I can remember when WEIRD SCIENCE was first released seeing
the film and thinking it was one of the funniest films I’d seen in some time.
Watching it now some 30 odd years later I still thought moments were funny but
was surprised at how juvenile it really was. Not in a bad way but it’s that
difference in seeing things through the eyes of someone in their 20s versus
someone in their 60s.
If for some reason you never saw the film (welcome to the
world after your release from the cave) it revolves around two geek teens named
Wyatt (Ilan Mitchell-Smith) and Gary (Anthony Michael Hall). Wyatt’s parents
are out of town and while watching the classic FRANKENSTEIN Gary comes up with
the idea of using Wyatt’s computer to create a woman of their own. Keep in mind
this is the early days of home computers when a 6 inch floppy disc was the
norm.
With bras strapped to their heads, feeding information to
the computer and after easily tapping into the government missile based
mainframe (notice how often that happened in 80s movies?) the pair soon find
themselves confronted by a gorgeous woman (Kelly LeBrock) whose first words are
“So...what would you little maniacs like to do first?” There first wish is to
take a shower with her which they do while still dressed.
Decking them out in spiffy new duds she cooks up for them
and hopping into her pink Cadillac the trio head out for some fun. Along the
way they give their creation the name Lisa, the girl who shamed Gary the
previous summer he still has a crush on. The location Lisa chooses for them is
a black blues club where they end up drunk with Gary telling the group of
friends they make there about the girl who crushed his heart and his testicles.
Getting home early the duo are confronted by Wyatt’s older
brother and main antagonist Chet (Bill Paxton). Visiting from military school
and responsible for watching over Wyatt he constantly threatens him, bullies
him and extorts money from him to remain silent. Face it, Chet is a supreme
jerk.
Lisa next takes the boys to the mall where Max (Robert
Russler) and Ian (Robert Downey Jr.), the school bullies who pick them, dump a
slushie on their heads. Feigning regret to their girlfriends Deb (Suzanne
Snyder) and Hilly (Judie Aronson) the pair get away with their misdeed but soon
dump the girls when they see Lisa. Following her outside they attempt to hit on
her when she tells them her ride is there as Gary pulls up in a Porsche. She
then invites the pair to a party at Wyatt’s house and tells them to let
everyone know.
The party does take place and things immediately get out of
control. Hundreds of kids show, food is eaten, alcohol is flowing freely and
Gary and Wyatt are spending the party in the bathroom, afraid to come out. Lisa
has to come up with a way to get them out of their shells, to put them in the
eye sights of Deb and Hilly and to show the rest of the kids that they’re much
cooler than even they realize.
While watching the film I had a combination pop into my
head. If you took a blender, tossed in Mary Poppins, a few Playboy magazines,
the mind of a pre-teen boy and added a dash of science fiction then turned it
on you basically have the script for the movie. Again, that’s not necessarily a
bad thing. But watching it now it feels to thin and ready to jump into the fun
filled frivolity without much depth to it. As some in the extras point out
perhaps this was director/writer John Hughes decision just to have some fun
after the back to back hits SIXTEEN CANDLES and THE BREAKFAST CLUB. At least it
seems that way.
The two leads here show tremendous differences in their
abilities. Hall is adept at playing the buffoon teen having done it before and
shows his abilities as an actor. Smith on the other hand is particularly lame
in his performance. It’s no surprise that his career was extremely limited.
LeBrock does a fine job in only her second film. Her job is to look great which
she does but she handles the comedic actress part required here quite well too.
Standout among all though is Paxton as Chet. Once seen you cannot forget him in
this role.
I doubt that a movie like this could be made today. The PC
Police would have a field day with it, demanding that this, that or the other
was offensive and would have to be eliminated leaving behind barely anything at
all resembling a movie. Like BLAZING SADDLES you can either go along for the
ride and have some fun realizing that it’s just a movie and made for laughs or
you can be a miserable human being and take all the fun out of everything. Keep
in mind this movie was made for teens and it shows. It’s still a fun movie.
Arrow Video outdoes themselves once more with a great
presentation here. The film is being offered on blu-ray with a 4k scan from the
original negative. Included are both the original and an extended version of
the film. The extras are fun as well. They include a new interview with special
effects makeup creator Craig Reardon, a new interview with composer Ira
Newborn, a new interview with supporting actor John Kapelos, a new interview
with casting director Jackie Burch,
“It’s Alive: Resurrecting Weird Science” an archive documentary on the
film with interviews of the cast and crew, theatrical trailers, TV spots, an
image gallery, a reversible sleeve with original and newly commissioned artwork
by Tracie Ching and with the first pressing only an illustrated collector’s
booklet featuring new writing on the film by Alexandra Heller-Nicholas and
Amada Reyes.
Fans of the film who think they’ve had the best version on
disc before will find that this one is far superior. If you are one of those
fans make a point of replacing that old copy with this new one from Arrow. You
won’t regret it.
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