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Line 1: {{Short description\|1985 film directed by Don Dohler}} {{Infobox film \| name = ~~The~~ Galaxy Invader \| image = File:Galaxy Invader (1985) cover art.jpg ~~\| image size =~~ \| alt = \| caption = ~~[[Film~~VHS ~~poster]]~~cover art \| director = [[Don Dohler]] \| producer = Don Dohler \| writer = {{Plainlist\| * Don Dohler~~<br>~~ * Anne Frith (additional scenes)~~<br>~~ * David W. Donoho (additional scenes) }} \| narrator = \| starring = {{Plainlist\| * Richard Ruxton~~<br>~~ * George Stover }} \| music = Norman Noplock \| cinematography = Paul Loeschke Line 15 ⟶ 22: \| studio = Moviecraft Entertainment \| distributor = Moviecraft Entertainment \| released = ~~April~~{{Film date\|1985\|04}} \| runtime = 72 ~~min~~minutes \| country = [[United States]] \| language = English \| budget = $4,000 -– $42,000 \| gross = ~~\| preceded by =~~ ~~\| followed by =~~ }} '''''Galaxy Invader'''''{{efn\|Titled ~~(aka~~onscreen as '''''The Galaxy Invader''''').}} is a 1985 American [[direct-to-video]] [[~~Science~~science fiction~~\|sci-fi~~ film]] ~~film~~ directed and co-written by Baltimore filmmaker [[Don Dohler]]. The film's isplot ~~about~~centers on an alien who is pursued by hillbillies after his spaceship crash-lands on Earth.<ref>{{cite web \|title=The Galaxy Invader \|url=https://www.chicagoreader.com/chicago/the-galaxy-invader/Film?oid=16813543 \|website=Chicago Reader \|publisher=Foundation \|accessdate=27 April 2020}}</ref> The film plays off of the success of films such as [[Creature from the Black Lagoon]] and adds a twist with its drunken [[redneck]] cast. Its low [[Filmmaking\|production]] value and sometimes golden (mostly very poor) acting makes for a [[Cult following\|cult classic]] [[exploitation film]] with a comedic take on redneck culture and their view on "furriners".<ref>{{cite web \|title=Galaxy Invader \|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/galaxy_invader \|website=Rotten Tomatoes \|publisher=Rotten Tomatoes \|accessdate=26 April 2020}}</ref> The cast is made of entirely non-professional actors, mainly friends and family of Dohler. Most fans of "Galaxy Invader" recognize its flaws, but love the movie for its quirky and sometimes hilarious moments. It is featured in [[Cinematic Titanic: The Complete Collection]] on disk 5.<ref>{{cite web \|last1=Salmons \|first1=Tim \|title=Cinematic Titanic: The Complete Collection (DVD Review) \|url=https://thedigitalbits.com/item/cinematic-titanic-collection-dvd \|website=The Digital Bits \|publisher=The Digital Bits \|accessdate=26 April 2020}}</ref> Segments of the film can also be viewed in the [[Film Ventures]] release of the [[Spanish language\|Spanish]] film ''[[The Pod People\|Pod People]]'' in 1990, however not under legal license from the author. "Pod People" was featured in a segment of ''[[Mystery Science Theater 3000]]'' and the unlicensed footage from "Galaxy Invader" was used. ==Plot== [[File:~~Galaxy_Invader_VHS_Cover~~Galaxy Invader VHS Cover.jpg\|thumb\|left\|VHS cover of "''Galaxy Invader"'']] When a glowing ~~object, (which seems to be a~~ [[meteor]])-like object careens toward the Earth, a young student, ~~who~~David ~~sees it~~Harmon, is narrowly missed as it falls into the forest ahead of him. He calls his old high school teacher, Dr. William Tracy, to tell him about this potential [[UFO]] landing. ~~A couple of~~Several hours later, a young couple hears a noise in their basement and go down to see what it is. As they slowly descend into the basement, they are terrified and ~~wrestled~~knocked toout ~~the~~or possibly ~~ground~~killed by a green ~~monster~~humanoid ~~known as the 'Galaxy Invader'~~alien.<ref>{{cite web \|title=The Galaxy Invader - USA, 1985 \|url=https://moviesandmania.com/2019/12/23/the-galaxy-invader-reviews-movie-film-sci-fi-horror-1985-overview/ \|website=Movies and Mania \|publisher=Mania 2020 \|accessdate=27 April 2020}}</ref> Joe Montague(Richard Ruxton), is angered by his daughter at breakfast and chases her through the woods with a gun. After encountering the alien and finding the power source to its weapon, the space ball, Frank Custer(Don Leifert), advises Joe to hunt the alien for a reward. The alien is hunted by a gang of locals led by Joe Montague intent on cashing in on the creature. Joe captures the alien and ties it up in his garage. Following his history of domestic violence, Joe tries to rape his friend Frank's wife. In the struggle, Joe shoots Frank's wife using the space gun. Joe's family conspire to set the alien free and return it home. As soon as they steal the weapons from Joe's sleeping hands, he suddenly wakes and pursues the group with a shotgun. Holding the group and gunpoint, when all hope is lost, the alien appears and attacks Joe. Joe kills the alien using the space gun, but it gives enough time for Michael Smith(Cliff Lambert) to get the jump on Joe. A fight ensues and ends with Joe's wife, Ethel Montague(Ann Firth), knocking him off a cliff. Joe Montague, is angered by his daughter, Carol, at breakfast and chases her through the woods with a gun. After encountering the alien and finding the power source to its weapon, the space ball, Frank Custer, advises Joe to hunt the alien for a reward. The alien is hunted by a gang of locals led by Montague intent on cashing in on the creature. Joe captures the alien and ties it up in his garage. Dr. Tracy and David break into the garage and set the alien free. As they flee the garage into the woods, Frank shoots Dr. Tracy. The alien returns and shoots Frank, then Joe shoots the alien and takes back the space gun. Frank's wife comes looking for him at Joe's house and, following his history of domestic violence, Joe tries to rape her. As she runs away, Joe shoots Frank's wife using the space gun. Joe's family conspire with Michael Smith, Carol's boyfriend, to set the alien free and return it home. When they steal the weapons from Joe's sleeping hands, he suddenly wakes and pursues the group with a shotgun and corners them at the edge of a cliff. When all hope is lost, the alien appears and attacks Joe. Joe kills the alien using the space gun, but it gives enough time for Michael Smith to get the jump on Joe. A fight ensues and ends with Joe's wife, Ethel, knocking him off a cliff. <!-- Deleted image removed:[[File:(The)~~_Galaxy_Invader_BTS~~ Galaxy Invader BTS.jpeg\|thumb\|right\|BTS lighting of the alien capture scene]] --> ==Cast== {{~~div~~Cast ~~col}}~~list\| * Richard Ruxton as Joe Montague * Faye Tilles as Carol Montague * George Stover as J.J. Montague * Greg Dohler as David Harmon * ~~Ann~~Anne ~~Firth~~Frith as Ethel Montague * [[Donald Leifert\|Don Leifert]] as Frank Custer * [[Dick Dyszel]] as Dr. William Tracy * Theresa Harold as Vickie Johnson Line 49 ⟶ 55: * David W. Donoho as Giddings (credited as David Donoho) * Doug Moran as Turner * Bunky Hart as Cosco ~~{{div col end}}~~ }} ==Production== The ~~film's~~ cast, ~~however,~~of ~~was~~''Galaxy ~~part~~Invader'' consists of director Don Dohler's stable of friends and includes Donald Leifert and George Stover, both of whom featured in Dohler's earlier films, ''[[The Alien Factor]]'', ''Fiend'' and ''[[Nightbeast]]''. Richard Ruxton, another of the film's ~~stars~~principal actors, would go on to ~~star~~appear in Dohler's next film, ''Blood Massacre''. Also appearing in a starring role is Dohler's son, Greg Dohler, who plays David Harmon.▼ ''Galaxy Invader'' did not have the usual format that Don Dohler employed in many of his [[B movie\|B]] straight-to-VHS films. With a short timeline and limited budget, more emphasis was placed on characters than sci-fi special effects. The green, web-footed alien monster in the film has a superficial resemblance to the titular entity from ''[[Creature from the Black Lagoon]]''.<ref>Lalilo, Andy. [http://www.crazedfanboy.com/npcr08/oddpcr440.php "DVD Grindhouse: Don Dohler's 'Galaxy Invader' (1985)."] ''Oddservations''. Retrieved: April 20, 2015.</ref> The rubber suit and mask was also unfavorably compared to other film monsters.<ref>[http://grindhousereview.blogspot.ca/2015/03/the-galaxy-invader-1985.html "The Galaxy Invader - 1985."] ''The Grindhouse Review'', March 8, 2015. Retrieved: April 20, 2015.</ref> ''Galaxy Invader'' was shot entirely in and around [[Baltimore, Maryland]], Dohler's hometown. ''Galaxy Invader'' was one of four movies Dohler made in Baltimore within a 10-year period, each of which had budgets ranging from as low as $4,000 to as high as $42,000.<ref>{{cite web \|last=Yockel \|first=Michael \|title=Bio \|url=https://www.dondohler.com/new/?page_id=81 \|website=Don Dohler \|publisher=Don Dohler \|accessdate=29 April 2020}}</ref> ▲The film's cast, however, was part of Don Dohler's stable of friends and includes Donald Leifert and George Stover both featured in Dohler's earlier films, ''[[The Alien Factor]]'', ''Fiend'' and ''[[Nightbeast]]''. Richard Ruxton, another of the film's stars, would go on to star in Dohler's next film, ''Blood Massacre''. The body thrown off a cliff at the end of the movie is made of [[Plastic pipework\|PVC piping]] ~~an example of Dohler's comedic special effects~~.<ref>Budnik, Dan, and Ziemba, Joseph A.. Bleeding Skull! A 1980s Trash-Horror Odyssey. United Kingdom, Headpress, 2013.</ref>▼ ''Galaxy Invader'' was shot entirely in and around [[Baltimore, Maryland]], Dohler's hometown. In the introduction, an orchestrated background [[synthesizer]] [[soundtrack]] was used. In a 10 year period, Dohler shot 4 movies in his hometown on what b-movie connoisseur Joe Bob Briggs termed "25 cent budgets". Every one of Dohler's films had a budget which ranged from as low as $4,000 to as high as $42,000. While "Galaxy Invader" doesn't have an official budget anywhere online, Dohler's website claims it falls somewhere between the stated range. Dohler is known for his low budgets, improvised [[special effects]], and for using a cast of completely non-famous actors.<ref>{{cite web \|last1=Yockel \|first1=Michael \|title=Bio \|url=https://www.dondohler.com/new/?page_id=81 \|website=Don Dohler \|publisher=Don Dohler \|accessdate=29 April 2020}}</ref> ==Release== Footage from this film was used without permission in the introductory and ending credits for the [[Film Ventures]] release of the [[Spanish language\|Spanish]] film ''[[The Pod People\|Pod People]]'' in 1990, which in turn was featured as an episode of ''[[Mystery Science Theater 3000]]'' the following year.<ref>Morgan, Chris. The Comic Galaxy of Mystery Science Theater 3000: Twelve Classic Episodes and the Movies They Lampoon. United States, McFarland, Incorporated, Publishers, 2015.</ref>▼ ''Galaxy Invader'' was released [[direct-to-video]] on [[VHS]]<ref>Piepenburg, Erik. [http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/10/26/big-hair-and-bad-blood-vhs-era-horror-obscurities-from-a-to-z/?_r=0 "Big Hair and Bad Blood: VHS-Era Horror Obscurities From A to Z."] ''[[The New York Times]]'', October 26, 2011.</ref> in 1985. In 2004, the film was released on [[DVD]] by Treeline Films, as part of the ''50 Movie Pack: SciFi Classics'' [[boxed set]]. Mill Creek Entertainment included the film in the 2007 ''100 Movie Pack: Sci-Fi Classics'' boxed set, and in the 2009 ''Sci-Fi Classics 50 Movie Pack'' "Anniversary Edition" boxed set. In 2007, ''Galaxy Invader'' was also released on DVD as a [[double feature]] with the 1968 film ''[[Kong Island]]'' by [[Alpha Home Entertainment]].<ref>{{cite web\|url=https://www.amazon.com/Grindhouse-Double-Shock-Show-Invader/dp/B000VIPXCQ\|title=Grindhouse Double Shock Show: Galaxy Invader / Kong Island [DVD]\|website=[[Amazon.com]]\|access-date=September 21, 2023}}</ref> ▲The body thrown off a cliff at the end of the movie is made of [[Plastic pipework\|PVC piping]] an example of Dohler's comedic special effects.<ref>Budnik, Dan, and Ziemba, Joseph A.. Bleeding Skull! A 1980s Trash-Horror Odyssey. United Kingdom, Headpress, 2013.</ref> A [[Rifftrax]] version of the film was released on DVD in 2012.<ref>{{cite web\|url=https://www.amazon.com/Rifftrax-Galaxy-Invader-Mike-Nelson/dp/B0072VFXN4\|title=Rifftrax: Galaxy Invader [DVD]\|website=[[Amazon.com]]\|access-date=September 21, 2023}}</ref> ==Reception== In 2009, [[VideoHound's Golden Movie Retriever]] gave the movie "1 bone", which in their terms is defined as, "Poor use of camera, film, sets, script, actors, and studio vehicles." <ref>{{cite book \|last1=Craddock \|first1=Jim \|title=VideoHound's Golden Movie Retriever \|publisher=Gale \|isbn=978-1-4144-5754-3 \|pages=398 \|edition=2010 \|url=https://link-.gale-.com~~.sbcc.idm.oclc.org~~/apps/doc/CX3005310068/GVRL? \|accessdate=22 April 2020}}</ref> In 2011, [[ RiffTrax]], consisting of ~~MST3K~~''[[Mystery Science Theater 3000]]'' alumni [[Michael J Nelson]], [[Bill Corbett]] and [[Kevin Murphy (actor)\|Kevin Murphy]] mocked ''Galaxy Invader''.<ref>[http://www.rifftrax.com/ondemand/galaxy-invader "The Galaxy Invader."] ''www.rifftrax.com''. Retrieved: April 20, 2015.</ref>▼ In a 2011 article in ''[[The New York Times]]'' dealing with 1980s B films, "This pre-video-age late-night cable TV favorite was created (almost singlehandedly) by a fanzine editor who managed to shape his micro-budget into a special effects extravaganza. The late Don Dohler would go on to direct many straight-to-VHS films of the ’80s, including 'Galaxy Invader' and 'Blood Massacre'."<ref>Piepenburg, Erik. [http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/10/26/big-hair-and-bad-blood-vhs-era-horror-obscurities-from-a-to-z/?_r=0 "Big Hair and Bad Blood: VHS-Era Horror Obscurities From A to Z."] ''The New York Times'', October 26, 2011. </ref> In 2012, Bleeding Skull! calls it, "Uneventful, but semi-entertaining." "While the somber mood and deeper themes bode well for "''Galaxy Invader"'', the vacant second half drowns everything out."<ref>Budnik, Dan, and Ziemba, Joseph A.. Bleeding Skull! A 1980s Trash-Horror Odyssey. United Kingdom, Headpress, 2013.</ref>▼ ▲In 2011, [[ RiffTrax]], consisting of MST3K alumni [[Michael J Nelson]], [[Bill Corbett]] and [[Kevin Murphy (actor)\|Kevin Murphy]] mocked ''Galaxy Invader''.<ref>[http://www.rifftrax.com/ondemand/galaxy-invader "The Galaxy Invader."] ''www.rifftrax.com''. Retrieved: April 20, 2015.</ref> ==Use in other media== ▲In 2012, Bleeding Skull! calls it, "Uneventful, but semi-entertaining." "While the somber mood and deeper themes bode well for "Galaxy Invader", the vacant second half drowns everything out."<ref>Budnik, Dan, and Ziemba, Joseph A.. Bleeding Skull! A 1980s Trash-Horror Odyssey. United Kingdom, Headpress, 2013.</ref> ▲Footage from ~~this~~''Galaxy ~~film~~Invader'' was used without permission in the introductory and ending credits for the [[Film Ventures]] release of the [[Spanish -language~~\|Spanish]]~~ film ''[[~~The~~ Pod People (film)\|Pod People]]'' in 1990,. ~~which~~Said release in turn was featured as an episode of ''[[Mystery Science Theater 3000]]'' the following year.<ref>Morgan, Chris. The Comic Galaxy of Mystery Science Theater 3000: Twelve Classic Episodes and the Movies They Lampoon. United States, McFarland, Incorporated, Publishers, 2015.</ref> ==Notes== In 2013, [[RedLetterMedia]] called ''Galaxy Invader'' "one of our favorite bad movies," praising the film's characters and comparing it favorably to Dohler's earlier film ''[[Nightbeast]]''.<ref>[http://redlettermedia.com/best-of-the-worst-night-beast-trick-or-treat-and-skull-forest/ "Best of the Worst: Night Beast, Trick or Treat, and Skull Forest."] ''www.redlettermedia.com''. Retrieved: January 6, 2016.</ref> {{Notelist}} The film received an audience score of 1/5 stars on [[Fandango.com]].<ref>{{cite web \|title=The Galaxy Invader\|url=https://www.fandango.com/the-galaxy-invader-213366/movie-overview \|website=fandango.com \|publisher=fandango.com \|accessdate=27 April 2020}}</ref> ==References== Line 80 ⟶ 90: ==External links== * {{IMDb title\|id=0089185\|title=The Galaxy Invader}} {{Films directed by Don Dohler}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Galaxy Invader, The}} [[Category:1985 films]] [[Category:~~Alien~~Films ~~visitations~~set in ~~films~~Baltimore]]▼ [[Category:Films shot in Baltimore]] [[Category:~~Films~~1985 ~~shot~~science infiction ~~Maryland~~films]] [[Category:~~1980s~~Films ~~science~~about ~~fiction~~alien ~~films~~visitations]] ▲[[Category:Alien visitations in films]] [[Category:Direct-to-video science fiction films]] [[Category:American science fiction films]] [[Category:American exploitation films]] [[Category:1980s English-language films]] [[Category:Films directed by Don Dohler]] [[Category:1980s American films]] [[Category:English-language science fiction films]] [[Category:American chase films]]