The Last Starfighter

The Last Starfighter
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Nick Castle
Written by	Jonathan R. Betuel
Produced by	Gary Adelson Edward O. Denault
Starring	Lance Guest Dan O'Herlihy Robert Preston Catherine Mary Stewart
Cinematography	King Baggot
Edited by	Carroll Timothy O'Meara
Music by	Craig Safan
Production company	Lorimar Productions
Distributed by	Universal Pictures
Release date	July 13, 1984(1984-07-13)
Running time	101 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$15 million
Box office	$29 million (North America)

The Last Starfighteris a 1984 Americanspace operafilm directed byNick Castle.The film tells the story of Alex Rogan (Lance Guest), a teenager recruited by an alien defense force to fight in an interstellar war. It also featuresRobert Preston,Dan O'Herlihy,Catherine Mary Stewart,Norman Snow,andKay E. Kuter.

The Last Starfighter,along withDisney'sTron,has the distinction of being one of cinema's earliest films to use extensive "real-life"computer-generated imagery(CGI) to depict its many starships, environments, and battle scenes.

The Last Starfighterwas Robert Preston's final role in a theatrical film. The character of Centauri, a "lovable con-man", was written with him in mind and was a nod to his most famous role as Professor Harold Hill inThe Music Man.

There was a subsequentnovelizationof the film byAlan Dean Foster,as well asa video gamebased on the production. In 2004, it was also adapted as an off-Broadway musical.

Plot

Alex Rogan is a teenager living in a trailer park with his mother and younger brother, Louis. After being rejected for a scholarship, Alex becomes angry at his go-nowhere existence. The only entertainment in the trailer park comes from an arcade game called "Starfighter", in which the player defends "the Frontier" against Xur and the Ko-Dan Armada in a space battle. After Alex becomes the game's highest-scoring player, he is approached by the game's inventor, Centauri, who invites him to take a ride in his fancy car as a prize for winning the game. Centauri is actually an alien and his car a spacecraft; Alex is essentially abducted, and Beta, a doppelgängerandroid,is used to cover Alex's absence.

Alex learns that theStarfighterarcade game represents a real-life conflict between the Rylan Star League and the Ko-Dan Empire; the latter is led by Xur, a native Rylan traitor and son of Ambassador Enduran, the Starfighter commander, to whom the Ko-Dan Emperor has promised control of Rylos. Starfighter is, in fact, an elaborate recruiting tool, designed as a test to find those "with the gift" (Centauri is actually criticized in one scene for placing the game on Earth, as humans were not considered capable of becoming Starfighters). Alex, expected to be the gunner for a Starfighter spacecraft called the Gunstar, is partnered with a reptilian pilot named Grig. He also learns that the Frontier is a forcefield protecting Rylos and its surrounding planets from invasion; Xur has given the Ko-Dan the means to breach it.

Xur reveals he has discovered an infiltrator in his ranks and broadcasts the spy's execution to the Star League. He then proclaims that once Rylos' moon is in eclipse, the Ko-Dan Armada will begin their invasion. Unnerved by everything he has seen, Alex asks to be taken home. On Earth, Centauri tells Alex to contact him should he change his mind. Meanwhile, a saboteur eliminates the Starfighter base defenses and thus enables the Ko-Dan to attack the base, causing heavy damage, killing the Starfighters and destroying the Gunstars. Only Grig and an advanced prototype Gunstar survive.

Alex discovers Beta and contacts Centauri to retrieve him. Centauri arrives just as Alex and Beta are attacked by an alien assassin, a Zando-Zan, in Xur's service; Centauri shoots off its right arm. He then explains that more Zando-Zan will be coming to Earth, and the only way for Alex to protect his family (and Earth) is to embrace his ability as a Starfighter. Before Alex can reply, the assassin attempts to shoot Alex. Centauri jumps in the way, taking the hit and killing the alien. Alex and Centauri fly back to the Starfighter base, where Centauri succumbs to his injuries. Alex finds Grig, and they prepare the Gunstar to battle the Ko-Dan Armada.

While Grig trains Alex, Beta finds it difficult to maintain his impersonation, particularly with Maggie Gordon, Alex's girlfriend. After discovering that a group of Zando-Zan have set up a communication center from their spaceship outside the trailer park, Beta reveals everything to Maggie. She does not believe him until the Zando-Zan discover the pair and Beta is shot, exposing damaged circuitry. They steal a friend's pickup truck and charge it at the Zando-Zan ship; Beta has Maggie jump out before sacrificing himself by crashing into the ship, destroying it.

Alex and Grig attack the Ko-Dan mothership, crippling its communications. Once Alex's weapons are depleted, he desperately activates a secret weapon on the Gunstar, the "Death Blossom", that destroys the remaining Ko-Dan fighters. With the fleet destroyed, Lord Kril orders Xur executed for his arrogance and failure to ensure victory, but Xur escapes the mothership just before Alex cripples its guidance controls, causing it to crash into Rylos' moon.

Alex is proclaimed the savior of Rylos and invited to help rebuild the Star League by Enduran, as it is still vulnerable: the Frontier has collapsed and Xur escaped. An unknown alien approaches, revealing himself as Centauri and explaining he was in a healing stasis. Alex agrees to stay, but he returns to Earth, landing his ship in the trailer park. Grig tells Alex's mother and the people of the trailer park of Alex's heroism; Alex asks Maggie to come with him, and she agrees. Louis is inspired to join Alex and begins playing theStarfightergame.

Cast

• Lance Guestas Alex Rogan / Beta Alex Rogan
• Robert Prestonas Centauri
• Dan O'Herlihyas Grig
• Catherine Mary Stewartas Maggie Gordon
• Norman Snowas Xur
• Kay E. Kuteras Ambassador Enduran
• Barbara Bossonas Jane Rogan
• Chris Hebertas Louis Rogan
• Dan Mason as Lord Kril
• Vernon Washingtonas Otis
• John O'Leary as Rylan Bursar
• George McDaniel as Kodan 1st Officer
• Charlene Nelson as Rylan Technician
• John Maio as Friendly Alien
• Al Berry as Rylan Spy
• Scott Dunlop as Tentacle Alien
• Peter Nelsonas Jack Blake
• Peggy Popeas Elvira
• Meg Wyllieas Granny Gordon
• Ellen Blake as Clara Potter
• Britt Leachas Mr. Potter
• Bunny Summers as Mrs. Boone
• Owen Bushas Mr. Boone
• Marc Alaimoas Hitchhiker
• Wil Wheatonas Louis' Friend
• Cameron Dyeas Andy
• Geoffrey Blakeas Gary

Production

Rio Groceries, filming location ofThe Last Starfighter,in 2014

Shelley Lake at Digital Productions in 1983 choreographing a scene fromThe Last Starfighter.Pictured at theIMI-500 workstation is a simulation of the Starcar.

The Last Starfighterwas shot in 38 days,mostly night shoots inCanyon Country.It was one of the earliest films to make extensive use ofcomputer graphicsfor itsspecial effects.In place of physical models,3D renderedmodels were used to depict space ships and many other objects. The Gunstar and other spaceships were the design of artistRon Cobb,who also worked onDark Star,Alien,Star WarsandConan the Barbarian.

The computer graphics for the film were rendered byDigital Productions(DP) on aCray X-MPsupercomputer. The company created 27 minutes of effects for the film. This was considered an enormous amount of computer generated imagery at the time.For the 300 scenes containing computer graphics in the film, each frame of the animation contained an average of 250,000polygonsand had a resolution of 3000 × 5000 36-bitpixels.Digital Productions estimated that using computer animation required only half the time and between a third to half of the cost of traditional special effects. The result was a cost of $14 million for a film that made about $29 million at the box office.

DP usedFortran,CFT77 for programming:

Everything was in FORTRAN, because it was the only language with vectorization when we started and remained the only language with good vectorization through the life of DP.

— email from Larry Yaeger (lead software programmer in Digital Productions) (2020.03.30)

Not all special effects in the film were done with computer animation. The depiction of the Beta unit before it had taken Alex's form was apractical effect,created by makeup artistLance Anderson.The Starcar, created byGene Winfieldand driven by Centauri, was a working vehicle based on Winfield's Spinner designs fromBlade Runner.

Because the test audiences responded positively to the Beta Alex character, director Nick Castle added more scenes of Beta Alex interacting with the trailer park community. Because Lance Guest had cut his hair short after initial filming had been completed and he contracted an illness during the re-shoots, his portrayal of Beta Alex in the added scenes has him wearing a wig and heavy makeup.Wil Wheatonhad a few lines of dialogue that were ultimately cut from the film, but he still is visible in the background of several scenes.

Music

Main article:The Last Starfighter (soundtrack)

ComposerCraig Safanwanted to go "bigger thanStar Wars"and therefore utilized a"Mahler-sized "orchestra, resulting in an unusual breadth of instruments, including" quadruple woodwinds "and" eight trumpets, [trombones], and horns! "

Reception

Critical reception

At thereview aggregatorwebsiteRotten Tomatoes,The Last Starfighterreceived an approval rating of 76%, based on 86 reviews, with anaverage ratingof 6.6/10. The website's critical consensus reads: "WhileThe Last Starfighteris clearly derivative of other sci-fi franchises, its boundary-pushing visual effects and lovably plucky tone make for an appealing adventure ".Metacriticgave the film a score of 67 based on 8 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".Over time it has developed acult following.

Roger EbertofThe Chicago Sun-Timesgave the film two-and-a-half out of four stars. While the actors were good, particularly Preston and O'Herlihy, Ebert wroteThe Last Starfighterwas "not a terrifically original movie" but it was nonetheless "well-made".Colin GreenlandreviewedThe Last StarfighterforImaginemagazine, and stated that "apart from a mildly amusing little sub-plot with the android replica left on Earth to conceal his absence, Alex's adventure is strictly the movie of the video game: simple as can be, and pitched at a pre-teen audience who can believe Alex and Grig blasting a hundred alien ships and escaping without a scratch."Halliwell's Film Guidedescribed the film as "a surprisingly pleasant variation on theStar Warsboom, with sharp and witty performances from two reliablecharacter actorsand some elegant gadgetry to offset the teenage mooning ".

In 2017,Varietydescribed it as having "a simple yet ingenious plot" and continued "the action is suitably fast and furious, but what makes the movie especially enjoyable are the quirky character touches given to Guest and his fellow players."Varietyalso noted that film criticGene SiskeldescribedThe Last Starfighteras the best of allStar Warsimitators.Alan Jonesawarded it three stars out of five forRadio Times,writing that it was a "glossy, space-age fairy tale" and "highly derivative —Star Trek-like aliens haveStar Wars-inspired dog-fights against a computer-graphic backdrop — but the sensitive love story between Guest and Catherine Mary Stewart cuts through the cuteness and gives the intergalactic adventures a much-needed boost. "

Adaptations

The Last Starfighter's popularity has resulted in several non-film adaptations of the storyline and uses of the name.

Musical

A musical adaptation was first produced at the Storm Theatre Off-Off Broadway in New York City in October 2004 with music and lyrics by Skip Kennon and book by Fred Landau.In November 2005, the original cast recording was released on the Kritzerland label.

Books

Alan Dean Fosterwrote anovelizationof the film shortly after it was released (ISBN0-425-07255-X).

Comics

In the same year as the release of the film, Marvel Comics published a comic book adaptation of the film by writerBill Mantloand artistsBret BlevinsandTony SalmonsinMarvel Super Special#31.The adaptation was also available as a three issuelimited series.

Games

In 1984,FASA,a sci-fi tabletop game maker, created a gaming systemThe Last Starfighter: Tunnel ChaseforThe Last Starfighter.

Video games

Arcade

A realThe Last Starfighterarcade game byAtari, Inc.is promised in the end credits, but was never released. If released, the game would have been Atari's first 3D polygonal arcade game to use aMotorola 68000as the CPU. Gameplay would have been taken from game scenes and space battle scenes in the film and would have included the same controller that was used on thefirst Star Wars arcade game.The game was abandoned once Atari representatives saw the film in post-production and decided it was not going to be a financial success.

Home

Home versions of the game for theAtari 2600andAtari 5200consoles andAtari 8-bit computerswere also developed, but never commercially released under theLast Starfightername. The home computer version was eventually renamed and released (with some minor changes) asStar Raiders II.A prototype exists for the Atari 2600Last Starfightergame, which was in actuality a game already in development by Atari under the nameUniverse.This game was eventually released asSolaris.

In 1990, anNESgame titledThe Last Starfighterwas released, but it was actually a conversion ofUridiumforCommodore 64,with modified sprites, title screen and soundtrack.

Afreewareplayable version of the game, based on what is seen in the film, was released forPCin 2007. This is a faithful reproduction of the arcade game from the film and features full sound effects and music from the game. The creators of this game, Rogue Synapse, have also built a working arcade cabinet of the game.

Potential sequel

In February 2008, production company GPA Entertainment added "Starfighter– The sequel to the classic motion pictureLast Starfighter"to its list of projects and two months later the project was reported to be "stuck in the pre-production phase".It was still there as of January 2012.Hollywood directors, includingSeth RogenandSteven Spielberg,as well as screenwriterGary Whitta,have expressed interest in creating a sequel or remake, but Jonathan R. Betuel has allegedly indicated that he does not want another film made.

The rights to the film have not been clearly defined due to conflicting information. Multiple sources say Universal Pictures still owns the theatrical and home media distribution rights whileWarner Bros.,which absorbedLorimar-Telepictures(Lorimar's successor) in 1990, has the international distribution rights. Another source states that Universal has the option to remake the film while Betuel has sequel rights. Further complicating the situation is a claim that both Universal and Warner Bros. each have remake and sequel rights.

In July 2015, it was reported that Betuel will write a TV reboot of the film.

On April 4, 2018, Whitta posted concept art forThe Last Starfightersequel on his Twitter account.In the same tweet he also indicated that Betuel will be collaborating with him on the project. In a follow-up interview withGizmodo,Whitta referred to the project as "a combination of reboot and sequel that we both think honors the legacy of the original film while passing the torch to a new generation."

On October 20, 2020, Betuel stated that, with Whitta, a script for a sequel is being written and the rights to the film were recaptured.

On March 25, 2021, Whitta posted a sequel concept reel on YouTube calledThe Last Starfighterswith concept art by Matt Allsopp and music byChris TiltonandCraig Safanand featuring an audio clip from the original movie byRobert Preston.

See also

• Ender's Game- a 1977 short story/novelette byOrson Scott Card
• Armada- A 2015 novel byErnest Clinewith a similar premise

External links

• The Last StarfighteratIMDb
• The Last Starfighterat theTCM Movie Database
• The Last StarfighteratLetterboxd
• The Last StarfighteratAllMovie
• Animation Timeline from Brown University
• The Last Starfighter video game
• Arcade game specifications by AtariArchivedSeptember 23, 2015, at theWayback Machine
• Podcast aboutThe Last Starfighterby the Retroist