Contamination (1980)

Director:

Luigi Cozzi

Writers:

Luigi Cozzi (screenplay) &
Erich Tomek (screenplay) ...
(more)

Release Date:

June 1982 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

They Invade Your Body ... Control Your Mind ... Blow You Apart!

Plot:

A former astronaut helps a government agent and a police detective track the source of mysterious alien pod spores, filled with lethal flesh-dissolving acid, to a South American coffee plantation controlled by alien pod clones.

Plot Keywords:

Egg | Astronaut | Acid | Alien Pod | Alien

Cast

Ian McCulloch	...	Cmdr. Ian Hubbard
Louise Marleau	...	Col. Stella Holmes
Marino Masé	...	NYPD Lt. Tony Aris
Siegfried Rauch	...	Hamilton
Gisela Hahn	...	Perla de la Cruz
Carlo De Mejo	...	Agent Young
Carlo Monni	...	Dr. Turner
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Nick Alexander	...	Harbor Authority (voice: English version) (uncredited)
Larry Dolgin	...	Lt. Tony Aris - NYPD (voice: English version) (uncredited)
Edward Mannix	...	Dr. Turner (voice: English version) (uncredited)
Mike Morris	...	Dr. Hilton (uncredited)
Angelo Ragusa	...	Warehouse Man (uncredited)
Martin Sorrentino	...	Black Warehouse Worker (uncredited)
Susan Spafford	...	Col. Stella Holmes (voice: English version) (uncredited)
Brigitte Wagner	...	Doctor (uncredited)

Directed by
Luigi Cozzi		(as Lewis Coates)

Writing credits
Luigi Cozzi		(screenplay) (as Lewis Coates) &
Erich Tomek		(screenplay)
Luigi Cozzi		(story) (as Lewis Coates)

Produced by
Claudio Mancini	....	producer
Ugo Valenti	....	associate producer

Original Music by
Goblin
Agostino Marangolo		(as Goblin)
Antonio Marangolo		(as Goblin)
Fabio Pignatelli		(as Goblin)

Cinematography by
Giuseppe Pinori

Film Editing by
Nino Baragli

Production Design by
Massimo Antonello Geleng		(as M. Antonello Geleng)

Costume Design by
Tiziana Mancini

Makeup Department
Corrado Cristofori	....	hair stylist
Pierantonio Mecacci	....	makeup artist
Mario Michisanti	....	assistant makeup artist

Production Management
Walter Siffert	....	unit production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Franco Coduti	....	assistant director

Art Department
Giacomo Calò Carducci	....	set dresser
Georgio Ferrari	....	constructor: alien cyclops (as Giorgio Ferrari)
Gianni Fiumi	....	property master
Claudio Mazzoli	....	design: alien cyclops

Sound Department
Luciano Anzellotti	....	sound effects
Massimo Anzellotti	....	sound effects
Romano Checcacci	....	re-recording engineer
Gaetano Testa	....	sound recordist
Giuseppe Testa	....	boom operator

Special Effects by
Giovanni Corridori	....	special effects
Valerio Mazzoli	....	special effects (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Adolfo Bartoli	....	assistant camera
Augusto Diamanti	....	key grip
Romano Mancini	....	gaffer
Carlo Tafani	....	camera operator

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Orsola Liberati	....	seamstress

Editorial Department
Angela Bordi	....	first assistant editor
Gisela Haller	....	assistant editor
Olga Sarra	....	second assistant editor

Music Department
Maurizio Guarini	....	musician: keyboards (as Goblin)
Agostino Marangolo	....	musician (as Goblin)
Antonio Marangolo	....	musician: saxophone (as Goblin)
Fabio Pignatelli	....	musician (as Goblin)
Roberto Puleo	....	musician: guitars (as Goblin)

Other crew
Nick Alexander	....	dubbing director
Tullio Lullo	....	production assistant
Maurizio Mancini	....	production assistant
Walter Massi	....	production assistant
Hartmut Neugebauer	....	dialogue director
Daniela Tonti	....	continuity

Production Companies

• Alex Cinematografica
• Barthonia Film
• Lisa-Film

Distributors

• Residenz Film (1980) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• Cannon Group, The (1981) (USA) (theatrical) (dubbed)
• Citadel Films (1981) (Canada) (theatrical) (dubbed)
• Video Independent Productions (VIP) (1981) (UK) (video)
• Paragon Video Productions (1982) (USA) (VHS)
• CMV Laservision (2001) (Germany) (DVD)
• Astro Distribution (2002) (Germany) (DVD)
• Blue Underground (2003) (USA) (DVD)
• DMEG (2004) (Sweden) (video)
• Stomp Visual (2005) (Australia) (DVD)
• Mill Creek Entertainment (2007) (USA) (DVD)
• Produzioni Atlas Consorziate (P.A.C.) (1980) (Italy) (theatrical)
• European Creative Films (198?) (UK) (VHS)
• Lettuce Entertain You (USA) (VHS) (as "Toxic Spawn")
• Odissey Vidéo Production (????) (France) (VHS)
• Westlake Entertainment Group (2003) (USA) (DVD)

Other Companies

• Agenzia Fotografica B.B.C.  action stills
• Bixio C.E.M.S.A  music editing
• C.D.  sound mix
• Cooperativa di Lavoro Fono Roma  re-recording
• De Paolis I.N.C.I.R.  filmed on location at (as Incir - De Paolis)
• Eastmancolor  negative
• G.P. 11 Safas Cantini  costume house (as G.P. 11)
• Studio 4  titles and optical effects
• Telecolor  color
• Trafalgar Recording Studios, Rome  music recording

Also Known As:

"Alien Contamination" - USA (cut version)
"Toxic Spawn" - USA (video title (cut version))

Runtime:

95 min | USA:84 min (R-rated version)

Country:

Italy | West Germany

Language:

Italian

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:R (Ontario) | France:-12 | Iceland:(Banned) | Norway:(Banned) (video rating) (1984) | UK:(Banned) (1984-2004) (original rating) | UK:15 (video rating) (2004) | USA:R | Australia:R | West Germany:18 (nf) | UK:18 (original 1980s video release) | Portugal:M/18

Filming Locations:

Colombia

Company:

Alex Cinematografica

Trivia:

Writer/director Luigi Cozzi originally wanted Caroline Munro to play Colonel Stella Holmes.

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: pipe used to propel fake guts out seen.

Quotes:

Hubbard:[drunk] What else do you want to know about me? How many times a week I screw?
Colonel Stella Holmes:If you're always in that condition, it's obvious you couldn't get it up, even if you used a crane.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Bad Movie Beatdown: Prometheus: Part 1 (#5.1)" (2013)

Soundtrack:

Connexion

Ian McCulloch's finest acting moments...

Well this was another movie that tried to pass itself off as Alien 2 long with Ciro Ippolito's Alien 2 - On Earth. The problem with doing this is that one immediately draws a comparison with Alien which had a much bigger budget and therefore is always going to look a lot better.

Luigi Cozzi's stab at Alien isn't too bad, although he himself has stated that his is a better movie than Ippolito's film although I don't agree - sure the effects are slightly better, but there is only one effect in the entire movie - the chest exploding (or popping) that is repeated about a billion times in super-slow-motion. Alien 2 - On Earth was much more fun.

Anyway the narrative begins as an exact copy of Zombie Flesh Eaters with the appearance of an abandoned boat floating into New York Harbour. Even the dialogue is copied from that film - "The skipper of that boat must be a real turkey!". Not only do the Italians rip-off Hollywood movies, they rip each other off as well.

Predictably the police who investigate the boat stumble across the dead crew, who fall out of cupboards and look as if they have been ripped open from the inside! They then discover some strange egg like shapes, "Maybe they're avocados!" enthuses one policeman. However when they try to pick one up it explodes, showering the police in sticky goo. The goo leads to immediate imflammation of the belly and "pop!" they're guts fly out all over the place. Not a bad effect although if you look closely at one of the victims, he has suddenly become a foot wider (to make room for all those animal entrails).

The police captain escapes and helps Commander Stella Holmes (Louise Marleau) in the hunt to discover the origin of the eggs.

They visit Hubbard (Ian McCulloch), who was part of an expedition to Mars some years previous who was declared crazy after talking about seeing thousands of eggs there. Now living in alcoholic squalor he moans at Lt. Holmes before telling his story. Cue flashback of the expedition to a Martian cave and a terrible attempt at recreating the exact scene in Alien. The acting in this bit is truly atrocious as McCulloch delivers his lines "I looked at Hamilton - and he was, his eyes, he was beginning to....Hamilton.....HAMILTON!" Followed by a Daa Daaa DAAAAAAAA on the soundtrack. Truly the funniest part of the movie using that same useless Goblin soundtrack that for some reason everyone raves about - why? It's terrible!

Well it's not great and nowhere near as fun as "Alien 2 - On Earth" but it's better than the average trash movie. Starts well and finishes okay but it sags very badly in the middle which does make you want to nod off.