Thursday, August 20, 2009

Chopping Mall, aka Killbots...



Sometime in 1985, a little film called "KILLBOTS" was made at the famous 80's shopping mall called the Sherman Oaks Galleria. It was a three storey mall that was built in 1980. It was also the filming grounds for "Fast Times at Ridgemont High," as well.


The film's tittle was changed to "Chopping Mall" due to poor sales at the box office. This somehow is connected to Roger Corman, in some fashion. Now, a quick recap of the story, it is about a new brand of security system that uses these 3 robots (Killbots) to protect the mall after hours. But, you guessed it, it goes bad when a lightning storm strikes and destroys its memory, therefore making the robots run amok. Six people, 3 females and 3 males, decide to have a party after hours in the furniture store and are stuck by being chased, hunted and killed by these crazy out of control Killbots.


There's a scene in the beginning when the two main girls are working at the mall restaurant, in the background we see posters for other Corman films. One is "Sorceress", another "Galaxy of Terror" and other of "Slumber Party Massacre" and "Forbidden World." Why these movie posters are in a restaurant is beyond me, but it must be some nod to Corman. I liked this cheesy film, because it displays a lot of the interior of the Sherman Oaks Galleria, which were destroyed by a earthquake in 1994. So, if you wanna see how an 80's mall looked, check this film out.


I give "Chopping Mall" 2 and half stars out of four, as it never wears out it's welcome in only 77 minutes.

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