Short Circuit 2
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Movie Reviews of Short Circuit 2
Movie Review: If Phillip K Dick had done Pinochio as a kids film...
Summary: 4 Stars
It would probably be much like this; two everyman protagonists, themes of loneliness and isolation and yearning, a robot who is far more humane than his human counterparts...
Unlike the first Short Circuit Movie where there wasn't much time to explore the character of Jonhhy Five, or invest the machine with character, the second film does just that and it does it very well. The viewer's suspension of disbelief is fully engaged- even as an adult I find myself lulled into feeling a deep sesne of pathos and compassion for Number Johnny Five. This is in part due to an amazing pre-CGI special effects/machine team and also due to the exceptionally unselfconscious acting of the human cast: Fisher Stevens ((the bad guye from hackers)) is truly phenomenal as Ben Jharvi, an Indian ((I think)) computer programmer who is as inept at expressing his feelings as Johnny Five is as understanding his own); Michael McKean and Cynthia Gibb are also great (McKean is perfect as a petty conman who betrays and then saves Johnny Five). The actors did an amazing job interacting with the machine and their performances add subtly dazzling layers of humor and sentiment to whta could have been a really awful movie but instead becomes a marvelous thing to watch.
OK. The script is somewhat shoddy at times and the pacing is not so well-handled. There are some dead-end scenes, but for the most part everything really hangs together well- Johnny Five stumbles through several mishaps trying to understand why humans behave as they do and why he feels what he feels. Oh, there's a chase scene set to the godawful "I need a hero," song. The kitschy 80's pop score wears a tad thin afterawhile. But then, this is a kid film at heart, and a rather unique one at that.
One scene always breaks my heart, one of my all-time favorite poignant scenes: Johnny five, after being caught by the cops, is taken and chained in the police basement- the stolen property room. He is slowly reading two books, page by page. His friends come to have him released- when allowed to leave he breaks his chains easily and sadly leaves (you see, he could have left at anytime had he wanted to; there's some Sadean undertones in how #J5 repeatedly allows himself to be demeaned and debased and almost destroyed by humans without fighting back lethally- which he easily could... a postmodern and mechanical kin to Justine, perhaps).
The books he was so slowly reading were Pinochio and Frankenstein. It always slays me, just like the Rockbiter's monologue in The Never Ending Story ("They look like big, strong hands...").
This one is so much better, in my opinion, than Spielberg's execrable A.I., if only in that Stevie over-reached himself (again) on that crite film; trying to make a 'serious' film about 'serious' issues... and then he tacked on a completely odious ending.
This film has no such pretensions- it mostly aims at fun. Because of that it achieves more than most serious cinema struggling with the same themes of technology and identity.
Movie Review: There needs to be more Johnny 5 in the world
Summary: 4 Stars
What to do now there's no more Short Circuit movies to watch? Why was there never a third? And why, apart from Johnny 5, was Fisher Stevens the only original character brought back?
Those were only minor quibbles for a great movie. And the god awful cover art, which the more I look at, the more I hate. But then they could have done worse. It could have been a white background with the two main characters photoshopped in.
I really enjoyed the first Short Circuit movie. The second? Even better. With more fun from Johnny, including even more interaction with Ben (Fisher Stevens), and more fun-ness, including making the toy Johnny 5's dance, and more, Short Circuit betters the first.
I was kinda disappointed that Stephany didn't reappear for the second movie, she was a bit of a miss, and was only mentioned a couple of times, apart from a voice recording - but at least she wasn't completely forgotten about.
What's good about reading other reviewer's ... reviews is that the amount of people is saw this when they were young. I always seem to get introduced to these movies a lot later in life - for example I'm a nearly mid-twenty something and seeing this for the first time. What would it have been like to see it as a child? That, I can only dream about.
Short Circuit 2 pretty much follows on from the first, with Ben now in the big city, trying to sell his toy Johnny's on the street, next to a fake Rolex selling vendor. A toy buyer, Sandy, stumbles across a toy Johnny after it 'escapes' and brings it back. Talk of money is banded about, and next thing Ben knows, he needs to make 1000, in 31 days. With the fake Rolex selling vendor, Fred (Michael McKean) as his partner. But bad guys want to break into a bank to steal some priceless jewels, but how are they going to do it? The rest is predictable, but fun.
Jack Weston appears as one of the bad guys, who befriends Johnny, in order to get him on his side, finding out he is incredibly naive. For any eighties rom-com fan will recognise him from Dirty Dancing, as Max Kellerman. (For anyone who hasn't seen this or Dirty Dancing, boy do you need some education!) Short Circuit 2 actually appears to have been Jack Weston's last movie before he died from lymphoma in 1996.
I'm disappointed there was never another Short Circuit movie. And another one. And another one. And another one. It could have been a great franchise. But what's good is normally best left to a minimum, before it loses its glow. Short Circuit didn't pander to the major franchising deals, the endless mindless sequels, and instead left the world a different place with just the two films.
Now where do I buy a little Johnny 5?
Movie Review: Short Circuit fan is only slightly disappointed
Summary: 4 Stars
I've been a long-time fan of Short Circuit and it's sequel, Short Circuit 2. When it comes to DVD's, I'm there! They're great in so many ways. The Short Circuit DVD is great in some ways, but definately could've been better.First off, the film transfer is pretty good. For the first time ever, I was able to watch the film in widescreen, while before I was only able to view the "fitted to TV" 3:4 aspect ratio (for any fans of the 3:4 picture, this DVD IS double-sided and HAS the 3:4 picture size version as well). The colours are vibrant (but not too vibrant), the picture is sharp, and there are only a few blemishes and dirt marks on the film. The sound was great! Sure, it hadn't been remastered in Dolby 5.1, but it still was Dolby Surround. The music was MUCH clearer than what was heard on the VHS version. Many areas of the film's musical score which were barely audible before were very clear on the DVD.
Here's the bit of down-side to this DVD: there are hardly any extras. The making-of featurette is at most five minutes long, and though we do get to see that Fisher Stevens is very unlike his character Ben Jarhvi, it ends very abruptly. The movie trailer section doesn't even include the Short Circuit 2 trailer. It would have been nice if more extras had been inserted, like the Short Circuit Special Edition DVD.
If you're a fan of Short Circuit though, you should get this DVD. It's more worth it than getting the VHS version :)
Movie Review: it depends
Summary: 4 Stars
If you're from New York City, you'll find this sequel better than the first movie, because of course this sequel is set in the sacred City.
All others will find this sequel not as good as the first movie. But it is still entertaining. Fans can revisit their favorite stunts from the first, and there are many new ones. Cynthia Gibb lends a touch of beauty and charm to this movie, but all too seldom and all too briefly. There is no female lead, as there was in the first movie--a serious shortcoming.
Again, the star of the show is #5. Compared to #5, the actors are inexpressive, simple, repetitive--in short, robot-like. It's too bad those who designed the gestures and expressions for the robot didn't give a few lessons to the actors.
If you haven't seen the first, it is recommended that you see it before this one. And if you liked the first, you'll like this one too.
Movie Review: When Johnny comes marching home again
Summary: 4 Stars
This is the sequel to the movie "Short Circuit" and relies heavily on having "Short Circuit" viewed first. In the original an experimental automated warier (complete with laser and Nuke) is stuck by lightning causing a short circuit and making robot number 5 (Johnny) alive.
This movie has several other subplots and some slapstick humor.
Strapped for cash, Ben Jahrvi, co-creator of Johnny 5, is pushed into the manufacturing business, making little Johnny replicas. This movie contains a love interest (Sandy), and economics. The action comes from when they leave Johnny (you guessed it) home alone. He is bamboozled by petty crooks, and abducted by ruthless people because someone wants the warehouse access.
So will Sandy and Ben get past the awkward stage? (Can Johnny help?)
Will Johnny Five be recovered?
On the other hand, will Number five lead his now life of crime?