Firehead

A research scientist (Chris Lemmon) joins a government assassin to track down a Russian cyborg. But is the laser-shooting cyborg the real enemy, or is someone in the government pulling the strings for their own nefarious purposes?

The 80s and 90s were full of cheesy, schlock-filled action movies. Given the cast and the presence of actual production standards, it's shocking to me that Firehead is one of the worst of the bunch. There are a couple of big issues I have with Firehead. First, and most importantly, the plot is a joke. In fact, there really isn't much of a plot - more like a vague story idea attempting to hold various poorly choreographed action set-pieces together. And what little story there is in Firehead is entirely predictable. I promise this isn't a spoiler, but watching the movie, you realize about 0.000253 seconds into the thing that the real bad guy isn't the Russian. Who could it be? Maybe over-acting, what's-he-doing-in-this-piece-of-garbage Christopher Plummer? It doesn't take a genius to figure it out.

My second big issue with Firehead is the acting. More specifically, my problem is with Chris Lemmon. When he's not trying to channel his father, he has one mode of acting - comedic surprise to every situation. Regardless of how mundane, ordinary, or predictable the situation, Lemmon's attempted comedic overreaction gets old real quick. It's a one note performance.

Speaking of acting, why oh why is Martin Landau in this turkey? Was he that hard up or did he just owe someone a favor? Even with his very limited screen time, he easily outshines the rest of the cast.

One last thing, previously, I mentioned poorly choreographed set-pieces. Let me cite just one example of what I"m talking about. Two bad guys and two good guys are firing guns at each other. All are in a narrow hallway, separated by no more than 10 feet. Does anyone get hit? Of course not. After about three or four of these scenes, it got to be quite funny. Not funny enough to save the movie or anything, but it does create one of the few "memorable" moments in what is otherwise a completely forgettable experience.

2/10

I bought this movie for the cover. Unfortunately, I had to take the whole thing. I used to think you could never go wrong buying movies sporting a flaming hammer and sickle, but apparently my logic is flawed. It opens as our hero, an obvious reject for the HeMan live action movie, helps a russian woman and her children evade certain death by moving them five feet to the left. The movie after this point kind of degenerates. For some reason, the military hire a chemist to track down this ne'er do well, who is in America blowing stuff up with his eyes which, coincedentally, shoot lightning bolts. Apparently, he only does this on days that are prime numbers and this ability doesn't work on shoddily assembled chain link fences. Not that he was in any real danger, the only person in this movie who could shoot straight was me, and I'll miss that TV. The most interesting part of this movie was the 15 minutes after the credits, where I stared at a blank screen expecting an apology. If you decide to watch this movie, The Bull recommends doing it drunk, preferably on vodka, and far enough over the hill you won't remember it.

A super soldier with telekinetic abilities that at the beginning looks sort of silly. However, great acting by Christopher Plummer and Chris Lemmon and other support cast makes this a fun filled light-hearted comedy action flic. Make sure you don't take this movie too seriously else as it is not particularly realistic or believable, but it is definitely entertaining. Also, get the original version and not the 'mocking Trax' version. Great chemistry between telekinetic soldier and the character of Chris Lemmon while Gretchen Becker is also not only good as eye candy but acts well.

My review was written in January 1991 after watching the movie on Pyramid video cassette.

"Firehead" is an unusual cold war thriller with sci-fi overtones. Mobile, Alabama-lensed indie opened recently in southern territories with springtime video release to come.

Chris Lemmon, again mirroring dad Jack's mannerisms and delivery, is cast as a government science whiz whose latest experiment is out of control. He has converted Soviet defector Brett Porter into a sort of a superman with telekinetic powers who shoots deadly laser beams from his eyes (hence his nickname, "Firehead"). Porter is busily destroying American factories recently awarded defense contracts.

Lemmon is assigned by his slimy bureaucrat boss (Christopher Plummer) to stop the freak, and beautiful blonde Gretchen Becker is made his teammate. Not surprisingly, Porter teams up with Lemmon to go after the real bad guys.

Screenplay by Jeff Mandel and helmer Peter Yual does a good job of maintaining interest while convincingly extrapolating the reaction of hardliners to the current spirit of glasnost. A subplot involving biological warfare plans is timely but not pursued in depth.

A prolog set in Estonia but filmed in Mobile is unconvincing, but pic otherwise is technically up to par. Becker is a personable leading lady and even gets to sing the rather silly title song over the end credits.

As a retired admiral who helps Lemmon, Martin Landau proves that recent upscale stints with Francis Coppola and Woody Allendo not preclude a sincere B-movie performance.

In FIREHEAD, we are whisked away to Estonia, looking more like Pittsburg, where soldiers are in pursuit of a cyborg named Ivan (Brett Porter) who shoots blue lasers out of his eyeballs. Ivan winds up in the US, where he goes berserk and blows up factories.

Meanwhile, a man named Hart (Chris Lemmon) and a woman named Meila (Gretchen Becker) are on Ivan's trail.

Simultaneously, we discover that the head of a secret organization, named Vaughn (Christopher Plummer) has been profiting from Ivan's destructive behavior, but now wants him terminated.

Not-too surprisingly, Hart teams up with Ivan for the obligatory human / android bromance. Gunfire and explosions soon follow.

This is one wretchedly boring movie! Everything about it is cheap, dull, and absurd! Now, ordinarily, this might be a good thing. In other hands, say, David A. Prior's, this could have been an idiot masterpiece! Instead, it's a colonoscopy for the brain, minus anesthetic!

EXTRA POINTS FOR: The way the characters pose like they're getting their pictures taken, whenever they stop to fire their weapons!...