Mind Ripper

A scientific experiment designed to create a superhuman being has gone wrong.The creators become trapped in a remote desert outpost,pursued relentlessly and mercilessly by their own creation.James Stockton,the scientist whose research was used despite his protests to create the monster,is called the outpost to help undo the horror that now lurks somewhere within the dark halls.James,together with his son and daughter,soon find themselves trapped inside with the others,trying desperately to survive.And with the outpost sealed from within,there is no way out..."The Outpost"/"Mind Ripper" is highly unoriginal.The sets are pretty claustrophobic and there's a bit of gore.However as a horror it fails miserably on almost all levels.There's zero suspense,the script is weak and filled with big holes and the ending is extremely predictable.So-called master Wes Craven produced this one-I wonder if he is happy with this trash.Joe Gayton directs without any style.The acting is horrible,only Lance Henriksen can act at all.OK,I'm a big horror fan and was bitterly disappointed.Avoid it like the plague-it's just the same old boring crap again!

It's a trifle, of course, and it IS hard to know what attracted Wes Craven to such a degree that he lent it an "Executive Producer" credit, but it does have some interesting touches. The first is the compassion it shows for the "monster". In fact, although many have made the "Alien" connection (mainly because of the underground tunnels and shafts), it really plays more like a variation on the "Frankenstein" myth; there is a scientist who wants to "play God" and a sad creature that is forced to become murderous (and his killing method owes more than a little to Cronenberg's "Rabid", too). Another interesting idea is the way all the characters are initially presented as either bland or obnoxious (and boy are the two male teenagers obnoxious!), only for most of them to reveal some redeeming side later on. And the gore fans will get some moments they can appreciate in this one, particularly an eyeball-piercing in close-up! Lance Henriksen reportedly said that this is one of those films that "pay your alimony", but at least he handles it like a pro and doesn't show any contempt for his audience. The film's worst part is the ending, which gets so far-fetched it's almost funny. But all-in-all "Mind Ripper" is worth one viewing. (**)

This film is a bit of a tough watch. It has a decent cast, alright cinematography and some worthy practical effects, but the screenplay just doesn't work, and the director probably had a hard time since the writer is the producer. I know this was initially written as The Hills Have Eyes Part III, I think that script would have been better. There's a lot of references from great films, for instance the antagonist feels like a human version of a xenomorph, which in a way works. There's a line I find funny - the brother says to his sister's boyfriend "You couldn't get a piece of ass if you were a toilet seat". Bro, he's bangin' your sister lol.

This movie seems to be the equivalent of watching all of the outtakes from the original Aliens film. It's fun to see Natalie Wood's daughter and Giovanni Ribisi in a film, but other than that, there's nothing at all entertaining about this.

I found this movie hilarious. I could see every plot development from a mile away. I'm not surprised it was riffed on RiffTrax. Got to see if I can watch that someday.

The only thing I couldn't stand were those TEENS. They had absolutely no redeeming qualities until maybe 3/4 of the way through the film. Why he would bring them to visit a top-secret govenment installation is insane.