Customer Reviews

Alien Lockdown

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When I first heard about the creation of the Sci Fi Channel, launched in 1992, I had high hopes of a network catering to science fiction aficionados showing, and perhaps even producing, some of the best material within the genre...perhaps I expected too much. They do, on occasion, show some classic stuff, but their original programming, in terms of films, has left something to be desired as exemplified by the film Alien Lockdown (2004), which is essentially just a mishmash of material taken from other, more popular science fiction/action films released some twenty years ago, namely James Cameron's popular 1986 feature Aliens and John McTiernan's Predator (1987). Directed by Tim Cox (Larva, Mammoth), the film features Michelle Goh (Out for a Kill) and James Marshall, who had a decent turn in the blockbuster A Few Good Men (1992) in the role as Pfc. Louden Downey, one of the two soldiers on trial for murder (the white guy). Also appearing is T.M. Van Ostrand, who is also one of the five, count `em, five, writers on this film, Atanas Srebrev (Shark Attack 3: Megalodon), Martin Kove (The Karate Kid, Rambo: First Blood Part II), and John Savage (The Deer Hunter, The Onion Field), who's certainly seen better days (and better roles).

The movie begins by relating events occurring a long, long, long time ago, specifically the discovery of some enchanted space crystal found after a meteor crashed to Earth. Through the passing of time the crystal was lost, but then was found, eventually ending up in the hands of someone named Dr. Woodman (Savage), a scientist working in a top secret research facility located in an isolated mountain range. Woodman uses the crystal (how I have no idea), along the genetic material of all the predatory life forms on Earth he can lay hands on to create the ultimate bio-weapon, a fierce, nigh indestructible creature he names Legion. Well, as you can guess, the creature escapes and kills nearly everyone in the massive facility, prompting some military bigwig named Anslow (Kove) to initiate a `clean up' mission by sending in a not so elite strike team, headed by an assassin type named Talon (Goh). On arriving, the team begins surveying the layout of the complex, along with losing a few members to the deadly creature now roaming about, and eventually hooks up with Woodman and a computer specialist named Charlie (Marshall). From here I'm not entire sure the plot other than survival, as the story was completely muddled to the point of incomprehension, but random events include Woodman working against the team to protect his creation, at least one of the members of the team isn't what he/she seems to be, the introduction of a tactical nuclear device, and those yet to be killed spending a lot of time running around for no other reason than to give us something to watch...oh yeah, seems the creature is the first of many, as one room contains a ton of little crab-like creatures requiring food to become full on nasties.

I tried to hang with the plot as long as I could, but it was difficult as not only was the story confusing, but entirely boring to boot. I find it appalling that it took five guys to write this film, given how muddled it was, especially since so much of it was obviously lifted from James Cameron's film Aliens (1986). The only thing missing was the `acid for blood' bit with regards to the creature, whose facial structure (the sideways extending mandibles) is exactly the same as that of the creature from the film Predator (1987). There were just so many pointless aspects floating around...after the strike team enters the facility a mission countdown timer appears frequently on the screen, as if there's some sense of urgency, but there isn't. The only thing it seemed to indicate was when their ride was supposed to return (the only way to get to the facility was by helicopter). So what if they don't make it out in time? The chopper pilot either waits or comes back later...and then about halfway in we stop seeing the countdown timer appear, at least until the end, but again, what it signified was never really apparent (at the end it still had a considerable amount of time left, so whomever was going by that clock obviously wasn't paying attention to it). There was a whole lot of running around with no clear objective in mind, and even when there was an objective, it didn't make any sense. And talk about boring...at one point the main group spends about ten minutes hiding out in a chintzy meat locker. I loved the bit when one of their comrades, part of the ill-fated team designated to tour the facility and plant tracking devices, arrives at the door to the meat locker, well before the pursuing creature does, and those inside the meat locker decide not to let him in because they believe `he's already gone', despite the fact there was plenty of time from when the guy arrived to when the creature, which eventually killed him, showed up. Okay, so the creature, the ultimate predator, is invulnerable, at least to any of the projectile weaponry the team brought...either that or they were just really bad shots, but it can be killed with a knife stuck into a soft spot by its neck. Whatever...as far as the characters, most of them were barely even there, and the few that were weren't worth a whole lot. Talon was about the worst leader I've ever seen, exhibiting little or no control over her team, and prone to extremely poor decisions, ones that tended to get others killed (I'm surprised one of her own men didn't shoot her in the back). Near the end she doffs her combat fatigues revealing a slick bodysuit underneath, and then proceeds to go into faux ninja mode battling the beast mano a mano...thanks for holding back long enough for most of your team to get wiped out before getting really serious. And then there's Charlie, the computer guy...his only purpose seems to dump steaming piles of expository dialog at the appropriate time, along with spewing forth the following meaningless catch phrase from time to time..."There's always a four and a half percent margin of error, plus or minus". Finally there's Woodman, the nutty, blathering, psuedo philosophical scientist. First of all I never for one minute believed the character capable of creating a grilled cheese sandwich, much less a sophisticated hybrid life form with genetic materials culled from every species on the planet, aided by alien technology (the crystal). The creature itself looked pretty decent, especially the sequences where it ran on all fours, and the direction wasn't half bad. One thing that really annoyed me, beside the absence of a plot, was the interiors of the facility itself. It's the most poorly lit research facility I've ever seen, and what light there is bathes everything in a continual green glow (I used to like the color green, but I've since been put off it by this stoopid movie). Also, there's no consistency between the levels, or even the rooms. Some levels were completely made of metal, while others were all stone...what the hell? How many different contractors built this place? All in all this is a confusing, `been there, done that to death' feature, without even the slightest trace of originality, and probably not worth your time.

The picture quality, presented in fullscreen (1.78:1), looks decent, even if the actual film, in terms of that constant, greenish tint, didn't...as far as the Dolby Digital 5.1 audio, it does come through well, but I think there may have been issues with the way the audio was originally recorded as often the dialog is difficult to discern, especially near the beginning when the strike team first arrives, and they're all wearing masks. There's aren't any special features, but there are previews including one for this film, along with ones for Ring of Darkness (2004), September Tapes (2004), The Last Sign (2005), and Deep Evil (2004).

Cookieman108

It's just so bad!

Since I'm the first review, I'll spend a little more time summarizing the movie, rather just saying how bad it is. The movie explains that a long time ago, a meteor crashed into earth, and in the center of the crater was a green stone. Then throughout the centuries, men fought for possession of the stone because they believed that whoever carried it would have an invincible army, and they were right. It was as if the stone had some sort of magical power. Anyways, over time the stone disappeared, until now. Fast forward to today. The stone is unearthed in an archeological dig in some desert someplace and then taken to a secret underground lab someplace where it is unveiled that they have genetically engineered some sort of super creature. Anyways, the creature gets out, kills everybody, and the lab is locked down, hence the catchy title. An assault team is sent in to find out what happened, and they discover a couple of survivors and piece together that they created this beast as a weapon and now it's on the loose. Sounds pretty cool. Yeah, that's what I though after seeing the trailer. WRONG ALL WRONG!

The movie is completely bad. There's just no way to explain it any better. It had all the elements to be a cool story. I mean, after all, since it pretty much just copied cool parts from a hundred other stories, it should have been cool. But it wasn't. Not one of the characters is likeable, so you could care less as they are picked off one by one. It should also bother anybody watching this that the "creature" is VERY similar to the alien, but with the face from the predator. But to say this was an alien-predator rip-ff would still give it more credit than is deserved. The actors are all cold and un-emotional. The story is FILLED to the brim with inconsistencies. Does the stone have magical powers? If they used the code on the stone for the creatures DNA, then why or how did the doctor infuse his DNA into the creatures? And why did the one creature ignore him and not kill him, but then the other ones actually attack him? Didn't the helicopter pilots wonder why their boss didn't come back? Of course, you probably have no idea what I'm talking about, but trust me, these are just a few pretty big details that are messed up.

I knew this movie wouldn't be great going into it, but I thought it would at least slightly entertaining. WRONG ALL WRONG :) Stay away from this one. Hope this helps.

I will say this one positive thing. I honestly gave this movie 1 star. Usually when I put 1 star, the movie is really worth zero stars or less, but amazon won't allow that. This movie is a genuine 1 star flick.

Oh, you silly Mad Military Scientists... when will you ever learn? How many experiments have to go awry? Why do you continue to use genetic manipulation and MavGyver technology to build creatures that are meant to be the new "Ultimate Weapon" ?

Going by movies like this one, you'd think that somehow a rampant lizard-ape- thing would be more effective than a nuclear bomb. But these silly Mad Military Scientists can't ever seem to even keep their eye on these creatures long enough to unleash them on the enemy. Their creations invariably escape and start running around, and the Silly Mad Military Scientists watch with a mixture of horror and admiration as their reptilian problem child rips through battalions of screaming army folks.

The latest entry in the Saga of the Silly Mad Military Scientists:

ALIEN LOCKDOWN!

So, the Mad Scientist in this one is played by John Savage, who meanders through the movie with a confused look on his face, as if he's wondering where Jessica Alba went to and why his agent agreed to let him do this NuImage movie. He's building some kind of alligator-alien-guy and... get ready for the spoiler.... it escapes!

Enter the screaming soldiers! Yay!

These guys rush into the fray as if they've never seen a movie about a genetic experiment gone bad! With so much gusto! They do a lot of military-style chatter that was probably meant to make the movie feel "gritty" or "real". There are also a couple of heartwarming moments where the soldiers take time out from the battle to tell each other about their more human side. It's supposed to make you care more about them, I think. I was reminded of Phoebe Cates in Gremlins when she starts talking about how her dad got stuck in the chimney on Christmas Eve and died. Honestly, I don't understand why people in these movies decide to start divulging their deepest, darkest secrets at the worst possible moment. Anyway, so these screaming soldiers take time from being killed to discuss their issues with each other.

John Savage continues to admire his creation, and he seems to be trying to channel the Brad Dourif character from Alien: Resurrection. In fact, this movie is a weird kind of potpourri of all the Alien movies rolled into one. Eventually, all the little screaming soldiers get picked off, leaving a lone female. Hmmm. I wonder where the writers got that one?

And speaking of writers, I saw that it took the brain power of three people just to come up with the story! And then there were another two who wrote the script! It's hard to believe that it took five people to come up with this derivative pile of monkey poop. It is nothing more than the most recent entry into a very tired sub-genre of the Horror/Science Fiction pantheon. Which leaves me asking the question I started with, you silly Mad Military Scientists, when will you ever learn? Unfortunately, I think the answer is, "Not as long as people like you continue to watch movies about us." Maybe it's time we retired the scientists... what do you all think?

If Alien vs. Hunter was an obvious rip off of the first Aliens vs. Predator, Alien Lockdown is a rip off of its sequel Requiem. The plot has more in common with Species - scientists discover an extraterrestrial stone and use it to create a killing machine "to replace ground troops." Surprise, surprise, the thing gets loose, killing most of the scientists in the top-secret government glacier base. Enter our victims, a top commando team whose purpose is to show how ineffective Earth's puny weapons are against the genetically mutated menace.

It's surprising how much Alien Lockdown talks. And talks. And talks. Be it the narrator blathering on about the stupid green stone, lead scientist Woodman (John Savage) describing how the pinnacle of killing perfection that is the "alien," or computer geek Charlie Dryfus (James Marshall) whining about how all their efforts are futile, Alien Lockdown is eager to convey its plot in great detail. It's awfully insecure for a movie about a monster eating people.

The monster in question is a hybrid between a Predator and Alien. It has the overall body structure of the Alien and the head of the Predator, a lot like the Predalien from AVP: Requiem, only you actually get to see it. Alien Lockdown has more visuals of its monster than Requiem had in the entire film.

It's also interesting that the leader of the commando team sent to put down the monster is Asian action chick Talon (Michelle Goh). The original Aliens vs. Predator comic series had Machiko Noguchi, who became an honorary Predator by the end of the film. Noguchi has gotten the short end of the stick - they just don't make sci-fi movies with Asian female protagonists these days. Director Tim Cox appears to be a fan (Not that Talon gets any more respect -- early on, one of her teammates accidentally clocks her in the head with his rifle).

Alien Lockdown is like a fan film of every Alien movie rolled into one. It's got an asexually-reproducing killing machine of Alien, tactical nukes and Colonial Marines of Aliens, a mad scientist who sees the creature as his children from Aliens: Resurrection, and backstabbing spies from all the movies.

Alien Lockdown is entirely filmed with a green lens, but at least it's competently produced. The musical cues are actually synced with on-screen events, the "alien" makes enough appearances to satisfy our monster-craving, and there's plenty of gunfire from frightened soldiers. None of these points should be considered a compliment, but it just goes to show that if you keep the bar low, Alien Lockdown looks pretty good next to Alien vs. Hunter.

Go into this with low expectations and you should come away pleased. Sure, this is a bit of a rip-off of "Alien" and "Predator" movies, but don't let that steer you away. I mean, you probably liked those movies right? Like chocolate? Like peanut butter? Mix 'em together and what have you got? Maybe something else you like, ah?

This flick is definitely a step up from the usual cheap and bad sci-fi fare that you find out there (think "Carnosaur 3: Primal Species"). Decent albeit derivative story with decent SFX and at least four decent actors (John Savage, Martin Kove, Michelle Yoh and James Marshall). It's got all the sci-fi/horror science-gone-awry along with picking-off-the-elite-military-unit-one-by-one elements that you'd expect and, perhaps, prefer.

Check it out. It won't hurt you.

UNLOCK THE TERROR (on the back of the dvd)

When an alien life force crashed to Earth, it's deadly secret remained dormant for thousands of years, patiently awaiting the evolution of human knowledge to unlock it's horror. Now a deranged scientist has broken the code and a billion mutant life forms have begun spawning the ultimate creature of destruction. Growing beyond control, the bloodthirsty alien killer is on a murderous rampage, growing more powerful with every life it takes.

It's up to a top secret swat team, led by a beautiful assassin, to engage the unthinkable enemy and save mankind. Locked down in a clandestine containment facility buried deep beneath a glacier, they're using all the firepower they've got in a desperate battle for their lives and their future. But they're about to discover the beast is a real mother... One who will do anything to protect her young. It's time to prey.

Special Features: Scene Selections * Spanish Subtitles * Previews

Running Time: 92 minutes * Aspect Ratio 1.78.1 * Rated R (Some violence and gore.)

First, this is a pretty good sci-fi horror flick that makes the most of it's production values. The only real complaint here is the opening credit sequence which appears to have been tacked on to explain the plot by someone who probably never even watched this movie. This sequence is a kind of silly Punch & Judy show that would've been far better left on the cutting room floor. That being said, it's easy enough to fast forward through and get right into the action.

The cast here is great and John Savage gleefully relishes his role as the mad scientist hell-bent on setting his bloodthirsty beasties free to rampage about his underground lab in search of military morsels to munch on. Michelle Goh plays the smart and "beautiful assassin" who goes head to head with those hungry hordes of angry aliens.

Alien Lockdown as directed by Tim Cox is not going to win any awards for originality, but it does deliver exactly what it promises; sci-fi horror action and thrills. I would put this film on the same level as some of the better sci-fi channel releases like "Mammoth", "Cerberus", "Pterodactyl" or "Bugs".

Most of the effects are of the CG variety but are more than adequate for this level of production. Some of the larger aliens appear to be rather nicely designed rubber suits that I found to be quite effective and lit appropriately. Another writer commented on the perpetual green tint throughout the film which I have to say in all honesty didn't bother me any more than it did in "The Matrix". (The green tint being the only comparison.)

I have to say I enjoyed Alien Lockdown enough to actively seek it out on Amazon.com for purchase. It fits nicely under the "alien invasion" sub-genre of my science fiction dvd library along with titles of similar quality like "The Arrival" and "They Live". Rated on a scale of 1--10, I'd give this movie a rock solid 8. On the Amazon rating this movie is better than a 3 but probably not quite a 4. Lastly, Alien Lockdown really is a lot of fun. Especially with a bowl of popcorn, an ice-cold soda, and a few friends.

this is a least a three star to bad it wasnt made in the fiftys it owuld of been lot better i dont know whos running hollywood butt there seems to be a mix of geniuses and idiots making movies. the story of the first review is right butt i give it three stars it just barely that good

When you think B-Movie you think small plot, small sets and bad actors. Sure this film had some of those, but the size of the film really suprised me. Its clear that this film had its own production designer instead of using old props. The Weapons, Gear and Creature suit were all expertly made.

When an Outpost high in the icy mountens goes radio silent. A team of SWAT like soldiers is sent in to "Clean Up". The outposts project was to use alien DNA to create a super soldier. For this reason the team must go in and destroy all evidence of the project and attain certain packages. When they get there they find the project had worked and to make things worse the creature has escaped and killed most of the outposts personel. Now they have to deal with an indestructible alien like nothing they have ever seen before.

The Film is about and Hour and a Half long. But it is a good Hour and a Half. The action is explosive and the creature looks like a cross between a Predator and a Dog. The acting is medicore but never gets really bad or unbelievable. Its one you should really rent and if you like it like i did, buy it.

I've seen a lot worse than this, despite what everybody else says, it's an okay popcorn movie. It has a ton of mistakes but still viewable. For those of you who like that kind of movie, it starts kinda slow, but as soon as they enter the underground complex the shooting starts.

I give it a solid three stars regardless of the mistakes, worth a rent or buy it used (I did) and I'm not sorry.

BYE!

Alien Lockdown has a plot which is about as formulaic as it gets. The movie is about a secret research base who uses an alien artifact to genetically design a monster they hope to eventually control and make into a weapon. Off course the monster escapes and begins killing everything that moves and the army send in some black ops soldiers to deal with the problem. There is even some corrupt army officers and a mad scientist with a God complex. Now this is the plot to who know how many movies and it is the plot to Alien Lockdown, there is nothing new here, they have just taken the cookie cutter script of monster causes havoc at remote research base, given it a touch of personalization and run with it.

I think this is the main problem with Alien Lockdown, not the cookie cutter plot, that is okey you get what you expect with this movie, the problem is that there is just no effort put into any part of this film. The acting is lackluster it seams like the actors where just plain bored, the costumes, sounds, music everything just feels like they did what they had to so that the movie would be watchable, but no one have really had any passion for the movie. Now I do not think about things like the characters running past the same staircase twice when trying to escape the monster, the movie is not a big budget production if they have to cut a few corners and try to make their set look bigger than it really is I am fine with that, I am more thinking about how everything is acceptable but not beyond that. The movie makers wanted to just press out a movie which would earn them a few bucks and be watchable enough so folks would buy it and as long as it passed that line they just did not give a *beep* about anything else.

Like I said Alien Lockdown is watchable. Yes there is plot holes big enough for the monster to crawl though but all in all the story works, it have a bit of suspense, it is by no means a masterpiece but at least for me Alien Lockdown kept me entertained for the about one and a half hours it lasted. I do not recommend getting this movie at full price, but if you manage to find it cheap like I did then I think it is worth it. Yes Alien Lockdown is mediocre, formulaic trash but on an evening when you are just bored and want to see a monster rip soldiers to shreds it might just do the trick.

One thing positive about the movie I want to mention is the monster, first off all I like to see a creature made with prosthetics instead of computer graphics, and also the genetically engineered beastie in this movie actually look pretty good. Yes sure it looks like they have crossed a Xenomorph, a Predator and an alligator but it moves well and I think it is designed pretty well. Now a well designed monster can not save a trashy movie but give credit where credit is due.

All in all Alien Lockdown is trash bit it is entertaining trash. It is the kind of movie where just make a big bowl of popcorn, have a pizza on the table and sit with friends and laugh as stereotypical characters get picked off one by one. There are allot of better creature features out there but there is allot of worse ones to.