I'm knee-deep in old beta tapes right now. I had to buy a large batch to get the one tape I wanted on Ebay. The oldest ones are from 1983. Some play back really well, some are dropout ridden and/or have severe tracking issues. (If only the the extended tv cut of Superman was on one of the good tapes!) I don't think your copy would kill a recorder, unless it's got mold inside the shell or something. But it's a large expense for just one tape since your options for getting a working deck are either Ebay or someone like Mister Betamax. (Who refurbishes and sells betas at a premium.) Which version of TMP do you have? The original theatrical cut, or the "Special Longer Version"?