The Last Starfighter

1984
PG
1h 40m

IMDb RATING

6.7/10

48K

YOUR RATING

POPULARITY

Play trailer2:48

Space Sci-Fi Teen Adventure Action Adventure Sci-Fi

High schooler Alex Rogan conquers the Starfighter video game, only to find out it was just a test, and is transported to another planet. He has been recruited to join a team of the best star... Read allHigh schooler Alex Rogan conquers the Starfighter video game, only to find out it was just a test, and is transported to another planet. He has been recruited to join a team of the best starfighters to defend their world from the attack.High schooler Alex Rogan conquers the Starfighter video game, only to find out it was just a test, and is transported to another planet. He has been recruited to join a team of the best starfighters to defend their world from the attack.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

6.7/10

48K

YOUR RATING

POPULARITY

3,671

737

See production info at IMDbPro

Awards
- 4 nominations total

Videos1

Trailer 2:48

Trailer

Photos114

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Storyline

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Did you know

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Trivia
All visual effects (not practical effects like make-up and explosions) were made on a Cray X-MP computer.

Goofs
When Grig is trying to restore power shortly after using the Death Blossom, there is a cable for a 9-volt battery attached to the circuit board in his hand. However, it does not automatically mean that it can only connect to a 9-volt battery, or that something that looks like Earth-technology must be from Earth.

Quotes
Centauri: [voice in video game] Greetings, Starfighter. You have been recruited by the Star League to defend the frontier against Xur and the Ko-Dan armada.

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).

Connections
Edited into No Feat But What We Make: 'Terminator 2' and the Rise of Digital Effects (2003)

Soundtracks
Never Crossed My Mind
(Craig Safan and Mark Mueller)
Performed by Clif Magness

User reviews204

Featured review

10/10

Fantastic Sci-Fi Movie that captures the spirit of 80's Cinema

The story is simple and has probably been retold in every heroic setting possible. It's also a bit of wish fulfillment for those of us that grew up pumping quarters into arcade video games.

In my opinion the acting is above average for a movie like this. It is much helped by veteran actors Robert Preston and Dan O'Herlihy. Lance Guest does a great turn as Alex as well.

The effects were not appreciated at the time, I think, but hold up fairly well. They were drawn on that Holy Grail of computers to us children of the 80's; a Kray Supercomputer.

The score is well done, the humor timed well and the overall good feeling I get from watching it never fades. You can't go wrong with this gem.