Reviews (27)

A movie that's--sadly!--still one-of-a-kind
When it was released in 1982, MAKING LOVE was publicized as the first film from a major Hollywood studio to take an honest look at homosexuality. Today, even in our more tolerant social climate, the movie remains just about the only film from a major Hollywood studio to take an honest look at homosexuality. MAKING LOVE is a compassionate, sensitive examination of one man coming to discover, and accept, that he is gay.

Zack (Michael Ontkean) and Claire (Kate Jackson) are a young, attractive and successful married couple; he is a physician and she is a television producer. They have just bought a new home and talk about having a child. But Zack begins to question his sexual identity and to close himself off from his wife. Then he meets Bart (Harry Hamlin), a sexually adventurous gay man who forces Zack to come to terms with his sexual feelings.

Although MAKING LOVE is nearly twenty years old, the only things dated about the movie are the clothing and hairstyles. There have certainly been other Hollywood movies that deal with homosexuality (PHILADELPHIA, IN AND OUT, etc.). But most of these movies seem oddly hesitant to address difficult issues or deflect them by using humor. By contrast, MAKING LOVE presents with complete honesty a man learning to accept that he is gay, along with all of the conflicted feelings and painful choices this involves.

Barry Sandler's script is outstanding. It employs a device that today has become an annoying cliche: characters sharing their inner feelings by directly addressing the camera. But in this film, the device really works, thanks to honest writing and performances.

All three lead actors are excellent, giving us portraits of believable, imperfect human beings who nonetheless try to do their best with the situation that confronts them. A special word of praise must go to Kate Jackson. Certainly Jackson's TV work (CHARLIE'S ANGELS, SCARECROW AND MRS. KING) never gave her the chance to play such an intelligent, fully-rounded character. Jackson is excellent and in a few scenes is so thoroughly convincing that she breaks your heart.

Arthur Hiller's direction is understated and eloquent. And Leonard Rosenman's musical score is superb. His score helps us to recognize the movie for what it is: a tender and bittersweet love story. For example, early on there is a scene in which Zack has a painful meeting with a cancer patient and, distraught over his inability to help her, goes cruising for a sexual partner. Rosenman's musical score helps us to see that Zack's act is not cheap or sensational but instead is an attempt by a lonely, confused man to find emotional connection.

A movie of exceptional quality, MAKING LOVE should be much better known. I recommend it to anyone who is looking for an intellegent, compassionate presentation of the many emotional issues surrounding coming to acceptance of homosexuality.

Getting to the HEART of the matter!
To say this film is still groundbreaking would be a stretch, but it still hits home. In 1982, theater goers were either exiting quickly or more wisely, staying to marvel at this film's honesty and heart and its winning performances.

Kate Jackson, Michael Ontkean and Harry Hamlin turn in a powerhouse effort in this Authur Hiller film about a career successful married couple, Claire and Zack Elliot (Jackson and Ontkean) who must face the reality that their union is not all it seems. After eight years of marriage, Zack's repressed homosexuality begins to surface. Enter handsome writer Bart Mcguire (Hamlin), who innocently meets Zack in the ordinary circumstance of a doctor's visit. Bart has been around the gay scene for some time, and is quite happy in his world of one night stands and conquests....or is he?

How all this unfolds is great viewing. "Making Love" has it's soap opera moments and is somewhat dated, but the performances and overall writing and direction overcome these slight flaws. Handsome Ontkean is dead on as the confused yet well intentioned Zack. Whatever spoken or written about this film hurting Ontkean's career is trivial, this remains his best work to date. Hamlin is almost distracting in a role that was obviously well researched complete with subtle mannerisms. Kate Jackson turns in one of her best yet tender performances in a film that remains a cornerstone in gay cinema.

WHERE'S THE DVD???
This movie has always held a special place in my collection. It reminds me of growing up and coming to terms with life. The performances of Kate Jackson, Michael Ontkean, Harry Hamlin and Wendy Hiller are emotionally charged. Some may say it's an outdated film, but it never fails to bring a tear to my eye when the main characters come to accept their past and how their lives have evolved. I'll never forget seeing it at the theater.
I remember when Zack and Bart kissed, some girl in the audience
laughed out loud. For me, it was a very touching moment and that laughter really bothered me at the time. Thankfully, people are more accepting of gay relationships now.
I am hoping that the studios will provide this gem on DVD soon.

Honey, I'm Gay
A silly soap opera about a young doctor, happily married to a beautiful woman who discovers that he's gay. The homosexual theme is handled gingerly and with sympathy, but the story is overly sentimental and comes off as trite and naive. The happy ending fails to touch the heart.

A worthy early effort
When released in 1982, director Arthur Hiller's "Making Love" was a bold venture for its time and critcally panned, probably more for its risky content than its acting. Between her TV gigs as one of Charlie's angels and Mrs. King to a Scarecrow, veteran actress Kate Jackson said she would have offered to pay for the role of a TV executive married to a doctor, played by former "Rookies" co-star Michael Ontkean. But with his wife so tied up with her work, husband Zak begins to explore a long-buried curiosity about a same-sex encounter. He finds it in studly writer Harry Hamlin, then a new face on the acting horizon. With his same-sex desires and preference unleashed, Zak has to come clean with wife Kate, and the climactic scene in which Zak confesses his homosexuality is carried with appropriate emotional shock by both Jackson and Ontkean. By today's standards, the film may seem dated and irrelevant, but it was hardly so at the time. A good script is bolstered by good acting and singer Roberta Flack's haunting theme song that was a chart-buster in '82. Beyond the film's obvious topic, it also renders a subtle lesson in the need for honesty. ... Read more

Reviews (26)

A Forgotten Classic...
Corvette Summer may seem like a cheesy 70's made-for-tv movie, but it is, in fact, an enjoyable little film. Essentially, the story revolves around a car freak by the name of Kenny Dantley (played by Mark Hamill). He spends the entire summer tracking down a stolen Corvette that he helped build in his shop class. There are many familiar faces: Annie Potts from Designing Women (who received a Golden Globe nomination for her performance), Danny Bonaduce from The Partridge Family, etc...

70's preservationists as well as Las Vegas desert enthusiasts will be quite impressed. The story has a decent moral message as well. You may ask yourself through the film whether or not Kenny takes a real shower, but, overall, it's definitely at least a rental.

Love it!
Corvette Summer is one of my favorite movies! One thing I like about this movie so much, is how much I can relate to it. I really wish this movie could have been a huge success at the box office, because it really is a great movie that deserves to be appreciated. Mark Hamill and Annie Potts have an hilarious chemistry! Everytime I watch this movie I love it even more than the last time I watched it!

So do yourself a favore, go out and rent, or better yet, go buy Corvette Summer! You'll thank me later!

pretty good film for it's time
i use to watch this film all the time whenever it would come on&it was catchy for it's time period.Vettes were cool rides from the late 70's through early 80's.this film will take you back.

Let's see this on DVD (Widescreen)!
I loved this movie as a kid, and bought the VHS! I've owned three Corvette's in my life so far, and this movie was definitely an inspiration to the obsession. The quality of the VHS is not so great, and the audio is starting to go bad. With all the older movies now being re-produced on DVD, I wonder how this one was missed? I wish MGM would release this on DVD.

It's not Star Wars, but Mark Hamil still delivers
This movie is hilarious! Don't no why this didn't do well in theatres, this is a very very funny. This is one of the funniest movies I've ever seen. You just have to see this. It's hard to give a helpful review on this film, because it is one of a kind, so all I can say is just see this movie, I promise that you won't regret it. 5 STARS is perfect for this gem. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Great
Some of the acting lacks a bit on the part of Lyle (Billy Warlock) but David Beron who plays Erik is great. James Farentino as Jose Menendez is displayed exactly as how the boys explain him on the stand. About the same in detail as Menendez: A Killing in Beverly Hills, but the acting is a little better in that one. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

a master at work
a down to earth plot coupled with some excellent action...I'm not sure how Ed Parker directed this movie though, as one review suggested, since Ed Parker died in 1990.

Great style excellent movie
Actually Jeff Speakman studies a form of Martial Arts called American Kenpo that was founded by Mr Ed Parker. My son and I both study American Kenpo and love to pick out the diffferent techniques that Jeff Speakman's using in the film. Ed Parker is responsible for directing all the fight scenes in the film. Ed Parker is responsible for teaching such notables as Jeff Speakman, Elvis Presley, and Blake Edwards to name a few. He also was the one that is responsible for introducing Bruce Lee to the Hollywood jet set and getting him started in films.

KENPO MASTER JEFF SPEAKMAN DOES IT AGAIN
LIKE ALL SPEAKMAN MOVIES THERE ARE PERIODS IN THE MOVIE THAT WILL BORE YOU, BUT IF YOU ARE A DIE HARD SPEAKMAN FAN LIKE MYSELF YOU CAN EXCEPT THIS. SPEAKMAN DOES HAVE TO ACT IN THIS AND ALL HIS OTHER FLICKS. HE HAS TO ACT TO BE COOL BECAUSE HE IS NOT AS NATUAL AT IT AS LET'S SAY STEVEN SEAGAL. ALL IN ALL FOR THE BUDGET THAT SPEAKMAN FILMS HAVE THIS IS A PRETTY GOOD MOVIE, THOUGH NOT NEARLY AS GOOD AS THE PERFECT WEAPON. ( BUT THEN AGAIN PERFECT WEAPON IS THE BEST MOVIE EVER MADE). SO IT COMES DOWN TO THIS. IF YOUR NOT A JEFF SPEAKMAN FAN AND WOULD'NT KNOW HIM FROM A STRANGER ON THE STREET, SAVE YOUR MONEY, AND GO CHECK OUT THE NEW STEVEN SEAGAL MOVIE AT THEATERS. ON THE OTHER HAND IF YOU ARE A KENPO ARTIST LIKE MYSELF THIS MOVIE IS ONE OF SPEAKMAN'S BEST, SO I WOULD RECOMMEND PURCHASING THIS MOVIE, AND ALL OTHER SPEAKMAN MOVIES. MY ONLY WISH IS THAT SPEAKMAN WOULD GO BACK TO HIS ORIGINAL IDEA TO PROMOTE MORE KENPO IN HIS MOVIES, BUT WE'LL HAVE TO WAIT AND SEE.

Pretty good!
If you can get by a few inconsistencies, this isn't a bad movie. Let's do the inconsistencies first. In the scene where Speakman is getting his paper he is clearly wearing clothing that says kenpo (Speakman's martil art). So why is everyone so amazed when he dusts the car-jackers off? But this is little stuff. Speakman does a good job playing the reluctant hero, not everything works for him, he makes mistakes. Good plot, and a couple of good fights. Look for the cameo of Judo Gene Lebell (for you Martial Artists this is another inconsistency: the scene where Lebell gets Jeff in a choke and Jeff justs slips out. As good a Martial Artist as Jeff Speakman is, I don't hink anyone has just slipped out of a choke by Gene Lebell in the last forty years!) ... Read more

Reviews (4)

A truely engaging story!!
Kirstie Allie stars in this true story of a young writer's journey through the misguided fantasyland of the Playboy Club also the harrassment and pain behind the official smile.In 1963 a young journalist Gloria Steinem posed as a Playboy Bunny to find out what type of funny, glorious life a bunny leads.It wasn't pleasing,with false promises of easy money being forced into a painful,numb fitting uniform being overworked without breaks,paid less than promised and being dominated by the patrons and staff into a subservient role.Her journalistic story ended at the end became very distraught and serious.A truly engaging story!!

Based on an article
"A Bunny's Tale" was a made for TV movie that originally aired on ABC in 1985. It was based on an article, "I Was a Playboy Bunny," wrote in 1963 by Gloria Steinem. This article can be found in Ms. Steinem's book entitled "Outrageous Acts and Everyday Rebellions" with added postscript on the movie in the second edition (1995).

This movie takes place in 1963 with Kirstie Allie portraying Gloria Steinem, a reporter posing as a Bunny in the New York Playboy Club to get an article. The movie does do a good job of including alot of riveting facts that Ms. Steinem wrote about. Unfortunately other fascinating tidbits were left out. Also I felt the made up part involving the main character's boyfriend took up to much time, and most of that story line was not interesting. The only good thing about the relationship of the boyfriend is that it showed how Gloria's working at the club affected one of her other relationships. Overall the movie was interesting and worth watching, but I still walked away a little disappointed. Ms. Steinem article was so much more rich and detailed on what it was like to be a Bunny. The movie lacked in ways on that.

Awesome
Just seeing Kirstie in that bunny outfit was enough for me.

Great Movie!
This movie is really a good one. Really gives true view of what the playboy clubs were like. The funniest part would have to be when they all dance to "The Stripper". A must see movie! ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Loni, the 45-year old call-girl...but it works
This is vintage Loni Anderson. A 45 year old or so Anderson is a high class call girl in San Francisco. It turns out she has a late-teens daughter who has been raised by her father, Miss Anderson's ex. The daughter comes to visit to get to know her mother. Naturally, she's a good kid with a heart of gold. She gets to know a little more about her mother than I think she wanted as it comes out that a 45-year old woman can still apparently get paid top dollars for doing the dirty deed. Loni tries to cover up to protect her daughter, but her daughter is no dummy. But Miss Anderson has the typical hooker's heart of gold, doesn't do any drugs, doesn't do anything kinky, and ultimately gets out of the biz to be with her daughter and all is forgiven. It's actually pretty good for TV-movie fare and Loni is passable (if you ignore the age issue). ... Read more

Reviews (5)

Action and fun
In this second and last movie of the series Captain America(Reb Brown) must fight a ruthless terrorist (Christopher Lee) who has a deadly weapon. It's not a bad movie and it has a lot of action and funy scenes You'll notice there are a lot of bloopers in the movie (Watch Cap's hands when he is at the beach. We see him with gloves and then he does'nt have gloves)Althoug there are bloopers, it's a viewable movie. It would have been interesting to see a regular t.v. series of Captain America or another t.v. movie with Spider-Man,Hulk and Captain America. Who knows, maybe one day ?

If you love Captain America see this!
I am a fan of Marvel Since I was a little Kid. I remember when I saw Captain in a 1990 movie, when he fought the Red Skull, but this is not it! , It is the 2nd T.V movie of Captian America, he has his cool bike, wierd shield, and corny custume but I love it, If you want to see this, I would buy, Captain America 1, then this (Captain America 2 Death to soon. I loved this and I hope you will enjoy this as much as I did!

It could've been worse
I know that this and #1 stretched the storyline of Cap a little, but it was a TV movie after all. At least these were better than that stinkeroo movie that came out a few years ago. (PEEEUUU!) Also, Reb Brown at least had the build that made him playing Cap believable. Anyway, Marvel can't seem to make a decent adaptation of their heroes from the comics to the big/small screens so I'm afraid that this is one of the better ones.

Death too Soon is hokey, but okay
This film may be hokey (like to sound effects for Cap's stength), but it's not so bad. It trys to stay close to the actual comic character, but makes him somewhat bland. I'd recommend it for the avid comic collector,but don't watch it too often, you may go crazy.

Old enough to remember this one too.
OK. So you got past the hokey remade origin of Cap in the first one and, granted, he's got a clear shield of plastic and a motorcycle helmet. But hey, the story got a little better. When terrorists threaten to unleash a plague virus, Captain America steps it up to put a stop to it.These movies aren't bad bad, but as a little kid who liked comic books, Cap was the Man. Still is, although, whereas I'd admit I owned a Batman movie, I'd keep this one in the closet. I'd get it and the first one ONLY if you were a DIE HARD comics fan. (Like me.) eeeeesh. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

A truely engaging story!!
Kirstie Allie stars in this true story of a young writer's journey through the misguided fantasyland of the Playboy Club also the harrassment and pain behind the official smile.In 1963 a young journalist Gloria Steinem posed as a Playboy Bunny to find out what type of funny, glorious life a bunny leads.It wasn't pleasing,with false promises of easy money being forced into a painful,numb fitting uniform being overworked without breaks,paid less than promised and being dominated by the patrons and staff into a subservient role.Her journalistic story ended at the end became very distraught and serious.A truly engaging story!!

Based on an article
"A Bunny's Tale" was a made for TV movie that originally aired on ABC in 1985. It was based on an article, "I Was a Playboy Bunny," wrote in 1963 by Gloria Steinem. This article can be found in Ms. Steinem's book entitled "Outrageous Acts and Everyday Rebellions" with added postscript on the movie in the second edition (1995).

This movie takes place in 1963 with Kirstie Allie portraying Gloria Steinem, a reporter posing as a Bunny in the New York Playboy Club to get an article. The movie does do a good job of including alot of riveting facts that Ms. Steinem wrote about. Unfortunately other fascinating tidbits were left out. Also I felt the made up part involving the main character's boyfriend took up to much time, and most of that story line was not interesting. The only good thing about the relationship of the boyfriend is that it showed how Gloria's working at the club affected one of her other relationships. Overall the movie was interesting and worth watching, but I still walked away a little disappointed. Ms. Steinem article was so much more rich and detailed on what it was like to be a Bunny. The movie lacked in ways on that.

Awesome
Just seeing Kirstie in that bunny outfit was enough for me.

Great Movie!
This movie is really a good one. Really gives true view of what the playboy clubs were like. The funniest part would have to be when they all dance to "The Stripper". A must see movie! ... Read more

Description

She is a respected doctor and pioneer of woman's rights. She decides on a political career. The media gets hold of a small indiscretion in her past. It causes a political frenzy. She is forced to make a choice...speak her mind and preserve her self-respect at the risk of losing the campaign, or play the media game. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

excellent, little known film
this is a great video, apparently not available everywhere. for people who liked "the candidate," "the contender," and other stuff like that, this is a must see.

A convincing portrayal of the media's role in politics!
This movie (which was based on the play "An American Daughter", by Wendy Wasserstein), shows how the media can turn an innocent past mistake by a political candidate (Christine Lahti) into an issue that the whole country is talking about. Sound familiar? Issues like this constantly plague the news now, and this movie shows how ludicrous it all is. Tom Skerritt is in this movie too, an adds quite a convincing performance as Lahti's seemingly weak husband.

Two thumbs up for the movie and for Lahti!! I feel this is one of Christine Lahti's best performances. She takes you inside the life of a politician, who is being shunned by the media (thus, the nation) for reasons that are debatable.

Great Flick!
This movie brilliantly explores the challenges of being a woman and having power. In order to achieve, women are forced to sacrifice so much, and are often sabotaged by a society that feels threatened by their accomplishments. With suburb acting, this movie rings particularly true in our modern age. ... Read more

Reviews (7)

Underrated Sci-Fi Movie ! One of Gruner's Best
RobGen industries is the creator of the newest security system "The J-Series Automatic", an android programmed to protect and serve humans. They are said to be fail-safe and will never kill a human-being, as it is not in its programming. However, J269 (Olivier Gruner) accidently kills a top RobGen executive when he trys to rape a fellow employee Nora Rochester (Daphne Ashbrook). J269 contacts security and tells them he has just killed the top executive. Goddard Marx (John Glover), the creator and chairman of RobGen) is informed fot he incident. Marx hires mercenaries to try to elminate both J269 and Nora Rochester, so the public will not learn of the mishap.

The special effects in this movie are pretty great, from the wounds on J269, to failed androids, and the explosions and gunbattles that rock the RobGen skyscraper. The story is also very solid, probably the most well written of any Olivier Gruner movie. It portrays a strikingly realistic portrayal of what a future with androids could be like. With humans striking against the androids because the androids are more efficient workers.

Overall the movie is a thriller from beginning to end. If it was not for the bad scripting of the mercenaries chasing J269, the movie would be fully capable of achieving a 5 out of 5 rating. Olivier Gruner gives an award-capable performance as 4 different androids. There currently is no DVD version of this movie, only the VHS version.

Gruner can't save this one
After watching this movie, I felt a bit cheated. I'm a big fan of Olivier Gruner and I liked him in Nemesis, but Automatic is nowhere near the film that Nemesis is. Yes, Gruner plays the man/machine character very well, but even he can't save this film. I'm not real finicky about film details but this one is definitely not a 4 star film by ANY stretch of the imagination. The film's imagery consisted mainly of closeup shots of prop machine guns going off and sequences of bad guys' hands pulling grenade pins. The film's dialog was about as engaging as it's imagery. Even when playing the man/machine guy in other films, Gruner is still able to add depth and humanness to the character. However, he was not able to achieve this in Automatic. Blame it on poor writing, poor directing, or whatever. I'm still a fan of Olivier Gruner but this film just doesn't have it.

Cyborgs, Action, Romance Make for Great Film
This is one of the most underrated movies of our time. Granted it falls into the somewhat overdone genre of cyborg action films, it's still fun to watch.

An automatic is a personal defense unit, part human part machine, which is manufactured to protect its owner and uphold the law. They all talk, look and act the same (like Olivier Gruner). By the way, this is probably Olivier's best film. This role suits him perfectly.

The problem: the company that manufactures automatics is about to have a billion dollar loan recalled unless it comes up with something new. A day before a major press conference, a company supervisor attempts to rape Nora (an employee). In his attempt to protect her, an "Automatic" accidentally kills the supervisor.

To avoid a scandal, the company head hires a hit squad to kill the offending Automatic and Nora. Of course, this Automatic is anything but helpless. Here the action starts and never lets up.

To my suprise, something of a romance develops between Nora and this Automatic who, like the Tin Man in Wizard of Oz, is in search of his heart. To my even greater surprise, the romance part of this story actually works.

With action, romance, great villains and a surprise plot twist, Automatic has become one of my personal favorite films, along with Terminator and Robocop. Enjoy.

Great Sci-fi in the spirit of the Terminator
A gem of a sci-fi movie.

The bad guys are more interesting than the good guys. . .
True, this is a "dark" film, in terms of lighting, anyway, but for an action/futuristic flick it's original and well done. The fact that the hero is a robot is refreshing since it finally explains why the heroes of action films tend to be monotone and one-dimensional. Pay attention to Jeff Kober and Marjean Holden (Philadelphia Experiment II) in this film, they make it worthwile if you like sleek, sexy bad guys who have more character than the leading man and lady. Rent this film just to check them out together. Makes you curious to know what they got up to in Bolivia. Ding-a-ling-a-ling, darlin'. ... Read more

Reviews (7)

Underrated Sci-Fi Movie ! One of Gruner's Best
RobGen industries is the creator of the newest security system "The J-Series Automatic", an android programmed to protect and serve humans. They are said to be fail-safe and will never kill a human-being, as it is not in its programming. However, J269 (Olivier Gruner) accidently kills a top RobGen executive when he trys to rape a fellow employee Nora Rochester (Daphne Ashbrook). J269 contacts security and tells them he has just killed the top executive. Goddard Marx (John Glover), the creator and chairman of RobGen) is informed fot he incident. Marx hires mercenaries to try to elminate both J269 and Nora Rochester, so the public will not learn of the mishap.

The special effects in this movie are pretty great, from the wounds on J269, to failed androids, and the explosions and gunbattles that rock the RobGen skyscraper. The story is also very solid, probably the most well written of any Olivier Gruner movie. It portrays a strikingly realistic portrayal of what a future with androids could be like. With humans striking against the androids because the androids are more efficient workers.

Overall the movie is a thriller from beginning to end. If it was not for the bad scripting of the mercenaries chasing J269, the movie would be fully capable of achieving a 5 out of 5 rating. Olivier Gruner gives an award-capable performance as 4 different androids. There currently is no DVD version of this movie, only the VHS version.

Gruner can't save this one
After watching this movie, I felt a bit cheated. I'm a big fan of Olivier Gruner and I liked him in Nemesis, but Automatic is nowhere near the film that Nemesis is. Yes, Gruner plays the man/machine character very well, but even he can't save this film. I'm not real finicky about film details but this one is definitely not a 4 star film by ANY stretch of the imagination. The film's imagery consisted mainly of closeup shots of prop machine guns going off and sequences of bad guys' hands pulling grenade pins. The film's dialog was about as engaging as it's imagery. Even when playing the man/machine guy in other films, Gruner is still able to add depth and humanness to the character. However, he was not able to achieve this in Automatic. Blame it on poor writing, poor directing, or whatever. I'm still a fan of Olivier Gruner but this film just doesn't have it.

Cyborgs, Action, Romance Make for Great Film
This is one of the most underrated movies of our time. Granted it falls into the somewhat overdone genre of cyborg action films, it's still fun to watch.

An automatic is a personal defense unit, part human part machine, which is manufactured to protect its owner and uphold the law. They all talk, look and act the same (like Olivier Gruner). By the way, this is probably Olivier's best film. This role suits him perfectly.

The problem: the company that manufactures automatics is about to have a billion dollar loan recalled unless it comes up with something new. A day before a major press conference, a company supervisor attempts to rape Nora (an employee). In his attempt to protect her, an "Automatic" accidentally kills the supervisor.

To avoid a scandal, the company head hires a hit squad to kill the offending Automatic and Nora. Of course, this Automatic is anything but helpless. Here the action starts and never lets up.

To my suprise, something of a romance develops between Nora and this Automatic who, like the Tin Man in Wizard of Oz, is in search of his heart. To my even greater surprise, the romance part of this story actually works.

With action, romance, great villains and a surprise plot twist, Automatic has become one of my personal favorite films, along with Terminator and Robocop. Enjoy.

Great Sci-fi in the spirit of the Terminator
A gem of a sci-fi movie.

The bad guys are more interesting than the good guys. . .
True, this is a "dark" film, in terms of lighting, anyway, but for an action/futuristic flick it's original and well done. The fact that the hero is a robot is refreshing since it finally explains why the heroes of action films tend to be monotone and one-dimensional. Pay attention to Jeff Kober and Marjean Holden (Philadelphia Experiment II) in this film, they make it worthwile if you like sleek, sexy bad guys who have more character than the leading man and lady. Rent this film just to check them out together. Makes you curious to know what they got up to in Bolivia. Ding-a-ling-a-ling, darlin'. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

bad, bad. bad
There is absolutely nothing to redeem this film. The acting, direction and cinemaphotography are all poor. Save your money and time Worst movie I purchased this year ... Read more

Reviews (4)

a master at work
a down to earth plot coupled with some excellent action...I'm not sure how Ed Parker directed this movie though, as one review suggested, since Ed Parker died in 1990.

Great style excellent movie
Actually Jeff Speakman studies a form of Martial Arts called American Kenpo that was founded by Mr Ed Parker. My son and I both study American Kenpo and love to pick out the diffferent techniques that Jeff Speakman's using in the film. Ed Parker is responsible for directing all the fight scenes in the film. Ed Parker is responsible for teaching such notables as Jeff Speakman, Elvis Presley, and Blake Edwards to name a few. He also was the one that is responsible for introducing Bruce Lee to the Hollywood jet set and getting him started in films.

KENPO MASTER JEFF SPEAKMAN DOES IT AGAIN
LIKE ALL SPEAKMAN MOVIES THERE ARE PERIODS IN THE MOVIE THAT WILL BORE YOU, BUT IF YOU ARE A DIE HARD SPEAKMAN FAN LIKE MYSELF YOU CAN EXCEPT THIS. SPEAKMAN DOES HAVE TO ACT IN THIS AND ALL HIS OTHER FLICKS. HE HAS TO ACT TO BE COOL BECAUSE HE IS NOT AS NATUAL AT IT AS LET'S SAY STEVEN SEAGAL. ALL IN ALL FOR THE BUDGET THAT SPEAKMAN FILMS HAVE THIS IS A PRETTY GOOD MOVIE, THOUGH NOT NEARLY AS GOOD AS THE PERFECT WEAPON. ( BUT THEN AGAIN PERFECT WEAPON IS THE BEST MOVIE EVER MADE). SO IT COMES DOWN TO THIS. IF YOUR NOT A JEFF SPEAKMAN FAN AND WOULD'NT KNOW HIM FROM A STRANGER ON THE STREET, SAVE YOUR MONEY, AND GO CHECK OUT THE NEW STEVEN SEAGAL MOVIE AT THEATERS. ON THE OTHER HAND IF YOU ARE A KENPO ARTIST LIKE MYSELF THIS MOVIE IS ONE OF SPEAKMAN'S BEST, SO I WOULD RECOMMEND PURCHASING THIS MOVIE, AND ALL OTHER SPEAKMAN MOVIES. MY ONLY WISH IS THAT SPEAKMAN WOULD GO BACK TO HIS ORIGINAL IDEA TO PROMOTE MORE KENPO IN HIS MOVIES, BUT WE'LL HAVE TO WAIT AND SEE.

Pretty good!
If you can get by a few inconsistencies, this isn't a bad movie. Let's do the inconsistencies first. In the scene where Speakman is getting his paper he is clearly wearing clothing that says kenpo (Speakman's martil art). So why is everyone so amazed when he dusts the car-jackers off? But this is little stuff. Speakman does a good job playing the reluctant hero, not everything works for him, he makes mistakes. Good plot, and a couple of good fights. Look for the cameo of Judo Gene Lebell (for you Martial Artists this is another inconsistency: the scene where Lebell gets Jeff in a choke and Jeff justs slips out. As good a Martial Artist as Jeff Speakman is, I don't hink anyone has just slipped out of a choke by Gene Lebell in the last forty years!) ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Action romance novel to the big screen
Move over Bruce Willis and Steven Seagal; here comes Rob Lowe. This has the ruthless bad guy frustrated by ex-military reluctant hero. There are "stay in the car scenes", and "I do not believe you" scenes. Lots of bombs and explosions and water. Tempered by gushy love and unrequited love on a verbal level.

Basic story line is an international art thief hires hit men with lots of equipment to recover a statue. Parallel to this is the story of a woman who thinks her husband is boring and goes on vacation. Too bad for both groups as hubby shows up to recover wife and just happens to have extraordinary military skills.
Will the bad guy get the statue?
Will the lovers get together?
Or do the all get wet under pressure?

Badly Written and Boring
Escape Under Prssure was one big bore. A group of eighth graders could have written something better.

The dialog is just plain stupid. I understand that the writer of this movie has gone back to working for a lawn maintenance company, and is given nothing more complicated than trimming shrubs.

Entrapment, and ..Baywatch
Like a gruesome car wreck, this movie holds your attention.... An American couple on board a Greek ship, find themselves in the middle of a dramatically overplanned international scheme to steal a valuable Greek artifact. It wasn't so much the implausible plot, but the laughable similarities to some of the movies we know and love-and yes the Hasselhoffian manner in which John Spencer (Rob Lowe) manages to exert himself in his efforts to save the day. This Hollywood mutation was however, fairly entertaining. Highly recommended for a 3am veg-fest. ... Read more

Reviews (9)

THE THREE "G'S"
Good acting, good story and good price. The image and sound are fine, altough it does have that straight-to-video look about it. This is a movie I could rewatch. It is not exactly a classic, but it is entertaining. I do not regret viewing this.

seth green kicks!!
Seth Green is my favorite actor, period. This movie is ok, but the shootout at the finale feels dumb but its uplifted by its striking sorta "The Usual Suspects" ending, which I liked in this movie. Green sorta dissapeared for like god knows how many minutes making people think hes dead but then comes back, great performance by him, in a geeky way. a must see for Green fans

WOW!
You don't see many indy films like this anymore. What sets it apart? Great acting, great directing, and yes great writing. Shot for just under 750,000 dollars this gem stars Brad Rowe and Seth Green. As it is a mystery (of sorts) I wont explain the plot (plus you can read that in other reviews), however let me just raise my hand and say "wow."

A Pleasanst Surprise
Some think this was a direct to video movie and it was not. I personally saw this movie at the theatre! I can say I was honestly surprised. It is very suspensful, with a number of unexpected twists. Brad Rowe is very believing in the character he plays. I personally saw a couple of the scenes in this movie being filmed in Chapel Hill, NC, and it is a professional flick, not amateur as stated by a couple of other reviews here. If you like suspense, thrillers, twists, catch this movie!

A disappointing indie in which the audience is the mark
I picked this direct-to-video film up based on my respect for Seth Green. It was, unfortunately, a mistake.

This movie, a first-time venture for both Byron Thompson and Steve Morris, ends up failing in so many respects that its skipping theatrical release was as predictable as much of its plot. While the indie market is flourishing, more films like this could stop it in its tracks.

When Erik (Brad Rowe) enters the ivy-league Stonebrook on a bogus family scholarship engineered by a family friend (Bill Mesnik) it is, of course, too good to be true. In the first few minutes his scholarship is revoked and he falls helplessly into the hands of his nerdy roommate Cornelius (Seth Green) and a small-time criminal named Tali (Stanley Kamel).

Cornelius and Erik begin to dupe virtually everyone around with their elementary confidence scams before discovering they are in much too deep. In the midst of the myriad scams, Erik finds a love interest in the form of Londyn (Zoe McLellan) who turns out to be integrally related to the tangle the cast soon finds itself in. While each scam breeds another and the roommates dig themselves deeper and deeper it is only the number of cons that grows, not the tension or suspense. Indeed, the final resolution of all their scams is so predictable I was moved to tears.

Almost as an after-thought Morris throws in a brilliant criminal mind that has orchestrated it all. The attempt is pathetic, made even moreso by the shot-for-shot stealing from "The Usual Suspects."

On the whole, the movie is not worth even renting. The acting is hardly worth mentioning; Rowe plays Brad Pitt instead of Erik. Green's take on nerdy is only as deep as the glasses he wears. McLellan, as the poor little rich girl is pitiable only as an actress and admirable only for keeping a strait face. Mesnik defines emotionless while Kamel underplays to the point of monotony. The direction is reminiscent of a sixth grader with a film crew and the writing could very well be attributed to a team of monkeys with a typewriter.

Early on, Green's character mentions "everyone's a sucker." Turns out he's referring to the movie's audience. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Action romance novel to the big screen
Move over Bruce Willis and Steven Seagal; here comes Rob Lowe. This has the ruthless bad guy frustrated by ex-military reluctant hero. There are "stay in the car scenes", and "I do not believe you" scenes. Lots of bombs and explosions and water. Tempered by gushy love and unrequited love on a verbal level.

Basic story line is an international art thief hires hit men with lots of equipment to recover a statue. Parallel to this is the story of a woman who thinks her husband is boring and goes on vacation. Too bad for both groups as hubby shows up to recover wife and just happens to have extraordinary military skills.
Will the bad guy get the statue?
Will the lovers get together?
Or do the all get wet under pressure?

Badly Written and Boring
Escape Under Prssure was one big bore. A group of eighth graders could have written something better.

The dialog is just plain stupid. I understand that the writer of this movie has gone back to working for a lawn maintenance company, and is given nothing more complicated than trimming shrubs.

Entrapment, and ..Baywatch
Like a gruesome car wreck, this movie holds your attention.... An American couple on board a Greek ship, find themselves in the middle of a dramatically overplanned international scheme to steal a valuable Greek artifact. It wasn't so much the implausible plot, but the laughable similarities to some of the movies we know and love-and yes the Hasselhoffian manner in which John Spencer (Rob Lowe) manages to exert himself in his efforts to save the day. This Hollywood mutation was however, fairly entertaining. Highly recommended for a 3am veg-fest. ... Read more