Chopping Mall

Rating:
Summary: Actually, it kinda sucks
Review: I'm as passionate as the next guy about "bad movies". And so I hate to be a grouch about Chopping Mall, but it really is not very entertaining at all. It's more DULL than bad. Stupid script, but the dialogue isn't dumb enough to be entertaining. The acting isn't bad enough, either.The characters all blend together. By all means CM is NOT good, but it merely exists in that boring middleground- there's just nothing memorable (good or bad) about this movie, except for the title and the concept.

On a positive note, if any viewers thought Karrie Emerson was cute, you really should find a copy of Evils of the Night. She's in that movie as well, and IMHO Evils of the Night is far more amusing than chopping mall.


Rating:
Summary: Awsome movie, bad title.
Review: ...Where shopping can cost you an arm and a leg.
Shop 'til you drop...dead.
Some people would kill for a bargin. At Park Plaza they do.
They're slashing prices...and employies!
At Park Plaza you can save on everything but your life!

Thank God they finally released this one on DVD. I was really afraid it would just fade away in obscurity. This is one of the better dead teenager films from the 1980's, but one thing you should know, it's title and box cover isn't right at all for the film. There isn't one tenth as much gore in the actual film as shown on the front cover (the film's most gruesome moment is a very brief head explosion scene), and there's no actual chopping in it. I really wish they had gone with their alternate title, KILLBOTS, instead.

That having been said, this film rocks! Think of a cross between THE TERMINATOR and DAWN OF THE DEAD. (It also gives you a very good idea of what SHORT CIRCUT would have been like if the makers of that film had gone ahead with their origonal idea of making #5 go homicidal after being struck by lightning rather than becoming a curious, benevolent, wisecracking, loveable, mechanical version of E.T.)

Anyway. The plot is set in a time when robot technology has advance tremendously. Park Plaza mall has employed the Securetronics company to supply them with some of the latest, state-of-the-art security systems. A master computer is installed which during the night time activates three Protector robots that patrol the mall for burglers, and all the exits are sealed off by thick metal doors. The robots distinguish late night workers from intruders by scanning their identity badges.

Then one day eight young mall employies and their friends plan a late night party in one of the furnature stores (their plan being to start the party after the mall closes and be out shortly before the steal doors close). Unfortunately, that very night there is a lightning storm (again, just like in SHORT CIRCUT, which came out the same exact year as this film,) a bolt of lightning hits the generator on the roof, frying the circuts of the computer, and the malfunctioning machine is soon sending the three robots under it's control on a homocidal rampage, killing everyone in the store. After killing the two technitians and a janitor (B-movie vet Dick Miller), the robots go after the eight partyiers. Soon the steal doors close, locking the young people in. Now they must ether find and destroy the master computer (being low-ranking employies they don't know exactly where it's located,) or eles find some way to destroy the seemingly invincible robots, if they are to survive the night.

This movie has action, comedy, nudity, (of course) and one strong, smart, tough heroine in the form of Allison Parks, played by Kelli Maroney. I really liked her. She reminds me of Ripley in ALIEN or Sarah Connor in THE TERMINATOR. Check this one out.


Rating:
Summary: Curse of the 1980s
Review: Chopping Mall brings back memories of seeing its ridiculously cheesy poster up in local video stores as a kid. The movie made appearances on the tube later, where I found it to be watchably bad, and kind of amusing.

This is basically an 80s formula movie, the kind of thing that goes straight to DVD now. It's a combination slasher-Dawn of the Dead-Alien flick. A shopping mall uses robots for night security, and of course, one night the things go haywire and go into Kill mode. Naturally, the robots are equipped with some serious weaponry, a bit too serious for dealing with a ripoff at Footlocker. Of course, a group of teenagers is trapped in the mall overnight, after hanging around after work to write their resumes for death (drinking, partying, sex, etc).

You know where it's going. It could have been great, but there's a low gore factor. In pales in comparison to other films set in shopping malls, namely Dawn of the Dead, a classic. There's plenty of tongue-in-cheek indication, such as a cameo by Dick Miller, and the (hopefully) intentionally cheesy sound effects of the robot laser beams (could robots this advanced have been cheaper than hiring your typical mall cop?)

No accident that it's on DVD, fans of the esteemed killer robot in mall genre are well familiar with this films amusing wares.

Rating:
Summary: Park Plaza Mall is slashing prices...and its customers!
Review: Having never seen Chopping Mall (1986) and knowing almost nothing about the film, the title conjured thoughts of a slasher film, a very popular and overused genre throughout the 80's, set in the confines of a shopping mall, a very popular destination in the 80's. Had they stuck with the original title of Killbots, I may not have been so quick to assign my preconceptions to the film, but either way, this was a pretty fun film, if you are interested in 80's horror films with a side order of science fiction.

Co-written by Steve Mitchell, whose main credits include writing for the oh so 80's cartoons Jem! and Transformers, and Jim Wynorski (who also directed the film along with a plethora of sequels to other films including Big Bad Mama II (1987), The Return of Swamp Thing (1989), Sorority House Massacre II (1990), 976-EVIL 2: The Astral Factor (1991), among others...) features a cast that reads like a B-movie fan's dream, including Barbara Crampton (Re-Animator), Zoe Kelli Simon, aka Kelli Maroney, (Night of the Comet), Russell Todd (Friday the 13th Part 2), Nick Segal (Breakin' 2: Electric Boogaloo), and Tony O'Dell, who also appeared in not only the first Karate Kid, but its' subsequent sucky sequel (love that Ralph Macchio...). Also, making cameo appearances are B-movie legends Paul Bartel, Mary Woronov (playing the same characters they did in the film Eating Raoul), Gerrit Graham, as a technician (I most remember his part from the Kurt Russell film Used Cars (1980) but he's been in a ton of films), and Dick Miller, as a janitor named Walter Paisley, a name he's used for a number of characters in movies he's been in, going all the way back to original appearance as the name for the main character in the film A Bucket of Blood (1959).

The film begins with the introduction of sophisticated (well, sophisticated for the mid-80's, at least) robots designed to patrol the mall during the night, and immobilize and detain any intruders until the authorities arrive. The robots, three of them, about 4 feet tall, feature a variety of weapons, including tasers, mechanical claws, explosives (for getting past barricades), and laser beams that shoot from their optical orifices. Seems like they carry some pretty serious weaponry to deal with the occasional punk, but I theorize the robots were originally designed for the military, who then probably discontinued funding for the project, leaving the manufacturer to find uses for their investment in the private sector (this theory is never posed in the movie, but it would have gone a long way to justify the ordinance these things were packing). Also, the robots worked in conjunction with an elaborate computer system that controls the doors, among others things, and, if an intruder is detected, it would notify the police. The whole system is touted as completely safe and utterly fool proof, which means something will go wrong, seriously wrong, and result in quite a few deaths, or, at least that's what I was speculating at that point...sure enough, a lighting storm outside zaps something on the roof of the mall, causing a short circuit in the system, screwing up the robots' programming, switching them into `murder/death/kill' mode. This does not bode well for the group of teenagers, most of whom work in the mall, who decided to stay past closing, drink beer, and do the nasty in a furniture store (nothing like getting your freak on in front of your peers). Oh, but wait, not all decide to feed their desires, as one couple, the nerdiest of the bunch, refrain from nekkid time (gee, can you guess who makes it to the end of the film?) Once the core group realizes they are trapped with three robotic conveyances of death, they equip themselves with weapons taken from a sporting goods store (handguns, shotguns, and even a semi-automatic M-16...man, that place has everything), and it's a fight to the finish...who will win? Well, you'll just have to watch and see...

As I said, I enjoyed this film, and I think the thing I liked best was it didn't take itself too seriously. There were a few tongue and cheek quips, and even a few nods to other films, for the attentive viewer (the `killbots' laser blast sounded suspiciously like the laser blasts from War of the Worlds (1953), and the line `klaatu barada nikto' from The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)). Gorehounds may be disappointed, but there is one memorable scene worth watching for as one individual suffers from exploding head syndrome after a shot to the noggin with a laser blast. Also, if you are looking for some vintage 80's nekkidness, there's a couple of scenes about a quarter of the way in involving a couple of the more buxom stars popping their tops...yowsa! (alright, it seemed a bit gratuitous, but hey, we men are visual creatures...) The story moves along pretty quickly once plot elements are established, and doesn't disappoint. I felt the influence of The Terminator (1984) (the killer robot theme became quite popular after that), coming through here, but I don't think it was acknowledged in the commentary, although they did mention other films. The robots, very dated now, actually are pretty good and feature some well-crafted details (they also moved very quickly on their treads).

What about the disc? Well, it's pretty obvious that Lions Gate Entertainment used an existing video version for their transfer (watch until the end, and you see and ad for Lightning Video Films). The movie is presented in full screen format, and I am unsure if that was the original format or not, but it looks pretty decent, despite some murkiness. Special features include a commentary track by Wynorski and Mitchell, an original theatrical trailer, a worthwhile 16-minute featurette on the making of the killbots, and a good-looking photo gallery. 3 ½ stars (½ star off for funky transfer)

Cookieman108


Rating:
Summary: A Good Movie A Good DVD
Review: I never thought I would see this movie released on DVD. And if I did I would have guessed it would have been ultra bare bones. But I have to say, this release was pretty good.

The movie itself is a fun, cheap 80's flick, with some better special effects than a normal movie of this caliber would have. The acting is decent. The script is campy, but fast paced enough. The characters are okay, and work well within the story, and the direction is actually pretty good, considering how cheap this movie was. Watching this movie made me realize how different the B-Movie market was then. Now you get a movie with almost no style, and a lot of point and shoot direction. The movies now usually look like they were filmed in someones back yard (and probably were), and had his neighbors do the acting. Then you had a movie that had decent direction, actual working actors, and some minor semblance of dignity. Over all the movie is an 7/10. It's pretty good, but needed a little work in the final act.

The disc for Chopping Mall is actually way better than the price, or cheap cover art would let on. For starters, the extras are actually decent, with an informative documentry on the making of the KillBots, which then goes in to the production on the film a bit. Why Lions Gate went and did this, I don't kno, but I'm glad they did. It's a nice extra, which is informative. There is also a commentary, which I haven't listened to. But the fact that Lions Gate even bothered is a plus in there case. You also get the theatrical trailer to the film. The picture for the disc, while somewhat soft, is very good. I mean, the movie is old, and the original prints are probably damaged, so the fact that the movie looks as good as it does is a major plus. It is full frame, but I don't think this movie was shot in Wide Screen, so nothing wrong there. The audio is very good, clear, and with almost no distortion or drop outs. It also is nice that the disc is about 14 dollars. A fairly cheap price for a very well made disc.

I recomend the film, and even more now that the DVD is out, and turned out so well.

Rating:
Summary: Fun Film
Review: I received my DVD the other day. This is one of those 80s horror movies that I like to watch occasionally. I had forgotten that Barbara Crampton was in this film. I like the idea of killer robots chasing teens through a mall. Somehow the movie is appealing to me. Just a fun flick to watch. Another similar film I like is called "Hide and go Shriek"





Rating:
Summary: THIS IS MUCH BETTER THEN SHORT CIRCUIT !!!! :)
Review: I Will admit that I viewed the Movie Short Circuit the day before watching this movie,I still say this Movie Kicks Short Circuits [...] !!! This Movie is Way More Fun and who cant notice the 2 Hotties Kelly Maroney and Barbara Crampton from the Reanimator film...The Killbots in the film move pretty fast and I Agree w/ the director that they Should have kept the movies original title of "Killbots"...Anyways, View this Guilty pleasure of Low Budget fantasy and have a Blast like I Did :)

Rating:
Summary: Classic Slasher Flick....With Laser Shooting Robots!?! What?
Review: Picture Dawn of the Dead with the horde of zombies replaced with three homicidal security robots....OK, so it's not that cool, but still entertaining nonetheless.

At least this movie has the 80's slasher movie staples: teenagers, beer, nudity, and killers. Although, I would have enjoyed this movie more if the killer was a homicidal janitor or crazy drifter. The robots add a science fiction element to this movie that should not have been done. I was really enjoying some of the creative killings in this movie until the robots started shooting lasers from they 'eyes'. Pretty far fetched for 2003, forget 1985.

But all in all it still manages to fit in well with the 80's horror genre, and bravo to the makers for taking a chance on this one. If you like 80's slasher flicks (even if it is just for the flagrant nudity and the 80's nostalgia), then you will like this one too, just dont forget to grab a sixer and a pizza.

Rating:
Summary: Dig the mall.
Review: The mall was a big place for valley girls. Here comes their nightmare. When their not watching Miami Vice or going to a Poison concert, these teen mall employees have decided to party in the mall after hours...in a bed store, nevertheless. As you can guess, some drink beer and 2/3 of them have sex with their significant other. Remember you newlyweds, just because you have marital sex doesn't make you immune to horror death. Follow the rules, don't have sex in the same room as your friends, and don't sneak in the mall after closing time. While our friends are sinning the night away, the new mall security, technically advanced robots, were hit by lightning and are now murdering machines! Some funny scenes of the shadow of the mall doors closing with the robot in front, clenching its hand. An excellent death scene of the first blonde tart to go. That scene alone is worth watching no matter who you are. Corny, unrealistic, but heartwarmingly cheesy and memorable. A must for all horror fans.

Rating:
Summary: killing robots!!!
Review: The movie is very great. The mall gets hit by lighting and then is when the robots start to take over.Some kids have a party in the mall in the night.one by one the kids start to die!! The robots/killbots are alive. If you like the movie,look out for the remake of it!!!!!