Alien from L.A. (1988)

A nerdy teen-age girl goes looking for her missing archaeologist father, and stumbles into a strange subterranean civilization.

Director:

Albert Pyun

Writers:

Debra Ricci, Sandra Berg (as Regina Davis)

Stars:

Kathy Ireland, William R. Moses, Richard Haines

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Kathy Ireland	...	Wanda Saknussemm
William R. Moses	...	Guten 'Gus' Edway
Richard Haines	...	Professor Arnold Saknussemm
Don Michael Paul	...	Robbie
Thom Mathews	...	Charmin'
Janie du Plessis	...	General Rykov / Shank / Claims Officer
Simon Poland	...	Consul Triton Crassus / Mailman
Linda Kerridge	...	Roryis Freki / Auntie Pearl
Kristen Trucksess	...	Stacy
Lochner de Kock	...	Professor Ovid Galba / Paddy Mahoney
Deep Roy	...	Mambino
Albert Maritz	...	Mago / Maintenance Worker / Evangelist / Pack Slag Jack
Russel Savadier	...	Loki
Denis Smith	...	Anchorman
James Lithgow	...	Donaldson / Wrestling Announcer / Emcee

Storyline

Wanda is a shy plain girl with a very boring life. When her father, an archaeologist, disappears on an expedition, she flies out to look for him. She ends up in an underground world, where no one believes in a surface world. Except for the secret police, who think she and her fathers are spies.

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Plot Keywords:

bikini | upskirt | skirt | daughter searching for missing father | motorcycle | 

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Taglines:

A fantastic adventure.

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Genres:

Adventure | Comedy | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

PG

Did You Know?

Trivia

This was the first feature film for supermodel Kathy Ireland.

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Goofs

Kathy Ireland briefly loses her squeaky voice when she's doped up on the table. She laughs and says in a deeper voice (probably her real one), "You think I'm an alien?"

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Quotes

Wanda Saknussemm: Bitchin' left hook, Crassus!

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Crazy Credits

Interspersed during the credits is the Anchorman, giving reports about Wanda's existence (or lack thereof) as he gets conflicting reports from Crassus and Rykov.

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Alternate Versions

UK version is cut by 21s to secure a 'PG' rating.

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Connections

References The Wizard of Oz (1939)

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Soundtracks

State of the Heart
Written by James Saad, Anthony Riparetti and Steve LeGassick
Performed by Donna DeLory (as Donna Eve DeLory)
Produced by Drock

User Reviews

Why would someone make this?

This movie is a bizarre fantasy tale, that I'm sure doesn't appeal to anyone over 10, but is too strange for children. The plot is stupid, and the acting is some of the worst I've ever seen.

25-year old Kathy Ireland plays a teenage girl who acts like a 9-year old. She seems to have gotten her character's voice by listening to Alvin and the Chipmunks. Her high pitched, screechy baby voice gets annoying the second she starts talking. All of the other acting is bad, but really Kathy Ireland is by far the worst. The plot is also terrible and is kind of a mix between Alice in Wonderland and Mad Max. Wanda Saknussemm (Ireland) gets a letter saying her father, who left her a long time ago, fell down a bottomless pit in Africa, and when she goes to find him, she falls into an underground world full of strange Australian accented people. It's one of the corniest movie you'll ever see, with terrible lines throughout.

It's annoying the effects this movie uses for character development. Kathy Ireland is a nerd who won't do anything or go anywhere. She flies to Africa....wow, what development! She drops her glasses and then doesn't need them. Why does dropping one's glasses represent them not becoming a nerd. It should represent her descent into blindness. It's just stupid. The only positive I can think is there are semi-good special effects and camera work, and the musical score sounds OK.

Overall this a ridiculous family fantasy that will only appeal to those who expect nothing from a movie.

My rating: 1/2 out of ****. 84 mins. PG for violence.

Details

Country:

USA South Africa

Language:

English

Release Date:

26 February 1988 (USA)

Also Known As:

Wanda

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Golan-Globus Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

87 min

Sound Mix:

Ultra Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1