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Short Circuit (Special Edition)

Short Circuit (Special Edition)

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Rating: 4 stars
Summary: "Circuit Breaks Out With Laughter"
Review: "Short Circuit" is one of those motion pictures that I enjoy viewing so much about a Nova Robotics Robot named Number 5, struck by a power surge of lightning and giving him life. He suddenly escapes with a malfunction and searches for "imput". Later, he befriends a young woman named Stephanie Speck (Ally Sheedy) who gives him imput about life including animals, laughter from the Three Stooges on TV and even death (or in Number 5's case, "disassembled.") He then learns that Nova and the team want Number 5 destroyed and makes a break for it through the roads of Oregon. Steve Guttenberg plays a creator of the Nova robots when he and his friend Ben Jabituya (Fisher Stevens) look for the robot first before Howard (Austin Pendleton) and Skroeder (G.W. Bailey) does and destroy him. The show stealer is Number 5 (voiced by Tim Blaney.) The comedy Number 5 shows in "Short Circuit" will please kids as well as adults with hilarious and touching moments at times. Look for outstanding filming throughout Oregon that in my opinion is almost like driving through Arizona. TriStar Pictures, Inc./PSO Presentations, 1986, Rated PG for language and some violence.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: "Feel Good" Delight
Review: "Short Circuit" has been one of my favorite comedies since I first saw it. Now there is a wondrful DVD version with great "bonus features". The "making of" and "behind the scenes" are a bit disappointing because they are so short, but the interviews with the stars, director and tech people are great. It is worth having the DVD just for the track with comments by the director and authors.

The film itself is a delightful modern day fantasy. Yes, the computers and such items do show the age of this 1986 film, but do not take away from the great story. Any film that can make you fall in love with a piece of machinery and care about what happens to it is a wonder. Number 5 is a real character with an endearing personality. This is true cinema magic. But, this could never have happened without truly wonderful performances by Ally Sheedy and Steve Guttenberg. Their belief in #5 draws the viewer into the story and makes you believe too. One false move from them and the film could have fallen apart. Fisher Stevens gives a comic gem of a performance as the Indian character who has trouble with the English language. On the "bonus track" John Badham, the director, states that many of the most humerous line were invented on the spot by Mr. Stevens.

Even the "villians" are not really evil, just over zealous in carrying out their jobs. Yes, you "hate" them because you've come to care so much for #5 and cheer when they are outsmarted, but that is part of the fun of this film.

To summon it up, get your popcorn, soft drink and other munchies, put this little gem in your DVD and have a really fun time.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: A Classic Memory ... "Short Circuit"
Review: "Short Circuit" is classic memory in my mind. The film is all about the funny cute robot known as, Johnny 5. Also known as #5, the film takes place with #5 getting hit by lightning and escaping a military show of new army robotics. While #5 stumbles on the homely Stephanie (Ally Sheedy) she believes he is a alien, but when she see's his trademark on his back she calls the company, then everything breaks loose as this top-secret military machine with a lovable personality may be Public Enemy #1. Also Starring - Steve Guttenburg and Fisher Stevens. Conatins - Some Violence and Language.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: "Circuit Breaks Out With Laughter"
Review: "Short Circuit" is one of those motion pictures that I enjoy viewing so much about a Nova Robotics Robot named Number 5, struck by a power surge of lightning and giving him life. He suddenly escapes with a malfunction and searches for "imput". Later, he befriends a young woman named Stephanie Speck (Ally Sheedy) who gives him imput about life including animals, laughter from the Three Stooges on TV and even death (or in Number 5's case, "disassembled.") He then learns that Nova and the team want Number 5 destroyed and makes a break for it through the roads of Oregon. Steve Guttenberg plays a creator of the Nova robots when he and his friend Ben Jabituya (Fisher Stevens) look for the robot first before Howard (Austin Pendleton) and Skroeder (G.W. Bailey) does and destroy him. The show stealer is Number 5 (voiced by Tim Blaney.) The comedy Number 5 shows in "Short Circuit" will please kids as well as adults with hilarious and touching moments at times. Look for outstanding filming throughout Oregon that in my opinion is almost like driving through Arizona. TriStar Pictures, Inc./PSO Presentations, 1986, Rated PG for language and some violence.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: No. 5 is the coolest robot ever
Review: A company called Nova has just made five military robots who can do some serious damage to bad people or anything that they need to get out of their way. However, something happens to No. 5 and he literally becomes intelligent and believe it or not, alive. No. 5 accidentally ends up at the home of a charismatic animal lover, Stephanie (Ally Sheedy). Luckily for No. 5, Stephanie grows attached to the unbelievably smart robot, and her friendship will come in handy after No. 5 finds out that a group of people want to 'disassemble' him.

"Short Circuit" is without a doubt one of the best movies of its type from the 80's, if not of all time. It's a great comedy movie and even a better family movie. "Short Circuit" is a GREAT movie for kids to watch, but anybody of any age can enjoy it.

"Short Circuit" is VERY original, parts of it such as when No. 5 (remember that he's a robot) watches "Saturday Night Fever" on TV and tries to dance, and several other parts, are funny. But best of all, No. 5 makes the movie more than interesting enough to watch over and over again.

If you like comedy movies and especially if you need a great family movie that the whole family can sit down, watch, and enjoy, I recommend getting "Short Circuit." If you like this movie, I also recommend getting the sequel that is humbly named "Short Circuit 2."

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: A personal favorite from the 80s
Review: A feature with a feel I consider to be slightly different than others. This movie bases itself around a piece of machinery that becomes much more. Like many movies out there it explores concepts of AI, but further more artificial emotions. Expressed in what I feel is a highly entertaining and humorous manor, it is definately worth a viewing, and perhaps owning.
Of course there is the draw back, of the fact the DVD is letterbox widescreen, meaning that if you have, or plan to get a widescreen TV the quality will be short of that of an anamorphic version which appears not to exist at the time, it is the sole reason for 4 versus 5 stars.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Great movie for thinkers
Review: A fun movie for thinkers, kids, and computer nerds. Some profanity, but not enough to seriously damage the story line. A robot who becomes "alive" courtesy of a bolt of lightning, makes you think about what it means to be "alive." Clearly defined "good guys" and "bad guys" makes it easy to see whom to root for. Happy ending makes the wait worthwhile. The sequel takes the story a lot farther, for more thinking, and more exciting fun.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Trite
Review: As someone who grew up in the 1980s, I have watched many movies in my lifetime, there have been many of them I liked at that time, but I now wonder why on Earth I like some of these films, like this one. While it's always amusing to see Johnny 5 say "No disassemble", a lot of the film comes across as being overly sentimental trite. It's little secret that this movie had killed both Ally Sheedy and Steve Guttenberg's career, as neither of them were featured on Short Circuit 2 (and the production of that sequel moved up north to Canada), and neither had been heard since. Perhaps the worst is that East Indian guy who worked for Nova with the accent that borders on the offensive. This movie is worth a watch if you're nostalgic for the 1980s, but for me, as someone older and wiser, I just find it overly sentimental and trite. The only thing that saved the movie itself was Johnny 5 himself.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: A childhood favorite now in widescreen
Review: Beautiful widescreen, better see! As a child I loved Short Circuit, and it's not so successful sequel. The expolits of the robot # 5 who thought that he was a living breathing thinking individual with feelings was a rather entertaining movie with a lot of the stuff that kids find cool in it. A crazy funny robot with some classic tag lines, lazers, and explosions, and a movie that's in general silly.
Until this DVD was released I never got to see this movie in widescreen, and now that I have I am shocked as to how much of the picture was actually missing. The more widescreen movies that I watch the less I can stand Pan & Scam. Short Circuit was a movie that really suffered when it was transfered to pan & Scam. The movie has a decent transfer, not the best, but this is certainly the best presentation of the movie I have ever seen, and it also features decent sound. It's a little lacking in the special features, but would be a good buy for those wanting to relive a childhood memory from the 80s. Unlike Bill & Ted, this movie actually holds up against the test of time, not as well as other 80s classics, but from a decade of [bad] movies, this one's still pretty funny.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Not so SPECIAL Edition
Review: First off, this movie has been a favorite of mine since I was young and I still laugh at the jokes in this movie. "Hey, Laser lips, your momma was a snow blower" :) Anyways, I thought that this DVD being a special edition and all would have some really great features; well, I was disappointed. The featurettes are extremely old, which were filmed around the same time the film was made. The only thing new is the commentary track. Regardless, if you like this movie, buy the disc. The video and sound are great.


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