The Last Star Fighter - Movie Review

In 2009, Universal Studios released a 25th Anniversary Edition to one of my all time favorite movie, The Last Starfighter. Before the release of this edition I had been searching for several years for a DVD copy and when it finally was released I couldn't wait to buy it.


The Last Star Fighter stars Lance Guest as Alex Rogan. Alex lives in a trailer park with his mother and brother and has big dreams of one day of moving away to the big city. All the inhabitants of the trailer park look to Alex as a sort of live-in handyman as he is constantly asked to fix several of his neighbor's maintenance issues. After yet another frustrating day in which he sees his girlfriend, Maggie, leave for a day at the lake and not being able to join her he begins to play an arcade style video game. While playing the video game Maggie comes back from the lake and they argue about her staying all day and being driven home by another guy, after they hash out the argument Alex breaks the high score in front of all the neighbors at the trailer park.


When Alex's mom gets home he tells her about the video game. Unfortunately his mom has some bad news that was delivered to her instead of Alex. He runs off in frustration and ends up by the video game. A strange car arrives and the driver asks if Alex knows the person who broke the high score, to which he answers it was him. The driver, Centauri, asks Alex to get in the car and listen to an opportunity of a lifetime. Alex does and he is whisked away on an adventure.
Centauri takes Alex to Rylos, another planet, to join the Star League. Alex refuses the opportunity and wants to return home. Centauri reluctantly agrees to bring Alex back to Earth. 

When Alex arrives home he forgets that a Beta unit had been left behind to take Alex's place. Alex calls for Centauri to come and collect the Beta Alex. Alex is attacked by an alien bounty hunter and Centauri arrives in time to save both Alex and Beta Alex; however, Centauri is wounded.

Alex returns to Rylos with Centauri because he realizes that the enemies of Rylos will stop at nothing to kill him and to prevent that from happening and to protect his family he has to leave. When they arrive on Rylos Centauri dies of his wounds. Alex is again whisked away to begin his training, limited as it is. His navigator, Grigg, forces Alex into fighting the Ko-Dan Armada singlehandedly. Singlehandedly? This is because after Alex left to return to Earth the other Star Fighters were all killed in a surprise attack.


Alex succeeds in defeating the Ko-Dan Armada and secures the safety of Rylos, at least for the time being. But he can't help thinking about Maggie, who by now knows that the Alex she has been with lately is a replacement. Maggie witnesses Beta Alex sacrificing himself to save Maggie and Alex. Maggie decides it is time to tell Alex's mother what has been going on as best she can, but before she does the wind kicks up and interrupts her.


All of a sudden a spaceship arrives and it turns out to be Alex who is piloting it. Alex briefly explains to everyone what is going on and finally asks Maggie to come with him to Rylos where he has been asked to rebuild the Star League. Maggie at first refuses to go and leave her grandma, but decides she loves Alex too much to not go. 


This movie was made in the early 1980's and released in 1984, so the graphics aren't like what we would see today. The story line is hokey and stereotypical, why not when a spaceship lands in a trailer park, but it is a fun little movie. I love it as much now as I did watching it growing up.