Trancers (1985) Starring Tim Thomerson, Helen Hunt, Michael Stefani, Art LaFleur & Telma Hopkins Directed by Charles Band Written by Danny Bilson & Paul De Meo

Using some scientifically accurate time travel technology, Whistler escapes to the past, 1985 to be exact, leaving his physical body behind and taking over the body of one of his ancestors. Seeing a prime opportunity to change the future for his benefit, Whistler begins killing off the ancestors of governing council members, ceasing their existence, from existence (?). There is only one person that can stop Whistler from continuing this uncalled for and completely rude killing spree, and that person is Jack Deth, who has been chosen to go back to '85 to stop his arch nemesis and send him back...to the future!

Trancers is a pretty short film, only about 75 minutes long and the pacing is super tight and quick, keeping the movie in full forward momentum, right up and until the final moments. There is plenty of action to satisfy and the interactions with the trancers themselves is pure insanity and totally fun. You cannot beat the sight of Jack Deth throwing down with a crazed waitress in a diner, who could double for Tyrone Biggums from Chappelle's Show, or even better, brawling with a tranced mall Santa! I'm also very happy to know that the most dangerous trancer is a trancer that is aerobically fit and has skin the color of a golden god. They can kick so high and look great doing it too! Really gives me the much needed motivation to hit the gym and the tanning bed just in case one day, I too, should be turned into a trancer. One can only dream.

Outside of the sci-fi and action aspects of Trancers, the film also has this heavy Film Noir feeling to it, with the costuming, some of the set design and even the characters themselves. It's one of the things that I really enjoy about the film and it also carries over in a big way to the character of Jack Deth, who while being from the future, is a cop right out of the past (our past, not his) with his hard-boiled attitude and cynical demeanor.

Speaking of Deth, the performance by Dollman himself, Tim Thomerson, is simply wonderful. His look is perfect, and even with his comedic background, he plays gritty tough cop as good, and as convincingly as anyone else. He brings to life a truly entertaining character, one that lights matches off of his teeth and spouts off some fantastic (but not over the top) dialogue. Trancers is the film that made Thomerson a B-Movie star, and while he did have a decent career, he is much more talented than his career would lead one to believe.

Another performance that I enjoyed, surprisingly, comes from Helen Hunt, who plays Leena, Deth's '85 love interest. She is very likable, with this cute and lively personality, all things which I do not associate with the actress at all. Both Hunt and Thomerson also have great chemistry and the contrast of the spunky and fun character of Leena, compared to the jaded and nearly miserable character of Deth, is kind of a cute mix. Like kittens in a bubble bath.

It's really not a surprise that there have been five sequels to Trancers.the film is a rollercoaster ride through 80's genre cinema and what a ride it is. Even with a basis that lacks originality, the film brings some smart ideas and executes them very well for a cheaply made film. There is a healthy amount of cheese, but that is not what is defining for Trancers, so much as it's a film that is really pretty good, but made for cheap and in the 80's, which sometimes people auto-associate with hokey. The movie has great dialogue and characters, solid acting, lots of action, a mixing of genres, and most importantly, Trancers is a heck of a lot fun. Oh, and there's a hobo baseball scene in the film too. 'Nuff said.