User reviews

A Roger Corman quickly produced cheapie that wears its influences proudly, as many elements (character descriptions to lifted sequence ideas) just reek of Ridley Scott's 1979 feature ''Alien''. However this systematic fodder remains enjoyable (for most part, despite its often lumpy pacing) on a very b-grade level, as it doesn't pretend to be anything else than cheap, exploitative fun. Instead of being set in space like that classic, the action takes place in a post-apocalyptic setting due to a chemically induced plague wiping out the majority of the earth's population. Nevertheless a small bunch of scientists are holding up in an underground laboratory in the bone-dry desert, but their existence is soon threatened by genetic mutations known as gargoyles. These beasties are quite randy too, because at nearly every opportunity they go out of their way to impregnate the women. What the story lacks in imagination (as it does draw upon a predictable amalgam) and coherence, it makes up for in durable performances (a likable Andrew Stevens, George Kennedy, John Lafayette, Starr Andreeff and Terri Treas all keeping it straight) and gruesomely tacky splatter (even though it doesn't have much impact in engineering the deaths and tawdry jolts). Being rough and crude, it's kind of similar in style / budget to the likes of ''Creepazoids'' and "Parasite". The creatures are kept off screen during the first half, to only be heard and getting some POV shots. Nonetheless we do get to see them, and it's a fair looking monster design of a man in a rubber suit. Everything looks low-rent, which is cemented by its compact setting and stuffily framed direction but still lingering within is a grim atmosphere. The music score tagged to the project isn't too bad either, being high-strung but ominously pitched. Mechanically uninspired, but gruellingly cheesy entertainment.

But what else would expect from the likes of Roger Corman?

Chemical warfare experiment kills of most of the world's population. There are a few 'normal' people left like our protagonists (Andrew Stevens, George Kennedy, Teri Treas, etc..) and then there are the gargoyle-like creatures who impregnate female humans in order to procreate their own kind.

See, Andrew Stevens & Co. are left inside an underground lab that spared them from the effects of the plague, so in one of their reconnaissance patrols out in the desert, they bring back a wounded human female (Yvonne Saa) to the complex in order to treat her. When they find out is that she is pregnant and that she was impregnated by one of the monsters, they decide to do an abortion. But just as they're about ready to perform the procedure, the little gargoyle pops out of her stomach ALIEN-style and escapes into one of the complex's air vents. It's an ok scene but we've all seen it before.

Stevens & Co. then spend the rest of the movie trying to hunt down the creature as they are slowly being killed off one-by-one. The best scene is towards the end of the film when one of the gargoyles is trapped in the ventilation shaft and is cut up, sliced and diced by the fan blades. Pretty good although I wish it were more graphic.

It looks like Corman & Co. spent a little bit of money on the set design but don't expect any of the fanciest gizmos from STAR WARS or any of the ALIEN sequels. At least the sets don't look too much like cardboard.

Released on DVD the same time as THE NEST (Teri Treas appears in both), you could do a lot worse on a Saturday night. You could also do a lot better, too.

6 out of 10

Every once in a while, Roger Corman produces something that, within its genre, is worth seeing. Enter THE TERROR WITHIN, one of the better ALIEN rip-offs that Corman has made(next ot GALAXY OF TERROR, of course).

The story is old, and to discuss it would just waste space, and not surprise anyone. What is surprising is the excessive amount of gore. There are neat creatures, buckets of blood, and tons of entrails. This is wholesale gore, and there is a little bit(very little) suspense as well.

For a post-apocalyptic slant on ALIEN, this one isn't bad.

Well, I had a chance to sit down in 2020 to watch the 1989 movie "The Terror Within" for the first time. I had already seen the 1991 sequel "The Terror Within II" and wasn't impressed with that, but still I managed to sit down to watch this first movie as I hadn't already seen it.

And while "The Terror Within" wasn't an overly impressive or outstanding movie, it was at least better than its sequel in many ways. But I will say that "The Terror Within" is not a bad movie, as there are far worse movies of this type out there. It is watchable and enjoyable enough for the cheesy movie that it is.

The storyline is pretty straight forward and very easy to follow. It is a storyline that is a lot akin to the story told in the "Alien" movie, like it or not. However, the movie was sort of dystopian future in its setting, and it actually worked out well enough.

As for the cast in the movie, then I was only familiar with George Kennedy, and it was sort of odd to see him in a movie such as this. While he fared well enough in "The Terror Within", he did feel a bit out of his element in this type of movie.

"The Terror Within" is a creature feature, and luckily we do get to see a lot of the creature that is stalking the characters in the subterranean complex. Sure, the creature design are old and bears witness to being made in 1989, but I am sure that back then they were pretty impressive. But by todays standards, then this was a mere rubber suit with a facial mask that was unable to articulate.

I am rating "The Terror Within" a mediocre five out of ten stars. The movie was watchable and sort of entertaining enough. However, this was by no account a milestone in cinematic history. Nor is it a movie that actually spurs a second viewing once you've seen it the first time.

Did the makers get sued by Ridley Scott or the production company behind Alien? It's impossible to spoil this movie but I hate to mention the many times it blatantly rips-off Alien, a far superior film. Maybe it was done as a kind of tribute, either that or it was done with contempt. They duplicate dialogue, plot lines and weapons/tactics to the point it's ridiculous. They even have a 'chest-burster', except it's a 'fetus' that bursts from the mother's belly. Even the banter between the crew is directly from Alien, with very minor changes. The acting is vastly inferior, along with effects and sets, I'm sure I've seen the same rubber suited creature in at least one other low-budget film.

Oh, sorry, I did notice one major difference. Instead of a cat that gets in the way of the hunt, it's a dog. This was one of the few times I actively cheered for the 'alien' to devour all the crew members (and hopefully the producer and director).

Literally, there is very little to say other than this is a 92% Alien/Aliens rip-off, just here and not in space. Unfortunately, the creature looks bad - though not the worst I've seen. Sad for everyone involved as they must've known that this was blatant theft.

The acting is poor and the story is just as inspired. It's crazy to sit back sometimes and just see how much they ripped off other movies. And not just good movies either. B-Movies. Schlock films. It has it's moments, sure. It's definitely a midnight creature feature. However, it sacrifices good old fashioned exploitation for just lazy film-making. Can you blame it? Everyone has to get paid somehow and these movies were being pressed out a lot.

A few moments into this picture and you can start to see the low-budget sleaze oozing through the cracks. The jokes and innuendos are all reminiscent of a Corman Picture. The corner-cutting in editing and sub- par audio are all present too. Not to say that it isn't entertaining. Movies like this usually are. This just isn't a movie that's fit for everyone. You have to be in the mood.

It's an Alien rip-off, but as far as Alien rip-offs go, this one is pretty good.

It has all the kooky elements you can come to expect from a Roger Corman film. It looks cheap, the dialogue is strange, some plot elements make little sense, and the acting is about three inches above average. But Corman knows how to make a decent movie for less than a dollar and sell the hell out of it.

Annoyed by the modern zeitgeist drama-queen productions, I am lately on my mission to watch movies of the good old times (everything before 2k). The Terror Within and its successor The Terror Within II are both trashy and cheesy B-movies but entertaining and, last but not least, with some moments of gore here and there. So if you are interested to watch a story set in a post-apocalyptic world with some genetic degenerated monsters on the hunt for human women to breed some more monsters, part one and two of The Terror Within may be of interest to you. In my humble opinion that mix is a very promising and strong premise for a movie ;)

Final words: both movies got a well deserved rating of 5 by me - one point I simply did add for the fact that those movies do not pretend to be anything other than what they are - trashy and bloody monster movies without any tendency to educate us on topics like gender, migration, race, daddy issues, climate change and whatever other stuff haunts our world and minds today. Conclusion: The Terror Within = popcorn entertainment for the very charming kin who got a little notion to bad taste stuff.

The Terror Within (1989)

*** (out of 4)

Yet another ALIEN clone from producer Roger Corman. This one here takes place in a post-apocalypse world where a group of survivors live safely in a shelter. Their good lifestyle takes a turn for the worse when a large monsters gets inside and starts a killing rampage. THE TERROR WITHIN is in no way, shape or form an original movie but fans of mindless monster movies should really enjoy it as we get a fun cast, a great monster, several gory death scenes and an all around good time. The film not only has elements of ALIEN but we also gets bits and pieces taken from THE THING and also several very important "moments" from HUMANOIDS FROM THE DEEP. It's clear the goal of this film was to deliver an old-fashioned monster movie that you'd see at the drive-in in the 1950s but they took it a step further by adding in the gore and nudity that you'd expect to see in an exploitation film from this era. I think the most surprising thing is that a monster movie like this could get made and released in 1989 because this type of film pretty much died out at the start of the decade when slashers arrived on the scene. The cast includes a fun lead performance from the one and only Andrew Stevens and we get nice support from Starr Andreeff, John Lafayette and Oscar-winner George Kennedy who was square in the middle of his exploitation days. Another major plus is the wonderful costume design of the monster. The monster is without question one of the most memorable of the decade and the amount of detail in everything from his face to the body is just pretty remarkable and especially when you consider the budget. The film also offers up some pretty violent death scenes with a lot more blood than you were typically seeing in horror films during this period thanks to the MPAA. There's a delivery sequence that certainly goes over the top. THE TERROR WITHIN isn't a classic but I think it's a very good monster movie that has a lot going for it.

Man this thing stinks bad! I don't think I've ever seen a worse piece of garbage in my life. I love B grade horror films, but this stinker takes it to a new low. Acting stinks. Script stinks. Effects stink. I don't think this film has one good thing about it. Maybe the relief of seeing the closing credits is about it! And to top it off...they made a part two! Pass this thing up if you see it on the rental shelf. My friend didn't, and we really paid dearly for it! Time wasted that I'll never get back. I do believe tweezing my own nose hairs would be more fun. Well thats it. Be warned! THIS THING SUCKS!!! 1 out of 10 rating.

The opening scene of The Terror Within takes place at the Vasquez Rocks in California, perhaps the most overused location in sci-fi cinema and TV, which gives an idea of just how fresh and innovative this Roger Corman produced Alien rip-off is. The familiar plot sees a group of scientists, survivors of a plague that has all but wiped out humanity, finding a woman in the wilderness surrounding their underground lab complex. On examining the new arrival, they discover that she is pregnant, but when the foetus shows extraordinarily rapid development, suggesting a mutation, they decide to terminate the pregnancy. While performing the operation, the 'baby' tears itself free from the womb in a blatant crib of the chestburster scene from Alien, and scuttles off to the air vents where it quickly grows into a full-sized man in a really bad rubber monster costume.

The rest of the movie sees the plucky scientists constructing a flame-thrower and some handy-dandy laser weapons and hunting down the monster, which is keen to get its claws on the female members of the group so that it can impregnate them. The action that ensues is poorly executed, and completely devoid of suspense and tension, largely thanks to the laughable monster, but also due to unconvincing performances from all involved (I can't really blame them; I imagine that it's hard to look scared when faced with such a silly creature). The daft ending sees the two remaining survivors setting fire to the gargoyle (as they call it), electrocuting it, and finally chopping up the creature in the blades of an air vent fan, before destroying their base (and several other gargoyles that come a-visiting) with a self-destruct device (don't all laboratories come with one of those?).

This movie is a direct cross of Alien and The Beast Within. Alien, a great Sci-Fi flick, had the birth and rapid growing which was poorly repeated in this flick. The Beast Within (notice the title similarity), which was a decent horror movie for it time, has the same theme of a monster trying to mate with every woman it comes across. They took two good movies and made one pretty bad one. The low budget definitely didn't help. The "Gargoyle" reminded me of Godzilla. A rubbery suit that was too big for the guy wearing it. Water, or some sort of goo/liquid sprayed on the suit would have helped - looked too dry. I will give it 1 star for gore though.

Long story short, most reviews are accurate unless they say this movie sucks. In which case they don't enjoy movies. Maybe don't watch it if you are strobe sensitive.

In a post-apocalyptical world, 90% of the population is decimated by a plague. A group of survivors live in the Mojave Lab under the command of Hal (George Kennedy), and every now and then, they need to get supplies from the outside world. When John (Al Guarino) and Michael (Joseph Hardin) leave the base, they lose contact and David (Andrew Stevens), his dog Butch and Linda (Terri Treas) to look for their friends. They find them and a group of survivors of the plague slaughtered by a mutant called Gargoyle. Doctor Sue (Starr Andreeff) and Hal ask them to bring remains from one survivor to study how they survived the plague without vaccine, and Hal asks Andre (John LaFayette) and Neil (Tommy Hinckley) to help him. However, David and Linda find one survivor alive, Karen (Yvonne Saa), and bring her to the base. When Sue exams her, she finds that Karen is pregnant. Soon they learn that her baby is a mutant that escapes from the surgery room growing up rapidly and threatening their lives.

"The Terror Within" is a rip-off "Alien", with humans trapped in the underground of a post-apocalyptical world. When I saw this film in the 90's I really liked it, but now it is only average. On 2022, in a post-Covid world, the greatest attraction is the world destroyed by a plague and the survivors saved by a vaccine. My vote is five.

Title (Brazil): "Ira de Mutante" ("Rage of Mutant")

Good for the effects, even has a familiar face. Mutants own the world and humans live like rats in underground hide outs. The mutants are called gargoyles which is fitting probably because they are so rapey. This is where the whole alien chest burstie thing kicks in and these mutants are extremely ugly, your parents would not approve if you brought one of these home ladies.

So there's explosives, high powered lasers, light sex scene, monster rape scene and lots of shout outs to the alien movie tropes and what not and its all because of dudes in pink rubber suits. There is also a neat bit of psych going on when they refuse to abort and monster fetus on request which you have to laugh at. Enjoyable pretty much all the way through.