Zone Troopers

source: Zone Troopers

Zone Troopers is a movie that I'm glad I got to watch but that's about it.Watching it once was enough for me.The entire time I was thinking I'd like to see the aliens fighting along side the Americans against the Nazis & it does happen but when it does, there's less than 10 minutes left in the movie so it was like when you wait awhile for something to happen, only to think after it's over, I wasted all this time, just for that??? The aliens lazer guns, ray guns, whatever you want to call them were weak looking.When they shot them at the Germans & the Germans vanished into thin air, it was weak as well.I don't know what I was expecting but even for a low budget movie I expected something better.Not all of the movie was bad though.There were a lot of times where I either laughed out loud or chuckled.I didn't HATE Zone Troopers but I wasn't all that into it as much as I expected to be either.When I read the description I thought this movie is going to be AWESOME & after watching it, I'm just sitting here like....... It did have a 1950's Sci Fi vibe to it for a movie made in the 80's which I think was pretty cool (Maybe that's why the lazer/ray guns effects were so weak.It was done on purpose to give it that 50's Sci Fi effect.I might have to give it a 2nd look someday) Even though I wasn't all that into it, I'd recommend checking it out if you were thinking about watching it.It's worth checking out at least once

In WW2, a group of lost US Soldiers, led by the great Tim Thompson, finds a lost alien. A shapeshifter, the creature is also sought by the Nazis. A fun movie with a lot of goofs in it, it's still worth watching.

Or why didn't someone with a larger film budget? Because this whole movie is a lot of fun. I just wish the special effects had been a little better. I'm sure that crashed spaceship mockup did cost them a pretty penny though. The cheesiness of the low budget, reflected in the alien costumes and minimal military paraphenelia is about the only bad thing I found in this genre effort. Badmouthing this film is like kicking a friendly puppy. The writing was great, the acting was much better than it had any right to be, and even the directing was absolutely appropriate. Yes, it is not realistic in the slightest. Yes, it is a version of World War 2 based not on the actual war, but based on other cheap movies about the War. And then it throws crash-landed aliens into the mix. But that just makes it so much more fun. There's a standard low budget WW2 movie setup: ragtag group of GIs is caught behind German lines and has to fight their way out. Luckily, this is in Italy so the Germans are a little ways out on the end of their supply lines as well. We get all the standard war movie clichés: the gruff Sarge who can't die (Tim Thomerson), the comic relief kid from Brooklyn with his pulp magazines, the green Lieutenant just out of training school, the grizzled Corporal who's been through hell and high water with The Sarge (the Tom Sizemore role, here Art LaFleur) and the hard-bitten, cynical reporter/photographer who tags along. Into this "haven't we seen this before a FEW times" setup comes strange goings-on in the form of a crash landed alien spaceship. And that, kids, is where things get interesting and fun. Things just get more ridiculous from there, with a blown-up spaceship, magical alien gizmos that make Rita Hayworth appear, and even a cameo appearance from Der Furher himself, just so one of the heroes can punch him right in the face. That's entertainment. Do check out Zone Troopers, but make sure your tongue is planted firmly in cheek, as they say.

Zone Troopers was like Stanley Kuplish cracking a funny. A full blown "professional" director shares his dream of a "student project". I loved it and couldn't quit watching it because it was something like M.A.S.H. The puns just kept coming at the right times to sustain the humor. It was quirky -- bizarre. Straw that didn't burn, and camp fires that were burned out and suddenly lit-up when the soldiers returned to get warm. A baby space monster that cracks out of its pod fully dressed and a mock Hitler that gets slugged by an American G.I. near the front lines! Fantastic! Joni Grawe

When their platoon is attacked only The Sarge, Joey, Mittens, Dolan remain. When they're lost behind enemy lines, Joey thinks he's seen alien in the clear blue moonlight. The next morning, Joey has been unable to convince his friends of what he saw. Mittens and Dolan (thinking the creature was actually a deer) go on a hunt to find food, but they find a seemingly abandoned Nazi camp containing images and studies of a mysterious space craft in the deep forest, sadly they're captured before warning the others. As this happens, The Sarge and Joey discover the UFO themselves along with an alien creature following their every move... Any film with Dollman in is worth watching, but this takes a while to get going. Having heard it was a cult classic in some circles, I was getting ready for some camp lines and cheesy set pieces. For the first half an hour, it's an all out war movie, with the same action scenes and characters you would expect from any carbon copy war movie. It's comical in this first sequence though because Th e Sargein one instance shoots a platoon of Germans and they all fall over at the same time. Just when tedium sets in, it goes from generic to plain bizarre. The crew befriend the six foot cigarette eating grasshopper, and before you know it, extras from space 1999 arrive on the scene with cool ray guns and even cooler translators. The performances are what you would expect from a film like this, and you can forgive the dire editing and effects. Thomerson is as gruff as usual and the final sequence will have you laughing at the unintentional hilarity.

I am a big fan of Tim Thomerson and apart from the Trancers films, this one has to be my favourite.I think the humour is great and the four Gi's work together brilliantly.I know there is some cheesy acting in it, but this adds to the charm of the movie.I felt sorry for Mittens,I don't think he had his cigarettes for very long 'Butt me Mittens'. Somestimes B-movie films like this are far better then high budget blockbusters.Anyone could make a movie on a high 00000000 figure sum,but to make a great film with 600000 dollars well, class hay!If you are a fan of ww2 and si-fi movies as well as dry humour then this is one for you.If you like this movie you should also check out the Trancers films,I finally managed to track down the movie poster for this BRILL. When are they going to release Zone troopers on DVD?

When I sat down to watch the 1985 movie "Zone Troopers", I must admit that I was expecting nothing really, because the synopsis sounded really corny, and the movie's cover was very low budget. But I opted to sit down and watch what writers Danny Bilson and Paul De Meo had to offer with this 1985 sci-fi action adventure, as I hadn't already seen it. Needless to say that I had never even heard about this movie from director Danny Bilson as I stumbled upon it here in 2022. But I have to admit that director Danny Bilson delivered a surprisingly entertaining and enjoyable movie here. I was genuinely entertained by how this movie turned out. The storyline was actually nicely written and entertaining, and it was enjoyable from beginning to end. Especially so as the story mingled classic World War II action with sci-fi in a good manner. And I will say that the World War II elements were really great, and it was such a pleasure to experience the German soldiers actually speak German, and not just English with a thickly added accent. The acting performances in the movie were good, with the likes of Tim Thomerson, Timothy Van Patten and Art LaFleur on the cast list. Visually then "Zone Troopers" was okay. The costume and props department did good jobs in bringing the American and German soldiers to life. And the alien creature design was actually also pretty good. Sure, the special effects were somewhat outdated, but it fit the movie well enough. I can actually warmly recommend "Zone Troopers", because it is a good movie. My rating of "Zone Troopers" lands on a six out of ten stars.

A group of American soldiers end up deep behind enemy lines in Italy during WWII. They're flabbergasted when they encounter some honest-to-God aliens and alien artifacts in the woods. The aliens are hard to read at first, not seeming to be on either side. Our heroes consist of the growling Sarge (Tim Thomerson) who clearly has as many lives as a cat, the earnest Joey (Timothy Van Patten), who digs pulp sci-fi magazines of the era, a corporal nicknamed "Mittens" (Art La Fleur), and war correspondent Dolan (Biff Manard). You know you're in for a good time when Hitler himself (Alviero Martin) shows up, basically so he can get decked in the face by Mittens. The actors are all very engaging and entertaining, especially the always amusing Thomerson, and "Class of 1984" villain Van Patten, who believes that the aliens must be from Mars. Granted, the characters sometimes do reckless and stupid things, but in a lark like this, that's not as much of an issue as it might ordinarily be. Co-writer / debuting director Danny Bilson maintains a fairly breezy tone, occasionally getting serious but never too, too serious. He and his co-writer Paul De Meo (their other credits include "Trancers" and "The Wrong Guys") have no pretensions about what kind of movie they're making, which helps. It's just amiable, straightforward, goofy fun. Visual effects are kept to a minimum, but the sets and props are nicely done, and the creature makeup (by John Carl Buechler and his team) is pretty good. A Charles Band production (his first to be filmed in Italy), it features a solid music score by Bands' brother Richard, and makes good use of the classic tune "In the Mood". It's hard not to have a smile on ones' face while watching this. Seven out of 10.

Considering the budget, this isn't a bad film. Compared to movies in general, however, it comes up a little short. I always enjoy seeing Tim Thomerson on the screen, and the story is likable enough, but all things considered, it just didn't do anything for me. There was the occasional laugh, perhaps a touch of drama, and some decent action, but really there was nothing to make this film stand out, and as a result, there is no reason for me to recommend this film to anyone else.