Contamination – 1980, Germany/Italy, 95m. Director: Luigi Cozzi.
Death Ship – 1980, Canada/UK, 93m. Director: Alvin Rakoff.
Fatal Games – 1984, US, 88m. Director: Michael Elliot.
CONTAMINATION (1980) (AKA: Alien Contamination) A cargo ship filled with egg-like spores drifts into New York harbor with its crew dead. A government-sanctioned science team is brought in to study the bacterial eggs, which react to heat by releasing an acidic fluid that—when in contact with people—makes them explode (scenes of flying intestines and viscera are all shown in gloriously gratuitous slow motion). While viewing a video of what looks like the inside of a lava lamp, the scientists come to the conclusion the eggs are not from this planet and might have something to do with a failed Mars expedition two years earlier. With the help of astronaut Ian McCulloch (Zombie), the scientists discover a conspiracy of brainwashed humans being used by an alien intelligence to move the eggs around the world. This Italian trash epic is such a blatant rip-off of Alien that trying to take it seriously will result in a poor experience for the viewer. The film is more of a showcase for some spectacularly awful writing and acting—Louise Marleau’s unconvincing performance as a scientist makes a piece of wood seem lively by comparison. With that in mind, Contamination becomes a harmless bit of cheesy entertainment that won’t disappoint fans who like their gore served with high levels of camp. B– (Currently streaming on Pluto TV and Tubi.)
DEATH SHIP (1980) A cruise liner is sunk by a rogue ship, leaving a small group of survivors adrift in the Atlantic. Their only chance for help is the appearance of a derelict, unmanned German war vessel—the same ship that caused their plight to begin with. Unfortunately for them the boat is haunted by the angry ghosts of its former Nazi occupants, which don’t waste any time in terrorizing the new passengers. One of the survivors is caught in rope and dunked into the freezing water within minutes of boarding; another develops pustules on her face after eating candy she finds in a cabin. The situation is made worse when an American sea captain (an anemic George Kennedy) becomes possessed by a Nazi specter and turns into a psychopath. This sounds like the product of someone who saw The Poseidon Adventure and The Amityville Horror on a double-bill, yet Death Ship isn’t nearly as exciting. The film has a brooding atmosphere and excellent set design, but weak characters and utter predictability sink it into the bowels of mediocrity. Nick Mancuso’s demise in a slimy pit of bones and rotting corpses is a highlight. C (Currently streaming on Prime and Tubi.)
FATAL GAMES (1984) The young athletes of Falcon Academy are being systematically slaughtered by a javelin-throwing psycho. The first to feel the killer’s wrath is impaled so hard her body is thrown and pinned against the gym wall. More people are run through with the extra-sharp spear, leaving the remaining survivors trying to figure out who has the motivation to bump off their friends. The obvious suspect is the hotheaded javelin trainee (Nicholas Love) who spends most of the film scowling, but like the majority of early-to-mid-eighties slashers, Fatal Games has a twist up its sleeve—one that Final Girl (and Elisabeth Shue lookalike) Lynn Banashek figures out all too late. Similar in theme to Graduation Day (1981) but not nearly as gratuitously violent, although there is ample nudity—nearly every central character is at some point without clothes. Olympics fetishists will rejoice! A tacky but harmless post-Friday the 13th slasher melodrama that tries more for suspense than outright gore, and mostly succeeds, especially during its fast-paced climax. Look for Linnea Quigley’s derrière in a brief scene. B– (Currently streaming on Shudder.)