UofSciFi This movie is a desperate attempt to ride the skirt tales of the success of the Star Wars movies. The film uses recycled footage from "Battle Beyond the Stars" which is another Roger Corman Sci-Fi Turd, but at least this one is better than "Battle Beyond the Stars" - there is no real acting in this film (but its a Roger Corman film-What did you expect)again the entire soundtrack was done on a Keyboard/Synthesizer, the sound effects are recycled from "Battlestar Galactica" - there are no special effects because they were recycled/rearranged space scenes from another movie, the costumes look like something right out of 1981 salvation army salvage. --ironically, the little boy in this film gives one helluva performance, and he'd resurface again to star in the Sylvester Stallone movie "Over the Top" - I give this movie 3 stars out of 10

rastan2 This is a great 80's B movie. Its NOT a star wars rip off its a cash in. Yes the music and special effects are taken from battle beyond the stars, but this movie succeeds where that film and many other star wars cash ins failed. Like star wars it wasn't about the special effects it was about the characters. In this film you actually like and care about the characters . The pirates are all well defined. Ray Stewart is fantastic as the sadistic Zariatin and Vince Edwards is charismatic as the leader Hawk. Yes its got a star wars-esquire bar scene but every other film and TV show in the genre at this time did.Yes there are continuity errors, ( Hawk gets shot on his right side then later the wound is on the left). Yes it seemed that the future looked remarkably like the 80s with their 80s shirts and hair do's but this film was also ahead of its time in the respect that it had no problems with killing off nearly all the main characters. In short is this a massive summer blockbuster - no, is it an Oscar winning space epic -no, what this film is a rare 80's b movie treasure that you can file with Trancers and Explorers.

trickyascupart Okay, picture it: a ten year old boy has nothing better to do but to mope around the house. He turns on the TV and BOOM! It's a Star Wars rip-off! HOORAY! I was that ten year old kid and I so loved Star Wars (and still do) that anything with space battles, robots and smart-arse heroes was immediately watched with great suspension of disbelief. I really thought that Space Raiders was, along with Battlestar Galactica, the mutt's nuts, as it were, of Star Wars-type films. It was duly taped on a later broadcast and said tape did wear out because said kid watched it so much. I still watched it while I was a secondary school, and I'd even get up at some hideously early hour so I could watch it before going to school. After the tape went the way of the dodo I fortunately found a second-hand copy in a cash converters store and was able to keep watching it, though more out of habit that for a fix of space hokum. It will never earn the mantle of greatest sci-fi flick ever as that honour will go to the original Star Wars, but it's still watchable if you are a member of the kid-young-teen bracket. It's fun, it doesn't get too heavy and bogged down in volumes of exposition and it's got some very good ideas. The problem is that the budget didn't do justice to those ideas. The effects are very cheap, but I have seen worse. The robots were pretty well done, even if it is obvious that they're men in plastic suits. The acting isn't brilliant, but then this is an escapist b-movie, not Shakespeare, and to be honest, the level of acting is about right for the film - the actors are all pretty competent in their own way but they won't be winning any awards. Space Raiders - not great, but not rubbish either.

bigdinosaur If there were an EPA for film, then this movie would get their most sincere approval. If we all recycled our "stuff" to this degree, we'd never run out of anything.Funny how I was reminded of this movie when I first saw Starwars I: The Phantom Menace. At least Lucas didn't recycle his old footage.This is a dud. But it's a nice dud. Cute in spots (I liked when the kid said, "damn rocks"). And, if you like explosions (even recycled ones) you will get your fill.Actually for an obviously "no budget" film, it makes out fairly well. Acting is weak, but there is a little characterisation here and there. Story is predictable, but will lead you along anyhow.This is an "everybody chases the kid" type of movie which probably will appeal mostly to younger audiences. I gave this one a 2 out of 10.I dug up my old VHS copy of this film. I don't think it's on DVD.