Video game expert Alex Rogan finds himself transported to another planet after conquering The Last Starfighter video game only to find out it was just a test. He was recruited to join the team of best starfighters to defend their world from the attack.
Alex Rogan lives in a remote trailer court where his mother is manager and everyone is like a massive extended family. He defeats Starfighter, a stand-up arcade game to the applause of everyone in the court and later finds out he has been turned down for a student loan for college. Depressed, he meets Centauri, who introduces himself as a person from the company that made the game, before Alex really knows what is going on, he is on the ride of his life in a sports car flying through space. Chosen to take the skills he showed on the video game into real combat to protect the galaxy from an invasion. Alex gets as far as the Starfighter base before he really realized that he was conscripted and requests to be taken back home. When he gets back home, he finds a Zando-Zan (alien bounty hunter) is stalking him. Unable to go home and live, Alex returns to the Starfighter base to find all the pilots have been killed and he is the galaxy's only chance to be saved from invasion. To defeat the ...Written by
John Vogel <jvogel@dgs.dgsys.com> & Spokavriel updated
Cinematographer King Baggot stands in as Alex Rogan's father in a family photo used in the movie. See more »
Goofs
The interior set of the Star Car does not match the exterior shots. See more »
Quotes
[after the Gunstar is disabled by its destruction of the Kodan fighters]
Kodan Officer:
Commander, our guns are out. Damage control teams responding.
Lord Kril:
Forget the guns! Ramming speed!
See more »
Alternate Versions
On the 25th Anniversary Blu-ray and DVD, a brief musical cue is missing from the soundtrack. In previous versions, the reveal of Beta's half-formed face as he pulls the bed covers away (about a half-hour into the film) is accompanied by a string/cymbal crescendo, followed by a loud, low brass/percussion sting, which then crescendos into the next scene. This cue is completely absent on the 25th Anniversary Edition (though it is audible on the commentary track). See more »
This is a lost gem of a movie from the generation of "E.T.", Indiana Jones, Star Wars, etc...
When a friend showed it to me on VHS in 1984 I loved it for its originality, warmth & humor, as well as being impressed with the first-time computer-generated special effects for this kind of sci-fi film.
When I saw the 'special edition' DVD in Widescreen I snatched it right up and found that I enjoyed it as much as I did 20 years ago! The movie's special effects still looked good to me, especially the "Star Car" (my personal favorite).
But the special effects are not the centerpiece of this film. It has plenty of charm of its own to offer in plot, story, warmth, humor & good performances. Craig Safan's music score for this film is one of my all-time favorites. It almost outsizes this movie but it fits just the same.
"Starfighter" is a real gem from the 80's I will treasure in my movie collection.
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This is a lost gem of a movie from the generation of "E.T.", Indiana Jones, Star Wars, etc...
When a friend showed it to me on VHS in 1984 I loved it for its originality, warmth & humor, as well as being impressed with the first-time computer-generated special effects for this kind of sci-fi film.
When I saw the 'special edition' DVD in Widescreen I snatched it right up and found that I enjoyed it as much as I did 20 years ago! The movie's special effects still looked good to me, especially the "Star Car" (my personal favorite).
But the special effects are not the centerpiece of this film. It has plenty of charm of its own to offer in plot, story, warmth, humor & good performances. Craig Safan's music score for this film is one of my all-time favorites. It almost outsizes this movie but it fits just the same.
"Starfighter" is a real gem from the 80's I will treasure in my movie collection.