Galaxy Of Terror (1981, R)

At the time of this writing, Galaxy Of Terror is not available on Netflix Instant, but I liked it so much I want to put it out there anyway.  In several ways, it's a combination of Alien and Hellraiser (two franchises that I get a real kick out of).  It's a future sci-fi/horror tale about a rescue team that is trying to see if there are any survivors at this one outpost with which the Imperial central has lost contact.  We know from the opening sequence that the original crew was killed off by some weird-looking creatures.  The rescue crew has several faces you might recognize from other films or shows: Ray Walston (My Favorite Martian tv series, Fast Times At Ridgemont High), Erin Moran (Happy Days, Joanie Loves Chachi tv series), Robert Englund (Zombie Strippers!, Nightmare On Elm Street [fun fact: it's based on the Elm St in the town in which I grew up]), Sid Haig (House Of 1000 Corpses, The Devil's Rejects), Grace Zabriskie (Twin Peaks tv series). 

Zabriskie plays a reckless hotshot pilot, a role almost necessary for any good pulpy space-jocky story, but this time the role is filled by a middling-age woman for a change of pace.  I liked that the dialogue gives insight that this story takes place in a greater universe (Haig's character uses some crystal glaives and indicates that they are a tied to his culture; the field commander indicates that there is an ongoing power struggle with another crew member).
  They jump right into the rescue and waste no time... to such an extent that I thought I was too sleep-deprived to be picking up what they were doing, so I paused it and picked it up in the morning; it turns out they just don't have much conversation about the details of their mission.  The story is indeed pulpy with a certain amount of cheezy, but it's just what I would hope to see in a '70s/80s horror/sci-fi... I had pretty much been looking for a movie like this for a long time.  The visual effects style is very similar to Alien and Hellraiser (in addition to the alien/monster enemy elements) as I had indicated earlier.  If you liked either of those franchises (particularly the first and second of each), or if you like pretty much any '70s/80s horror movie other than a slasher film (liking slasher flicks shouldn't diminish your enjoyment of this movie, but it's not the sub-genre that will indicate your enjoyment of it), then you'll love this movie.  If you prefer mood-setting slow-burns like Midnight In Paris, then this movie will not scratch that itch, but if you want to get to the point of a creature-feature, then this could be for you.  For me, it's five stars.  I know I'm pretty stingy with my 5-star ratings, so I'm going to try to loosen the standard just a little.