Reviews

Space Truckers is too vulgar and raunchy for the art house crowd, too clever for the great unwashed, and too silly for anyone expecting to be convinced that they're watching "real" science. The lines are deliberately dorky, the special effects entirely unconvincing (who cares?), and the movie adds up to complete absurdity. I've seen it more than once, and it gets funnier every time. For people who complain that Dennis Hopper must have been really hard up to have agreed to do it, what about Charles Dance, a superb actor (Mr. Tulkinghorn in the new PBS "Bleak House")? They seemed to get the jokes, played it with zest, and managed to make it fly. I thought it was hysterically funny.

It's hard to rate this movie because it had such a terrific cast. The script was dreadful, stupid, silly. You shouldn't actually have to lose a husband to see the absolute falseness of the script. But to cast these great actresses in that story and require that they say those lines was an appalling waste. It is a tribute to their skill that the movie was even possible to watch at all. They did the best they could, but I found it painful to watch, not because I found the story touching but because it was so embarrassingly shallow. You can be sad and funny without being trivial. There are plenty of movies out there to prove it.

Spy movies are usually exciting, but everything about this production is solid pleasure. Acting, direction, photography, script -- all add up to hours of thrilling action. There are characterizations that stick in the mind for years. Bernard Hepton as "Toby Esterhase" is as good as it gets anywhere. His scenes with Guinness couldn't be better -- Hepton has subtlety, charm, and is often very funny. He moves like a dancer, speaks with a "Hungarian" accent that makes his scenes fly in the most transcendental sense. Everyone is terrific, but as you may have guessed, Toby is my favorite character.

Occasionally a jump cut may cause a little confusion, but not for long. All the elements of the story are orchestrated like a ballet. I can't imagine anyone not loving this movie.