Friday 16 March 2018

MegaForce (1982)



The Republic of Sardun is frequently raided by its neighbour Gamibia.  Sardun has the military forces to deliver a powerful counterattack, but its leaders refuse to authorise any incursions across the border.  That means that Gamibian raiders can escape with only very limited losses to their own forces.

Sardun has a plan, though.  They want to engage MegaForce - a high tech army drawn from and funded by all the free nations of the world - to goad the Gamibians into invading Sardun at a pre-determined location.  Sardun's army can then destroy the enemy without being seen as the aggressor.

If that plan sounds like political sophistry of the lowest order, well, it is.  On the other hand, it is far from the most ludicrous thing that will happen in this film, and - unlike some of those other things - is probably intended to be at least a little bit ridiculous.  The venality of politicians is something of a theme in the film's script.

Anyway, Sardun sends representatives meet with Ace Hunter, the commander of MegaForce, and ... well, what ensues is exactly the movie you would expect when it has a lead character named "Ace Hunter".  It's gloriously goofy nonsense, played utterly straight and without the slightest hint of being anything but sincere.  I can't help but wonder if the film started out as a spec script for a GI Joe movie and then got shopped around when they couldn't secure the rights.

I found this deliriously good fun, though almost certainly not in the way that the film makers intended.  If you're in the mood for unabashedly 80s stupidity, look no further than MegaForce.

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