Friday, October 7, 2011

The Lawnmower Man Review









The Lawnmower Man


Release Date: 7th May 1992 - Australia


Production Companies
Allied Vision
Fuji Eight Company Ltd
Lane Pringle Productions


Genre: Sci-Fi/Horror

Rating: M (Not Suitable for Young Children)

Runtime: 103 minutes
               141 minutes
               (director's cut)


Budget: $10,000,000

Box Office Gross: $150,000,000 (Worldwide)


Plot Summary
Nicknamed "The Lawnmower Man" for his remarkable gardening skills, Jobe Smith is an adult with the mind of a six-year-old. However, his mental disability made him a target of local bullies, yet his innocent and kind demeanour has earned him many friends.

One day, Jobe's life changes
forever when a brilliant
scientist, Dr. Lawrence
Angelo, helps Jobe become
intelligent through the
power of virtual reality and
a new drug he has
developed. The results are
rapid and astonishing. Soon,
Jobe's mutant powers began
to manifest, turning him
into a hate-filled monster
hungry for world conquest.
Thus begins his reign of
terror.


Cast
Jeff Fahey - Jobe Smith
Pierce Brosnan - Dr. Lawrence Angelo
Jenny Wright - Marnie Burke
Rosalee Mayeux - Carla Parkette
Austin O'Brien - Peter Parkette
Mark Bringelson - Sebastian Timms
Geoffrey Lewis - Terry McKeen
John Laughlin - Jake Simpson
Jeremy Slate - Father Francis McKeen
Dean Norris - Director
Troy Evans - Lt. Goodwin
Colleen Coffey - Caroline Angelo
Ray Lykins - Harold Parkette
Michael Gregory - Security Chief
Joe Hart - Patrolman Cooley
Jim Landis - Ed Waits
Michael Valverde - Day Gate Guard
Dale Raoul - Dolly
Frank Collison - Night Gate Guard
John Smart - Assistant
Stephen Gregory Foster - Letchworth
Doug Hutchinson - Security Tech
Denney Price - Skinhead Guard
Roger Rook - Older Guard
Craig Benton - White Coat
Randall Fontana - Hotel Waiter
Mara Duronslet - Young Woman Clerk
Duane Byrne - Letchworth Buddy

Crew
Screenplay/Post-Production/Special Visual
Effects Conceiver and Supervisor/Director -
Brett Leonard
Screenplay/Second Unit Director/Post-
Production/Special Visual Effects Conceiver
and Supervisor/Producer - Gimel Everett
Executive Producers - Steven A. Lane,
Robert Pringle, Edward Simons and
Clive Turner
Co-Producer - Milton Subotsky
Production Designer - Alex McDowell
Special Design and Illustration/Creative
Design: Angel Studios - Albert Co
Art Director - Chris Farmer
Set Decorator - Jacqueline Masson
Costume Designer - Mary Jane Fort
Director of Photography - Russel Carpenter
Production Manager - Patricia Whitcher
Stunt Coordinator - Dan Bradley
Key Special Effects - Frank Cegila
Animation Directors: Angel Studios -
Jill Hunter and Michael Limber
Designers/Animators: Xaos, Inc - Roberta Brandao,
Hayden Landis, Tony Lupidi, Ken Pearce,
Henry Preston and Ric Tringali
Art Director/Project Coordinator: Xaos, Inc -
Mark Malmberg
Simulation Director: Angel Studios -
Brad Hunt
Motion Capture - Umberto Lazzari and
Francesco Chiarini
Miniature Photographer - Anthony Doublin
Blue Screen Director of Photography -
Alex Funke
Visual Consultant - Simon McGuire
Supervising Sound Editor/Audio
Post-Production Supervisor - Frank Serafine
Re-Recording Mixers - Randy Honaker
and Dennis Patterson
Film Editor - Alan Baumgarten
Music Score Realization - Jurgen Brauninger
Music - Dan Wyman


Review
THE LAWNMOWER MAN was a different kind of movie that's unbelievable and a bit like the Tron series, only in virtual reality. Its groundbreaking but outdated computer-generated effects were excellent, and this is one of Pierce Brosnan's earliest movies he starred in before becoming James Bond. This movie was an exciting science fiction experience, which at the time, was original and complimented the sci-fi genre. The acting was great, especially Brosnan and Jeff Fahey.

I was lucky to have seen THE LAWNMOWER MAN. I would never have found the film in its DVD packaging if I hadn't watched it. Unfortunately, the sequel to this movie is in no way compared to the original hit. It also did not star actor Jeff Fahey, who played the main character, neither our beloved Brosnan nor his protagonist. Still, the original is a must-see for everyone who has yet to experience it.

Star rating: (4/5) Good Movie

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2 comments:

  1. Hi Film Guru Lad,
    I finally saw this movie for the first time last night. I must say I was really impressed; The story for this film is written by Stephen King and I feel this movie was a typical example of the wierd but yet wonderful imaginative creations of the masterful author Stephen King. I though the casting of Jeff and Pierce was really well selected. Visual effects were a bit of a let down but hey, the film is over 20 years old. It makes me wonder if someone done a remake of this film if modern technology would improve the standards of this film. I would agree that this film deserves a 4/5. Good review.

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    Replies
    1. You are the missing point, in its pre-production it was originally scripted as CyberGod before the director changed the movie's title and borrowed some of the novel's elements.

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