After every successful blockbuster film, there is always a batch of inferior TV and made-for-video productions that reassure you why the inspiration was so much better. After STAR WARS there was tripe like THE BLACK HOLE, BATTLE BEYOND THE SUN, and BATTLESTAR GALACTICA. Now after the success of ARMAGEDDON and DEEP IMPACT comes a low-budget film that combines (make that rips off) both films into one lame entry. TYCUS is the writing debut of two twenty-something brothers, Kevin and Michael Goetz. Don’t quit your day job at Wendys, boys. Not only does TYCUS rehash elements from those superior films that inspired it, but the production lifts special effects footage from other films (we’ll get to that later)! How the producers got Paramount to release TYCUS is beyond me (probably because the filmmakers parents have influence in the industry) . And how they legally got away with incorporating footage from other studios’ projects into TYCUS is baffling. Anyway, Paramount Home Video is promoting their DVD release of TYCUS as a special edition.

Peter (MORTAL SINS) Onorati stars as Jake Lowe, a pumped-up ex-army photographer, who now works for a rag-sheet paper. Dennis Hopper plays astronomer Peter Crawford. Chick (FINAL VOYAGE) Vennera is Jakes’ old army buddy, Stan. Finola (ABOVE SUSPICION) Hughes stars as Jake’s frustrated wife, Amy. Peter (WITCHBOARD) Allen portrays Menkees, a key aide to Dennis Hopper’s astronomer character. TYCUS is directed by John Putch, son of Maureen "Edith" Stapleton of ALL IN THE FAMILY. It is unfair to blame this mess squarely on the shoulders of Putch; the screenwriters and producers must also share the blame.

The film opens in 2030 A.D. A new group of humanity celebrate their existence by remembering the noble sacrifices that their ancestors made to ensure humanity lived on. Flashback to 1993. Astronomer Peter Crawford (Dennis Hopper) begins building his underground bunker in the Sierra Mountains to ensure the continued survival of the human race. Crawford discovered a comet heading towards the moon, which he named Tycus. He predicts that when Tycus hits the moon, the impact will wreak havoc with the Earth’s atmosphere and cause earthquakes, volcanoes, and tidal waves (meaning the end of mankind). When he presents his discovery to the government and scientific community, they scoff at his theorys. So the shunned astronomer began building a giant underground bunker where a small cache of humanity could flourish.

Years later, rag-sheet reporter Jake Lowe (Peter Onorati) is fired from his job, for not coming up with bizarre enough stories. Jake is perfectly happy to spend time with his wife Amy (Finola Hughes) while between jobs. However, that evening Jake receives a mysterious phone call from his old army buddy, Stan (Chick Vennera). Stan speaks in code (as if the line is being tapped) and asks Jake to come to the Sierra Mountains. The final thing Stan says is ‘it’s time for the last dance’. Much to his wife’s dismay, Jake insists his old friend is in trouble, and he must go to check it out. Jake charters a cheap flight from a grizzled old Air Force pilot, Commander Scott (comedian Blake Clark).

When Jake arrives he starts investigating what appears to be an underground mining company, but in actuality is the fortress-like complex of astronomer Peter Crawford. After sneaking into the base, Jack discovers a nuclear warhead (called Last Dance) on the premises, and quickly assumes he on the base of some right-wing militant group. In Crawford’s control room, they are readying the missile for launch against the oncoming comet. Jake doesn’t know this, however, and steals the launch keys to the unattended missile. Crawford has his own private army, led by Menkees (Peter Allen), hunt down the intruding Jake. After a protracted search effort, Jake is cornered. He threatens to throw the key out the window into the running river below (and unknowingly sealing mankind’s fate), when Stan appears and talks his friend into handing the key over for the benefit of mankind.

Jake is still regarded as a security threat as the Last Dance plan is put into effect. Crawford launches the missile from his control center and targets it towards the oncoming comet. The impact has little effect, however, and Tycus keeps coming on the same deadly trajectory. Crawford states that he will now put into effect his backup plan, Archangel. Which means that the people who helped him build the underground complex and their families are allowed into the bunker where there is enough food and water for a limited number of people. Therein lies the moral dilemma. How does one play God and decree who lives and who dies? Jake has a huge problem with Crawfords views. But he is not the only one. Crawford’s assistant Menkees has masterminded a rebellion which will expel Crawford’s leadership and Menkees will command the underground complex. To make matters worse, the government finally detects the approaching comet and panic and chaos ensue. How will mankind survive the oncoming cataclysm?

TYCUS opens with the climatic scenes of meteorites hitting the Earth’s major cities. By doing this right up front, now we know what outcome. Therefore, the movie generates no suspense whatsoever, because we know what happens right off the bat. Scriptwriters Kevin and Michael Goetz center the script around a mystery; Jake Lowe’s discovery and investigation of a secret underground complex to be used to protect the future of man. While this in itself is fine, the Goetz brothers write the script in such a way that the even though Jake knows nothing about the mystery, the audience does! So instead of learning things along with Jake, we are watching him learn stuff that we’ve know all along. While Jake is kicking ass half way through the movie, he doesn’t realize he is on the wrong side. This makes the audience highly impatient.

The Goetz brothers’ script is full of scientific inaccuracies. I have no problem suspending disbelief in a science fiction film, but it must have some basis in reality. For example, none of the Earth scientists’ detected the comet until the last minute, when in real life, even amateur astronomers would spot a comet months away in space. Also a major shortcoming is the fact that Crawford detected the comet ten years prior and alerted the authorities. I find it hard to believe that the top scientific minds in the field would not have checked out Crawford’s claim. Another major blunder is the Last Dance missile. The missile is shot into space by it’s fiery exhaust trail. But in the airless space where fire cannot exist, the burning exhaust still propels the missile. The only redeeming quality to the screenplay is that it examines the moral implications surrounding the choosing of the people who Crawford allows to live in his underground sanctuary. Though this idea is stolen from DEEP IMPACT.

The special effects are a major problem. The good news is the movie has some decent effects. The bad news is these scenes are stock footage from other films! When the comet threatens Earth’s environmental balance, a series of volcano eruptions threaten to consume the surrounding landscape. Volcano eruptions and lava flow scenes are lifted from Universal’s DANTE’S PEAK. When meteor fragments strike Earth’s cities, these sequences are lifted from the TV movie, ASTEROID. The numerous stock footage brings a big-budget flavor to TYCUS, but when you find out these scenes are from other films, your bubble bursts. TYCUS does offer some original computer effects (of the comet approaching and the Last Dance missile sequence), but these are hardly up to par of a classic Godzilla movie. As it is, special effects are used minimally in the story. They are used in the opening two minutes and in the last act. Many stock footage scenes are played over and over as in hopes the audience won’t notice (they were probably trying to pad the movie out). Not only does TYCUS fail on nearly every level, but it does not even deliver consistent special effects. The use of stock footage draws attention to the few original effects that TYCUS offers.

Surprisingly, the one area where TYCUS succeeds is in the acting. Peter Onorati is ornery as Jake Lowe. He’s got a certain presence and physicality which makes his character rise above the production. Yet he comes off as a normal everyday guy. It’s to bad we cringe as the script forces him to make poor decisions in each any every situation. I wouldn’t mind seeing the character of Jake Loew again (as long he was written by a real scripter). Dennis Hopper breaks his stereotypical characterizations as the brilliant astronomer, Peter Crawford. Hopper not only looks the part, he also makes for a credible president. He does not play the role as a villain. He plays the role with a realistic and caring sensibilities, despite the bit about refusing to allow just anyone into his haven. Finola Hughes also turns in a worthy performance as Jake’s wife. She is very naturally beautiful, without being a Hollywood glamour girl. Chick Vennera is the only actor in the main cast who fails to make you sympathize with his character. Vennera plays the Stan in a very painful manner, and delivers his lines like he is constipated. While the leads are mostly good, the supporting characters are terrible, and detrimental to the film. The female newscaster who delivers the bad news about the upcoming comet is particularly bad.

Another major problem with TYCUS are the production values. The sets are incredibly amateurish and cheap looking. The interior of Crawford’s underground complex is obviously a poorly designed basement of a warehouse. Crawford’s command center is supposed to be a high-tech computerized nerve center, but I’ve seen more convincing hardware on the classic LOST IN SPACE series. The locations shooting just doesn’t mesh. For instance, exterior shots show Palm trees in the Sierra mountains. I don’t think so. Continuity errors abound too. In one scene Jake jumps out of an airplane wearing a white helmet. During the fall, Jake (or rather his stunt double) is no longer wearing a white helmet. When Jake is next shown on the ground, his white helmet is back in place. The many hand-to-hand combat scenes that Jake performs with Crawford’s guards are poorly staged (and the director acknowledges this fact on the audio commentary). Even though Roger Corman’s films are cheap, you can at least expect a certain amount of professionalism from them. Not so with Tycus.

-  Phil Chandler