Product Details

• Actors: D.B. Sweeney, Danica McKellar
• Directors: Andrew Prowse
• Format: Color, DVD, NTSC
• Language: English
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: Goldhil Video
• DVD Release Date: July 1, 2008
• Run Time: 120 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 2.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B0016KHA1A
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #709,966 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Out in the cold, December 20, 2010

By 

Michael J. Tresca "Talien" (Fairfield, CT USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Heatstroke (DVD)

Heatstroke is one of those films that couldn't come up with a name that fit, so they went with a collapse caused by exposure to excessive heat. This movie should be called Alien Heat. Actually, it includes aliens that look suspiciously like the velociraptors from Jurassic Park, so maybe it should be called Jurassic Heat. It seems Jurassic Park is the new Jaws, to be shamelessly ripped off by every Syfy movie - they're now even using it as a template for alien movies.

Don't let the Grey-alien-looking cover fool you, these critters run, jump, and slash like dinosaurs. Despite the fact that they don't wear clothes, handle technology, or otherwise have any evidence that they are an advanced civilization, the Dinosaurs from Space have a plan...to take over the world!

It seems that the dinoaliens triggered a volcanic eruption, increased the earth's temperatures, and caused nightmares for psychically sensitive people everywhere - all in an effort to terraform Earth to their liking. That's right, you no longer can blame Al Gore for global warming. Aliens did it.

They're not the first space invaders to try. The aliens from The Arrival did the same thing. The plots are quite similar, down to a few aliens trying to heat up the planet and using a broadcasting station to do it. Fortunately, Charlie Sheen saved us all from an awful heat death.

In Heatstroke we're not so lucky. We have unconvincing D.B. Sweeney as Captain Steve O'Bannon. Sweeney seems to have difficulty focusing. He's just not enough of a physical presence to pull off commando-style martial arts. He has a completely unnecessary love interest in Caroline (Danica McKellar), a model trying to run a photo shoot in Hawaii. When O'Bannon accidentally crashes into her photo shoot due to his narcolepsy (yes, the good ole Cap known for his narcolepsy was flying a paraglider), she spends the first half of the movie demanding her money back. Caroline's a small town girl who's just trying to make it in the cutthroat world of modeling, which she reminds us over and over. It's pretty clear that McKellar's sole purpose is to keep us focused when puffy Sweeney can't.

American commandos soon arrive to die, of course. They argue about stupid tactics, about how the dinosaurs can't possibly be intelligent, and blaze away at the velociterrestrials with the usual useless weapons even though their hides are really thick. For an advanced civilization, these aliens sure do like to get their claws dirty.

The other source of inspiration for Heatstroke is David Icke's theory that reptilian aliens are taking over the world. Central to this belief is that the aliens are shapeshifters, which is a bit difficult when you're a predatory dinosaur that spits blood. It's only a matter of time before we discover how the aliens get anything accomplished - they make humans eat giant caterpillars, which turn them into puppets with glowing red eyes and a deep voice.

All of this is creative, campy fun (except for the part about ripping off the entire plot from The Arrival), but the special effects ruin any chance Heatstroke has at being entertaining. The creatures are introduced early and they are simply terrible. Elliot Worman appears to be the only person on staff in charge of digital effects and it shows; there's no shading or lighting on the creatures to speak of. This gives them all the realism of a glowing neon sign, which is forgivable in daylight but less so in darkness, where the creatures look like they're floating over the film. The special effects never get any better, and by the time we see stock footage of a carrier launching a missile it's clear that Heatstroke has bitten off more than it can chew.

If you like global warming, reptilian aliens, or models in bikinis, Heatstroke may generate some heat. The rest of us will be left cold.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars good campy fun, June 1, 2008

By 

Mac - See all my reviews

This review is from: Heatstroke (DVD)

Okay, I admit that I turned over to view an Ivonna Cadaver re-run during the commercials, and nearly turned off Sci-Fi for good about five minutes after Danica McKellar's character had apparently left the alien-infested island. Fortunately, they brought her back just in time, so I watched the whole thing and quite enjoyed it. That's not to say the other actors weren't also good. They just use mostly young talent on that channel, gearing their products for a specific audience - have you ever noticed that Sci-Fi leading men are usually not, ummm, overly macho or rugged?

Regardless, I've perhaps seen half a dozen Sci-Fi Channel movies, and must say they've all been pretty well done, given the limited budgets. "Heatstroke" is now first on my list of those I've seen, and is TOP NOTCH compared to most ANY movie intended to premiere on a cable channel, in my opinion. In fact, for comparison purposes, I watched the 3rd installment of Jurassic Park for the first time earlier in the same evening, and felt the acting and creatures in "Heatstroke" were about as realistic. Sure, the blockbuster had more elaborate effects with their monsters and mechanisms, but they probably spent a boat-load of cash doing it, and there wasn't one moment when I imagined the dinosaurs were anything other than special effects. Even if that may be partly due to my having seen the previous films in that series, or seeing this one at home instead of on a movie screen, the fact is, it somehow didn't really grab my attention more than this frugally-made alternative.

A highlight for me was Danica's kissing scene, which was kind of comical. Somehow, so was the whole bit with the guy possessed by an alien larva - the spaced out look and strange clucking, the evil actions combined with hope for redemption, was all sort of "Big Bird meets Darth Vader" for me. Another enjoyable clip involved a smug scientist lady, attempting to befriend a wickedly amused alien. That was a moment of "piercing" dialogue, providing the viewer a strangely "draining" scene that was at the same time "uplifting". ha! Be warned that the film is a bit gory in places. Yet, overall it's good campy fun - the stuff cult classics are made of. I won't go so far as to say Roger Corman would definitely be proud of it (though he might). However, who knows, maybe we'll eventually see Ivonna host this movie with her trademark schtick commentary. Therefore, my review is four stars or two thumbs (claws?) up...a good film to see for anyone who likes sci-fi that leans toward tongue-in-cheek horror.

1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Taking It down, May 31, 2008

By 

Trevor Merris "Gizmo" (Carmicheal, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Heatstroke (DVD)

Think Sci-Fi Originals. Than think worse. Thats this film.

story tkes place on a pacific island where government soldiers are searching for proof of aliens. what they find are living ET and they they dont come in piece. The premis si that these aliens are causing global warming to kill all the life on earth except insects which use as food.

The entire film is a horrid depiction of the most far-fetched sci-fi idea ever. The acting lead is D.B. Sweeney whome i had never heard of until this films release. He and all the other talent show less than real acting and the effects of the film, oh god the effects!
The aliens look like a creature from a 1990's video game. They look that bad. Films like Cerberus put this film to shame and that is as shameful as it gets.