''Ravager'' is a 1997
horror
Horror may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
Genres
*Horror fiction, a genre of fiction
** Japanese horror, Japanese horror fiction
**Korean horror, Korean horror fiction
* Horror film, a film genre
*Horror comics, comic books focusing o ...
/
science fiction
Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...
film
A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...
written and directed by James D. Deck and starring
Bruce Payne,
Yancy Butler,
Juliet Landau and
Robin Sachs
Robin Sachs (5 February 1951 – 1 February 2013) was an English actor, active in the theatre, television and films. He was also known for his voice-over work in films and video games.
Born to a theatrical family, Sachs studied at the Royal Acad ...
.
Plot
There was no way for Avedon Hammond (
Yancy Butler) to foresee the impending crisis. As command pilot of the I/P/T transport ship Armstrong, a space-weary NASA discard now used routinely in sub-orbital transport runs, the attractive, highly proficient pilot has her hands full. Upon entering the ship to prepare for liftoff, she's chagrined to find that her flight has been reassigned to another command pilot, Cooper Wayne (
Bruce Payne), a daredevil she knows all too well—as an ex-lover from whom she just had to walk away. Avedon is further annoyed to find that the flight is another "mystery run," no paperwork, no flight plan, and a handful of passengers on what should be a cargo carrier.
The eclectic riffraff of passengers includes Lazarus (Salvator Xuereb), a two-bit hustler; Dr. Shephard (
Robin Sachs
Robin Sachs (5 February 1951 – 1 February 2013) was an English actor, active in the theatre, television and films. He was also known for his voice-over work in films and video games.
Born to a theatrical family, Sachs studied at the Royal Acad ...
), a skilled former micro-surgeon now addicted to his own self-prescribed medications; Cade (David Stratton), an edgy young man obsessed with finding the wife who deserted him; and Sarra (
Juliet Landau), a flawlessly beautiful young woman with a mysterious past. About the only "stand-up guy" aboard is chief engineer Mick 'Clean' McClean (
Stanley Kamel
Stanley Kamel (January 1, 1943 – April 8, 2008) was an American actor, best known for his role as Dr. Charles Kroger on the American television series ''Monk''.
Biography
Kamel was born to a Jewish family and raised in South River, New Jerse ...
), a technical genius who's called upon regularly to repair just about every system on board the tired ship.
After takeoff, two booster rockets become obstructed and the Avedon is forced to crash land in a desolate, uncharted region of the South Asian desert wracked by seismic tremors. While trying to recover tridymite to fabricate new flight data circuit boards, the crew stumbles upon an underground military depository for advanced biological weapons. One of the passengers gets infected by the weapons and turns into a zombie with murderous proclivities. Avedon and Cooper attempt to protect the other passengers and get the plane repaired and to safety as soon as is possible.
Cast
*
Bruce Payne as Cooper Wayne
*
Yancy Butler as Avedon Hammond
*
Juliet Landau as Sarra
*
Stanley Kamel
Stanley Kamel (January 1, 1943 – April 8, 2008) was an American actor, best known for his role as Dr. Charles Kroger on the American television series ''Monk''.
Biography
Kamel was born to a Jewish family and raised in South River, New Jerse ...
as Clean
*
Robin Sachs
Robin Sachs (5 February 1951 – 1 February 2013) was an English actor, active in the theatre, television and films. He was also known for his voice-over work in films and video games.
Born to a theatrical family, Sachs studied at the Royal Acad ...
as Dr. Shepard
*Salvator Xuereb as Lazarus
*
Stuart Cornfeld
Stuart Cornfeld (November 13, 1952 – June 26, 2020) was an American film producer. He was business partners with Ben Stiller in the company Red Hour Productions.
Biography
Cornfeld was born in Los Angeles, California. He attended the Universi ...
as Doctor
*Momo Yashima as Nurse
*
Diane Pershing
Diane Pershing (born May 27, 1943) is an American voice actress. She began her singing career as a back-up singer for Johnny Mathis and went on to appear in the show group, The Establishment, on tour and on TV. She also voiced Poison Ivy in th ...
as Des (voice)
Reception
The ''
Radio Times
''Radio Times'' (currently styled as ''RadioTimes'') is a British weekly listings magazine devoted to television and radio programme schedules, with other features such as interviews, film reviews and lifestyle items. Founded in May 1923 by J ...
'' described the film as
Outbreak'' meets ''
Alien
Alien primarily refers to:
* Alien (law), a person in a country who is not a national of that country
** Enemy alien, the above in times of war
* Extraterrestrial life, life which does not originate from Earth
** Specifically, intelligent extrater ...
'' and stated that it was 'a competently made and acted science-fiction thriller'. John Stanley stated that the interactions between Butler's character and Payne's and Landau's characters "provide more substance than usual". Tim Gross described the film as a 'fun mid 90s low budget sci-fi flick'. In contrast, Fraser Sherman described the film as 'boring'.
References
External links
* {{IMDb title, 0119984, Ravager
1997 films
1997 horror films
1990s English-language films