Director – Herbert Midgley (Beep)
Starring – Paxton Collins (In the Original Geek, Freedom Kowalski – Episode 3), Gemma Garcia (The 5th Kind, Quartz), and Seth Barrett
Release Date – 2015
Rating – 3/5
I try to make it a habit to search for indie horror films through Amazon and eBay to find movies that have somehow slipped passed me. A lot of times I find some extremely fun and wild movies that most of my horror friends have missed. Recently I was doing my normal digging when I found the no budget zombie flick Blaming George Romero.
I wanted to take advantage of the free shipping so I kept digging for a few more movies to add to my cart when I found the sci-fi film The Rise of the Robots. this one looked like another wild ride so I quickly hit add to cart. Once I finished with Blaming George Romero I figured now was just as good a time as any to spin Rise of the Robots.
**Spoiler Alert** The film follows a college professor, two of his students, and a local good ol’ boy who find themselves under attack when robots from another planet posses all of mankind who are addicted to staring at their phones. They must act fast to save the human race before the robot prove they are superior. **Spoiler Alert**
A few months ago I watched Inhumanwich and fucking loved it. The blend of drive-in era sci-fi and comedy was an absolute blast. I was hoping The Rise of the Robots would be very similar and it was. It was a fun sci-fi comedy mash up that paid tribute to the classic age of sci-fi cinema.
The acting in this one a dry and extremely flat but that was done on purpose. The film fully embraces the b-movie campiness of the classic sci-fi films and the cast is fully dedicated to the aesthetics. I really enjoyed the characters and how the cast approached their roles. The characters are very entertaining and it’s the cast we have to thank that made this movie so much fun.
The story for this one is a fun send off to golden age of drive-in cinema and classic sci-fi flicks meets modern day society. The robots taking over the human race by infiltrating their cellphones is brilliant. Six years later and this still rings true. The story is extremely campy and fun which works with how goofy it is. With that being said, the story is stretched a little too thin. It becomes a little dull in the middle but picks back up as we reach the final stretch.
Finally, this is not a bloody flick. We get some classic visual effects that was very cheesy but fun. I enjoyed it for what it was. However, if you are looking for something bloody then you will be very disappointed. Overall, The Rise of the Robots is a cheesy good time. It’s not going to be a movie that will stick with you but it’s very entertaining for a first time watch. Check it out.
