Smile! You’re on Candid Camera!
Sordid. I think that’s a good adjective for Forbidden World (1982; aka Mutant), an exploration of the horrors of unrestrained scientific research. Troubleshooter Colby, whose usual tool is a laser gun, and his trusty killer robot, Sam, has been assigned to a mysterious problem on Xarbia, an uninhabited planet hosting a research station. An interlude with a pointless space battle occurs, which incidentally utilizes footage from Battle Beyond the Stars (1980), after which Mike reaches the station.
He finds three or four scientists specializing in various fields of genetics, a couple of assistants, and a mutant something-or-other imprisoned in a science lab isolation chamber. With movable panels. And all the other research animals ripped to pieces, and blood all over the walls. But never mind that, because it’s time for dinner!
During their meal of syrup dripped on tofu, Mike discovers the scientists are remarkably close-mouthed about their work, as well as a missing scientist, Annie. In the meantime, one of the assistants, Jeff, who has been assigned to clean up the lab, turns out to be remarkably slow-witted: He sticks his head into the lab isolation chamber, and becomes the horrified host to whatever that damn mutant thing might be.
This is what earning a Ph.D. gets you.
Well, there’s cleaning up the liquifying Jeff (don’t ask), there’s the sleeping with the beautiful lady scientist, there’s another mutant, now looking like a giant spider, who goes gallumphing about out in the inhospitable outer world and manages to trap the science team lead and eat him up (yum!) with some of the most unbrushed teeth I’ve ever seen in a movie, all with Mike and Sam running around shooting their laser guns with little effect. And don’t forget the nudity.
Finally, the crime comes to the fore: the mutant, singular or plural, are actually the result of crossing a human cell with something called “Proto B,” a synthetic DNA that results in … the mutants? But then there’s the liquifaction of the bodies, which the mutants are eating. Maybe it’s something the mutants excrete. Yeah, that’s it. Sure. And missing Annie? She was the host mother for this mess. It didn’t end well for her.
Anyways, the scientist who has cancer (and the fakest coughs in the world) comes up with the solution for killing the mutant: feed his own cancer cells to the mutant. With the rest of the scientists gone in various horrific ways, Mike ends up as the ad hoc surgeon who must cut out the tumor and then feed it to the oncoming mutant, who doesn’t appear to want to ingest it, but a little ingenuity and soon all that is left is Mike and the surviving assistant. And, ah, a foaming monster. With teeth.
So, what’s the point? There’s no real sincerity in the “science is evil” theme, no palpable You shouldn’t do that! Not like Frankenstein’s Monster, anyways. The science team lead is vigorous in attempting to forestall Mike’s mission from successful completion, but exactly his motivations in defending the mutant, which eventually lunches on him, are completely unclear.
No, this is mostly about the visceralities of life: pursued by monsters, getting it on with the beautiful ladies, cleaning up messes, and a lack of sleep. If you’re feeling like you need a bit of a dip into a crass exploration of, ummmm, whatever this is, have at it.
