The Wizard
by Todd Holland
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Fred Savage, Jenny Lewis, Luke Edwards, Vince Trankina, Wendy PhillipsDirector: Todd Holland
Brand: Universal
Cinematographer: Robert D. Yeoman
Editor: Tom Finan
Producer: Daniel Schneider
Producer: David Chisholm
Writer: David Chisholm
Producer: Ken Topolsky
Producer: Lindsley Parsons Jr.
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo; English (Subtitled)
Format: Color, Dolby, DVD-Video, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.85:1
Running Time: 100 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2006-08-22
Audience Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Studio: Universal Studios
Movie Reviews of The Wizard
Movie Review: that nostalgic feeling
Summary: 5 Stars
This is a film for the kid that grew up in the 80s and loved his/her NES and loves getting that nostalgic feeling when discovering something from the past.
The film is presented in 1.85:1 and looks good upscaled on a 46" LCD 1080p screen.
But, my memory served me wrong when I was recollecting on this film. The last 10 or so minutes are the only instance you see Jimmy playing at the competition. I thought it was like 30 minutes. It's rather fast and abrupt. The Wizard is heavy on story and light on the NES. It is a commercial for Nintendo but in a way it's not, or not any different than coca cola having product placement throughout a film. There's just not that much NES involved in the film. And I'm not sure why Fred Savage is wearing the Power Glove on the cover...neither Jimmy nor Savage dons the glove.
I give it 5 stars because it's classic 80s that not too many folks know about.
Summary of The Wizard
Fred Savage stars in this warm-hearted family adventure that features the excitement and thrills of video game competition. Corey (Savage) refuses to let his emotionally disturbed younger brother Jimmy (Luke Edwards) be institutionalized, and the two run away together. They soon join forces with a resourceful girl (Jenny Lewis), who notices that Jimmy has a special talent: he is a "wizard" at video games and gets the high score on absolutely everything he plays. Evading their parents and a sinister bounty hunter, the trio head for a climactic showdown at the video game championships in California. Co-starring Beau Bridges and Christian Slater, it's an inside look at the world of video gamers that will have you cheering the whole way.Less raunchy than Tommy and more conventional than Tron, The Wizard also revolves around gaming. There's even a Bridges on board. In Tron it was Jeff, in The Wizard it's Beau. As opposed to the rock opera's pinball-playing "deaf, dumb, and blind kid," however, quasi-catatonic Jimmy (Luke Edwards) is a video game wiz. While the nine-year-old lives with his mother, half-brothers Corey (Fred Savage, circa The Wonder Years) and Nick (Christian Slater, fresh from Heathers) live with their father, Sam (Bridges). When Jimmy, who recently lost his sister, is placed in a home, Corey busts him out for a trip to California. (Today, Jimmy's condition would be labeled post-traumatic stress disorder.) As they're leaving Utah, they join forces with gaming enthusiast Haley (Rilo Kiley's Jenny Lewis), who suggests LA's National Video Game Championships. So, off they go by foot, skateboard, and the kindness of strangers. Sam, Nick, and obnoxious bounty hunter Putnam (Will Seltzer) are close behind. The outcome may be a foregone conclusion--the fractured family makes their peace--but The Wizard still offers a nostalgic, Nintendo-laden look at 1980s gamer culture (Power Glove, Super Mario Bros. 3, etc.). Plus, sharp-eyed viewers will spot Toby Maguire milling around before the showdown at Universal Studios Theme Park. If not for the hitchhiking, gambling, and reckless automotive destruction--after Putnam takes a knife to Sam's tires, Sam smashes his headlights with a shovel--the movie would be appropriate for all ages. In other words, it earns its PG rating. --Kathleen C. Fennessy
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