Screamers (1995 film)

In the year 2078, the planet Sirius 6B, once a thriving mining hub, has been reduced to a toxic wasteland by a war between the mining company the New Economic Block (N.E.B.) and "The Alliance", a group of former mining and science personnel. After miners discovered that their mining had released toxic gases, they went on strike, and the N.E.B. hired mercenaries as strike breakers. Five years into the war, Alliance scientists created and deployed Autonomous Mobile Swords (AMS) — artificially intelligent self-replicating machines that hunt down and kill N.E.B. soldiers. Nicknamed "Screamers" after their signature high-pitched noise, they are efficient at killing all living targets, so Alliance soldiers wear "tabs" which render them invisible to the machines. A fragile stalemate is in effect between the two exhausted, poorly-supplied, and undermanned armies.

An N.E.B. soldier carrying a message to the Alliance compound is killed by screamers. The message guarantees safe passage through N.E.B. territory to discuss a truce. Alliance commanding officer Joe Hendricksson reports to his Earth-based superiors but is told to stay put, and that peace negotiations are already underway on Earth. However, Private "Ace" Jefferson, newly arrived from Earth, refutes this claim. Hendricksson is not surprised; he has long suspected that both sides have simply written off Sirius 6B and abandoned their armies.

Deciding the truce offer is the only chance of survival for himself and his soldiers, Hendricksson and Jefferson set out for a meeting with the N.E.B. commander. While traveling through a city ruins they come upon David, a young boy clutching a teddy bear, and bring him along. The following night they are attacked by a never-before-seen reptilian screamer. Hendricksson is alarmed that their Alliance tabs did not protect them.

As the group nears the N.E.B. compound, two enemy soldiers, Becker and Ross, open fire on David. They explain to the shocked Alliance men that David was a new "type 3" screamer impersonating a human. Most of the N.E.B. contingent has been wiped out by another "David" screamer that a patrol unwittingly brought into the base; Becker, Ross, and a black marketeer named Jessica are the only survivors.

The group heads to the N.E.B. command center but finds only an empty building and pools of blood. Locating the mainframe computer, Hendricksson learns that the N.E.B. truce offer was just as false as the Alliance message from Earth. The group retreats to the N.E.B. bunker, pursued by "Davids". They discover that the screamers have "evolved" new versions on their own that are indistinguishable from humans and immune to Alliance tabs. Becker becomes convinced that Ross is a screamer and kills him, only to discover that he was human. The four survivors retreat to the Alliance base, only to find that it had been taken over by "Davids." As dozens of "Davids" pour out of the bunker's entrance, Hendricksson fires a micro-nuclear missile into the bunker, wiping them out. Jefferson rushes to help Becker, who was apparently injured in the blast, but Becker is revealed to be a "type 2" screamer and kills Jefferson. After Hendricksson destroys Becker, only he and Jessica remain. Worrying that Jessica could be a screamer, Hendricksson cuts her hand and is relieved to see blood.

The pair locate an emergency escape shuttle, but discover it can carry only one person. Hendricksson offers the shuttle to Jessica but a second "Jessica" arrives, confirming that she is an even more human-like type of screamer. Hendricksson resigns himself to death, but to his surprise, Jessica shields him, then sacrifices herself in battle with her lookalike. With her last breath, Jessica confesses her love for Hendricksson, who departs for Earth with the teddy bear carried by the original "David". As the screen fades to black, the bear slowly begins to move.

• Peter Weller as Commander Joseph A. Hendricksson
• Jennifer Rubin as Jessica Hansen
• Andrew Lauer as Private Michael "Ace" Jefferson
• Ron White as Lieutenant Commander Chuck Elbarak
• Charles Powell as Private Ross
• Roy Dupuis as Marshal Richard Cooper / Private Becker
• Michael Caloz as David
• Liliana Komorowska as Private Landowska
• Jason Cavalier as Private Leone
• Leni Parker as Corporal McDonald
• Bruce Boa as Secretary Green

Screamers was stuck in development hell for over a decade before finally being produced. Screenwriter Dan O'Bannon had completed his adaptation of Dick's short story Second Variety in 1981 (along with his adaptation of another of Dick's short stories, "We Can Remember It For You Wholesale", which became the 1990 film Total Recall).[4] By 1983, O'Bannon's screenplay for Screamers had been optioned by Tom Naud (SFX designer on the 1981 film Outland).[5] However, the production never went ahead as planned. At various times, Charles Fries showed interest in the project,[4] but it was not until the 1990s that Screamers went into production. By this time the screenplay had been rewritten by Miguel Tejada-Flores. O'Bannon was unaware that the film had been made until after its release, when his agent called him to notify him of his screenwriting credit for the film.[4] According to O'Bannon, they had kept much of the plot and characters from his original script the same while changing much of the dialogue.[4]

The film, directed by Christian Duguay, was made in Canada. Locations included a quarry in Quebec, in Montreal's Olympic Stadium, as well as Joliette.[6][7]

It premiered at the 1995 Toronto International Film Festival on September 8, 1995. It was released in the United States on January 26, 1996, by Columbia Pictures.

Screamers: The Hunting, directed by Sheldon Wilson and starring Gina Holden, Jana Pallaske, Greg Bryk, Stephen Amell and Lance Henriksen, was released straight to DVD in 2009.[18][19]

The sequel is set several years after the events of the original film. Hendricksson died when he deliberately allowed his escape shuttle to burn up in the atmosphere during reentry to Earth. The official determination is that he committed suicide due to post-traumatic stress; but it is strongly implied that he actually did it to prevent the "teddy bear" screamer on board from reaching Earth. Meanwhile, an SOS signal arrives from Sirius 6B. A contingent of seven soldiers, including Hendricksson's daughter Victoria Bronte (Holden), is dispatched to the war torn mining planet to investigate. The film features all of the screamers from the original film, as well as a sleeker, longer, and more serpentine screamer with cutting mandibles for a mouth.

As with Screamers, critical reaction to Screamers: The Hunting was mixed. David Johnson of DVD Verdict wrote that "the visual effects were surprisingly effective" and "[p]ractical effects impress as well", but added, "Unfortunately ... the script defaults to a clichéd finale, and a predictable—though well-executed—final twist ending." He concluded, "I had a pretty decent time with [Screamers: The Hunting] ... [I]f you're hankering for a serving of effective sci-fi B-movie shenanigans, you could do a lot worse."[20] Scott Foy of Dread Central wrote, "They've basically recycled the first film but dumbed it and dulled it down considerably, doing away with the paranoia and sense of desolation that gave the original some spark in favor of logic gaps and tedious predictability. ... The best that can be said ... is that most of the production values and make-up effects are top notch for a direct-to-DVD production. Too bad they didn't put as much work into crafting the screenplay."[21]

• Grey goo scenario
• Self-reconfiguring modular robot

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• Screamers at Box Office Mojo
• Screamers at IMDb 
• Screamers at Rotten Tomatoes
• Screamers at the TCM Movie Database