At a dinner party with their wives, NASA scientist Dr. Keith Ritchie reveals to his colleague Dr. Curt Taylor that he has secretly been in communication with an alien from Venus named Zontar who he claims is coming to Earth to solve all of the world's problems. However, as soon as Zontar arrives on Earth via a fallen lasersatellite it quickly becomes obvious that the three-eyed, bat-winged, skeletal black creature has a hidden agenda, as it begins causing local power outages that stop telephones, automobiles and even running water from working, and it starts taking control of people's minds using flying lobster-like "injecto-pods" that sprout from its wings. Only after his wife is killed does Ritchie finally realize that Zontar has come not as a savior but as a conqueror, and he goes to confront the hideous alien in the sulfur spring-heated cave that it has made its secret base.
In a review for AllMovie, Paul Gaita wrote "For experienced cult movie watchers, Zontar is the cinematic equivalent of a car accident, an unpleasant spectacle from which one cannot look away".[2]
According to Zontar, the Thing from Venus is arguably Buchanan's best known film.[3]
From 1981–1992 Zontar, the Magazine from Venus was published in Boston. It included an interview with Buchanan by Rev. Ivan Stang.
Creature Feature gave the movie one star, stating it was so inept that only fans of so bad it's good films would enjoy it.[4]
TV Guide states that while the movie is not good, it is not as bad as its reputation suggests.[5]
In popular culture
Zontar was famously spoofed by SCTV in the Season 4, Cycle 2, Episode 3 sequence "Zontar", originally broadcast October 30, 1981.[6]
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