Slipstream Movie Review

Title: Slipstream

Format: DVD 

Year: 1989

Label: Entertainment in Video


From the Producer of Satrwars ( Gary Kurtz ) and the Director of Tron ( Steven M Lisberger ) comes this sci-fi adventure staring Bill Baxton & Mark Hamill.

This was Mark Hamill's return to acting after a few years away. I'm sure that on paper, this film seemed the ideal role for him to take. In reality it falls short of the mark. 

The acting is generally pretty good on the whole. The story seems interesting enough, but the script lets it down massively. There is no believable interactions by the characters. The cheeky rogue character played by Paxton is over written.

The set designs are good and the direction is good, but I can't help but feel that the locations are too sparse looking.

It is set in a post apocalyptic world, but a lot of the places that our adventurers pass through are densely populated, so a few more signs of life would add some interest.

The last third of the film is the most interesting part. The bonds between the characters are developed much further.

Alot of the scenes seem to rely on the soundtrack to convey emotion, but is not nearly enough.

Hamill's character is not very well defined, but I think he did a decent enough job. All in all, slipstream was dissapointing and generally hard work from start to finish.

The DVD from entertainment in Video is pretty poor. The film is presented in 4:3 ratio and there are several shots where it becomes obvious that this is a pan & scan. The transfer could have been cleaner too.


UK Films Rating: 3/10
Release Rating: 3/10 - Poor transfer. No extras.
Did James like it? No