EDITOR’S NOTE: As the journey through Cannon continues, this week we’re exploring the films of 21st Century Film Corporation, which would be the company that Menahem Golan would take over after Cannon. Formed by Tom Ward and Art Schweitzer in 1971 (or 1976, there are some disputed expert opinions), 21st Century had a great logo and released some wild stuff.

Also known as Prison Ship, Adventures of Taura, Part 1, Starslammer: The Escape and Prison Ship Star Slammer, this Fred Olen Ray-directed film was shot over a few days in a converted grocery store. Some reports say that this was tacked on to the shooting of Biohazard, which thanks to Matty at The Schlock Pit, I know is untrue. I do now know that uniforms came from Galaxy of Terror and other costumes came from Metalstorm: The Destruction of Jared Syn. 

Fred Olen Ray has been namking LEED certified green films since 1986.

Don’t believe me? He saved even more money by using scenes from Battle Beyond the Stars and Dark Star, which at least was somewhat authorized as this movie shares a producer, Jack H. Harris, with that John Carpenter early effort.

Captain Bantor (Ross Hagen), the Sovereign (Lindy Sykes) and the Inquisitor (Aldo Ray) have all come to the planet Arous to stop an uprising, which causes them to cross paths with a mine owner named Taura (Sandy Brooke). She’s had a good relationship with the citizens of this planet, unlike Bantor and his people. When he tries to forcibly take her mine, she fights back and soon disintegrates his hand.

This movie isn’t called Space Mine, you know? So she’s soon taken to Warden Exene’s (Marya Gant) Vehemence, where Taura must constantly battle for her life, yet soon wins over most of the other prisoners and makes a friend in Mike (Susan Stokey). Bantor returns, now insane, and tries to make the prison into a zombie army, which means that Taura has to fight him again.

When a catfight breaks out during a meal, the guards call in the monster from The Deadly Spawn, which is a very frugal and well-received choice. This is broken down into chapters — like Jailbreak 3000 — which I really wish were their own movies and that this had a long and storied history of films. A sequel called Chain Gang Planet was planned. I wish it had been made.

It also has an amazing bad girl named Muffy, of all things, played by Dawn Wildsmith, who was in all manner of wonderful films like The Phantom Empire and Evils of the Night. When we first meet her, she’s torturing a prisoner with leeches — “Daddy, not the bore worms!” — and then takes a bite out of the leeches! Plus she has an eyepatch!

I want to live in this future, a place where John Carradine shows up as a hologram judge, Jack H. Harris’ voice comes out of intercoms, Ray plays a small robot, his son shows up in at least three parts, all of the women have thongs on and yes, that is Bobbie Bresee in a brief scene. There are people who have given this poor reviews and they are sad folks, those you should never party with because they’d stare at you while you smoke a joint and shake their heads.

You can watch this on Tubi.