MovieChat Forums > The Last Starfighter (1984) Discussion > The game

The game

posted 8 years ago by JasonRebourne
11 replies | jump to latest

Okay, so what made them think beating a video game would qualify someone to fight in a real space battle?

[–] Beauq81 8 years ago

Not to fight straight away, but for training.

Fighting a religious war is like fighting over whose imaginary friend is better.

[–] JasonRebourne 8 years ago

But even then, beating a video game is a terrible basis for recruitment.

[–] Fluke_Skywalker 8 years ago

I dunno, real world fighter pilots use simulators to train for real combat all the time .

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[–] JasonRebourne 8 years ago

But the simulator is not a game of Space Invaders.

[–] Beauq81 8 years ago

Video games have been proved to be great for testing and practicing eye-hand coordination.

Fighting a religious war is like fighting over whose imaginary friend is better.

[–] JasonRebourne 8 years ago

I think there's a bit more to a space war than that.

[–] residentevil6901 8 years ago

Yeah just like how it took him a bit to get used to the controls on the new ship, the game taught him the basics. All he had to do was get used to it.

[–] loofapotato 8 years ago

Well the game is more of a test of skills for a gunner which Alex excelled at. As designed by Centauri for Earth. However it was not intended to test him as a pilot. That is why Gunstars required a duo crew, one pilot and one gunner (weapons officer) like most tandem 2 person attack helicopters.

[–] DrWhen 8 years ago

There wasn't a "them". It was a scheme cooked up by Centauri to make money off the recruit finder's fee.

[–] Tolyngee 8 years ago

To be fair on that point: this is an old film. Most probably haven't seen it since they were kids. I only just re-watched it last week, and had totally forgotten that small plot point. When you're a kid, you might miss that part of the storyline altogether.

Actually, I now may have to go back and watch that part yet again. Because wasn't that game actually supposed to have been delivered somewhere else anyway??? If so... what sense does it make that it was in English?

My point here is that it's easy to glaze over a small plot point when you're just trying to have fun and watch a kids' film, but if you stop to think a second and be critical... you realize it doesn't make much sense at all.

Did the game have its own universal translator? If so... then why couldn't Centauri just give him one while in the car? It makes the movie a little more interesting I guess to delay giving him a universal translator though.

Then again, the movie was directed by Nick Castle (the guy in the flippin' Michael Myers' mask!? Seriously???), so a strong script was hardly of any concern to anyone. It was probably written on napkins during takes while filming Halloween.

[–] MaximRecoil (4059) 5 years ago

"Actually, I now may have to go back and watch that part yet again. Because wasn't that game actually supposed to have been delivered somewhere else anyway???"

Yes, it was supposed to be delivered to Las Vegas, Nevada rather than a trailer park out in the middle of nowhere.

"If so... what sense does it make that it was in English?"

See above.