DARK STAR / Bryanston Pictures, Jack H. Harris Enterprises, University of Southern California - 1974

It's time for a visit to this wild little flick directed by John Carpenter in his first full length feature. Before that, John wrote and directed these short movies from 1962-9... REVENGE OF THE COLOSSAL BEAST, TERROR FROM SPACE, WARRIOR AND THE DEMON, SORCEROR FROM OUTER SPACE, GORGO VERSES GODZILLA and GORGON, THE SPACE MONSTER! DARK STAR is about four astronauts in deep space whose mission is to destroy unstable planets in star systems. As their mission draws to completion, they have to cope with a runaway alien, a faulty computer system and a smart bomb that thinks it's God!

I have a wacky sound clip for your approval, sooooo, you can push the big red 'GO' button located there by our exploded world globe, NOW, Ralphie The Tarantula!.. Here's a sample from... DARK STAR!

John Carpenter composed the music for 37 productions, including this one!

After Dark Star blows that planet up, they get the computer readout, mission accomplished!

Here's crewman Pinback trying to get in some tanning time when Boiler comes through, he wants to practice shooting his laser rifle! Pinback is played by Dan O'Bannon. If you know nothing about this guy, well, he went on to write ALIEN, DEAD AND BURIED, BLUE THUNDER, THE RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD, LIFEFORCE, INVADERS FROM MARS, SCREAMERS and many more. And, he was also director of possibly the best zombie flick ever and a personal favorite, THE RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD... This guy is awesome!

Pinback has to go tend the weird space aliens they have captured while on their mission.

Wouldn't you know it, the beach ball alien gives him a hard time and makes Pinback's life miserable by attacking him and pushing him into deadly situations!

Even though Pinback finds a way back to safety, the damn opening is too freaking small!

Planet Bomb #20 is stuck and will not drop, oops... Now what?!

Well, FLIP OUT!!.. That's a good place start...

Doolittle goes out to talk to the bomb, you know, to try and use logic to get it to abort the countdown. Alas, all it can do is reduce the explosion to a mile in diameter!

Everyone gets into their spacesuits and quickly exit the ship, trying to get to a safe distance from the explosion. After the detonation, parts of the ship surround the area.

Since you're going to die in space anyway, you might as well grab a piece of flat metal and surf your way to oblivion!! See us again Wednesday for another piece of our giant movie review puzzle...