*Spoiler/plot- 1978, A Government spy is sent to investigate a strange occurrence of why many world diplomats are disappearing during an international meeting. A reborn/cloned Natzi terrorist group in South America has plans for world domination again with a Fourth Reich.*Special Stars- Robert Vaughn, Keenan Wynn, Merrie Lynn Ross, Aldo Ray*Theme- Just when you think the Natzi regime is destroyed, they rise. They are often too virulent for the world's worries.*Trivia/location/goofs- Hitler's clone sounds in his speech, too Jewish. This film was shot in and around Manhattan Beach area.*Emotion- A rather crazy 'stinker' direct–to-TV film with Robert 'Napoleon Solo' Vaughn playing a spy long after his prime. This time not very well without the UNCLE interesting locations, fellow cast members, writing, spy toys, and high production values. Most war-decorated veteran of WW2 Pacific theater turned actor Aldo Ray also tries his worst here. This is a film of has-been actor's sad performances. Yawn-- boring.

I must say, that this movie is a total waste of time, money and actors. It's boring and the raised forefinger the director/producer like to show the viewers (about the war and cloning thing) is annoying. I like the actors (Aldo Ray and Robert Vaughn) but they are really wasted here.It could have been a good movie, if... and there are many big IFs here: 1. ...if they had concentrated on the spy/cloning theme. 2. ...if they had not tried to come up with the teaching and forefinger tactics. 3. ...if they had not included the poor lonely human *read the sarcasm here* on the island and had not interrupted the "flow" of the movie with occasional and random scenes of the lone islander and how he watches the recorded data. IT SUCKS!They could have at least cut the first 20 minutes of enormously boring monologue. I first thought I was watching the wrong movie. The only reason this did not get an even lower rating is the fact, that the Nazi-cloning idea itself is quite interesting.Otherwise: Forget it.

But it has its moments. Not a great sci-fi flick, but not a total waste of time either. I thought the choreography was poorly done, and certain special effects, principally blowing stuff up, weren't done to well. But Robert Vaughn was, as always, cool. The "Nazi bitch" with the bride of Frankenstien hair style was kind of campy. Aldo Ray, and I've always enjoyed his work, didn't have much of a part or come across that well. The premise is okay but the plot, not to mention the characters, is never really developed. And the guy in the cave, watching all of this via computerized film footage? Well, lots of what he sees, which is what we watch with him, took place behind closed doors and in swamps and ... Who was holding the camera? Ahh, nothings perfect. This is OK sci-fi if you don't set your expectations to high. Its worth a watch.

(spoiler in third paragraph)After a near decade-long layoff, the Grade Z genius David L. Hewitt (WIZARD OF MARS, THE MIGHTY GORGA) once again blesses us with his cinematic charms with this dreary espionage flick whose history is almost as obscure as the film itself. Apparently someone had made a no-budget "Man From UNCLE" wannabe featuring none other than Robert Vaughn, and either the film was not completed, or simply too short to warrant theatrical release. Therefore, the film is padded with a wraparound story of a man on an island (presumably the last survivor of this planet) who watches footage of previous exploits of mankind-- hence, the inclusion of this twisted spy fable. I'm not sure at which point Hewitt (one of the two directors) was hired for this film. It is unclear whether he directed the underlit spy movie or the cold wraparound post-apocalyptic stuff which was meant to "rescue" the movie. In either case, this is classic Dave Hewitt material-- namely, futile attempts at trying to make something out of nothing. Plus, with the tacked-on footage of the sole man watching the other film (abetted with impossibly unenthused voiceover), the ending is thus anticlimactic. It adds nothing to the other story.Because this is a Gold Key release (remember those late-night fillers like FOES, CAPTIVE and TARGET EARTH?), this is also impossibly lethargic. Its attempts at suspense are so dismal (so many meaningless POV shots going through reeds during a chase scene), that even such ingredients as a sudden last-reel change to womens-prison-genre conventions fail to light any sparks. Its sole novelty is the revelation that the mastermind behind the cloning which Vaughn is sent to investigate, is none other than Adolf Hitler! Otherwise the only other memorable moment is the inevitable dramatically ironic moment when Vaughn faces his own clone. In an inspired bit of bad filmmaking, the two Vaughns fight... in a shot that is so underexposed that you can't see either one of them!!Whew. What an ordeal it is to survive this film. I haven't seen this in over fifteen years (and the late-night movie programmers paired this with INVASION FROM INNER EARTH to make for one unforgettable evening of Grade Z badness; I had to watch them both twice), and now that the late show has been overrun with infomercials that cost even less to program than drivel like this, I doubt it will rear its head again. However, THE LUCIFER COMPLEX is another of those strange dichotomies of our youthful memories-- even though it is an unpleasant experience, for some reason we want to relive it, simply because it reflects a crucial time in our lives. That is the perplexing behavioural pattern of those like myself who have a strange attraction-repulsion to bad movies. They outrage and bemuse us at the same time. And now because there is so little in today's watershed of cinema to have such audacity to confound us, perhaps that is why we pine for these films all over again. At least they make us feel something. If anything, you'll probably find this film way, way in the back of some independent video store, with a now-yellowing box with enticing cover art and foisting the names of Robert Vaughn, Aldo Ray and Keenan Wynn to make one think it's better than it is. Ah, the days of the video age-- when any no-buck releasing company would try to transcend the dreck they were trying to put on the shelves. Enter if you dare.