Produced by Roger Corman and scripted by John Sayles,
Battle Beyond the Stars
is a cheerfully blatant imitation of
The Seven Samurai
(or at least the American remake
The Magnificent Seven
). A peaceloving planet is attacked by malevolent aliens. The powers-that-be hire a group of mercenaries, headed by George Peppard, to protect the planet from harm. Peppard's contingent includes squeaky-clean Richard Thomas Jr. and statuesque Sybil Danning. John Saxon goes through his usual paces as the villain, while the supporting players include such dependables as Sam Jaffe, Jeff Corey, and, from
Magnificent Seven
itself, Robert Vaughn. Keep an eye out for Julia Duffy as "Mol." A deft blend of standard sci-fi action and knowing "inside" humor,
was one of Corman's biggest hits of the 1980s-not to mention an endless supply of stock footage for future New World Productions.