Arena | |
---|---|
Directed by | Peter Manoogian |
Written by | |
Produced by | Irwin Yablans |
Starring | |
Cinematography | Mac Ahlberg |
Edited by | Andy Horvitch |
Music by | Richard Band |
Distributed by | Empire Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 97 minutes |
Countries |
|
Language | English |
Arena is a 1989 American science fiction action film directed by Peter Manoogian and starring Paul Satterfield and Claudia Christian. Set in 4038, Satterfield plays Steve Armstrong, the first human in 50 years to compete in the intergalactic boxing sport called simply "The Arena". The film was produced by Irwin Yablans and features original music by Richard Band.
Steve Armstrong works as a short order cook on a space station somewhere in the galaxy. Overwhelmed by the volume of orders, he repeatedly fouls up and soon finds himself in a confrontation with an alien patron named Vang. After a fight which smashes up the diner and leaves the alien injured, Steve and his friend and co-worker Shorty are fired. As it turns out, Vang is an Arena fighter, and his manager Quinn confronts Steve. Amazed that a human could beat one of her best fighters, Quinn offers him a contract, but convinced that humans no longer have a place in the Arena, Steve refuses, intending to make his way back to Earth.
Lacking sufficient money for a ticket, Shorty attempts to raise the cash by gambling in an underground casino. The game is raided by the authorities and in the confusion, Shorty pockets the money. Caught in the act by crime boss and top Arena fight manager Rogor and his enforcer Weezil, Shorty is held for ransom. Steve promises to pay off the debt, so he reluctantly returns to Quinn and agrees to a contract with her, using the money to free Shorty. Remarkably Steve wins his first match with an alien named Sloth in an upset. After seeing Steve's potential, Rogor attempts to contract Steve as his Arena fighter but learns Steve has already signed with Quinn. Steve continues fighting, determined to prove that a human has what it takes to be champion, and soon becomes a top contender.
Rogor becomes worried that his high position in Arena fighting could be jeopardized if Steve wins the championship, so he enlists his consort Jade to seduce Steve and poison him the night before the championship fight with Rogor's top fighter and reigning champion, an alien cyborg named Horn. But medics are able to counteract the poison minutes before the fight, and Steve appears in the Arena surprising Rogor and Jade. Rogor then resorts to Weezil's plan of hacking into the computer controlling the handicap technology used to ensure fair fights. Weezil's accomplice, Skull, successfully interfaces with the computer located in the catwalk high above the Arena and gains control of the handicap, causing Steve to be severely impaired during the second round of the fight with Horn. Shorty quickly suspects foul play and leaves to investigate, finding Weezil and Skull in the computer room. While fighting off Weezil, Shorty damages part of the computer which in turn causes Skull's head to explode. With the handicap computer offline Steve regains his full abilities and ultimately defeats Horn, becoming the first human champion in 50 years.
Lawrence Cohn of Variety called it "an above-average fantasy". [1] Michael Weldon wrote in The Psychotronic Video Guide to Film, "If you liked TV shows like Battlestar Galactica, you might make it through this juvenile, PG-13, science fiction comedy from Charles Band." [2]
Deathlok is the name of several fictional characters appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The first Deathlok, Luther Manning, appeared in Astonishing Tales #25, created by Rich Buckler. At least five subsequent Marvel characters have used the "Deathlok" identity since then: Michael Collins, Jack Truman, Rebecca Ryker, Henry Hayes, and Jemma Simmons. A recurring theme among these characters is that a dead human has been reanimated with cybernetic technology. "Deathlok technology" has also been used thematically by Marvel writers in other stories.
Battle Beyond the Stars is a 1980 American space opera film produced by Roger Corman, directed by Jimmy T. Murakami, and starring Richard Thomas, Robert Vaughn, George Peppard, John Saxon, Sybil Danning and Darlanne Fluegel. Intended as a futuristic "Magnificent Seven in outer space", the screenplay was written by John Sayles with the score by James Horner and special effects designed by filmmaker James Cameron. The film was theatrically released by Corman's New World Pictures and was a moderate box office success, despite receiving mixed reviews from critics.
Gigan is a kaiju from Toho's Godzilla franchise who first appeared in the 1972 film, Godzilla vs. Gigan. Gigan is a giant extraterrestrial space monster, resembling a species of reptile, who was turned into a cyborg by the alien race known as the Nebulans. Gigan sports a huge buzzsaw in its frontal abdominal region, large metallic hooks for hands, and a birdlike beak. Gigan is considered one of Godzilla's most brutal and violent opponents, and the first kaiju in the Toho sci-fi series to make him noticeably bleed. Complex listed the character as No. 2 on its "The 15 Most Badass Kaiju Monsters of All Time" list.
Alien vs. Predator (エイリアンVSプレデター) is a 1994 beat 'em up video game developed and released by Capcom for the CPS-2 arcade game system. It is based on the science fiction franchise of the same name. Introducing an original fighter to the game: Lt. Kurosawa, the players take control of up to three from the selection of four cyborgs and Predator characters in a battle against the Xenomorph hordes and rogue human soldiers.
Steve Austin is a science fiction character created by Martin Caidin for his 1972 novel, Cyborg. The lead character, Colonel Steve Austin, became an iconic 1970s television science fiction action hero, portrayed by American actor Lee Majors, in the American television series The Six Million Dollar Man, which aired on the ABC network for multiple television pilots in 1973, and then as a regular series for five seasons from 1974 to 1978. In the television series, Steve Austin takes on special high-risk government missions using his superhuman bionic powers. The television character Steve Austin became a pop culture icon of the 1970s.
Mother Boxes are fictional devices in Jack Kirby's Fourth World setting in the DC Universe.
Virus is a 1999 American science fiction horror film directed by visual effects artist John Bruno and starring Jamie Lee Curtis, William Baldwin and Donald Sutherland. Based on the comic book of the same name by Chuck Pfarrer, it tells the story of a ship beset by a malevolent extraterrestrial entity that seeks to turn humanity into cyborg slaves.
Alienator is a 1990 science fiction film directed by Fred Olen Ray, produced by Jeffrey C. Hogue, and starring Jan-Michael Vincent.
Star Gladiator - Episode 1: Final Crusade is a 1996 weapon-based 3D fighting game released by Capcom for the PlayStation-based ZN-1 arcade hardware. It was Capcom's first in-house polygonal fighting game. A PlayStation port was released in October 1996. It was followed by a single sequel, Plasma Sword: Nightmare of Bilstein, in 1998.
Face of the Screaming Werewolf is a 1965 horror film directed by a low budget film maker Jerry Warren. The film was created by combining parts of two unrelated Mexican horror films, La Casa del Terror (1960), and La Momia Azteca (1957), with the addition of original footage shot by Warren. It was released on March 3, 1965, on a double-bill with another of Warren's films, Curse of the Stone Hand.
The Predator, also known as Yautja, is the titular extraterrestrial species featured in the Predator and Alien vs. Predator science fiction franchises, characterized by its trophy hunting of other "challenging" species for sport. First introduced in the 1987 film of the same name, the creatures returned in the sequels Predator 2 (1990), Predators (2010) and The Predator (2018), and the prequel Prey (2022), as well as the crossover films Alien vs. Predator (2004) and Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem (2007). In 2023, the species was licensed to Adult Swim to appear officially in the seventh season of the animated series Rick and Morty, introducing the Skin Thieves clan.
Skynet is a fictional artificial neural network-based conscious group mind and artificial general superintelligence system that serves as the main antagonist of the Terminator franchise. Skynet is an AGI, an ASI, and a Singularity.
The Robot vs. the Aztec Mummy is a 1958 Mexican science fiction horror film directed by Rafael Portillo, and starring Ramón Gay and Rosa Arenas. It is the third installment in a trilogy preceded by The Aztec Mummy and The Curse of the Aztec Mummy, and a large portion of the film is an extended recap of the events from the first two entries. The three films were all shot consecutively.
The Abe Ani Combat Club is a mixed martial arts gym and training camp located in Japan. The gym is renowned mostly for its female stable of fighters who were regular competitors in the Smackgirl promotion. On its roster are prominent MMA stars such as Megumi “Mega Megu” Fujii and Hitomi Akano. Owner and head coach Hiroyuki Abe teaches mixed martial arts and former UFC Heavyweight Champion Josh Barnett is a catch wrestling coach for the gym.
Independence Day is a franchise of American science fiction action films that started with Independence Day in 1996, which was followed by the sequel, Independence Day: Resurgence in 2016. The franchise revolves around extraterrestrials invading Earth and seeking to eradicate mankind while the remaining human resistance uses everything at their disposal to defeat the invaders and take back the planet. Now considered to be a significant turning point in the history of the Hollywood blockbuster, the original film was released worldwide on July 3, 1996, but began showing on July 2 on limited release as a result of a high level of anticipation among moviegoers. The film grossed over $817.4 million worldwide, becoming the highest-grossing film of 1996 and, briefly, the second-highest-grossing film worldwide of all time behind 1993's Jurassic Park. Currently, it ranks 69th on the list of highest-grossing films, and was at the forefront of the large-scale disaster film and sci-fi resurgence of the mid-late 1990s. The film won the Academy Award for Best Visual Effects and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Sound Mixing.
Mind Twister is a 1994 American erotic thriller film directed by Fred Olen Ray, written by Mark Thomas McGee, and produced by Luigi Cingolani and Smart Egg Pictures.
UFC 222: Cyborg vs. Kunitskaya was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that was held on March 3, 2018, at the T-Mobile Arena in Paradise, Nevada, part of the Las Vegas metropolitan area.