Trancers (1984) – Film Review

Director: Charles Band
Cast: Tim Thomerson, Helen Hunt, Richard Herd
Certificate: 15

By Roger Crow

Time-jumping, scar-faced bounty hunter Jack Deth zips back to 1984 to stop a criminal who can transform people into zombie-like creatures. That’s the premise behind this schlock sci-fi fantasy, which has been brushed up for a new audience, and a lot of original fans like me.

One of the selling points is the refreshingly honest yack track between writer/director Charles Band and star Tim Thomerson.

It’s bursting with trivia. Dan Bradley, one of the stunt guys, wound up crafting some of those electrifying stunts in the Bourne saga, but of course, he wasn’t the biggest post-Trancers success story. Who’d have thought in ‘84 that co-star Helen (As Good As It Gets) Hunt would wind up winning an Oscar?

Sadly, the duo doesn’t mention if one of the cars in the early shots is the same one as in Blade Runner or an exact copy. (I wait until the closing credits to discover Gene Winfield provided cars for both movies in case you were wondering.)

“Terrific recall”

“Dude, seriously,” comments Band at the sight of an obvious miniature car, before we get the bombshell that he had wanted Bette Davis for a character in the next scene.

The director says “Dude” so many times, it’s almost comical.

It’s obvious Band doesn’t remember much about some of the actors in his own movie, but Thomerson has terrific recall, which is a bonus for fans of this glorious B… or rather D movie.

Amazingly, one of the actors in a following scene was part of Tony Orlando’s band, Dawn (Telma Hopkins). Mind blown.

According to Band, this was made 30 years ago, so it’s obviously a dated commentary, or a recent one, and he has no idea that 1984 was more than 40 years ago.

Thomerson was impressed by his “guns”, but less impressed with Band’s no-filter commentary. Charles clearly doesn’t care about censorship, thankfully.

“Fresh light”

The first time I tried to watch Trancers after a 35-year break a few months ago, I fell asleep after 30 mins, but thanks to the yack track on the new release, this time it’s a joy, shedding fresh light on a cult classic.

Trancers was never going to win any major awards, but as a fun sci-fi romp which never takes itself too seriously, this feels like a lighter alternative to that better-known, low-budget mid-eighties epic, The Terminator, shot around the same time in the same neck of the woods.

However, for newcomers, it’s more reminiscent of a series it inspired, Quantum Leap, which also featured Trancers co-star Richard Herd.

As a side note, Band and Thomerson had previously worked on Metalstorm, a 1983 Z-list sci-fi epic in the Mad Max vein, which was later used as inspiration for the movie-within-a-movie in The Fall Guy film. I’d be amazed if a Trancers reboot didn’t get the A-list treatment at some point. It certainly deserves it.

Roger Crow( Writer )

Adopted Yorkshireman Roger Crow developed a passion for film and TV in the 1970s and 1980s. He has been a published film and TV reviewer since the 1990s; a world travel and restaurant critic since the noughties, and for the past decade has assessed the pros and cons of live gigs and theatre productions around the UK. His ideal day would involve reviewing a performance of Bat Out of Hell, followed by a Pad Thai while being serenaded by Texas on a cruise around Europe.
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