Screamers

Screamers is a 1995 Sci-Fi/Horror film based off of the Philip K. Dick story Second Variety.

The film is set on the planet Sirius 6B in the year 2078. Sirius B was the source of energy, however, the hazardous working conditions led to a war between the New Economic Block, and their former employees The Alliance. While on Earth, there was a tense peace between the NEB and Alliance, on Sirius B, the war went nuclear. Eventually, the Alliance introduced "screamers", a series of subterranean killing machines, which replicate themselves ad infinitum in an automated factory. The war eventually ruined the planet, leaving only a handful of Alliance and NEB strongholds intact. As it turns out, Earth had long since abandoned Sirius B, with the soldiers fighting for control of a ruined planet.

As Hendrickson, the Alliance's leader on Sirius 6B, heads out to discuss a peace treaty with the NEB General, it is revealed that the screamers have changed; building newer models. They can pass for human, and soon, no one is safe.

A direct-to-video sequel, Screamers: The Hunting, released in 2009 features a group of Alliance Marines sent from Earth to Sirius 6B to investigate a distress signal. It had been over a decade since last contact from the planet, and hey, the screamers thought to be dormant. What could possibly go wrong?

Not to be confused with the obnoxious Jump Scare Shock Sites you see floating around the internet as Schmuck Bait.

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Tropes:

• Adaptation Decay/Adaptation Distillation: The original short story takes place on a post-apocalyptic earth with an escalated cold war being the backstory. The movie replaces this with a colony world run by Corrupt Corporate Executives. The story itself is largely unchanged. Except for a drastic change to the ending.
• Becoming the Mask: Jessica is a screamer, but she defends Hendrickson from another Jessica, to allow him to escape to Earth.
• Catch Phrase: Type III's repeat a single phrase because "they can't think of anything better to say."
• Creepy Child
• Cyborg: Type V's.
• Danger Takes a Backseat
• Diabolus Ex Machina/Cruel Twist Ending: Mostly everyone dies. And the teddy bear is a screamer.
• Everybody Smokes: Anti-radiation medication is delivered via red-colored cigarettes. Thus, lots of people smoke.
• Evil Overlooker: the cover of The Hunting.
• Forever War
• Gone Horribly Right: The Screamers were made to kill humans. And they're just getting better and better at it.
• Hell Is That Noise: the child screamers catchphrase: "Can... can I come with... you...?"
  • The high-pitched keening Screamers are named for.
• Hey, It's That Guy!: Peter Weller played Hendrickson in Screamers, and Lance Henricksen played Orsow in the sequel.
• Invisibility Wristwatch: The "tabs" alliance members wear makes them invisible to screamers. Until the screamers start updating themselves...
• Killer Rabbit: The child screamer. And possibly the teddy bear.
• Killer Robot
• Knife Nut: Becker
• Lightning Gun: In the sequel.
• Mechanical Evolution: Just as in the original Second Variety.
• Mistaken for An Imposter: Becker argues that Ross is a screamer, and then tosses a knife through his chest.
  • It then turns out Becker was the real imposter, playing this trope.
• Nightmare Face: the type V's in the sequel have four mandibles that unfold out of their mouths, and a drill on their tongues.
• Not His Sled
• Nuclear Physics Goof: This little gem - "Cubic tons of radiation."
• Robosexual
• Robotic Reveal: Happens to the humanoid screamers.
• Shaggy Dog Story: The sequel has an offscreen mention of the protagonist of the original dying.
• So Bad It's Good: The script is a cheesy riot, while most deaths look like they're from a parody skit. Just don't expect an actual horror movie.
• They Look Like Us Now: In the original, there were Type IIs IVs, which pretended to be wounded soldiers, and Type IIIs, which mimicked orphaned children. And Jessica. The sequel adds even more variety.