NEXT SPACE REBELS TOILET MOVIE

But when Nabel’s invention of deadly cyborg warriors proved too effective in Saggs’s plan for universal domination, the scientist seemingly paid the price with his life. In another life, the fearsome space pirate was known as Nabel, the Chief Scientist of intergalactic industrialist and now President of Earth, E.J. Needless to say, it isn’t long before our heroes are captured by the crew of the pirate ship Regalia, commanded by the hideously mutilated Captain Macanudo (Charles Dance) and his loyal second, Mr Cutt ( Commando‘s Vernon Wells). With the police in pursuit, Canyon takes his rig into a no-go area known as the ‘scum zone’, a region of outer space controlled by space pirates.

Knowing they need a way out and fast, Canyon agrees to take a cargo of sex dolls to Earth, no questions asked, with Cindy and Mike along for the ride. A brawl ensues in which a gun is fired, shattering the window of the diner and sucking Keller, arse-first, out among the stars. Whilst this somewhat iffy domestic deal is settled, Keller decides to welch on his deal with Canyon and gives up and coming trucker Mike (Stephen Dorff) the veteran’s rig and cargo. Canyon, who has always held a torch for the young woman, promises her he will take her to Earth, providing she marries him. Arriving at his ‘truck stop’, Canyon reunites with diner waitress Cindy (Debi Mazar) who explains that she needs to visit Earth in order to see her sick mother. The part, portraying one of a dying breed of independent hauliers transporting cargo such as ‘square pigs’ – an incredible feat of animatronic design that will make you think twice about having a square sausage as part of your fry up – for InterPork and its obnoxious head Keller ( Cheers‘ George Wendt), afforded Hopper the rare opportunity to play a good guy at this stage in his career and he seizes it with both hands.

NEXT SPACE REBELS TOILET MOVIE

In Mann’s own words, he wanted to make a science fiction movie with “no scientists, no techies, none of the unusual polished, sanitary environments we’re used to in our space films”, arguing that “Space is like anywhere else – the people who are there are underpaid and poorly regarded.” This mix of the recognisably ordinary with the fantastical is nicely blended in the use of the eponymous space truckers as the film’s main premise, with Gordon and Mann swapping the mythic notion of the open road for outer space.įormer Easy Rider Dennis Hopper, bringing the jaded weight of such cultural baggage to bear, takes the lead here veteran space trucker John Canyon. Both men had a particularly niche interest in sci-fi not for them the stories of evil empires and plucky rebels, taking their cue perhaps from the Yaphet Kotto and Harry Dean Stanton characters in Ridley Scott’s Alien, they found that they had a desire to tell a story set in space from the perspective of blue collar workers. But today, I’m here to commemorate the anniversary of a film so 1996 that it ends with one-hit-wonder/infernal techno hoe down earworm Cotton Eye Joe playing over the closing credits. I don’t think it fared much better here in the UK either, as I feel sure I saw it around 1996 or ’97 on Sky Movies. Stuart Gordon’s 1996 comic sci-fi adventure starring Dennis Hopper, Stephen Dorff, Debi Mazar and Charles Dance suffered the ignominy of gaining a straight-to-cable release in its native USA, making its debut on HBO that year instead. This year marks the twenty-fifth anniversary of Space Truckers, though you perhaps wouldn’t know it.

❉ Mark Cunliffe revisits the gaudy, camp and tongue-in-cheek B movie released 25 years ago.

Next space rebels toilet