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Brigitte Wagner, Carlo De Mejo, Carlo Monni

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35% liked it

555 ratings

R, 1 hr. 35 min.

Directed by: Luigi Cozzi

Release Date: August 2, 1980

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DVD Release Date: February 11, 2003

Stats: 62 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (62)

  • SirPant
    October 1, 2009
    SirPant
    A poorly dubbed Italian splatter rip off with the worst acting and with very poor attempts at humour. What?s not to like? Recommended to all you gore fans.
  • bbcfloridabound
    March 25, 2008
    bbcfloridabound
    This came from the Mill Creek Nightmare Worlds 50 Pack, Quality and theme were good. A Movie Made for Drive In Fans I am sure, Some of the close up's and Scenes beyond any shadow of a doubt were made for that huge screen we all once saw frim behind the window sheild of a car. Fro...( read more)m the Italian director Luigi Cozzi, so if your a Cozzi Fan, add it to your collection. Everyone says its a spinoff of Aliens, but didn't this come out before (1980) Alliens. The actor's in this movie are good actor's, Tony the NYC Cop, I swear I've seen him in one of the TBS or TNT cop/law serials but checking him on www.allmovie.com it show's nothing. And Ian McCulloch I thought was in Man from Uncle (Wow remember that), but that was Illya Kuryakin, so I learn something, what did I learn? Illya Kuryakin played on Man from Uncle and also to watch out for green eggs, Wheres the Ham.
  • silentbob66
    January 29, 2009
    silentbob66
    When a boat comes ashore and there is believed to be no one inside a cop and a doctor investigate only to find the crew dead upon lookin further they find some huge green pods when one touches them it releases a flesh eating acid now the cop must help a former astromaut and gover...( read more)nment agent track down and stop the source of these pods before its too late. Another Italian made movie this one takes alittle from body snatchers and alittle from aliens and what you get is this a sci movie with alot more talking then action but still intresting enough to wait for the slow motion killings watch at your own risk.
  • jamesfrombloodyitaliana
    February 12, 2008
    jamesfrombloodyitaliana
    After having some pretty busy weeks I am back.Today I re-watched what I would like to call 'an old classic'. I am of course talking about Luigi Cozzi's Alien rip-off Contamination.

    This film contains elements of a few films, starting along the same line as Lucio Fulci's Zombi 2 ...( read more)(aka Zombie Flesh Eaters) with an 'abandoned' vessel speeding towards New York City. Also having a green egg with something inside it that causes organisms to explode from the inside out. Only it isn't quite abandoned it is carrying its cargo...and the dead crew. The cargo is the main plot device for the rest of the film. The cargo is boxes and boxes of Colombian coffee or what seems to be coffee. Upon further inspection it turns out that the boxes contain large green eggs. Which when touched explode, spewing their contents all over the unlucky person holding it, causing them to violently explode...from the inside out especially the chest area (another nod to Alien).

    That said I can now get onto the cast.
    This like many 80's Italian films features the great Ian McCulloch as a stubborn Commander Ian Hubbard who with Hamilton (Siegfried Rauch) went on a trip to Mars. They come across a cave where Hamilton 'changed' and Hubbard suffers from acute memory loss of the whole experience, but manages to remember more as the plot continues.

    The vessel is brought ashore and investigated by the local authorities. What they find first are the dead crew. As they continue to explore they go down into the 'belly' of the ship finding the boxes of coffee containing the eggs. One of the boxes has fallen and an egg has rolled under one of the hot pipes. It begins to glow and make a odd (vocal?) sound (which you will hear very often). As one of the inspectors picks the egg up in very slow motion it bursts, spreading the contagion all over him and another 2 officers. From which they all explode violently in slow motion. This way we get to see all the chunks blow out of the chest cavity. Lovely. Only one officer survives the mess. He is Lieutenant Tony Aris (Marino Masé) who alerts the Government of the disaster in hope to prevent an outbreak. We are then introduced to a foxy Colonel Stella Holmes (Louise Marleau) who has Tony quarantined much to his dislike. We are then shown how the 'green gunk' from one of the eggs has an effect on a lab-rat. As the little rat is injected with the substance, it runs around the container and then explodes. The latter is a more comical than shocking result.

    This leads Colonel Holmes on a search for the couch potato Hubbard. At first Hubbard is reluctant to participate in the investigation. But after conversation he joins them on their travel to Columbia. There they find the coffee refinery run by a seemingly insane Hamilton & his wife. We get treated to some flash back sequences on Mars which inside the cave lay thousands of green eggs (which actually look like peas). In the hotel someone sneaks into Stella's room while she is showering and places an egg in there. Fortunately for her Hubbard breaks the door down and rescues this damsel in distress. Hubbard then takes a small plane over the plantation to see what he can see but crashes the plane. As he is trying to find his way back through the all the plants he finds scattered eggs and people in white suits 'picking them' as if they are simply ripe fruit. He knocks out one of the workers and gets a suit, this is where he becomes the next James Bond. When he returns he finds that Sella and Tony have been kidnapped by Hamilton. They go down into the 'basement' of the complex. Here we find the true horror. In a large open space under the building hides the...wait for it...Cyclops Alien. Yes an alien with one large glowing eye. Turns out that while on the planet Mars Hamilton decided to take a 'seed' back to earth and in theory bring the alien back with him. The special effects on the alien are superb rivaling the effects of Alien.
    *SPOILERS*Unfortunately Tony is fed to the alien and is chomped down on and then sucked into the alien by a tube.
    *END SPOILERS*
    The same fate seems destined for Stella luckily for her Hubbard arrives to save the day holding Hamilton's wife hostage. As Hamilton is now under full control by the alien he shoots his wife as Hubbard has her as a human shield. He then pushes Stella aside and proceeds to kick the gun from Hamilton's hand. After a small game of fisticuffs with Hamilton he knocks him out. He then grabs Stella who has now become hypnotised by the eye of the cyclops. Hubbard shoots the alien right in the eye, causing it to die and make noises like someone passing wind. A weary Hamilton pops out pointing a six shooter right at the pair of escapees. As the alien dies and having a 'connection' with it. He also begins to die. It all comes to an end with a bang. Leaving the military to come in and clean the place up. Que the ending dialogue with explanation. We then cut straight to a New York City street as the camera pans across some bin bags we see an egg, as the camera closes in on it. It explodes!

    This features a funky score by legendary band Goblin. On the whole this is a very good flick with some chunky gore and some great locations. I also found it strange seeing the Twin Towers in the New York skyline.I recommend this to any gorehound or sci fi geek. Lovers of Italian cinema will also get a kick out of this. So if you haven't seen it. I suggest you do!
  • mpghoul1973
    February 8, 2008
    mpghoul1973
    Low grade Italian horror that borrows alot from Alien. Slow and boring. But very gooey and gory.
  • blacktoolthing
    July 21, 2007
    blacktoolthing
    I just like the gore and violence in this movie, but as story and plot go, pretty lame...maybe a rip-off of Body Snatchers in a way?
  • amreeve
    April 8, 2007
    amreeve
    Ok this isn't a classic by any stretch but it's a great "guilty pleasure" flick. The story borrows heavily from Aliens but Cozzi forgets plot & character and goes straight for the gore. There's chests exploding everywhere in slo-mo graphic detail. The photography is above standar...( read more)d too. Just don't expect any meanigful depth, it's an 80's gore-fest and nothing more.
    Goblin (Argento regulars) do a nice disco score too.
    Facts: this was meant to be released under the title Alien 2 but ran into obvious rights issues.
    The uncut version is still banned in the UK.
  • clarenceskiboots
    March 12, 2007
    clarenceskiboots
    This colossally stupid film is, for a bona fide Video Nasty, pretty fucking disappointing. 90% of it is talking. It's shit, obviously, and it feels three times longer than it is. I guess it's worth seeing for Goblin's ultra-funky score, and for the hilarious slow-motion deaths.

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Contamination Trivia

  • In which Cold War-era film did Sterling Hayden worry about the contamination of his nation's "precious bodily fluids?"  Answer »
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