Nerds That Geek Movie Review: ‘Maximum Overdrive’

Written by Scott Edwards and John Edward Betancourt

​Scotty’s Review of ‘Maximum Overdrive’
To this day, astronomers still do not know what the cosmos truly have in store for us. With so much to still be discovered in our solar system, there are so many more questions on what is further out. Is there life somewhere else in the universe that can help teach us how to travel, or will they want to take over our planet from us? Will we know the answers in our lifetime? I doubt it, but there is no shame in looking up and admiring the beauty of the stars.

The earth has fallen behind the rouge Rhea-M comet and will stay in its tail debris for eight days. No one knows what effect this will have on the planet, but they are sure that something strange may occur. But, when machines start to get minds of their own, the nation starts to panic. Why would something that we built try to harm us anyway, we are the creators.

Being held up in a truck stop, Bill Robinson witnesses an attack firsthand on a waitress. Not really understanding what is happening, he destroys the electric knife, but when he sees that parked trucks just outside of the window come to life, he knows the group inside of the building are in for something out of this world. Teaming up with Brett, a young female drifter that finds him cute, Bill has to take control of the situation as best he can to keep everyone inside and away from the rogue trucks that are hungry for human blood. 

Witnessing the same thing on the other side of town Deke Keller is keeping his head down and making his way to the truck stop to see his father. Being stalked by an ice cream truck, Deke finds that he can travel underground in the storm pipes safely and works his way to be with his father. Not understanding the magnitude of what is happening, the group in the truck stop hear strange honking that is Morse code asking for help. The trucks need fuel to survive, and they offer free passage for those who help, but Bill and Brett have a different plan and that is to escape everything electronic altogether.

All I can say is wow. This is an off the wall idea that now has me worried about upsetting my toaster. If you think about it, what do we use these days that does not run off of some sort of motor that could be infected by a comet’s gas cloud? Not much, and I would have to tell you that the human race would be doomed if this ever really happened. If there was ever a movie that I would like to see a remake of featuring more technology of the time, it would be this one. Not to criticize how this movie added scares, but it was mainly automobiles that did all of the attacking, when there are so many more items in a home that we trust, it would make the thrills just that much more mesmerizing. Stay Scared.

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​John’s Review of ‘Maximum Overdrive’
Back in the middle of the 1980’s, the return of Halley’s Comet managed to ignite the imagination of horror filmmakers in new and exciting ways, to the point where a trilogy of horror flicks hit the market all celebrating the possible terrors waiting for us within the comet’s tail. There was Night of the Comet, a story that featured a comet coming to Earth and laying waste to mankind by way of a strange red dust. There was Lifeforce, wherein some pretty awesome space vampires came to our world with Halley’s Comet, and there was also… Maximum Overdrive. 
 
Now, this is a film that continues to be divisive among fans, some people love it, others wish it never existed and its iconic status as a B movie gone wrong makes it a must see amongst horror fans. But why is this film so divisive? Well, that's at the top of today's discussion because, it never ceases to amaze me how passionate people get when they discuss this film with others. But for me this film is a guilty pleasure because at times it's freaking awesome, and at other times... it's freaking bad and since we here at Nerds That Geek discuss different views on films, here's what makes this movie so great and so awful. 
 
Now first and foremost, this film has a wonderful premise. A rogue comet swings by earth, the planet is trapped in its tail, machinery goes wild and attacks us. It's a great satire on our reliance on technology and quite frankly when the machines go wild, the story delivers some incredible kills, which means that if you're a gore-hound than this movie is for you. There's lawnmowers moving about that love to snack on human flesh, a dazzling scene involving a bulldozer and someone's skull, the list goes on and on and the splatter is so fulfilling that you'll be hooting and hollering the entire time when a quality kill goes down... but alas... outside of that and the rocking AC/DC soundtrack, that's all the film has going for it. 

Which makes this an ironic viewing because Stephen King wrote the original short story for it (entitled 'Trucks') and the screenplay and directed the sucker. Heck the trailer even speaks to the fact that King thought it was high time he personally handled an adaptation of his work. So, one would think that such a master of terror would provide us with perhaps his magnum opus, but it's clear that King was simply not ready for the Director's Chair. While the carnage is great, the scares are simply not there, and well... the acting leaves something to be desired as well. It's wooden, cheesy and at times beyond the over the top and for proof, look no further than the 'We Made You!' scene. Fans of the movie know what I'm talking about, and for those about to watch it for the first time, when it happens, you'll know. 

Which brings us to the most important part of revisiting this film, especially for the uninitiated; is it watchable and worth a look? The answer is a surprising yes. For one, it's a hell of a ride. Rocking music, blood and guts, all things that entertain to no end and when all is said and done, the laughable stuff is equally as enjoyable. Sure, you're going to cringe at the acting, or roll your eyes when things get out of hand, but you'll want to know how it ends because this is a movie unlike any other. This is that rare one-of-a-kind experience that you tell your friends about because come on, the villain of the film is a semi-truck with a Green Goblin on the front, it's that wild. But the news of all, is that this movie has seen a renaissance on home video and at last, you too can experience the wonder of this incredible motion picture. 

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