THE SPACEHUNTER SCRAMBLER!

IT WAS in the Spring of 1983 when I first saw the Scrambler in the real.

I was shopping with my brother Gary in the Southwest Plaza Mall in Littleton, Colorado, and there it was, sitting boldly on the floor in front of the mall's brand new multiplex theater. To our surprise no one seemed to be paying much attention to it other than a few curious movie goers. But we certainly did, because we were awestruck!

We also knew exactly what it was and where it came from the moment we laid eyes our on it. "It" being a custom made four-wheel drive vehicle built specifically for the soon to be released 3-D science fiction film, Spacehunter: Adventures in the Forbidden Zone. In those days Gary and I used to read the movie magazines so we even knew what the vehicle was called: The Scrambler. Apparently Columbia Pictures felt that the Denver Area was worthy of a publicity tour, and so here it sat, in all its gleaming bronze badassitude.

The Scrambler had a caretaker on duty (whose name I don't recall), who turned out to be one heckuva nice guy. He encouraged us sit in the drivers seat and the gun turret and take photos (that's me behind the wheel). We even got to pop the hood and inspect the engine, a Mopar V-8. We also crawled underneath to look at the undercarriage. He told us the chassis was that of a Dodge Power Wagon, which thrilled my brother Gary because he owned a 1973 Power Wagon (some claim it's a 1982 Ramcharger, which makes more sense; durn my faulty memory!). At this point the two of them started conversing like auto-engineers: horsepower, torque, slip differential, suspension modifications, steering maneuverability versus tire size, etc, etc., (Gary, who happens to be the best driver/operator I've ever been around, is one of those mechanically-minded guys who can take a carburetor apart and put it back together again without labeling any of the parts). The caretaker finally hinted that if the Scrambler had been parked outside he would've let us take it for a spin around the parking lot. Like I said, he was a heckuva nice guy, but we all knew that wasn't possible under studio liability.

Later of course, when we went to see the actual movie we came away slightly disappointed. Back then science fiction films were always hit or miss (mostly miss), and Spacehunter was no exception. Although well shot and budgeted the film suffered about as much as it benefited from its use of stereotypical tropes. The story had potential though: set in the 22nd century, it followed the travails of Wolff (Richard Strauss), an independent galactic salvage operator, and his companion/engineer Chalmers (Andrea Marcovicci), as they attempt to rescue three prized women who are suddenly stranded on Terra XI, a brutal, lawless planet that has been victimized by civil wars and plague. After landing and rolling out the Scrambler, Wolff meets Niki (Molly Ringwald), a spunky, vagrant teenager who insists she can help him track down his quarry. He then crosses path with Washington (Ernie Hudson), a rival opportunist, and lots of dangerous locals before ultimately confronting the Overdog (Michael Ironside), a hideous, megalomaniac cyborg with steel claws for hands.

It all sounds pretty good I know, but like any film that tries to channel elements from both Star Wars and The Road Warrior, it came off as neither. And the constant bickering between Wolff and Niki grew so tiresome that without the presence of Washington I might've left halfway thru and snuck into an adjoining theater. Nevertheless, I give the film 3 out of 5 stars, 4 when I'm feeling nostalgic, but the awesome Scrambler gets 5 stars, and so does Mr. Washington.

The original director was let go after two weeks of filming and replaced by veteran Lamont Johnson (1922-2010). Johnson was known mostly for his prolific television work, directing, among many others, multiple episodes of Peter Gunn, Have Gun Will Travel, The Twilight Zone, and later, Felicity. He also helmed several TV movies and even a few feature films. The film's musical score was composed by Elmer Bernstein, famed for his The Magnificent Seven score, who wrote it as if it were another Western (which is sorta is) using a conventional orchestra. Later, an ondes Martenot was added, which is a type of electronic theremin, to make the music sound more sci-fi-ish.

Box-office returns were relatively modest even though the film tried to capitalize on the Star Wars sci-fi craze by timing its opening one week before Return of the Jedi debuted. It made a respectable $7 million that first week, but by the end of its run it had only grossed a mere $16.5 million, disappointing everyone involved. Subsequently, a novelization of the screenplay was never published.

All outdoor filming was done in an abandoned uranium mine near Moab, Utah, and in nearby Dead Horse State Park, as well as in many areas in and around the awesome Utah Canyonlands. Indoor filming was done in Vancouver, Canada. 

The Shafer Trail in the Canyonlands, descending 1500 feet.




The movie begins with a maiden filled pod escaping destruction.
 

"Shit! We've landed in Utah!"

"3000 megacredits to the person who can get us outta this State!"

On board their spaceship the U.N.S.S. Hannibal, Wolff and Chalmers hear the distress call.

Chalmers doing her engineer thing, or else looking for more duct tape to repair that chair with.

"Ahhhh... this seat cushion feels much better now."

CLICK ON IMAGE TO ENLARGE

A pre-production sketch of the film.



Landing on Terra XI.




Inside the Hannibal's holding bay, and our first glimpse of the Scrambler.




Finally--spinning meat!

Wolff confronts the "Scav (enger)" Niki.




"Hey Slick, hang a left at the red rock."

The Overdog's warriors attack a wind driven barge-train.

What every bike should have: a roll-bar.




"Those bikes are wicked cool."

My hero: Washington (yeah, that wigged fellow too!).




"Wanna race for pink slips?"

Never a dull moment on Terra XI.

Because of a simple typo sent to the FX department, we got FAT mutants instead of BAT mutants.

This tribe of aquatic Amazons is after Wolff's precious bodily fluids (back when I was single I would've gladly given them mine).

 

The Overdog barking orders at his minions, because, you know, they're "special."

 Niki endures the Death Maze with her typical stoicism.

In the clutches of an evil autocrat.

A happy ending for Wolff (after Washington saves their asses), but from the look on Niki's face maybe not so much for her.

 

A black & white promotion flyer that the caretaker was handing out.

The first poster of the film.

 

The official poster of the film.

The 1989 VHS, 2001 DVD, and 2019 (Region B) BD.

I wonder what became of the Scrambler?

If you've ever watched the Collector's Call on TV you know there are people out there who seriously collect movie memorabilia and props. Has the Scrambler been sitting all this time in some collector's fancy schmancy garage? Or is it languishing in someone's old barn just like the battered Ford Mustang from Bullet was? Maybe it got refitted and then wrecked in some B action movie (apparently it was refitted once for a season three ending episode of TV's Knightrider, which may have been its undoing). I guess we'll never know until it shows up on the Collector's Call, or gets put up for sale at some famous auction house.

[© November, 2022, Jeffersen]