Dorathen
Better Late Then Never
Comwayon
A Disappointing Continuation
FuzzyTagz
If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.
fuzzyforks
An awesome action film about Iria a female bounty hunter after a nearly invulnerable galactic criminal, tough as the 'Terminator' but without the time travel. There's humor from the earth born assistants and Bob the heroine's computer assistant and plenty of action from Zeram//aka Zeiramu and his arsenal of biological organic weaponry! I have to look for it every couple of years since it's appearance in 1991. I still have the hots for Yuko Moriyama "Iria"! Just found out there is a part 2 at Stagevu, I hope that it's as good or better than the first! You should not be disappointed in this film although the effects are not 1st class but not too low budget either. If I say anymore I'll be telling you the story, trust me its a must see for scifi action lover's.
Zombified_660
The plot line of Zeram is also the basis for an excellent anime OAV series. Although the film is a lot of fun, it has almost no plot or story exposition, often leaving the viewer totally in the dark as to any wider context other than the main characters escaping the monstrous Zeram and eventually defeating him. The anime series has a deeper plot and much more of an ongoing storyline, but as a cheesy alien blast-a-thon Zeram delivers the goods.The two bumbling male lead characters are sympathetic, if at times annoying protagonists. Personally I've never had the opportunity to see this in it's own language so I can't really tell if anyone's a good actor or not. The dub is good, largely trimmed of any excessive Americanised dialogue or pointless swearing, marking it out as a rarity in Manga Video's dubs, as something of half decent quality. Certainly Zeram has faired better then Gunhed on this front. The voice actors are decent, especially the voice-over for leading lady Iria.Physically, acting is good, both solid and convincing despite the amount of plastic and rubber paraphernalia going on, and the Iria actress and the dudes in the alien suits obviously know what they're doing fighting wise, giving the admittedly stodgily directed action scenes a much needed shot in the arm with some impactful fighting moves. The effects are impressive for a low-budget too, especially the monster suits and transformation sequences.Still, Zeram's lack of depth is self-evident from minute one. I admire the decision to focus on kicking things and blowing stuff up, but I wish there was some story to sink my teeth into. After the last rubber alien's been blown up and Iria's kicked in her last head, Zeram is instantly forgettable, and that's it's biggest downfall, it doesn't really grab you at any point. It's a shame, because as the anime series shows, bigger things could have been done. Check this out if you want a blast of dumb action, but definitely check out the anime first. You'll probably like this more if you do.
drngor
This movie is quite an entertaining little romp if you watch it with an open mind. It's full of interesting gadgets, lots of weapons, explosions, monsters, stop-motion, talking computers, Japanese babes, etc. The plot concerns an intergalatic bounty hunter, played by the beautiful Yuko Moriyama, who tracks down an unstoppable alien killing machine named Zeiram. The plot also throws in two male comedy foils, although Yuko could easily carry the film on her own. There's lot of action, some of it hand to hand (it's always a treat to see women fighting) and some of it with hi-tech guns and such. While this is isn't a perfect movie, it's a good way to spend an evening...cool-looking monsters, kickboxing babes, explosions...what more can one ask for.
Verbal-17
This one definitely fits in the category of guilty pleasures.Basically, it's about a beautiful female bounty hunter from another planet named Ilya who comes to Earth to stop an evil alien monster named Zeram that has also come here to avoid capture. She and her computer (creatively named Bob) create an alternate dimension that she sends Zeram into in order to fight it without hurting anybody (if an innocent person gets killed, you see, she and Bob lose their bounty hunting licenses). However, a couple of dorky guys from Earth manage to travel to the dimension with her, and so she must not only defeat the monster but protect them. And that's pretty much it- this has one of the simplest plots I've ever seen, but it's an entertaining movie nonetheless- the action is cheesy but fun, and there's plenty of it, with the typical low-budget sci-fi f/x. Ilya is played by a very good looking actress, and her character is something of a cross between Boba Fett and Xena Warrior Princess. And thankfully, the two "comic relief" characters don't get too annoying, as is often the case in action movies that come out of Asia. It's nothing special, but this movie does deliver, so check it out if you get a chance.
