From Box Office Bomb to Cult Beloved: The Story of The Last Starfighter

[@Rockmanxpr]

My favorite line from this movie has got to be "It'll be a slaughter!" "That's the spirit!"

[@OmegaII]

"No, MY slaughter!"

[@i.am.not.herbert]

My favorite line. What do we do now? *visor slowly closes over dudes eye* We.... D I E

[@fightclubhubbs]

"Go back to sleep or I'll tell mom about your playboys."

[@UltimateGamerCC]

@@fightclubhubbs lol Lewis was such a cad, i wanna know where he got those though, i mean there's no dad in the mix... was "mom" a lesbian? o.o

[@JohnDoe-wq5eu]

@@UltimateGamerCC Kids/teens are very resourceful. In the time before the internet was a thing believe me if you could find something like that they would inevitably get their hands on it one way or the other.

[@randallprice6853]

Showed The Last Starfighter to my son a few years ago (he was 11 at the time.) As the end credits rolled he slowly stood up from the couch, looked at me and said "That is the greatest movie I've ever seen."

[@JnEricsonx]

Then you tell him Michael Myers made it.

[@Faizrider]

I remember thinking this movie was so cool as a kid. Loved the ship design.

[@timboslice9905]

You were right. The ship STILL looks cool.

[@Newjourney14]

Thinking? It is cool

[@Logan7281X]

The 'Death Blossom' was always SO effin' cool!

[@queenannsrevenge100]

@@Logan7281X - The only thing I was disappointed with as a kid was the Death Blossom - the way they described it didn't end up on screen as impressive as it was in my head. :) Loved the film as a kid, though.

[@jockellis]

I thought it was cool as a 30 something. Saw it twice though I think the second time was on VCR.

[@jamesstaggs4160]

One of the movies that got recorded off those "free HBO" weeks on VHS, it was a constant companion through my childhood. I must have seen this well over 100 times.

[@drgribb]

Yessss. Same. It was this and Legend of Billie Jean Gray for me!

[@hueii]

I bought the Special Edition DVD... So I'm with you!

[@MarvelousSeven]

Me too brother

[@marcussmith4913]

ya if I ever see it on tv I have to stop and watch it.

[@shanefraser7764]

Yes bro we had this tapped off tv and the movie with kids as gangsters with potato guns lol😂✌️🇳🇿

[@kalron27]

I watched this recently again and was surprised that it wasn't just a guilty pleasure but a solid film. The entire trailer park is full a characters that bring heart to the film. Solid '80s flick.

[@ottototo8]

"What do we do?" "We die." The bad guy generals were tough.

[@Beardedvikingweirdo]

Love that little eyepiece rotating into place before he says that

[@jeremymenning56]

@@Beardedvikingweirdo 🧐

[@marksapollo]

Haha I literally just posted that. Classic.

[@anthonykent00]

This is THE line I quoted over and over as a kid - with a makeshift space monocle and all! Made with a piece of Transformer decoder film, naturally.

[@EvanMoon]

.in 1995 the R ZONE Video game was released. It was a small scene Right in front of one of your eyes. Then there is the “scouter” that Vegeta wear in dragon ball Z. Obviously it was an idea that what is shown in Star Wars episode four back in 1977, In the X Wing And then worn by Bobo Fett, But the use Last Starfighter in So cool. The way it moves in place and then turns down. Perfect

[@roseknightmare]

My favourite part is that the hero actually understands that his future is elsewhere, and doesn't choose to go back to his old life at the end. So different from modern stories.

[@UNSCPILOT]

Given the same chance you can bet your bottom dollar I'ma stick with the ship, Earth is a mess anyway

[@Ottophil]

@@UNSCPILOT half of earth is a mess. The other half of us just dont have power to stop it

[@JohnSmith-pt5sg]

He took his hooker though, right?

[@lanceturley7745]

The movie that dared to ask "What if those countless hours and quarters I spent playing Galaga *wasn't* a waste of time and money?"

[@emirlsanchos6302]

The Author of Ready Player One even based his second book around a similar premise of an arcade game as recruitment tool for an intergalactic war.

[@timcowl7630]

I used to get rolls of quarters from the bank, and play it all day!

[@clawofthefallen]

When I was a kid, this was my favorite non-star wars movie. I'd rent it and see it on tv whenever I could! It's theme resonated with me and made me feel like this movie was made FOR me. From then on out, I kept dreaming of videogames being alive, that the adventure and immersion were to be taken seriously. And to always strive to defeat the enemy and save the universe by doing my best and never giving up. It might have been a box office bomb, but it's legacy inspired heroic valuesin me when I was a kid. and I never forgot it.

[@MichaelMartin-qe5ye]

They could've made a similar movie about me and my arcade skills. It would've been titled, "Let's recruit that kid who is kinda ok at Golden Axe."

[@kevinwr7093]

I would watch a movie like that. Lol

[@billkeithchannel]

@@kevinwr7093 OK Now I want a movie based on Rygar.

[@brpadington]

I used to hustle older kids on Street fighter. My mom caught me when I had 200 bucks in my Alf wallet.

[@turinmortis2376]

Gauntlet. Lock your bikes to the rack and bring a bag of quarters. This is gonna take all day, and it will be glorious.

[@davidromeroblaya7920]

This but, in my case, change Golden Axe for Cadillacs and Dinosaurs.

[@TerranIV]

Man I loved this movie. So many great lines!!! Navigation officer: "She won't answer the helm! We're locked into the moon's gravitation pull. What do we do?" Lord Kril: [Looks up and flips his favorite little eyepiece over his eye once more.] "We die."

[@marcussmith4913]

epic scene

[@seanbacon3347]

Ahhh..the thrill of watching this movie all summer long on HBO, and then rushing over to the local convenience store to play Star Wars: The Arcade Game after each showing. Good times.

[@pravusprime]

Always loved this movie. I remember a documentary where the original cray renders were going to be photo-realistic or at least closer, but it would've taken far too long to render so they went essentially with the basic setting instead. I wouldn't mind seeing a re-release with updated renders to be more in line with modern CGI since the rest of the movie has aged so well.

[@neobluemax]

This movie is cross generational. Kids today get it just as much now as we did in the 80s.

[@tatitorodriguez376]

If not more so.

[@JnEricsonx]

Went to a showing a few years ago, parents brought their kids. :)

[@LostInTheFarmersMarket]

It certainly is. I do fear that someone will try and remake it though.

[@DeltaTenNZ]

One of my most beloved lines from the movie is from Grig: *_"Death is a primitive concept. I prefer to think of them as battling evil in another dimension."_* Hands down, one of my most favourite movies from the 80's, and one I have watched countless times. And still do from time to time.

[@TalsarGeldon]

Who knew Grig was Norse.

[@gregorymoore2877]

Alex: "In another dimension? Well, how many are left?" Grig: "Including yourself?" Alex: "Yes." Grig: "One." Alex: "One?!?!?"

[@VIPERRED229]

"It'll be a slaughter!!!" "That's the spirit!!!"

[@maxcooper6554]

"No, MY slaughter!"

[@rikaika4178]

Oh man, how can you talk about the movie without even a mention of the outstanding score by Craig Safan? The main theme can easily hold it's own against other iconic scores. I've loved this movie since 1984 and I'm one of the people who 3d printed the Gunstar model I was denied as a kid.

[@HoldandModify]

It is great. It’s also very inspired by the original BSG theme.

[@Coolman13355]

That brass section.

[@joshpayne4015]

Robert Preston. What a national treasure. Too bad his awesomeness has been lost on the more recent generations, he was an amazing talent.

[@jonquixote7691]

I just bought a Starfighter T-shirt. Talk about serendipity. Everything about this movie brings joy to the young at heart.

[@DocJerky]

Hey me too. It is a profile shot of him at the arcade machine with the cat on top, but it is all silhouette except for the writing on the side of the game cabinet

[@TrueYellowDart]

Also, while the score is good the main theme is DOPE.

[@jasonblalock4429]

And every time you watch it, that theme will be stuck in your head for a goddamn week. DAT dada DAT, DAT dada DAT, dah daah daaahh...

[@chindleymuffin]

Craig Safan doesn't get nearly enough credit, his score is incredibly bombastic and dramatic, it fits the visuals so well. His music reminds me of Alan Silvestri, especially his score for Back To The Future, which was only released a year later.

[@the60skid48]

@@chindleymuffin his Remo Williams score is exceptional too

[@SmokeBreakWithHuck]

I saw the movie as a kid and started picking out arcade games to play for a whole summer based on if would send me to a sci fi world or not. Great video Dan!

[@StratumPress]

lol I love it.

[@i.am.not.herbert]

Greetings, Starfighter. You have been recruited by the Star League to defend the frontier against Xur and the Ko-Dan armada!

[@robart1979]

My thoughts exactly

[@humbleYodartis]

🙌🏾

[@maxcooper6554]

Get Ready!

[@jennaragan4571]

Yes!! 💙💗

[@edrice2621]

Stefan Amaris grins maniacally.

[@TrueYellowDart]

Hell yeah! This movie still holds up. Some dated 80’s stuff, sure, but the great parts are *still* great!

[@jimmyfandago3211]

Yes. It has a good script. A thing Hollywood does not care about now.

[@timboslice9905]

I agree with all of this.

[@ascii7085]

Some of the dated stuff makes it kitchy and fun though.

[@gurujr]

Eighties sci-fi movies in a dark theater to a young kid were the greatest adventures one could have.

[@dtester]

This is probably one of the few movies I wouldn't mind seeing a "remaster" with new CGI renders using modern computers. They can achieve the visuals the creators aways wanted without changing anything else about the movie.

[@wadebrashear7517]

I agree 1000%.

[@BingleBangleBungle]

With the current trend in Hollywood of inserting "current year" and identity politics into every single thing, I would rather not have a reboot.

[@billkeithchannel]

Corridor Crew: Hold my beer...

[@billkeithchannel]

@KRYO BOY NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!! Demonic Disney destroys classics again...

[@scthomas1982]

@KRYO BOY hahahahhahahahhahhahahhahha

[@Malebrignon]

Hah! I had no idea this was a failure. I saw it in a packed theater as a child and assumed everyone loved it. I have to have seen this at least a hundred times. My little brother, who was born the year this was released, literally wore out our VHS tape. Great video, as always!

[@scottlyttle5586]

As a general rule, a movie has to make 3X it's production budget to be considered profitable.

[@mechamanblade8465]

It's such a crime that The Last Starfighter hasn't had any official toys by now.

[@invaderjae]

For real! I'd LOVE to have some of them. Especially the ship. It's one of my favorite ship deisngs.

[@wolfgangervin2582]

Yeah a good Gunstar model is up there on my wishlist with Battletech/Mechwarrior gunpla and decent models for the Brynhild and Hyperion from Legend of the Galactic Heroes.

[@Ottophil]

It makes sense, all the kids who were kids when this movie came out aren’t kids. And adults don’t need toys

[@jublywubly]

I wish a games company would make a real The Last Starfighter arcade game.

[@houstonhelicoptertours1006]

@@jublywubly Atari made a working prototype shorty after the movie release. It was deemed too expensive since it ran on custom hardware. It is playable in MAME.

[@monie1527]

I am a 62 year old woman. I LOVED this movie and bought it just yesterday. Going to make up lots of snacks and laugh my guts up as I imitate "go to sleep, Lewis, or I'm telling mom about your playboy collection!"

[@JonPaulMaki]

I was obsessed with this movie (and Catherine Mary Stewart) from the moment I saw an ad for it in Marvel comics of the era. I read the novelization, tried to read the comic adaptation, but only managed to get the first issue (missed the single issue Super-Special entirely, though I do own a copy now), but I didn't get a chance to see it in the theater. I did get to see it at a drive-in, but it wasn't a great viewing experience. Didn't get to fully enjoy it until it came out on VHS and I rented it and watched it multiple times over the course of a weekend. It remains an all-time favorite and I usually watch it (on Blu-ray) at least once a year.

[@c1ph3rpunk]

I had such a crush on Catherine Mary Stewart after seeing it in the theater, had to wait a few years before getting it on VHS.

[@pchan0368]

I am almost 40 and I still watch this movie. TLS made me wish this would happen to me every time I played "Star Fox" as a kid, lol.

[@Eckythump]

I haven't seen the movie in over 20 years, but still know the game into. "You have been recruited by the Star League to defend against Xur and the Ko-dan Armada". Loved it!

[@badbirdkc]

I discovered it on VHS and watched it a ton when I was a kid, but probably went 20 years without seeing it. Watched it again a few years ago and though the CGI doesn't exactly hold up, it's still a great movie. What really struck me is that although Alex imagines finding a better life, he's not cynical. He doesn't look down on his neighbors in the trailer park and genuinely cares about them.

[@gastronomist]

I hadn't thought about that. He seemed to actually like his neighbors.

[@alexrodriguez9441]

The Japanese animated feature “Lensman” hit theatres in Japan exactly 6 days before the release of “Last Starfighter”… although Lensman would not get an official release in the US until many years later. The photorealistic space battles in Lensman were also rendered on a Cray supercomputer

[@grahamcann1761]

I went to see "The Last Starfighter" on opening night, at the Century Theaters, across from the Winchester Mystery House, and we thought it was great! Afterwords we went back to a friends place and called Lance Guest and took turns sharing our thoughts on the movie. My contribution was to scold him for 'taking' top billing over Robert Preston. His response was, it was his managers fault, he was the lead character (title character) of the movie, and then he talked about how awesome it was to work with Robert Preston (and Dan O'Herlihy). Fun bit of trivia - we all got a laugh at seeing Lance's name on top of the marquee out front, for only a few years earlier he'd been working at the Century Theaters while going to school with several folks in our group. Thank you so very much for the video.

[@JeffreyOsb]

Hah, the Winchester Mystery House. I went there when I was living in Palo Alto. Where do you stay?

[@TighelanderII]

"the Winchester Mystery House" ? After reading Alan Moore's Swamp Thing story about the house, I eventually thought that Winchester's widow and Jimmy Carter were doing the same thing with all of the building they were doing.

[@calstongroup]

That's where I saw it too, great place to see movies, all gone now I think.

[@grahamcann1761]

@@calstongroup Thing that amused me about those Century Theaters is before he became "The Last Starfighter" Lance worked at that theater. So he went from theater worker to having his name at the top of the marquee.

[@calstongroup]

@@grahamcann1761 I never knew that !!! I hope he's doing well. It's funny, Bill Hader used to work at the theater I used to frequent here in Tempe.

[@Summertimeblues28]

I saw it at the drive when I was a kid in the summer of 1984 with my 2 best friends & loved it. So it was never a ‘bomb’ to me. Years later it kinda blew my mind when I found out that the guy that played The Shape directed The Last Starfighter. Great video Dan & Greg

[@Pocketrocket-pj1us]

And Lance Guest was in Halloween 2, so there's a 2nd thing connecting the movies. Cheers.

[@voltijuice8576]

Robert Preston's earlier role hustling in Music Man was also the inspiration for the monorail salesman from the Simpsons! Crazy that his performance in that musical inspired such varied futures.

[@jeremymenning56]

I hope The Last Starfighter is *NEVER* remade. It's imperfectly perfect.

[@ParleyFamilyVideo]

Agree, though I might be interested to see what it looks like with contemporary DVFX replacing the 80's VFX, like (and its scary to say this) how Lucas redid the X-wing attack on the deathstar

[@timboslice9905]

Yes. Chemistry between costars helps to give a movie the right magic. A remake would do what all current movies do: pour money into the CGI, change the story and hire a bunch of stars to say the lines with zero feeling.

[@bartsullivan4866]

But if Lance Guest is still alive a sequel would be pretty cool seeing him as a veteran maybe in the Centari role of going back to Earth with the arcade game in todays age to find another human who is good enough like he was. There is still a lot to be told to this story. The rendered art in this video looks amazing and if Seth Rogan can get the rights lined up I think this could be an incredible sequel. They don't need to recon the thing or redo anything. Like the Tron Sequel just continue the story. Lord knows there are enough origin stories when there doesn't need to be. Maybe a black kid or Indian kid who happens to be great at video games but is social awkward. It doesn't have to be woke just a strong story. Imagine Alex going around the world putting the arcade games out their to see who the 1 person is who could beat that game or multiple people to train as Star Fighters kind of a like a TOP GUN 2 if the film ever gets released. The film was fun and had promise how many of todays films have that feel to them?

[@atex6175]

Gotta agree with you bud I loved that movie as a kid

[@jonathanwessner3456]

they do need to make a new computer game for it, where, as you go through the game, your number of wingmen declines, until you finally fight the Kodan Armada alone

[@Jacob_Junge]

In 1984 I was a thirteen year-old arcade-gamer and avid sci-fi fan living in a small town where nothing really happened, so this movie was just perfect! It still holds a special place in my heart.

[@pocketheart1450]

I was two years old when this came out but I caught it on cable TV in the 90s. I absolutely adore this movie.

[@Toybountyhunter1974]

Grig: I'll have it all figured out by the time we reach The Frontier. (Alarm goes off) Alex: What's that? Grig: The Frontier.

[@VGMRMissCoriel]

This movie was my dream as a kid.. I still love the movie today. It's a shame a legitimate Starfighter game wasn't made.

[@ressljs]

Yeah, I wondered about that at the time, not realizing the movie was a flop. Funny thing is, I ended up buying the Atari 2600 game Solaris. I didn't know until watching this video that Solaris was meant to be a Last Starfighter game. I loved that game and it's probably the most technically impressive game on the system... But it is the Atari 2600, so even saying that, it can't really do justice to the movie.

[@LF-X]

There was a indy homebrew game made based on the arcade game but I'm not sure if it's still out there

[@VGMRMissCoriel]

@@LF-X I played it.. But its super slow due to its programming

[@ThatOneComposerGuy]

That score by Craig Safan: sublime. 🥰

[@earhornjones]

I was seven or eight when TLS was released, and lived within walking distance of the local theaters. I probably saw TLS four times in theaters, and loved every minute of it. It was a great, fun movie that hit on all cylinders for the kid demographic. I would have bought the hell out of TLS merchandise.

[@turinmortis2376]

TLS, Condor Man, Flight of the Navigator, Ice Pirates - these things consumed my dreams and hit the kid cylinders. Star Wars hogs the cultural spotlight, but these lesser known gems were just as good to kids with imaginations.

[@brpadington]

@@turinmortis2376 Flight of the navigator is a classic.

[@Formakiwi]

@@turinmortis2376 Tron, Flash Gordon, Dune, Enemy Mine, Outland... It feels like the early 80s was full of inventive, boundary-pushing sci-fi movies; an era when genuinely cool concepts got given sizeable FX budgets and A-List casts to make memorable films that almost all tanked at the box office, mainly for a lack of lightsabers and Ewoks.

[@jasonelliott7977]

Loved this movie whenever I’d catch it on cable as a little kid.

[@beauxr.benoit1374]

I have to ask. Would it be worth having to watch a terrible remake?

[@Aikurisu]

I remember when the lead dev of Warframe made mention of how The Last Starfighter was one of his inspirations for making his game. There's even a 'Death Blossom' mod for the Railjack content. Legendary.

[@patrickpachal6410]

No comment about the fantastic ultra memorable theme song from Craig Safan? A searched for years to find the soundtrack for that theme, back when you had to hope to find it in a CD store. I had to tell everyone once I’d actually found it.

[@EvaFull]

Every year when I rewatch this thinking about the good memories of my dad, I always thank him for finding this on cable & introducing it to me. Still one of my favorite SCI-FI movies ever produced in the 80’s.

[@nickpry968]

Someone could replace the 80s CG with modern CG and see if the movie itself holds up. I love the original, but Im curious to see how it would look.

[@dontfeedthelunatic]

Sounds like a job for the corridor crew

[@billkeithchannel]

@@dontfeedthelunatic I have been making the same comment here.

[@houstonhelicoptertours1006]

"Someone could" Nothing comes for free.

[@houstonhelicoptertours1006]

@@dontfeedthelunatic Bunch of hacks tbh. Not very popular with a lot of VFX guys. Got so bad over at CGSociety that people told them to fuck off for good.

[@GregsGameRoom]

A friend once texted me a video clip of the trailer location which is also the place where Sid Haig stole the woman’s car in The Devil’s Rejects.

[@737215]

Part of an episode of Clerks: The Animated Series is dedicated to TLSF and it's awesome

[@RatelHBadger]

Kevin Smith loves his obscure pop culture shout outs.

[@Gabriel_Cook]

"Why are we walking like this??"

[@737215]

@@Gabriel_Cook nobody else would be bold enough to have a flashback episode as the second episode

[@ardathbey4150]

I saw this movie at the theater when it first came out and loved it !... this is a part of my life... thank you for posting this.

[@peppermintspacecapsule9898]

Rented it on BETAmax (appropriately!) and loved it. Years later, I had to import the DVD from the States as it still hadn't been released over here. That's dedication! The "phony" CGI never bothered me; as far as I was concerned, that's how those spaceships actually looked, and the videogame graphics looked extra "graphics-ee" to match them! And I'd *still* take 1980's CGI over today's weightless, pastel coloured graphics any day! 😆

[@cotboy]

Maggie (Catherine Mary Stewart) is my aunt! You should check out 'The Apple' next. I try to show it to everyone I meet because it is so wild and has the best ending of any movie I've ever seen. Night of the Comet is also another classic.

[@gutpunchprod]

“…the most amount of information in the least amount of words…” 50 year old cinemagoer: *wipes a tear away*

[@mikedecker9226]

I was 6 when this came out and remember my Mom being really upset when the robotic copy was being formed since it scared my little sister. She marched us out of the theater and demanded her money back. I didn't get to finish the movie until years later, unfortunately. Still, loved it!

[@perceivedvelocity9914]

This is one of my favorite movies of all time. I really don't want a reboot. If the surviving actors are able to come back and play a important role I would love a sequel.

[@whyaddnamehere]

"It'll be a slaughter" "That's the spirit" Love this movie

[@mlmattin]

So glad that you covered this one. Love this movie! The 80's were such a great time to be a kid. There were so many wonderful movies like Goonies, Explorers, Flight of the Navigator, Cloak & Dagger, E.T., Neverending Story, and so on that let us escape our ho-hum lives and dream of running off on some exciting adventure. The effects may not exactly hold up, but the story, the acting, and the heart of this movie certainly do.

[@charliepotatoes001]

E.T. and Cloak and Dagger had the same awesome child star "Henry Thomas"!!

[@mlmattin]

@@charliepotatoes001 Indeed he was. If you are in to scary stuff, grown-up Henry Thomas is in the mini-series The Haunting of Hill House on Netflix. It's good and I was glad to see him acting again.

[@k0sm1cVRFS]

80’s & 90’s were amazing,so glad I had my childhood & teens then👍👍

[@DamienPaulLabonte]

Bring back the 80s! A decade of amazing films and games and technology! "We have to go back!"

[@invaderjae]

The Last Starfighter was one of my favorite movies as a kid and I still love it to this day. And I'd love to see either a faithful remake or a sequel. I really felt it had a lot of lore to offer.

[@beatrixwickson8477]

VHS rental for me. There's a scene early on where the hero is about to beat the high score on the arcade game and this old guy runs to tell the whole trailer park and all the neighbours rush to crowd around and watch him win. It's the most wholesome yet unrealistic thing I've ever seen. I love it so much.

[@texan-american200]

That scene was an eye roll for me, but I'll need to rewatch it as this vid is sparking my interest once again.

[@TylerMumford]

I remember seeing this in a theater. Yes, the CGI effects are kind of dated by today's standards but I think the dogfight, the humor, and the action and drama still hold up. There is a whole World behind The Last Starfighter; it's something to be explored and expanded upon.

[@richardd.7479]

One of my favorite movies ever. Bought it on VHS, then DVD, then Blueray 25th Anniv Edition.

[@rkstevenson5448]

A series that takes the source material seriously (like the modern BSG series did) would be fantastic. I loved this movie as a kid. Still do. It holds up pretty well, even with the dated CGI.

[@whyjnot420]

I remember watching this on VHS back in the day and the CGI in it was so rudimentary that it really looked like cel animation on that medium. Even though I found out pretty early on that it was CG, it wasn't until I watched the 25th anniversary edition that I could properly see that it was CG. edit: I should also point out that the televisions back then also played a big role in screwing over the visual fidelity of stuff too, so it wasn't just the compression found in VHS tapes.

[@lawrencedoliveiro9104]

This was 1990s-quality CGI ... done in 1984.

[@bmbougie]

"Destiny didn't choose them, they chose destiny." I love it.

[@drakelangham4412]

Alex: It'll be a slaughter! Grig: That's the spirit! Alex: No! MY slaughter!

[@marcussmith4913]

Show was fantastic. The 80s just had so much class and happy moments in cinema. I wish I could go back.

[@RonJomero]

I always enjoyed this movie. Originally saw it when it was released for television sometime in 1985. The unformed "breathing head" beta unit and the Zando-zan transformation (Gul Dukat!) were a bit scary for a 7 year-old. But, I still enjoyed this movie a lot.

[@williamrayburn5314]

I looked thru the comments for just this moment, gadam that scene scared and creeped me out. Yet the humour, fun and excitement kept me riveted. Loved it at the time and great to relive it through this. Cheers mate 👨🏼‍🚀👍🏼

[@sportfuryman]

truly an under rated gem. I recall seeing this as an 11 year old back in the 90s. It totally blew my mind.

[@SwordCymbal79]

Loved this flick. Had the blu-ray and sold it because when shown in 4k upscaling on my 4k player/4k tv combo I couldn’t not get over how plastic the sets appeared. It was a case of meeting your childhood hero’s and being disappointed. Still love this movie and always considered it a “what if Luke Skywalker was from earth” story since day one. Thanks for reviewing it!

[@brpadington]

Reminds me of watching the 1989 Batman on Blu-ray and seeing all the Styrofoam on the sets.

[@liljenborg2517]

When I was watching Star Wars, I thought it was the coolest thing I had ever seen on screen. I almost wanted my own Millennium Falcon more than I wanted my own Enterprise. When Luke finally climbs down into the gun turret on the Falcon my 8-year-old brain was all, "I want to be Luke Skywalker when I grow up!" Then, I was 14 when Starfighter came out, and this character WAS me: annoying little brother, looking ahead to a college education my parents were not going to be able to afford, crushing on a gorgeous brunette who'd been my friend since before kindergarten but still hung out with the jocks because they had money and cars, total videogame addict. There's no way I could not love this movie. It's totally my life if I could turn it into a science fiction story.

[@mxplixic]

What you needed was a cheaper TV. :)

[@robertegblack]

i love that the stage musical version actually improves at least one detail that always bugged me in the film (even though i absolutely loved it growing up)--alex doesn't have that out of nowhere realization about hiding, and the final weapon isn't just deus ex machina awesome; his maintenance skills come into play when he has to repair the ship to manage the final fight.

[@HandofOmega]

As a kid I seriously liked where he lived and thought it looked pretty cool place to live! Then I grew up finally rewatched it and was like, "oh it's a trailer park"...tbh it still looks pretty cozy to me!😊

[@bdo7765]

Kids see the world through a different lens. There was a mighty fortress behind my apartment building, with a magical transparent roof and lots of secret tunnels. It was ACTUALLY a pile of cinderblocks and sandbags covered with a plastic drop cloth, being used by a construction company across the alley. I like the kid version of reality better...

[@SheyD78]

I loved this movie growing up. It was everything I ever wanted. Cool space ships, fighting an evil armada, saving the universe by being great at video games. Fond memories. Also love the lines "It'll be a slaughter! That's the spirit! No, OUR slaughter."

[@ProbablyRicky]

omg this movie makes me tear up. its got so much heart

[@Trek001]

During the late 90s and early 00s there was a light aircraft pilot that always used to announce his arrival to my local airport's tower by going "Hail! This is Gunstar One" He then went into business doing sightseeing flights and piloting lessons and, on the occasion when formation flights were required, the group was always always always under the callsign "Starfighter Legion"

[@ChrisShadowens]

It may not have been a box office smash but it definitely got my 13-year-old pocket money! It definitely has it's hokey moments but I think that's the charm of the movie even when watching it all these years later. I never saw any toys but (only now to find out there never were any), I don't know that I would've bought them at that age, but I do remember looking for that promised videogame that never truly surfaced.

[@arokh72]

I turned 12 in 1984, and loved this movie. I wanted what happened to Alex to happen to me, and played Xan'd Sleena on my way home from school hoping it was like Starfighter and an alien would notice a recruit me. Sadly never happened. I also wondered what the toilets were like, considering the number of different species being recruited. The toilets in Space Quest 2 influenced that thought too.

[@G7M9W]

Such a wholesome movie from a very different time. Amazing theme, cool ship, and just plain fun. I didn't see it on the big screen, but I still remember this first time I stumbled across it on TV one Saturday afternoon. Good times. Somehow, there seems to be a lot of dust in the air every time I hear the theme...

[@jasonpwilson01]

I must’ve watched this movie 1000 times. When it came out in the movie theater I couldn’t wait to go back and watch it again. Every time there’s a new release of this movie I buy it again every time. One of my favorite movies and I can’t wait till they release it again on 4K.

[@Beardedvikingweirdo]

I love this movie so much. This hit right in the feels

[@JohnRyanX]

How can anyone from the 80’s not love this movie?!?!? It was so freaking awesome.

[@lonecleric]

The movie never made it to theaters where I lived, and I found about it through... the novelization, which my mom picked at the library as something I might enjoy. Loved the book, saw it was based on the movie, managed to find and rent the VHS. Loved it more. UPDATE: I wrote the comment before learning the novel was from ADF. Makes sense.

[@anthonycosta39]

The Last Starfighter movie was an experiment in cutting edge CGI.

[@PvPDeathKnight]

I like to think of them as “battling evil in another dimension”

[@maxcooper6554]

ANOTHER DIMENSION?!?!

[@wcgcapone]

@@maxcooper6554 Well, now, don't you tell me to smile You stick around I'll make it worth your while

[@PetePuebla]

I saw this movie at the Maryvale Cinema in the summer of 1984. If I could remember, I paid 49 cents for a ticket when they had half off at the local dollar theatre. I loved the movie at first sight. As a kid growing up in the 80’s this movie was such an adventure for me. As a kid like Lewis I dreamt of something bigger and was glad to see video games get some respect.

[@orinanime]

I LOVE this movie! I was just thinking about rewatching it last night. My family had it on VHS. I later bought the DVD then Blu-ray. I'm buying the Arrow Edition next payday. I hope that Gary Whitta can make the sequel. Can you imagine!? Concept design and story from the Rogue One guy? Bringing back the cast? Yes! Please and thank you! And thank YOU Dan Larson for this episode!

[@chindleymuffin]

I remember reading that this movie inspired some future computer animators and digital effects artists who would go on to work at Pixar and ILM. Even John Lassiter (director of Toy Story and former CEO of Pixar) saw the potential and it pushed him to start a computer animation department at Disney, years before Pixar was formed. It amazed me as a kid, even before I actually saw it properly in widescreen and first saw it on pan and scan full screen VHS rented from the local video store here in the UK. Craig Safan's score is also wonderful to listen to on its own, the theme song is amazing.

[@blacksun8173]

By chance I got to meet Chris Hebert/Louis a few years ago. He's a teacher at a school in California. Really cool guy and looks exactly the same. Had to resist the urge to say "You must be Louis!"

[@TrueYellowDart]

Ooo, you must rolled well on that particular Will save. That would have been a high DC for me.

[@blacksun8173]

@@TrueYellowDart It was definitely tempting! I didn't want him to go Death Blossom on me 😂

[@KRAFTWERK2K6]

It sucks there is STILL no official Blu-ray release here in Germany. Even though Arrow Video in UK did an amazing remastering of that film. This movie is everything that made the 80s so damn awesome and a peak in fantasy & Sci-Fi productions. Never again we got so much incredibly creative and long lasting entertaining masterpieces to watch. Movies that just makes you dream, pull you in and take you to a journey where everything was possible. Handcrafted VFX, often done on a tiny budget by people who KNEW and LOVED what they did and were given the opportunity to show their talents. I am forever grateful to everyone involved in the productions of movies like "The Last Starfighter". Thank you so much for such an amazing childhood and memories that nobody can ever take away. This film deserves a lot more love and praise.

[@iwanvickery6547]

I recorded this on itv in the 80’s/90’s and watched it at least once a month. The acting is great especially from the lead. It’s ok sky movies at the moment to stream if you haven’t seen it.

[@VorpalDerringer]

I watched The Last Starfighter as a kid along with Star Wars. I think the CGI still looks great, it has none of the issues that computer games struggled with in representing fictional worlds for so many years. It's a great little movie and I am very happy to hear that the rights have all come together and production is ongoing. So many of these episodes end with "...and that was all.", it'll be good to return to Rylos and find out whatever finally happened to Xur and how all the good guys are doing.

[@nick_QA0]

this movie has one of my favorite exchanges in it "It'll be a slaughter!" "That's the spirit!" "NO! MY SLAUGHTER!"

[@JasonHarrisTalley]

"What do we do!?" *click* "...we die." This movie rocked when I caught it in the theater, in Anchorage in '84. I'm excited to hear that more media in the IP is in the works. :) I still have the old Marvel adaptation issues...

[@SSobotkaJr]

I started writing a treatment for a possible sequel to "The Last Starfighter" last year.

[@Supremmo]

There are plans to do a sequel to TLSF.

[@CC_2617]

What a great movie for a kid to enjoy in the late 80s and early 90s! I still love it now as an adult.

[@jasonm2081]

One of my favorite 80s Movirs. Have it both as a DVD and Dgitaltally. This is another novie like Tron that was juet ahead of its time. If it had come out in say the early 90s the comparisons to the big buget Star Wars would have been a lot less and I think it would have gotten its trilogy.

[@SimonAshworthWood]

I’m looking forward to finally watching sequels to the Last Starfighter. 😍

[@pawned79]

First, Dan is the only YTer that I actually listen to when they do promotionals. Something about his voice or presentation makes him just easy to listen to. Second, I think TLS is fantastic, but the CGI is off putting. I appreciate what they did from a science standpoint, but I do like physical models better. TLS has always been at the top of my list for a sequel-reboot. I’m just itching for the day that a teaser trailer just shows that retro game cabinet come to life.

[@Ryan_Christopher]

I can’t imagine how you’d do the Death Blossom combat engagement using physical models.

[@pawned79]

@@Ryan_Christopher It would have just been presented differently. In the CGI, they show the ship flipping and twisting at high speeds, but you could easily just present it differently. The first thing that comes to mind is how Star Trek The Motion Picture presented the wormhole with all the trippy time dilation effects, “Tooorrrrpppppeeeeedddddoooo aaaawwwwwaaaaayyyyy!!!!!”

[@pawned79]

@@Ryan_Christopher Oh! I just had a good idea of how to do it with the miniature. Just take still photos of the miniature 360 degree by 360 degree with 360 degree rotation around the camera axis. Then just animate the action with the cells you’ve photographed.

[@th6252]

There is a sequel in the works, surprised he didn't mention it: kzbin.info/www/bejne/qnLZf2xmZZWiaqM

[@Ryan_Christopher]

@@pawned79 You’ve only animated the Gunstar in that method. The Blaster and the Missile shots cannot all follow the same trajectories since the enemies were also maneuvering.

[@MJ-sm2yu]

I loved this movie as a kid. I only owned 3 VHS tapes for a while. This, American werewolf in London and the making of Thriller and I constantly watched them all. Thanks for the vid 🙏

[@acidphaze]

American Werewolf In London is a classic. The Slaughtered Lamb, remember The Alamo.

[@MJ-sm2yu]

@@acidphaze 😂 brilliant pub scene .. I loved that film. I only found out about those tragic deaths on the twilight zone movie set recently. That's what stopped John Landis from becoming one of the top directors, werewolf was definitely his best.

[@nooneofconsequence1251]

oh damn! Solaris was actually my favorite Atari 2600 game of all time - was so far ahead of its time! I had no idea that it was based on the Last Starfighter, which I actually also loved as a kid. That's amazing. Most people I talk to never even heard of this game.

[@warmachine9846]

I love this movie when I was a kid. I still do. I'm one of the ones chomping at the bit for the pending sequel. Never got to the theater much and 84 so I saw it on HBO