Masterminds

I was one of the few who saw this movie in the theater back in '97. It really made me a fan of Vincent Kartheiser.

This movie is largely recommended for fans of either Kartheiser or Patrick Stewart, and it's surprising that there hasn't been a DVD release (that I've found). Both actors have a huge amount of screen time, and the movie itself looks great visually.

Stewart really camps it up, and appears to have had fun playing "Rafe" as an over-the-top villain. Sometimes the performance goes a little too over, though. Kartheiser did the best he could with the stereotyped "bad boy" image. I thought at first he seemed a little old for the role, but as the movie progressed I couldn't see anyone else in the part.

The movie has been compared to "Toy Soldiers", and also dubbed "Die Hard, Jr." While these elements do seem strong in the movie (plus the need for things to go KABOOM!), it doesn't seem to ruin the fun. Just check reality at the door and not worry about the details.

Could it have been better? Yes. Is it unwatchable? No. Will the adults like it? Maybe (fans of anyone in it especially).

Did I mention I really want this on DVD? Please!

'No good kid' Ozzie takes his young stepsister to school, and winds up in a hostage of the school by head of security Rafe Bentley (Patrick Stewart from Startrek / X-men). As Ozzie says himself: We got a die hard situation here people!

Thank goodness Ozzie is some sort of (computer)whizkid (apparently learned it from his dad) and sabotages the bad guys in many ways. Now, this computer thing is going way out of hand, with him infiltrating in the Pentagon (or something) in the beginning of the movie and his dad touching 2 keys and immediately infiltrates in the bad guys files... You also see the obligatory flickering 'NO ACCESS' and stuff like that... but who cares!

Near the end the movie loses it's touch a bit with a chase in the sewers (or something) and Patrick Stewart claiming to be a Manchester United fan... one of the worst scenes in movie history, I must admit.

But for 'one of the worst movies ever' (as it's sometimes called), I thought the movie was highly enjoyable. Flawed yes, far-fetched sure, but still...

Final score: 5/10.

Apart from laughing my bollocks off at the computer software and the way nobody gets hurt even from stepping on mines, I fastforwarded my way through this movie because nothing in it was even remotely interesting, apart from the odd question marks, such as "why are there rocketlauncher armed dunebuggys in the sewers" and "how did the principal and the kids actually get away" and the ever occurring, my personal favourite, "how come the bad guys always are listening for obscure radio transmissions when they don't even need a radio to begin with". More questionmarks: Why did the sprinkler system only start in the room where they had the computers, and why did they have the valve for it in the sewers? How come there are video outlets for porno channels in the cellar of the school? (Pure video outlets, not RF outlets)

One of the things I liked about MASTERMINDS, and parents will probably like this too, is that there is lots of shooting and explosions and all kinds of action. But the body count continuously remains at zero! Like someone said before, this is DIE HARD for kids. (It follows almost the exact plotline)

Overall, great movie, especially for kids 10-15.

4/5

I first saw this movie on cable, and loved it. After that i saw it a few more times, and each time noticed a little someting more new. Adults (over 25) may think of this as a foolish or dull movie, but it was not targeted towards them. It was targeted towards the high schooler who wishes something like this could happen so that he could feel better about himself. Each individual part is very well acted, and adjusted to work with the acting styles of the other actors. The harmony among the actors is impresive to say the least. V. Kartheizer is an actor that very few have heard of, but the work he does is outstanding. If you are looking for a movie to see on a friday night, this is it.