The Resurrection of Zachary Wheeler

A senator (Dillman) is near-fatally injured in a car wreck witnessed only by intrepid reporter (Nielsen) whose eyewitness account is gagged for national security purposes. Discontent with the ruse, Nielsen investigates and ends up discovering an elaborate human organ harvesting clinic that potentially holds the key to mankind's survival - but only a select few. Science Fiction/pseudo political thriller chooses to focus on the moral dilemmas of its cause, resorting to limp-wristed protection of its diabolical secrets, when opposition threaten to reveal the project's secrets.

Small in scale, and more akin to the production values of a telemovie than a fully fledged feature film, there are however some assets in the cast and one or two plot twists to which you can look forward. Dillman as the title character spends most of his time comatose and then in a wheelchair debating scientific heresy, while Dickinson looks more like a space cadet than the dedicated doctor, who believes her work is of national significance. Nielsen is essentially the central character, a tenacious reporter not content to digest the force-fed facts without due interrogation. He spends most of the film, piecing together evidence that eventually leads him to the mysterious clinic in New Mexico. Noted stage actor Daly is also quite effective as the clinic's principal surgeon; his attempt to rationalise the existence of the coneheaded clones (called Somas) lies more in the field of fantasy than it does in any serious debate on human cloning.

Well scripted, with okay special effects, concerned mostly of pale-faced make-up on stupefied faces - the Dillman zoo experiment is unintentionally funny, his 'full retard' no doubt perfected by hours of rehearsals and takes. Dressed in monk-like garb with coneheaded frontal lobe projection, the Somas are also quite inspired imagery; more emphasis on their existence might have balanced the argument better, but their brief inclusion is still an alarming visual demonstration of the human harvesting process depicted in the film. Despite its 100 minutes, there's ample action, characterisation and plot development; had the climax resolved more satisfactorily, the film might have become a minor cult favourite, ahead of its time in terms of content. As it is, a worthy sci-fi companion, and perhaps no longer such a distant prospect.

Another politically loaded sci-fi fable from the pen of the writer of 'The Creation of the Humanoids', much of it shot in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Fairly typical of the sort of thing Leslie Nielsen was making in his days as a straight actor, this has a very similar plot 'Seconds' and 'Never Let Me Go', but with more emphasis on action (and a generally rather whimsical score by Marlin Skiles). As it unfolds it splits into two separate narratives involving Nielsen on one hand and Dillman on the other.

But the mood darkens considerably (and the plot turns far more ghoulish) as the political implications of creating longevity for a select and amoral few (here decided by a cabal called the Committee of Nine) are explored. And when the two strands finally come together there's a zinger of a punchline.

Angie Dickinson (now ninety) also has a raunchy scene shaving Dillman.

This film did remind me of the kinds of ideas in Crichton's novels - especially his early medical fiction. Who would have guessed that a now-forgotten low-budget B-movie would actually end up more timely almost 40 years after its original release? I don't know of any earlier film treatments of the subject of cloning than this film - I really wonder what audiences thought when this first came out, as the plot line of the film must have seemed really wild back then. I don't particularly care for remakes - especially of good movies like this - but now would be a terrific time for a remake of this story, possibly with a better budget. As it is, the film stretches its budget pretty well, but I would have appreciated greater attention to the scientific aspects of the cloning (possibly with some special effects). Additionally, because all of the real-life politicians seem to be weighing in on the stem cell and medical ethics issues, the political aspects of the story would fit perfectly into a remake, where they could be fleshed out in greater detail. I guess this movie just has me thinking more of what it could have been than what it is. On its own level, it is a surprisingly thoughtful low-budget film that concentrates on ideas, rather than action. For that, it is well worth searching out.

On a final note, it has a ridiculous non-sequitur ending that had me giggling, but the ending seems to fit a cheap movie like this, whose filmmakers certainly couldn't afford a lot of explosions and gunfights .

Hi,

I just read your review of "The Resurrection of Zachary Wheeler" posted 15th of June, 2005 . Wow ! You have no idea how that made me feel. I don't know why I typed that old title into Google, maybe just boredom or some weird ego trip, but I am one of the writers of that screenplay along with my then writing partner Jay Simms . It all started with my reading an article in Esquire magazine regarding the possibility of organ transplants . At that time I was working as a Production Coordinator on the TV series " Big Valley" and I mentioned it to Jay who was one of the writers and before we knew it we came up with the idea for a screenplay. It took about 3 weeks and when we finished it we gave it to Jays' agent who said " It's too far out". That turned out to be the general consensus and both Jay and I went on to different things . Eventually it was bought and produced with a very small budget, very evident in the final version but it did have a "far out" premise. I never wrote another screenplay but went on to a career as a film editor but deep down there lurks a frustrated writer. Who knows, maybe I'll try it again. Glad you liked what you saw and you're right, with a few more bucks it could have been a "killer" !

Regards,

Tom Rolf

Watch this movie, and reflect that 30 years later, we are having a similar ethical debate on stem cell research, and the use of aborted faetuses to cure diseases.

Further reflect on recent cloning advances. What if you could clone a human, with no brain? (It is an unfortunate condition that occurs occationally in humans. The offspring die shortly after birth.) Would it be moral to use their bodies to extend your life?