''Black Scorpion'' is a 1995 American
superhero comedy film
A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the ol ...
directed by Jonathan Winfrey and starring
Joan Severance
Joan Marie Severance (December 23, 1958) is an American actress and former fashion model.
Early life
Severance was born in Houston, Texas, the daughter of Martha and John C. Severance. Her father was an IBM systems manager who had to move freq ...
as the eponymous costumed crime fighter.
Roger Corman
Roger William Corman (born April 5, 1926) is an American film director, producer, and actor. He has been called "The Pope of Pop Cinema" and is known as a trailblazer in the world of independent film. Many of Corman's films are based on works t ...
was the executive producer, and it was originally released on the
Showtime
Showtime or Show Time may refer to:
Film
* ''Showtime'' (film), a 2002 American action/comedy film
* ''Showtime'' (video), a 1995 live concert video by Blur
Television Networks and channels
* Showtime Networks, a division of Paramount Global w ...
cable network
Networking cables are networking hardware used to connect one network device to other network devices or to connect two or more computers to share devices such as printers or scanners. Different types of network cables, such as coaxial cable, op ...
as part of the ''
Roger Corman Presents'' series.
The film concerns the
comic book
A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...
-style adventures of Darcy Walker, a police detective whose secret identity is the Black Scorpion, a
superhero vigilante for justice. While the movie doesn't explicitly spell out whether she has any special powers or not, it is shown in multiple scenes, through use of an electrical charge, that she is being enhanced by the scorpion ring she wears, a gift from her late father. Like
Batman, she fights evildoers with a combination of martial arts, great agility and strength, and many technological devices, including a high-powered, specially equipped car. Also like the ''
Batman'' TV series of the 1960s, ''Black Scorpion'' is a work of
camp
Camp may refer to:
Outdoor accommodation and recreation
* Campsite or campground, a recreational outdoor sleeping and eating site
* a temporary settlement for nomads
* Camp, a term used in New England, Northern Ontario and New Brunswick to descri ...
, using deliberately exaggerated and unrealistic characters and events to comic effect.
''Black Scorpion'' was followed by a 1997 sequel, ''
Black Scorpion II: Aftershock''. In 2001, the
Sci-Fi Channel
Syfy (formerly Sci-Fi Channel, later shortened to Sci Fi; stylized as SYFY) is an American basic cable channel owned by the NBCUniversal Television and Streaming division of Comcast's NBCUniversal through NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment. ...
aired a ''
Black Scorpion'' TV series that starred
Michelle Lintel
Michelle Lintel (born August 14, 1969) is an American actress and martial artist known for playing the lead role in the 2001 television series ''Black Scorpion'' -
Filmography
* 1999 ''On Common Ground''
* 1999 '' Diagnosis: Murder'' - "Blood Ti ...
in the title role.
''Black Scorpion'' was turned into a comic-book series, published digitally by
Devil's Due Digital. There was also a one-off
Legend of Isis / Black Scorpion comic published by
Bluewater Productions.
Premise
Darcy Walker, a police detective, becomes the Black Scorpion, a costumed crime fighter, after her father is murdered. She does not reveal her secret identity to her partner Michael Russo. She is aided by Argyle, a technology expert and former car thief.
Cast
*
Joan Severance
Joan Marie Severance (December 23, 1958) is an American actress and former fashion model.
Early life
Severance was born in Houston, Texas, the daughter of Martha and John C. Severance. Her father was an IBM systems manager who had to move freq ...
as Darcy Walker, the Black Scorpion
*
Bruce Abbott
Bruce Paul Abbott (born July 28, 1954) is an American film, stage, and television actor. Originally beginning his career in theater, Abbott later gained notoriety for his role as Dan Cain in the cult sci-fi horror films ''Re-Animator'' (1985) and ...
as Michael Russo
*
Garrett Morris
Garrett Isaac Morris (born February 1, 1937) is an American actor, comedian and singer. He was part of the original cast of the sketch comedy program ''Saturday Night Live'', appearing from 1975 to 1980, and played Jimmy on ''The Jeffersons'' ...
as Argyle
*
Rick Rossovich
Frederic Enrico Rossovich (born August 28, 1957) is an American actor. Rossovich began acting in the early 1980s, first gaining recognition for portraying Ron "Slider" Kerner in the 1986 film ''Top Gun''. Rossovich's other movies include the thri ...
as Stan Walker
*
Stephen Lee as Captain Strickland
*
Terri J. Vaughn as Tender Lovin'
*
Michael Wiseman as Hacksaw
*
Brad Tatum as Razor
* Steven Kravitz as Slugger
*
Darryl M. Bell as E-Z Street
*
Casey Siemaszko
Kazimierz Andrew "Casey" Siemaszko (; born March 17, 1961) is an American actor.
Personal life
Siemaszko was born in Chicago and grew up on the city's northwest side. He attended Saint Ignatius College Preparatory School and graduated from the ...
as Dr. Goddard
* John Sanderford as Aldridge
* Matt Roe as Mayor Artie Worth
* Shane Powers as Specs (Cop #2)
Production
The film was based on an original idea by Corman, which he developed with writer Craig Nevius. "I wanted to do a female Superman-Spiderman-Batman," said Corman.
Roger Corman said he wanted an unknown to play the lead.
My demands were -- I felt -- not difficult in Hollywood. I wanted an actress who was beautiful and had a great figure. Because we economized on the amount of cloth we used in the costume... I wanted a tall actress. She does a lot of martial arts. I couldn't have a 5-foot-1 actress beating up all these big guys. So I wanted a tall, beautiful woman with a good figure, who was a good actress, but I wasn't looking for Meryl Streep, just a good actress. I figured this would be pretty easy in Hollywood. It turned out to be incredibly difficult. I've never seen so many beautiful bad actresses in my life.
Critical reception
''
TV Guide
TV Guide is an American digital media company that provides television program listings information as well as entertainment and television-related news.
The company sold its print magazine division, TV Guide Magazine LLC, in 2008.
Corpora ...
'' said, "The heroine of this 1995 ''Roger Corman Presents'' Showtime movie – the direct-to-video goddess Joan Severance – wears a black bustier, spike-heel thigh-high boots, a mask, and practically nothing else. This could very well have been the entire pitch that got this movie made. If that is all you're looking for, then ''Black Scorpion'' more than delivers.... The mood of the film swerves from straight-forward police noir themes to cartoony superhero action. Given the hackneyed dialogue, and Severance's wooden delivery of it, the best thing about this film just might be its beautifully haunting theme music."
In ''
DVD Talk
DVD Talk is a home video news and review website launched in 1999 by Geoffrey Kleinman.
History
Kleinman founded the site in January 1999 in Beaverton, Oregon. Besides news and reviews, it features information on hidden DVD features known as ...
'', Scott Weinberg wrote, "''Black Scorpion'' is a scrappy, silly, low-budget ''Batman Returns'' rip-off that freely admits that it's a scrappy, silly, rip-off. That alone doesn't make it a good expenditure of one's time, but it's nice to see a campy little schlock-fest that at least respects the movies it's stealing from.... For what it is, which is a downright ridiculous take on the super-hero schpiel, ''Black Scorpion'' is actually pretty entertaining. And for all its broad (and periodically inane) silliness, it's a B-flick that delivers what it promises, with a whole lotta Severance on the side."
In ''Cinema on the Rocks'', Ziggy Berkeley said, "What's not a distraction, amazingly enough, is the script. As it turns out, it's not just the fact that ''Black Scorpion'' is a comic-book heroine movie that makes it easy to ignore the plot holes and improbabilities. It's also that the rest of the story is so solid. Lines like the above-noted science problem are actually self-aware; generally, the dialogue's great, even sharp. The humor/drama train is ridden with wonderful precision. The pace is perfect. Bottom line, ''Black Scorpion'' is fun. But it's not just fun; it's well-crafted fun. Pick it up. You won't be sorry."
In ''Cinema Crazed'', Felix Vasquez wrote, "While no one will ever claim ''Black Scorpion'' is a masterpiece of contemporary action film-making, it sure is a lot of fun and has that fun at the charge of Joan Severance, who is leggy, busty, and absolutely enticing when dressed as her rogue character.... ''Black Scorpion'' is admittedly a cheesy and absolutely campy hero origin tale that takes advantage of the C grade special effects and acting from the cast and delivers a romp that is something quite satisfying to sit through and never goes too over the top."
Sequel
*
Black Scorpion II
''Black Scorpion II: Aftershock'', also known as ''Black Scorpion II: Ground Zero'', is a 1997 American superhero comedy television film directed by Jonathan Winfrey, written by Craig J. Nevius, and produced by Roger Corman. It is the sequel to ...
, also known as Black Scorpion II: Aftershock and Black Scorpion II: Ground Zero was released in 1997.
*
Black Scorpion (TV series)
''Black Scorpion'' is a superhero TV series that aired on the Sci-Fi Channel in 2001. It aired in Canada on Space. The series is based on two Roger Corman Showtime TV-movies: ''Black Scorpion'' (1995) and its sequel '' Black Scorpion II: Afters ...
aired for one season in 2001
References
External links
*
*{{Amg title, 154472, Black Scorpion
''Black Scorpion''comic book from Devil's Due Digital.
''Black Scorpion''at Letterbox DVD
1995 television films
1995 films
1995 action comedy films
1990s American films
1990s English-language films
1990s superhero comedy films
1990s vigilante films
Action television films
American comedy television films
American superhero comedy films
American vigilante films
Films directed by Jonathan Winfrey
Films scored by Kevin Kiner
Showtime (TV network) films
Superheroine films