SATURN 3 (1980)
Article 4500 by Dave Sindelar
Date: 4-10-2014
Directed by Stanley Donen and John Barry
Featuring Farrah Fawcett, Kirk Douglas, Harvey Keitel
Country: UK
What it is: Sci-Fi thriller

Two scientists researching hydroponics in the asteroid fields around Saturn are visited by a disturbed technician who builds them a robot to help them. However, the robot is programmed from direct input from the technician’s mind, and his lust for the female scientist is transferred to the robot, which then threatens everyone.

Well, it looks nice visually, I’ll give you that. But that’s about it for what I can say nice about this one. From what I gather, the movie had a very troubled production history (including the replacement of the director in mid-production and a sudden cut in the budget), and this, coupled with the fact that the story wasn’t all that good to begin with, seems to have really damaged the movie. Even the acting is weak; I expected very little from Farrah Fawcett in the first place (and that’s what I got), Harvey Keitel sounds stiff and weird (and that may not be his fault, as I hear that he was redubbed by another actor), and Kirk Douglas seems more interested in showing us what good shape he was in at 64. It’s one of those rare movies where I find myself not caring or feeling a thing about anything that happens in the movie or anyone in it, and for a movie that seems mostly interested in tapping into the same dread of ALIEN, that’s not a good thing. All it really leaves behind is a messy, confused vibe. This one is not recommended.