A teenager stumbles upon an alien weapon, which transforms him into a grotesque killer.
"BILLY WAS A KID WHO GOT PUSHED AROUND... THEN HE FOUND THE POWER."
Cult film night BAR TRASH continues with its 11th sensational season — SYNTHETIC FLESH! — a tribute to more than 100 years of monster makeup FX.
Crawling up from the primordial ooze of legendary B-movie studio Full Moon comes LASERBLAST (1978). Happy go-lucky teen Billy Duncan (Kim Milford) discovers an otherworldly laser gun in the southern California desert, making him the target of a pair of aliens (rendered in gorgeous stop-motion by the late/great David Allen — THE HOWLING, DOLLS) who had recently executed its previous owner. As Billy revels in the power of the weapon, defending his girlfriend and warding off bullies, he begins to change into a dangerous, malevolent monster…
With appearances by the iconic Roddy McDowall (PLANET OF THE APES) and Keenan Wynn (KISS ME KATE), LASERBLAST sees the first on-screen appearance by quintessential screen nerd, Eddie Deezen (GREASE) and is an early career credit for legendary special makeup effects artist, Ve Neill. This is the kind of rarely-screened B-movie mayhem BAR TRASH was built for.
Featured special makeup effects artist: Ve Neill has won three Academy Awards (for BEETLEJUICE, MRS DOUBTFIRE, and ED WOOD), a Daytime Emmy Award for PEE-WEE’S PLAYHOUSE, worked on all of the PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN films, and served as a judge on the makeup FX reality series, FACE OFF.
Polite notice: We are projecting LASERBLAST without subtitles from the best available digital source.
/// BAR TRASH is a celebration of cult and curious cinema, hosted by queer film fanatic Token Homo and friends. Films are served with themed drinks, introductions, intermissions, prize giveaways, and subtitles / captions where possible. Tickets from £3.50. Adults 18+ only. Follow @tokenhomo or visit tokenhomo.com for all the gory details ///
Programme supported by Film Hub London, managed by Film London. Proud to be a partner of the BFI Film Audience Network, funded by the National Lottery. www.filmlondon.org.uk/film-hub-london
