Sometimes, all you really need in life to make you happy is watching a really cheesy and utterly retarded early 80's movie with a grotesque plot, flamboyant types of vehicles, action heroes in tight gay spandex outfits, absurd futuristic gimmicks and nasty looking villains that are smoking big cigars. You know, movies that are basically knock-offs of great cinematic blockbusters, like "Escape from New York" or "Mad Max", and deliberately exaggerate in the amount of excessive violence and sleaze they deliver. I thought that "Mega Force" would perfectly fit into this little category, but boy was I ever mistaken! This film, although brought to us by the same team who made the enjoyable Burt Reynolds hoots "Cannonball Run" and "Smokey and the Bandit", is unimaginably boring and dim-witted. Even worse than the moronic script and cheesy execution is the fact that the whole production was seemingly aimed at child-audiences! We do not witness any of the characters – good or evil – dying throughout the whole film and the decors look even cheesier and less convincing as those of "The Thunderbird" TV-series. In order to satisfy the absolute youngest viewers, like 3-year-olds or something, there even is a completely redundant interlude with a dancing Porky Pig hologram. The main reason why I enjoy these typically 80's fabricated rip-offs is because they're usually so extremely violent and exploitative, but obviously Hal Needham & Co didn't intend to make a rip-off but an actual new classic. Talk about an epic fail. Mega Force is the name of an elite army force, located in the USA but sponsored by the United Nations, which is called upon by the desperate government of a Middle-Eastern country called Gamibia. The small nation is continuously invaded by the evil war-hungry general Guevara, and need help to fight back. The first half, revolving on the introduction of the Mega Force and its incredibly gay leaders, is still somewhat entertaining. It's embarrassing to behold respectable actors like Michael Beck ("The Warriors"), Henry Silva ("Almost Human") and Barry Bostwick ("Rocky Horror Picture Show") mutter their ridiculous lines whilst parading in flashy outfits, but nevertheless fun. The second half of the script, after an immensely irritating love-story interlude, tries to be intellectual and politically engaging, but fails tremendously. The intentionally humorist parts of the film are pathetic, while the serious moments evoke uncontrollable laughs. That's never good.
