VELOCITY TRAP (90 mins) $24.95
1997 Columbia Tristar
Region 1
Video: Widescreen (1.85.1)
Audio:  Dolby Digital 5.1; DD 2.0 Stereo 
Subtitles: English, Spanish
Chapter Stops: 28
Packaging: Keep Case
Theatrical Trailer
Audio Commentary
Production Notes
Talent Bios

 

Directed by Phillip Roth

VELOCITY TRAP is a 1997 science fiction/action film produced by Unified Films Organization (UFO) Films. UFO Films is a conglomeration of talent who write, produce and direct low-budget effects films. One of the mainstays of UFO Films is director/producer Phillip Roth. Roth has directed many low budget sci-fi films, some which have achieved some cult status like DIGITAL MAN, PROTOTYPE X29A, DARK DRIVE, and A.P.E.X. Actor/producer Ken Olandt also produced DARK DRIVE, TOTAL REALITY, and INTERCEPTOR FORCE. What sets these folks at UFO Films apart from the pack, is that they have revolutionized the use of computer graphics for low budget film. The result is a sci-fi film with great visual effects, and quality futuristic design work.

Roth and Olandt hired some unknowns and some genre stars to round out the cast. Former kick-boxing champion Oliver (NEMESIS) Gruner headlines as future cop Ray Stokes. Ken (APRIL FOOL’S DAY) Olandt plays psycho hijacker and Gruner’s opponent, Nick Simmons. Also Bruce (THE LANDLADY) Weitz and Craig (BODY DOUBLE) Wasson are featured in small roles. Alicia Coppola is Beth Sheffield, the starship navigator.

In the cold, quiet black of space, Captain Simmons (Olandt) parks his hijacked spaceship, the Endeavor, near an enormous asteroid. On the surface, a small shuttle craft piloted by his wife, Pallas (Jorja Fox) plants a 500-Megaton nuclear warhead. Moments later, the shuttle barely escapes back to its mother ship as the warhead explodes, shifting the asteroid into a new orbit. The 600 million-ton rock tumbles slowly into the main flight path of a dangerous area of space called the Velocity Run.

Far away, on an Earth colony planet called Ramanya, billions of dollars in mining revenue are generated by the massive RMC (Ramanya Mining Corporation), run by a ruthless manager named Dawson (Wasson). These mines and many like it stretch across the Earth Empire, 20 light years from Earth. Yet nearly 150 years in the future, electronic crime has ravaged the interstellar banking system, forcing a return to hard cash transfers between planets. Federal Banking Ships shuttle billions in cash between the colonies and the Federal Bank on Earth. These armored vessels, which cruise at nearly 25 times the speed of light, bristle with automated defenses.

On Ramanya, Ray Stokes, a police officer for the E.D. (Enforcement Division) stationed at all Earth outposts, is given bodyguard duty at an executive function. There he is set up in a murder-for-hire scheme. Facing murder charges and the exposure of an affair with his estranged wife, Stokes is re-assigned to ride a Federal Banking ship --the Atlantic -- back to Earth. On the ship, Stokes will be alone for nearly 6 months while the regular crew is in cryro-sleep.

Stokes finds that he is an unwelcome addition to the 3-person crew. He meets the less than receptive navigator, Beth Sheffield (Alicia Coppola). She has the job of programming the ship's flight through the perils of deep space, especially through an area that has a reputation as the Bermuda Triangle of space travel, the Velocity Run. Captain Fenner (Bruce Weitz) also meets Stokes with a cool reception. He doesn't like having an armed police officer watching over the ship and its money while the crew sleeps for six months. The Captain forces Stokes to hand over his ammunition. Only the engineer Delacruz (Ray Oriel), is understanding of Stokes' dilemma on board the ship.

Three months later, a lonely Stokes wanders the empty ship when it suddenly drops from warp speed. It faces a 600 million-ton asteroid directly in its path. As part of the emergency procedure the Navigator is awakened to change course, but the ship and its crew are facing a much bigger problem: A massive ship has just docked with the Atlantic, and a well-armed team of soldiers has boarded her. Stokes is facing a team of killers alone, light years away from the nearest outpost, with a pistol and no ammunition.

As the joined ships hurtle towards the asteroid, Stokes must fight to survive before impact in less than 2 hours. The robbery team lead by Simmons plans to take the money from the ship and then let it impact with the asteroid, destroying all evidence. It will be the perfect crime, with $40,000,000,000 stolen and no trace of what happened. The ship will be written off as lost in a place where ships have disappeared before. As the clock ticks toward impact, Stokes will have only one shot at saving himself and the lone surviving crew member, navigator Beth Sheffield.

Remember those B-Westerns where a stagecoach gold shipment was threatened by bandits lying in wait in a dangerous canyon, and only one lawman could stop them? Well, this film uses the same concept, only now it is the year 2150. Instead of one lawman with a big white hat, we have interplanetary police officer Olivier Gruner who must protect the currency shipment from space pirates. Gruner uses his kick-boxing skills sporadically, and actually relies on gun fire to keep the pirates at bay. Gruner will never win any acting awards, but being a real life tough guy, he projects some of these traits into his character and he has a decent screen presence. With Arnold, Chuck, and Sylvester being too old for modern action roles, the time is ripe for new blood. Outside of several Hong Kong stars that I could name, Gruner should fulfill that role nicely.

Newcomer Alicia Coppola plays cranky navigator Beth Sheffield. Although Coppola is fairly new to films, she is actually one of the better talents in the picture. Her role of Beth Sheffield is the most well-defined character in VELOCITY TRAP, so she has a lot more to work with than the other stars. Her character is a space pilot, meaning she is the only one who can avoid the oncoming collision with the giant asteroid. So the last act becomes a matter of Gruner’s character being able to keep Beth alive long enough for her to do her thing and avoid the giant rock. So Gruner has to do things like throw himself in front of bullets to protect her. But Beth is no ordinary pilot, she is a military trained person herself, and she no slouch in the weapons department, or in hand-to-hand combat. No wonder she has good chemistry with Gruner.

The main problem with the film (like most movies of this nature) is the script and characterizations. There are huge plot holes in the script big enough to drive a spaceship though. Most characters are cardboard cutouts, or they are not onscreen long enough for us to care about them. When making a sci-fi film, the filmmakers have to define a set of rules (or mythology) for the narrative to follow. If you break the rules that you define, it makes for an inconsistent script. But this is a popcorn film; you really cannot fairly criticize it in this manner, but I just wanted point out the film’s weaknesses. One surprise is that there is a good amount of humor present in the film, such as when Gruner passes the time while his shipmates are in cryo-sleep.

VELOCITY TRAP has some good things going for it. Unquestionably, the biggest strength is the special effects. All the outer space scenes involve complicated CGI effects that are ingeniously staged from various angles. If you have ever seen any episodes of BABYLON 5 and you enjoy the slick-looking space vehicles and starcraft from that series, then you’ll know what to expect here. There is also some CGI security robots that look impressive. The special effects design work (spaceships, vehicles, robots etc.) are also inspired. Where the budget is really obvious is in the crowded spaceship interiors, where everything looks like exactly like what it is, a small soundstage.

You can tell that the writers did a patchwork script from several better movies. In fact, you can have some fun spotting the other movies that were ripped off—oops, I mean inspired from. The entire plot device depends on how the heroes are going to avoid an asteroid from hitting their ship (this is what produces the suspense). Obviously, this aspect is regurgitated from ARMAGEDDON and DEEP IMPACT. On the planet Ramanya, Gruner’s corrupt associates set him up in a grand scheme of betrayal, which brings to mind events from TOTAL RECALL. In one scene, the ship’s computer keeps repeating that the ship "will be destroyed from impact in x minutes" while the alarm systems go off. This is obviously lifted from the self-destruct sequence from ALIEN. So if you looking for original, thought provoking science fiction, you won’t find it here.

SIGHT

VELOCITY TRAP is presented in its original widescreen ratio of 1.85.1. The transfer does not feature 16x9 enhancement. This DVD is not representative of what Columbia Tristar usually does. You can pretty much depend on C/T to give a film 16x9 enhancement. If for some reason they cannot, they usually clean up the source elements for DVD, and make films with poor prints look good. This is definitely a let down, though the end result is that the film is still watchable. Firstly, the transfer is very dark. This may be the filmmakers’ intended look, but the transfer does not help the matters. Despite only being a 3 year old movie, the film has no glossy luster. The image is not sharp; numerous scenes appear soft. This looks like a laserdisc transfer, although VELOCITY TRAP was never released on LD. The cinematography and production design are a little sterile, but look decent enough in the image. The interior scenes filmed on soundstages look dark. The special effects sequences are dark also, so at least it is consistent. Because of the darkness and softness, the detail level is not what it should be. Black level is at least well balanced. It is my belief that the image problems inherent in this transfer would have been resolved if Columbia Tristar had encoded the image for 16x9 enhancement.

SOUND

Columbia Tristar has done a decent job with the Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack. While the fidelity of the mix is commendable, there is a problem. The problem is lack of panning and surround effects. To summarize the problem, this Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack sounds like a very strong Dolby Digital 2.0 soundtrack. The mix is crisp, clear, and has great ambiance. But I saw plenty of missed opportunities. For example, when a spacecraft zooms from the left side of the screen to the right, you would expect it to be accompanied by some panning effects. And when a spacecraft zooms over your head and you can see down the rocket exhaust, you would expect to hear some amount of rumbling bass to accentuate the visuals. But you don’t, so this is a bit of a letdown in that aspect. This is a fairly recent production (1997), and I’ve seen some Anchor Bay DVDs from the sixties and seventies with more sound field activity than Columbia Tristar’s VELOCITY TRAP. Other than that complaint, the DD 5.1 mix is good. There is no hiss, drop outs, or distortion on the sound track. The dialog, sound effects, and the score are perfectly synchronized. Speaking of the score, Richard McHugh and Mike Slammer composed a worthy memorable symphonic score for the film. Though the arrangements are basic and repetitive, it is well done and complements the sci-fi and action elements perfectly.

FEATURES

The colorful trailer is full frame, Dolby Digital 2.0, and runs :36 seconds. The talent bios are for these filmmakers and stars: Oliver Gruner, Alicia Coppola, Ken Olandt, Jorga Fox, Bruce Weitz, Ray Oriel, Jaason Simmons, Victor Love, Phil Roth, and Pat Phillips. There is an interesting audio commentary with director Phil Roth, Oliver Gruner, and Special Effects Wiz Andrew Hofman. The commentary goes into detail about the production, character motivations, and special effects. It is interesting to watch because you hear three specialists commenting on the film from their own particular viewpoint: a director, an actor, and a special effects artist. It’s reminiscent of watching a football game where you have a play-by-play man, a color commentator, and an ex-quarterback. Each announcer brings their own varied background into play, yet they all gel together.

CONCLUSION

This DVD could have been a lot better if Columbia Tristar enhanced it for 16x9 TVs. VELOCITY TRAP features some innovative CGI effects that would have looked great in anamorphic widescreen. Still, this popcorn sci-fi film is still worth a look by genre fans. Despite this low budget film’s many faults, it is not boring. I will say I was impressed with UFO films productions, and hopefully they will continue to progress, and provide some solid alternative filmmaking. By authoring future releases for 16x9 TVs (like they usually do) and producing a more powerful (and active) DD 5.1 mix, Columbia Tristar needs to work on making films like VELOCITY TRAP look and sound as good as possible. They did score well in the extras department, however. On a final note, VELOCITY TRAP’s special effects are innovative, and worthy of a rental just to witness them. Granted, special effects aren’t everything, but you have to be impressed with the digital effects for this low-budget film.

VELOCITY TRAP is available from DVDEmpire.com

                                             Rating (out of 5):

Movie: 3.0
Video: 4.0
Audio: 4.0
Extras: 2.5
Overall: 3.5

- Darren Collete

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