This week’s dandy is the ultimate 1980s guilty pleasure “Flash Gordon” (B), which is finally available on DVD in the U.S. for the first time (a silver anniversary edition was released in Europe a couple of years ago).

Based on the 1930s comic strip, Sam J. Jones plays the title character, a New York Jets quarterback who becomes an unwilling passenger, along with the beautiful Dale Arden (Melody Anderson), on a rocket ship built by Dr. Hans Zarkov (Topol).

Zarkov is convinced that the Earth is about to be destroyed and sets out to planet Mongo. Once the trio arrive, they learn that Zarkov’s fears are correct, and the evil Emperor Ming (Max von Sydow) is about to demolish Earth for his own pleasure. Flash, Zarkov and Dale set out to stop Ming’s evil intentions before Earth is erased forever.

I have to admit that “Flash” is a really bad movie if you stop and think about it, but I have a soft spot for it – and not just because it features one of the most awesomely bad soundtracks ever by Queen.

The visual effects are top-grade ’80s cheese, while the dialogue might as well have been written by preteen boys – it’s a combination of geeky scientific babble and sexual innuendoes.

Meanwhile, the cast is all over the map.

I was surprised to learn that Jones still gets work (although mostly bit parts on TV series), while Anderson might be the worst actress in the history of cinema.

Sydow practically chews up the scenery, and I still laugh when I think about the fact that Zarkov is played by the same man who played Tevye in “Fiddler on the Roof.”

There are other supporting roles that feature interesting casting, including the future James Bond, Timothy Dalton, and Richard O’Brien (Riff Raff from “The Rocky Horror Picture Show”).

And then there is the delightful Brian Blessed as Vultan, the kooky leader of the hawk people. Blessed’s performance is the essence of “Flash” – one that seems rather tongue-in-cheek with the realization that this film, for all its good intentions, is actually nothing more than a B-movie wannabe at best.

“Flash Gordon” is rated PG for violence, language and sexual situations and is now available on DVD.

– Sportswriter/movie reviewer Micheal Compton is in talks with Hollywood about his first feature-length screenplay, “Lindsay and Paris at Rehab Camp: The Musical,” and can be reached for comment by e-mailing mcompton@bgdailynews.com.