Is “Dimension 5” (1966) actually a Christmas movie?
Unless the United States withdraws all its troops from Southeast Asia, a foreign crime ring is set to detonate a hydrogen bomb in Los Angeles on December 25.
Justin Power (Jeffrey Hunter), of Espionage Inc., is teamed with Chinese agent Ki Ti “Kitty” Tso (France Nuyen) to take on the nefarious Big Buddha (Harold “Oddjob” Sakata, the closest to James Bond this film is ever going to get).
Oh yeah, there’s also a little matter of time travel. Very little, it turns out, since “Dimension 5” has probably the most bafflingly underutilized piece of advantageous gadgetry in sci-fi history.
Made on a TV budget and with rudimentary technique, the film is of principal interest for providing employment for a veritable farm team of future “Star Trek” guest stars. No less than five cast members appeared on the original, classic “Trek” – one of them was in three different episodes! – and a sixth appeared on “Star Trek: The Next Generation.”
To be perfectly honest, I kind of wish I could time-hop out of this one. Sadly, that kind of technology is unavailable. I’ll risk dementia in our discussion of “Dimension 5,” on the next Roy’s Tie-Dye Sci-Fi Corner. Leave your marbles in the comments section, as we livestream on Facebook, this Friday evening at 7:00 EDT!
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PLEASE NOTE: If you plan to subject yourself to the film in preparation for Friday’s show, it appears currently to be available for streaming in the U.S. only on YouTube. It’s your call. The film may be free, but it’s also 90 minutes of your life you’ll never see again, without a time-belt.