of nearly every great action/horror movie ever made! It's meant to be funny! People get so caught up in the details that they miss the big picture.
Entertaining for what it is.
Hey_Sweden30 November 2018
In the "near future", a corporation named "Chaank" is in the business of exotic weapon technology. After the death of a higher-up, a new joint chief executive named Hayden Cale (model turned actress Ely Pouget) is brought in to clean house. One of her first orders of business is getting rid of utterly demented, childlike genius Jack Dante (veteran screen psycho Brad Dourif). But Dante has an ace up his sleeve: a lethal death-dispenser dubbed the Warbeast, complete with giant, gnashing steel teeth. Hayden must team up with some unlikely allies in her battle to stay alive.
Debuting writer / director Stephen Norrington doesn't set out to be particularly innovative or imaginative, with a script that's largely routine and not many characters one can truly care about. That said, he achieves a pretty good "futuristic" feel on a B level budget, and whatever "Death Machine" lacks in originality is compensated for by the fast pace and the sheer intensity on display. The Warbeast in particular is a cool antagonist of sorts, and Norrington makes it most effective when we get partial looks at the thing.
Matching the Warbeast for absolute ferocity is the great character actor Dourif, one of those thespians often at their best when allowed to utterly devour the scenery. He's the most interesting character here, although Pouget makes for a reasonably effective, Ellen Ripley-style heroine.
The supporting cast consists of such familiar faces as William Hootkins ("Hardware"), John Sharian ("The Machinist"), Martin McDougall ("Batman Begins"), Andreas Wisniewski ("Die Hard"), and Richard Brake ("31"), and the performances are generally quite capable, even if some of the characters are the type whom you hope will die gloriously. Look for Rachel Weisz ("The Mummy" '99) in her film debut as a "junior executive".
Norringtons' in-jokes range from the obvious (giving characters names like "John Carpenter", "Sam Raimi", and "Scott Ridley") to slightly less obvious (the character names Weyland and Yutani, "Weyland-Yutani" being the name of the evil corporation in the "Alien" franchise).
While reminiscent of earlier films in the sci-fi / horror genres, "Death Machine" is still a decent example of this sort of thing.
Seven out of 10.
Debuting writer / director Stephen Norrington doesn't set out to be particularly innovative or imaginative, with a script that's largely routine and not many characters one can truly care about. That said, he achieves a pretty good "futuristic" feel on a B level budget, and whatever "Death Machine" lacks in originality is compensated for by the fast pace and the sheer intensity on display. The Warbeast in particular is a cool antagonist of sorts, and Norrington makes it most effective when we get partial looks at the thing.
Matching the Warbeast for absolute ferocity is the great character actor Dourif, one of those thespians often at their best when allowed to utterly devour the scenery. He's the most interesting character here, although Pouget makes for a reasonably effective, Ellen Ripley-style heroine.
The supporting cast consists of such familiar faces as William Hootkins ("Hardware"), John Sharian ("The Machinist"), Martin McDougall ("Batman Begins"), Andreas Wisniewski ("Die Hard"), and Richard Brake ("31"), and the performances are generally quite capable, even if some of the characters are the type whom you hope will die gloriously. Look for Rachel Weisz ("The Mummy" '99) in her film debut as a "junior executive".
Norringtons' in-jokes range from the obvious (giving characters names like "John Carpenter", "Sam Raimi", and "Scott Ridley") to slightly less obvious (the character names Weyland and Yutani, "Weyland-Yutani" being the name of the evil corporation in the "Alien" franchise).
While reminiscent of earlier films in the sci-fi / horror genres, "Death Machine" is still a decent example of this sort of thing.
Seven out of 10.
best two buck's ever spent
nemo_barker19 January 2005
i just got done watching this movie and i have to say, it was a good film, i loved some of the good guy's and i loved the killer robot but the movie had some hole's in it.
the name's of the people in it was kind of..stupid..i think people should of sued the maker's of this movie for how lame it was at the end..the first half hour was good but then it just dragged on and on then i was happy..it was over...but still loved the the killer robot and some of the movie's good guy's in it.
i think it was the best two buck's i have ever spent because i do like stupid b-movie's like this one and come on..it is a b-movie everyone.
the name's of the people in it was kind of..stupid..i think people should of sued the maker's of this movie for how lame it was at the end..the first half hour was good but then it just dragged on and on then i was happy..it was over...but still loved the the killer robot and some of the movie's good guy's in it.
i think it was the best two buck's i have ever spent because i do like stupid b-movie's like this one and come on..it is a b-movie everyone.
Solid B-Shocker
unzki1 January 2018
It is a shame that Stephen Norrington's directing career was buried by Extraordinary Gentlemen, since he could've pulled off some interesting things! As his directing debut this is a fairly strong movie, and with Blade he showed that he did have what it took... If only he had avoided LoEG!!
Sure, the plot isn't anything special nor are the effects that spectacular... But they work, and workable practical effects are always better than naff CGI! Brad Dourif is also always a pleasure to watch, even though it seems that he's been typecast into slimebag roles for a lot of his career. The other actors also give decent performances, and didn't make me cringe... Well, not too often, anyway. ^^
All in all, "Death Machine" is, if not a gem of a B-movie, at least a solid performer for friends of the genre. It recycles known cliches but remained entertaining for its runtime (111min UK version) and thus I give it a recommendation.
Sure, the plot isn't anything special nor are the effects that spectacular... But they work, and workable practical effects are always better than naff CGI! Brad Dourif is also always a pleasure to watch, even though it seems that he's been typecast into slimebag roles for a lot of his career. The other actors also give decent performances, and didn't make me cringe... Well, not too often, anyway. ^^
All in all, "Death Machine" is, if not a gem of a B-movie, at least a solid performer for friends of the genre. It recycles known cliches but remained entertaining for its runtime (111min UK version) and thus I give it a recommendation.
It was actually good!
paul_haakonsen18 May 2012
"Death Machine" was actually a nice surprise of a movie. Sure it is a spoof on movies such a "Robocop", "Aliens", "Terminator", "Die Hard" and movies in that caliber, but it was so much fun to watch.
The story in "Death Machine" is about Jack Dante who works at a big corporation, who unleash a killing machine that he has been working on in secret after he becomes fired from his job. And it is up to a small group of people to stand up to this ultimate killer and stop it before it kills them.
"Death Machine" was loads of fun to watch because it was so cheesy and campy. However, they had lots of nice stuff in the movie, lots of nice details and actually had decent enough props, sets and outfits. What I loved the most, personally, was the armored robotic suit that they put the guy in; in lots of scenes you could see it was just plastic covered foam he was wearing, as it was creasing and wrinkling as he bent and moved around. It was hilarious.
Take a look at the names of the people in the movie; John Carpenter, Weyland, Yutani, Scott Ridley, etc. that was just amusing. Lots of fun references here, and if you are an avid movie-watcher, then you are bound to pick up on lots of hints and references here, there and everywhere.
For a movie of this type, they had actually managed to put together a great cast ensemble, lots of faces that will be familiar to you if you watch a good deal of movies. It should be said, that the movie was being carried by Brad Dourif who played Jack Dante.
"Death Machine" has a lot of action and actually have a good amount of entertainment value. I was surprised at the movie, as I had expected it to be a very, very low budget Sci-Fi movie. I was thoroughly entertained by the movie and must say that it was actually a great homage to various movies over the years.
If you haven't seen "Death Machine" yet, get to it. Watch it for the cheesy movie that it is. Don't take it too serious. Watch it for all the references to other movies (if you are a movie fanatic). Watch it for the foamy body armor-suit. Watch it for the sheer fun that it is. Just watch it.
The story in "Death Machine" is about Jack Dante who works at a big corporation, who unleash a killing machine that he has been working on in secret after he becomes fired from his job. And it is up to a small group of people to stand up to this ultimate killer and stop it before it kills them.
"Death Machine" was loads of fun to watch because it was so cheesy and campy. However, they had lots of nice stuff in the movie, lots of nice details and actually had decent enough props, sets and outfits. What I loved the most, personally, was the armored robotic suit that they put the guy in; in lots of scenes you could see it was just plastic covered foam he was wearing, as it was creasing and wrinkling as he bent and moved around. It was hilarious.
Take a look at the names of the people in the movie; John Carpenter, Weyland, Yutani, Scott Ridley, etc. that was just amusing. Lots of fun references here, and if you are an avid movie-watcher, then you are bound to pick up on lots of hints and references here, there and everywhere.
For a movie of this type, they had actually managed to put together a great cast ensemble, lots of faces that will be familiar to you if you watch a good deal of movies. It should be said, that the movie was being carried by Brad Dourif who played Jack Dante.
"Death Machine" has a lot of action and actually have a good amount of entertainment value. I was surprised at the movie, as I had expected it to be a very, very low budget Sci-Fi movie. I was thoroughly entertained by the movie and must say that it was actually a great homage to various movies over the years.
If you haven't seen "Death Machine" yet, get to it. Watch it for the cheesy movie that it is. Don't take it too serious. Watch it for all the references to other movies (if you are a movie fanatic). Watch it for the foamy body armor-suit. Watch it for the sheer fun that it is. Just watch it.
Starts out weak, but I ended up enjoying it.(Spoilers)
lemon_magic30 January 2021
Warning: Spoilers
The first 25 or so minutes of the movie is a slog. The art direction is not quite "there", the plot drags, the performances don't mesh and the dialog doesn't quite click.
However, once the screenplay stops being about future dystopian corporations, and starts being about people being eviscerated by an Alien/Terminator hybrid in a sealed skyscraper, things pick up. IMO, this happens about the time that the remaining "raiders" reveal that they are actually good guys and the "Warbeast" rips into the bottom of the elevator everyone is riding. A big jolt of energy enlivens the proceedings, and I had a pretty good time for the remainder of the movie.
Most of the humorous touches work pretty well (some better than others) and it seemed to me that as the movie progressed, the actors were more comfortable in their roles and worked better together. (I could be wrong, of course).
Brad Dourif does his usual barely-in-control lunatic routine here, and it's a bit cliche - as if he's reading straight out of "The Little Golden Book Of Psychopath Acting" - but he doesn't hold back, and he's fun to watch.
Worth watching if you liked "Aliens", "Terminator", "RoboCop" and don't mind a lot of callbacks, pastiche, in jokes, and small budget approximations of big budget/major talent Sci-Fi.
However, once the screenplay stops being about future dystopian corporations, and starts being about people being eviscerated by an Alien/Terminator hybrid in a sealed skyscraper, things pick up. IMO, this happens about the time that the remaining "raiders" reveal that they are actually good guys and the "Warbeast" rips into the bottom of the elevator everyone is riding. A big jolt of energy enlivens the proceedings, and I had a pretty good time for the remainder of the movie.
Most of the humorous touches work pretty well (some better than others) and it seemed to me that as the movie progressed, the actors were more comfortable in their roles and worked better together. (I could be wrong, of course).
Brad Dourif does his usual barely-in-control lunatic routine here, and it's a bit cliche - as if he's reading straight out of "The Little Golden Book Of Psychopath Acting" - but he doesn't hold back, and he's fun to watch.
Worth watching if you liked "Aliens", "Terminator", "RoboCop" and don't mind a lot of callbacks, pastiche, in jokes, and small budget approximations of big budget/major talent Sci-Fi.
After seeing this film, producer Peter Frankfurt chose Norringron to direct Blade.
Jay_Rusty21 April 2024
I watched this movie for free on YouTube.
The version that I watched is 2+ hours; it's definitely too long and could've benefited from a tighter edit.
In the Connections section, IMDb has listed a number of References; i think that a few are missing, namely: Predator, RoboCop and Universal Soldier. Some users have probably picked up on a few other more missing references, as well.
I really love Blade (the opening scenes / set pieces are iconic & unrivaled!) so i'm glad that Norringron got that directing gig based on his efforts in this movie right here.
This movie is not without its merits. The standout performance for me was John Sharian: Charismatic & funny. I'm kinda surprised that he didn't end up having a better career! Oh well.
The version that I watched is 2+ hours; it's definitely too long and could've benefited from a tighter edit.
In the Connections section, IMDb has listed a number of References; i think that a few are missing, namely: Predator, RoboCop and Universal Soldier. Some users have probably picked up on a few other more missing references, as well.
I really love Blade (the opening scenes / set pieces are iconic & unrivaled!) so i'm glad that Norringron got that directing gig based on his efforts in this movie right here.
This movie is not without its merits. The standout performance for me was John Sharian: Charismatic & funny. I'm kinda surprised that he didn't end up having a better career! Oh well.
Extremely enjoyable and surprisingly funny
matt_notley3 March 2002
Death Machine is a film which really surprised me. I was expecting a gore-fest with weak plot and even weaker acting. That was until I found out it had Brad Dourif starring in it, who is in my opinion one of the best actors ever. The film itself is not overly gory but is instead remarkably discomforting and surprisingly funny and thoughtful. It takes quite a while for any real action to start, the beginning instead being used for interesting plot and character development sequences.
Brad Dourif does one of the most wonderful acting performances of his life here as the child-like psychotic genius Jack Dante who develops the ultimate killing machine. Wearing a long black leather coat and having long black hair, he looks perfect for the part and gives a genuinely creepy performance - yet still makes you feel sorry for him. He's also been given most of the best lines in the pretty fantastic script, with many laugh-out-loud moments for the viewer ("It's cool here! There's tons of... stuff!").
A note about the violence and gore: the film has an 18 certificate in the UK and you would expect some pretty gruesome stuff for a film in that category, yet there is surprisingly very little. When the Death Machine of the title gets to kill someone, in most cases the death isn't seen at all and left up to the viewer's imagination. There ARE some fairly bloody moments but I don't think this film really deserves the 18 certificate, I've seen worse in 15-rated movies.
The film remains constantly engaging, has strong actors all round and is directed very well. A great script with quite a lot of comedy moments sets this film apart from other low-budget sci-fi horror movies. Great fun.
Brad Dourif does one of the most wonderful acting performances of his life here as the child-like psychotic genius Jack Dante who develops the ultimate killing machine. Wearing a long black leather coat and having long black hair, he looks perfect for the part and gives a genuinely creepy performance - yet still makes you feel sorry for him. He's also been given most of the best lines in the pretty fantastic script, with many laugh-out-loud moments for the viewer ("It's cool here! There's tons of... stuff!").
A note about the violence and gore: the film has an 18 certificate in the UK and you would expect some pretty gruesome stuff for a film in that category, yet there is surprisingly very little. When the Death Machine of the title gets to kill someone, in most cases the death isn't seen at all and left up to the viewer's imagination. There ARE some fairly bloody moments but I don't think this film really deserves the 18 certificate, I've seen worse in 15-rated movies.
The film remains constantly engaging, has strong actors all round and is directed very well. A great script with quite a lot of comedy moments sets this film apart from other low-budget sci-fi horror movies. Great fun.
Once it kicks off it's a pretty decent movie.
Boba_Fett113812 January 2010
This movie is really far from a great or interesting one but it's also a movie that starts to somewhat gets better as it progresses.
It was a great movie that they decided on not making this movie a too straight or serious one. It's a movie with some quirky and comical moments. Had they decided to play this movie straight, it would had been a real bad and ridicules B-movie, with an obviously not too high budget. The movie instead now at times is even more of a spoof than a good movie on its own really.
The movie is basically a whole bunch of many different genre movies thrown together, only made more entertaining to watch. It for most part makes "Death Machine" a pretty fun movie to watch but it also doesn't exactly surpasses the level of average.
The script, the effects, the acting, it's all being pretty average. It's all good enough but not quite enough for the movie to stand out. I can see why this movie has a sort of a steady cult following but like basically almost every cult-favorite movie, the movie itself isn't exactly anything too great itself.
It also really takes awhile for the movie to actually start off and become a good and interesting one. It wasn't about well halve way through that the movie finally really started to get my attention.
It was Stephen Norrington directing debut and he must have got some attention with it, since his next directed movie would be the blockbuster "Blade", which in all honesty is the only real true great movie he has ever directed so far.
All good and fun enough, especially when you're into the genre but also far from a great or perfect movie really.
6/10
http://bobafett1138.blogspot.com/
It was a great movie that they decided on not making this movie a too straight or serious one. It's a movie with some quirky and comical moments. Had they decided to play this movie straight, it would had been a real bad and ridicules B-movie, with an obviously not too high budget. The movie instead now at times is even more of a spoof than a good movie on its own really.
The movie is basically a whole bunch of many different genre movies thrown together, only made more entertaining to watch. It for most part makes "Death Machine" a pretty fun movie to watch but it also doesn't exactly surpasses the level of average.
The script, the effects, the acting, it's all being pretty average. It's all good enough but not quite enough for the movie to stand out. I can see why this movie has a sort of a steady cult following but like basically almost every cult-favorite movie, the movie itself isn't exactly anything too great itself.
It also really takes awhile for the movie to actually start off and become a good and interesting one. It wasn't about well halve way through that the movie finally really started to get my attention.
It was Stephen Norrington directing debut and he must have got some attention with it, since his next directed movie would be the blockbuster "Blade", which in all honesty is the only real true great movie he has ever directed so far.
All good and fun enough, especially when you're into the genre but also far from a great or perfect movie really.
6/10
http://bobafett1138.blogspot.com/
Great visuals
foxtografo3 December 2022
This Movie has some great cinematography, it really stroke me in that aspect from beginning to end.
But that's pretty much all it has to offer, besides lots of "references" and "homages" to the director's movie favourites, like Aliens and Robocop, among others. These are not a problem, but the movie doesn't have a solid story or interesting characters of its own, and certainly doesn't really know if it wants to be a horror, or a comedy, or an action.. It's not that these genres are not mixable, but in this case, the movie becomes all these but at different acts of the movie. For example, the comedy stuff doesn't show until the second half of the movie, which is really weird.
The acting is really cheesy and there are a few scenes where the characters are really stupid. Specially towards the end, the face-tattooed guy scene was really silly and totally out of place.
Really forgettable movie, I will only remember it as a sequence of photos I liked, but the two hour long run didn't really help getting through the slow, nonsensical story.
It's a very.
But that's pretty much all it has to offer, besides lots of "references" and "homages" to the director's movie favourites, like Aliens and Robocop, among others. These are not a problem, but the movie doesn't have a solid story or interesting characters of its own, and certainly doesn't really know if it wants to be a horror, or a comedy, or an action.. It's not that these genres are not mixable, but in this case, the movie becomes all these but at different acts of the movie. For example, the comedy stuff doesn't show until the second half of the movie, which is really weird.
The acting is really cheesy and there are a few scenes where the characters are really stupid. Specially towards the end, the face-tattooed guy scene was really silly and totally out of place.
Really forgettable movie, I will only remember it as a sequence of photos I liked, but the two hour long run didn't really help getting through the slow, nonsensical story.
It's a very.
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