Class of 1999 (1990)

Directed by Mark L. Lester [Other horror films: Firestarter (1984), Blowback (2000), Sacrifice (2000), Pterodactyl (2005), Groupie (2010), Poseidon Rex (2013)]

Class of 1999 is a movie that I’ve long had an interest in. It’s never been a film I knew too much about, but I did have a grasp on the basics (killer robots in a school), and I thought it’d be a fun idea to play around with. While the film could have used a little polish, I found it a decently fun time.

According to director Mark L. Lester, this movie is a sequel to another one of his films, being Class of 1984. I’ve seen Class of 1984, but as I don’t find it a horror film, I don’t cover it here. I don’t know why this film needed to be called a sequel – the themes are somewhat different, and aside from the fact both movies have gangs and schools, there’s not many similarities – but apparently it is, so I wanted to say that Class of 1984 was an often depressing film, but certainly a good one.

This one doesn’t have near as much feeling as that one did, but than again, one was a drama/action/crime film, whereas this one is an action/science fiction/horror hybrid, so we’re talking two different types of films. The story of this one was interesting, as you’d hope a science fiction story would be, so I wanted to tackle that first.

Taking place in, as you can likely guess, 1999 (which is nine years in the future from when this movie was released), apparently the systemic problem with gangs we saw in Class of 1984 has gotten worse, and police don’t even try in some places. There’s a school in Seattle that attempts to stymie their violence problem by bringing in a handful of robot teachers. Things devolve even more from there.

I’m reminded of Battle Royale, actually. I didn’t think the government’s policy in Battle Royale really would have helped with the problems they were having, and while I can definitely say that school should always be a safe place, putting killer robots in charge of kids (both innocent and harmful) isn’t the way to pursue the solution. I get it – desperate times call for desperate measures – but this just wasn’t the way.

As you can expect, the problem is that robots, at least with this programming, don’t differentiate between the wrongs being done. A student starts a fight with another student – yeah, that’s a problem. A student fighting someone who was attempting to rape someone? Instead of going after the attempted rapist, they went after the student defending the young woman, and that’s the exact problem with this type of solution. We’ve seen it time and time again in science fiction and horror films, and it’s no different here.

Stacy Keach (Fear Runs Silent, Roadgames, Mountain of the Cannibal God, The Ninth Configuration) is a big name, and he was fun here. His character didn’t get a whole lot of depth – from his first scene, you could sort of tell what type of guy he’d be – but he had fun. I didn’t know Malcolm McDowell (Silent Night, Firestarter 2: Rekindled, Halloween, Cat People) was in this one, and to be fair, his role isn’t big, but it was nice to see a familiar face.

Technically, I know Traci Lind (Spellcaster, My Boyfriend’s Back, Fright Night Part 2), but she’s not really a face I instantly recognize. Still, she was also solid here, and her budding relationship with Bradley Gregg’s character was decent. Gregg (Phillip from A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors) was an interesting lead. Never loved his character, but it made for an interesting focal point.

Of the three robotic teachers (played by Patrick Kilpatrick, John P. Ryan, and Pam Grier), well, I’d say that Ryan (It’s Alive) was my favorite, as he had a dignified look to him, but Kilpatrick (The Stand) had the best smile. Of course, Pam Grier (Scream Blacula Scream, The Twilight People) is a notable actress herself, but she didn’t make a huge impression on me here.

Despite thinking that the film’s a little rough, the special effects were pretty solid. Until the final 20 minutes or so, they’re not too noticeable, but once they pop up in more effect, there are some good sequences. Related, this isn’t a gory film at all – it’s really more action-oriented much of the time – but there are some good kills, such as someone getting their head drilled into, or a few nice neck snaps, or someone getting lit on fire.

Class of 1999 was a perfectly decent film, and a somewhat fun watch. I guess my issue is that it wasn’t anything more. I had an okay time with it, but I can’t honestly say that I loved it. It was a good way to spend an hour and 36 minutes, but I wasn’t blown away. That said, if you enjoy robots in your horror – something like Chopping Mall, Steel and Lace, Hardware, or Death Machine – then Class of 1999 may be right up your alley.

7/10