Real Genius
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Movie Reviews of Real Genius
Movie Review: Great smart comedy
Summary: 5 Stars
This is a must for any Val Kilmer fan! I purchased this on VHS in the mid-80's then finally gave in to the inevitable and got the DVD.
This is a smart little comedy that shows how a kid genius can grow into a cynical but still extremely smart student that learns how to work the system in a prestigious technical institute to the chagrin of his fellow classmates and disappointment of his snobby professor. William Atherton nails his role as the professor with a God complex as does the actor who plays ultra-preppy suck-up student Kent.
Although the technical references in this movie may be a bit dated now for those hi-tech geeks out there, the movie holds up very well for what it was intended to be and the message it makes. It is also fun to see how "smart people" act when they have some free time in between classes and studying as well as what happens to one particular former burned out student (Lazlo) who became a little insane with his obsessive knowledge and lives below the school in the steam tunnels plotting his revenge on society.
Kilmer's deadpan comedy and antics alone are worth watching.
Movie Review: It's a laser beam, Bozo!! But what's it for?
Summary: 5 Stars
The best movies, in my opinion, are not merely entertainment. The best ones also make you think about the deeper questions in life. "Real Genius" is a triumph in this regard- it's funny, it's got a good story, there's tons of memorable dialogue, and it does make you think.
In this film, a group of college kids at Pacific Tech are working on a powerful laser, and their supervising professor plans to sell it to the government. One thing that really rings true here is that the kids don't really realize WHY such a laser might be dangerous in the wrong hands- all they really want to do is make it work!
And this is the essential failure of scientists. We invent something because it can be invented, and we pretend that moral issues aren't relevant.
This is a hilarious movie, and I think it's one of Val Kilmer's best, and it really does make you think a bit. There are a lot of college kids out there, working under a research professor, who don't stop to think about the practical implications of their research. Hopefully this movie helped some of them to wake up.
Movie Review: Real Classic
Summary: 5 Stars
Like many of the other reviewers, I'm amazed how few people have actually seen this movie. Even my wife hadn't before she met me (swiftly remedied!). Even funnier than the funniest of 80s movies (e.g. Airplane, Fletch, Heathers, the Monty Python films etc.), the story is secondary to the non-stop snappy dialogue, great acting, and visual humor. Without a doubt this is Val Kilmer's best role, and if he hadn't left comedy to pursue his terrible action-flick-leading-man career, he might still be making movies like this one.My favorite scenes:
Girl: "Are you here for the meeting?"
Chris: "What meeting?"
Girl: "I don't know."
Chris: "Oookaay..."
Mitch: "What are you doing?"
Chris: "Self-realization. I was reflecting on the immortal words of Socrates, who said, 'I drank what?' "
Chris: "Put that down! Don't you know that eating cheeseburgers can give you extremely large breasts?!?!" <looks down> "My God... I'm too late!"
Those who have attended Caltech will especially enjoy the film, as it was filmed there and has a few in-jokes for ex-Beavers.
Movie Review: Quotables On Parade!
Summary: 5 Stars
Oh, the 80s. This indefatigably defining 80s movie definitely deserves to be on your list of guilty pleasures. Val Kilmer plays a genuis-slacker who delights in wreaking havoc and using his brain power to concoct ways to outsmart the vending machine. He attends an MIT or CIT like school and is given a 15 year old, stiff-as-a-board super genuis as a roommate. Kilmer's character, Chris Knight, takes his new roommate, Mitch, under his wing as they create a laser for an advanced class, though the professor may have ulterior motives (William Atherton, deliciously type cast as the two dimensional sycophant).
The real genuis of this movie is its one liners:
"I was thinking of the immortal words of Socrates, when he said, 'I drank what?' "
"I want to see more of you around the lab." "Fine, I'll gain weight."
Give it a try when Dour documentaries and political pieces are too taxing for your brain to handle and you desire a bit of clever fluff.
Movie Review: Caltech undercover
Summary: 5 Stars
This underrated and unappreciated film is a classic example of how the only way to make a good comedy is to treat the subject matter seriously.Rather than adding to the well-deserved praise given by other reviewers, lemme give you a bit of background. "Pacific Tech" is, of course, Caltech. Although it has no access from closets, there really is an "infinite storeroom" under the old dorms. Though it's unlikely someone could set up their own lab and hide down there, it's not altogether impossible.
The young hyperactive student who can't sleep and knits at night really exists. She was modelled after the wife of a co-worker at Data I/O corporation. She and her husband attended Caltech at the time "Real Genius" was made.
The crazy stuff (such as putting a car in someone's room) is not far-removed from the truth. Such pranks are comitted on Senior Ditch Day. They're usually even weirder than those shown in the film.