Battlefield Earth
2000
Directed by Roger Christian
Starring: Kelly Preston, John Travolta, Forest Whitaker, Barry Pepper
In the year 3000 AD, Earth has been ruled by an alien race, the Psychlos, for a millennium. Humanity has been reduced to a few scattered tribes in isolated parts of the world while the Psychlos strip the planet of its mineral wealth. Jonnie Goodboy Tyler (Barry Pepper), a young member of one such tribe, lives in the shadow of the Rocky Mountains. Depressed over the death and disease affecting his tribe, he leaves his village to explore the lowlands and to disprove the superstitions long held by his people involving ancient gods and monsters. However, he is captured in the ruins of Denver by Terl (John Travolta), the Psychlo chief of security. The Psychlos, hairy 9-foot (2.7 m) high, 1000-pound sociopaths, originate from a planet with an atmosphere very different from that of earth. For his greediness and incompetent planning, Terl had been assigned to Earth, and he eventually learns that his term has been extended with no word of relief. Fearful at the thought of spending several years on Earth, he decides to buy his way off the planet and return home a wealthy Psychlo. Terl captures Jonnie by accident while searching for “man-animals” to train to mine where he himself cannot. Jonnie, however, has different plans.