Forbidden World

This article is about the 1982 film. For theLost in Spaceepisode, seeList of Lost in Space episodes § Season 2: 1966–67.

Not to be confused withForbidden Worlds.

Forbidden World,originally titledMutant,is a 1982 Americanscience fictionerotic horrorfilm. The screenplay was written by Tim Curnen, from a screenstory by R.J. Robertson and Jim Wynorski. It was co-edited and directed by Allan Holzman, who had editedBattle Beyond the Starstwo years earlier. The cast includesJesse Vint,Dawn Dunlap,June Chadwick,Linden Chiles,Fox Harris andMichael Bowen.Forbidden Worldhas also been released under the titlesMutantandSubject 20.

Forbidden World
Promotional poster
Directed by	Allan Holzman
Written by	Tim Curnen
Story by	R.J. Robertson Jim Wynorski
Produced by	Roger Corman
Starring	Jesse Vint Dawn Dunlap June Chadwick Linden Chiles Fox Harris Raymond Oliver Scott Paulin
Cinematography	Tim Suhrstedt
Edited by	Allan Holzman Martin Nicholson
Music by	Susan Justin
Distributed by	New World Pictures
Release date	May 7, 1982(1982-05-07)
Running time	77 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	Under $1 million
Box office	$4 million

The film received three nominations for the 1983Saturn Awards:Best Low Budget Film, Best Make-up and Best Special Effects. It was generally panned by critics as a cheap, exploitative imitation of the movieAlien,with sex, nudity, uneven editing, cheap special effects, and a sound design which some moviegoers found unpleasant, although the electronic music score produced by Susan Justin received mostly positive attention. It is frequently paired with and compared to the previous year's Corman-producedAlienrip-offGalaxy of Terror,with whichForbidden Worldshares some of the same sets (designed byJames Cameron). The movie also makes use of footage recycled from the 1980 movieBattle Beyond the Stars,which was also produced by Corman.

The film was remade in 1991 under the titleDead Space,on which Corman served as executive producer. The remake has minor variations but still retains the plot and character stylings of the original, also referring to the mutated virus as a "metamorph" as the original did.

Plot

In the distant future, at a genetic research station located on the remote desert planet of Xarbia, a research team has created an experimental lifeform they have designated "Subject 20". This lifeform was built out of the syntheticDNAstrain, "Proto B", and was intended to stave off a galaxy-wide food crisis. However, Subject 20 mutates rapidly and uncontrollably and kills all of the laboratory subject animals before cocooning itself within an examination booth.

Military officer Mike Colby, accompanied by his robot assistant SAM-104, is called in to investigate the problem. After Colby settles in, his decision to terminate Subject 20 to prevent further deaths is met with research-minded secrecy and resistance. The staff of the station includes the head of research, Gordon Hauser, his assistant Barbara Glaser, lab assistant Tracy Baxter, lab technician Jimmy Swift, electrician Brian Beale, the station's head of security, Earl Richards and Cal Timbergen, the medical doctor.

When Subject 20 hatches from its cocoon, it begins killing the personnel at the station, starting with Jimmy, who was charged with cleansing the subject lab of the dead animal test subjects. As Subject 20 continues to kill most of the station crew, the reason for the deception is revealed. Subject 20's genetic design incorporates human DNA, and its method of killing is to inject its prey with the Proto B DNA strain which then proceeds to remove all genetic differences within specific cells. The result is that the victim's living body slowly erodes into a gelatinous pile of pure protein which Subject 20 consumes for sustenance. After its final mutation, where the creature evolves into a huge insect-like being with a large mouth full of sharp teeth, the creature is slain when it eats Cal's cancer-ridden liver, its body genetically self-destructing from within. Mike and Tracy are left as the only survivors from Subject 20's rampage.

Cast

• Jesse Vintas Mike Colby
• Dawn Dunlapas Tracy Baxter
• June Chadwickas Dr. Barbara Glaser
• Linden Chilesas Dr. Gordon Hauser
• Fox Harrisas Dr. Cal Timbergen
• Raymond Oliver as Brian Beale
• Scott Paulinas Earl Richards
• Michael Bowenas Jimmy Swift
• Don Olivera as SAM-104

Production

According to director Allan Holzman he began shooting without a script with these directions from Corman: "You have four days to write, produce and direct a seven- to eight-minute opening of a space movie… I'll give you an astronaut and a robot, and if you need any inspiration, I've always wanted to do a version ofLawrence of Arabiain outer space. "Holzman created the sequence adding in a dog fighting sequence using footage fromBattle Beyond the Stars,Corman was impressed and signed Holzman to direct.

Forbidden Worldwas shot under the working titleMutantover the course of a 20 day shooting schedule for under $1 million.Due to the rapid pace of filming and production, cast and crew often had to be careful what they touched or where they stepped as sets would often have wet paint while they were filming.The effects were crafted byRobertandDennis Skotak.During editing, Holzman discovered he had insufficient footage of the titular mutant and called inJohn Carl Buechlerto redo some of the sequences.

Reception

Review aggregation websiteRotten Tomatoesgives the film a rating of 60% based on reviews from 5 critics.

TheLos Angeles Timescalled it "lively, amusingly gruesome."

Home media

On July 20, 2010,Shout! FactoryreleasedForbidden Worldon bothDVDandBlu-ray Disc.The DVD is a two-disc set.This set also includes the original Allan Holzman cut that was rejected by Roger Corman due to having humor, while Corman wanted the film to be done as a straight sci-fi/horror film. This is the first time this cut is available anywhere.

On August 13, 2019, Scream Factory releasedForbidden Worldon a single disc Blu-ray collectors edition in a steelbook.

External links

• Forbidden WorldatIMDb
• Forbidden WorldatAllMovie