Of Drew Dietsch
| Published
Star Wars is arguably the most influential film ever made. The space fantasy epic became the biggest film in cinema history and changed the entire landscape of the film industry.
Of course, this led to many attempts to capitalize on George Lucas’ sci-fi fantasy success. While some of these films are better left in the past, there are actually a number of films that stand the test of time and provide more than their fair share of entertainment.
My name is Drew Dietsch and these are Star Wars ripoffs that are actually worth watching.
Starcrash (1978)
Leave it to the world’s greatest film culture, the Italians, to get theirs Star Wars cash-in out at the cinema less than a year later Star Wars premiered. I love the Italians so much, very much. And this spaghetti space lark from the beautiful boot is a B-movie blast.
Directed and co-written by infamous Italian genre Luigi Cozzi, Star crash is a whirlwind of low-budget joy, from the flamboyant costumes to the cheesy but charming effects, Starcrash revels in its theatrical silliness in such a good-hearted way that you can’t help but get a laugh out of it.
And if you want some extra laughs Star crashcan you watch Mystery Science Theater 3000 episode from the reboot series, it’s not bad, but it’s worth watching Star crashs willful silliness on his own.
The Black Hole (1979)
Although we now know Disney as overlords of all entertainment, the Mouse House actually found themselves in some dire financial straits in the 70s and 80s. So much so that even Mickey had to get in on it Star Wars ripoff game, but the movie Disney made was more like it Event horizon of adventure films for families.
The black hole sees the crew of an exploratory spaceship come across the expected black hole and discover a famous lost ship with a single survivor, Dr. Hans Reinhardt, a brilliant scientist who has built an army of terrifying robots. Reinhardt, played with perfect style by Maximilian Schell, plans to pilot the ship into the black hole and when the film delivers on that promise, you’re treated to a psychedelic nightmare unlike anything you’d ever expect from the studio that brought you At home on the Range.
You’ll get some tonal whiplash between the robot pals and the cold-blooded death of Anthony Perkins, though The black hole is such an oddity that everyone should give it a shot.
Battle Beyond the Stars (1980)
Roger Corman got plenty of mileage from ripping off blockbusters like Foreign and Star Wars was no different. Battle Beyond the Stars takes the classic story concept from Akira Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai and takes it to the stars. I’m sorry, beyond the stars.
What sets Battle Beyond the Stars apart from others Star Wars ripoffs, the talent is gathered both in front of the camera but above all behind it. The cast includes many actor favorites – pick your favorite! Mine’s John Saxon – but the screenplay is from acclaimed screenwriter John Sayles, the score is by sci-fi icon James Horner, and James Cameron worked on production design and special effects. This is truly a cavalcade of young and creative talent that gets to sharpen up.
It’s rare that a Roger Corman-produced picture doesn’t entertain on some level, though Battle Beyond the Stars is easily one of his must-see films.
The Man Who Saved the World (1982)
Known for years as Turkish Star Wars in fan circles, The man who saved the world is known to be a literal ripoff of Star Wars because it contains actual footage from the original 1977 film! That bonkers factoid would do The man who saved the world a decent bit of movie trivia, but the actual movie is even creepier.
Two space fighter pilots crash land on a desert planet and must battle an evil spiky wizard and his minions while music from Star Wars AND Indiana Jones playing! How they got away with this is one of the pleasures of international film history.
The man who saved the world is better seen than discussed, and if you thought Starcrash was low budget, this is underground budget but so cheap that it’s more entertaining than most mega budget movies.
Curl (1983)
Now here’s a fascinating one. Fixed Curl does not use the science fiction accessories Star Wars Like all our previous films, it still uses the heroic fantasy template that George Lucas made so popular, and it really tries to be an impact presentation.
But, the real one Star Wars comparison for Curl comes up with the idea of the iconic weapon. Star Wars had the lightsaber and Curl had Glaive. If nothing else, Krull managed to manifest a memorable fantasy weapon.
Although it was a box office and critical flop, Curl has built a healthy cult following over the decades. I’m telling you, it’s that Glaive.
Yor, the hunter from the future (1983)
Okay, I promise this is our last true B-movie but it’s possibly my favorite of them all. Based on an Argentinian comic strip that actually preceded it Star Wars, Yor, hunter from the future is another Italian schlockfest that looks to be another throwback caveman bargain – and a really fun one at that! – but it reveals one sci-fi apocalyptic twist and things only get sillier from there.
The big one Star Wars ripoff elements Yor really takes is for the villain, The Overlord. He and his android army really have that Italian knockoff style that we saw in Starcrash. The fact that both Yor‘s Overlord and Return of the Jedi‘s Emperor was in theaters the same year should tell you exactly what they did.
In all seriousness, Yor has plenty of dunderheaded fun for everyone with what Joe Bob Briggs would call the spirit of the drive-in. If I can’t enjoy the scene where Yor uses a dead flying dinosaur as a hang glider, I know I’m done with this world.
And that “Yor’s World” song? He IS the man.
The Last Starfighter (1984)
Star Wars took a classic idea – a young hero ventures into a fantastical world in the midst of war – and gave it a genre spin with special effects that audiences had never seen before. The Last Starfighter took the same simple structure and brought it into the present.
Imagine playing a video game so well that it turned out to be a recruiting tool for space pilots in an intergalactic conflict. That’s the idea behind it The Last Starfighterand it really sells the thrill of that youthful fantasy being brought to life. And the film is worth it just for Dan O’Herlihy as Navigator Grig. You gotta love Grig.
It might not be the most cerebral movie but The Last Starfighter is still an adventure worth discovering.
Masters of the Universe (1987)
Ten years later Star Wars on the big screen, legendary 80s exploitation studio Cannon Films tried their best to create their own sci-fi/fantasy pop culture hit with an adaptation of Master of the Universea toy line and cartoon that had been a huge success in the mid-80s.
Look, I’m just going to be straight with you: Master of the Universe isn’t a great movie, it might not even be great but it has another great Emperor Palpatine riff with Frank Langella’s bumbling but devoted take on the evil Skeletor. Honestly (see what I did there?), he’s worth the full price of admission.
Even bad movies have their bright spots, and Master of the Universe is not without some shining stupidity.
Flash Gordon (1980)
The last entry in our list of Star Wars ripoffs bring the whole concept full circle as Star Wars was directly inspired by the original Flash Gordon film series from the 1930s and 40s. So when Star Wars was a smash, we got a new one Flash Gordon big film production.
Alas, the more retro cartoon tone and style Flash Gordon came across as corny and campy to critics at the time. Compared to Star Warsit felt too old fashioned. Thankfully, time has been extremely kind to the film’s wonderful production and magical joy. In many ways, Flash Gordon may have started as a ripoff but has cemented itself as its own colorful sci-fi delight for fans of multiple generations.
And you know we love that Queen song.
Are there others Star Wars ripoffs you think we need to see? Leave your recommendations in the comments! Be sure to subscribe to ours YouTube channel to get more compilations just like this one.
