The early 1990s were a golden time for Full Moon Features, pumping tons of low budget direct-to-video classics. Of course, their biggest hit was the Puppet Master series, but they had plenty of other titles in the mix. Charles Band always had a steady stream of filmmakers to turn to, including David DeCoteau, Stuart Gordon, and Ted Nicolaou. I’ve covered the works of Ted Nicolaou in past Full Moon Fridays, namely TerrorVision, Subspecies, and Bloodstone: Subspecies II. While working on his vampire series, Nicolaou was working on a more out-there project, something outside Full Moon’s comfort zone. This film would incorporate Nicolaou’s three favorite things into one: UFOs, rock and roll music, and comedy. It would feature various rock groups of the time and seem to go after the MTV crowd. What we finally got was the 1992 oddball sci-fi comedy Bad Channels.

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Rating

Synopsis

Shock jock DJ “Danger” Dan O’Dare (Paul Hipp) has taken a job at radio station 666 KDUL in Pahoota, California. He’s scheduled for an interview with reporter Lisa Cummings (Martha Quinn), but she blows him off over a rigged contest. While continuing his radio broadcast, the station is invaded by an alien named Cosmo (Mike Deak) and their robot companion. Dan and the station’s engineer Corky (Michael Huddleston) find themselves trapped while trying to warn the outside world. Unfortunately, no one believes them and thinks it’s all an elaborate stunt despite their desperate pleas for help. Soon, Cosmo’s plan is revealed: he’s using the radio to capture women, shrink them, and put them in glass jars. Meanwhile, Sheriff Hickman (Victor Rogers) thinks Dan is up to something, and station manager Vernon Locknut (Aaron Lustig) gets nervous. Will the alien be stopped, or will the girls forever remain trapped and shrunk?

 

Review

While it’s not one of the more well-known Full Moon movies, Bad Channels is still something of a hidden gem. Like many of his other movies, Nicolaou’s direction is top-notch, using atmospheric shots that incorporate dynamic lighting and shadows. Paul Hipp makes for a decent lead, mixing a fun, smarmy attitude with some more serious moments later on. Martha Quinn’s intentionally exaggerated performance is pretty fun, and it adds to the film’s charm, though it can be grating. Aside from that, the rest of the acting is decent, but no one else stands out aside from the leads. However, Full Moon fans will be happy to see appearances from regulars Sonny Carl Davis and Charlie Spradling. The musical numbers by Fair Game, DMT, and Sykotik Sinfoney are easily the film’s highlights, each better than the last. Whether you like hair metal, grunge, or something slightly weird, there’s something for you.

As enjoyable as the film is, Bad Channels is still not as good as Nicolaou’s TerrorVision despite having similar themes. For a film that’s under 90 minutes long, many scenes feel padded out to reach feature-length runtime. This isn’t helped by the musical numbers which, though fun, feel like they’re dragging out to cover the entire song. That being said, the film’s soundtrack is still worth a listen, especially with the score done by Blue Öyster Cult. Also, much of Dan O’Dare’s past antics are talked about, but we’re never really shown any of it. The same goes for the alien, who we know virtually nothing about other than he’s after women to take home. Even still, the film is still an enjoyable watch for those who want to dig deep into Full Moon’s library. Overall, Bad Channels is a flawed but fun sci-fi comedy with some rock music added.

 

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