D.A.R.Y.L.

DARYL is an enjoyable and thought-provoking kids' film. The central premise is fantastic and high-concept - a rare thing for children's films. Daryl, a military experiment that combines the body and senses of a child with a microchip for a brain, is set free from his creators and settles in mid-America suburbia with a loving adoptive family. The high-jinks that result from an apparently normal ten-year-old who has super-intelligence living in normal surrounds is light, predictable and great fun in patches.

The coup for this movie, however, is the thought-provocation that arises from the evolution of Artificial Intelligence lifeforms to the point when you can no longer tell them apart from humans. This complex issue is dealt with sensitively and thoughtfully in the context of a film not aimed at philosophers or AI scientists (clearly, however, the topic continued to prey on the mind of one of the screenwriters - Ambrose went on to write the excellent novel, Mother of God, which is the "grown-up" heir apparent to DARYL).

The familiar faces of Mary Beth Hurt, Michael McKean and Josef Sommer are ideally cast in the roles of parents and scientist respectively. Equally, the young actors playing Daryl and best-friend Turtle are excellent. The set-pieces fly through with surface levity and implied poignancy in equal measure (how easy it is to dismantle a computer, how difficult when the computer is encased in the flesh and blood of a child). Stagey action scenes and the odd moment of wooden acting from minor support actors are the major blights on the film. Overall, though, it is fun and entertaining.

Although the script of the film is somewhat incomplete and there are some parts of the film that could be improved; I even found the film quite good, with good actors, good special effects and the history of the film is quite original. Of course it's not the best movie ever (it's a long way from being), but I still liked the movie anyway. Highly recommend.

For me, there is simply nothing not to like about this film. It is well scripted, the parts fit together seamlessly and logically, and everything is justly proportioned--that is, everything's in good balance.

And the best part of it is that the acting is never overdone. The main characters are really human and believable, and Barret Oliver's acting is totally natural and spontaneous.

So even though one has to suspend disbelief in the science fiction impossibility of the story (a mere machine could never actually become a human brain), it's really worth doing so, just for the fun of it.

Just accept the basic premise of the plot for the sake of the story, and then relax and enjoy a heart-warming display of what are real human values in a world where these are sometimes sadly lacking, and a thought-provoking consideration of what it means to be 'a real person.'

This is one of my favorites film ever.It's a very nostalgic film for me because I saw it a lot when I was small,even now that I'm 19,I have the video and I never get bored of it. Barret Oliver is just fantastic as Daryl,it's very sad that he stop acting because he was truly talented.Now that films are just about sex,Blood,and more sex it's good to turn to a feel good film like Daryl.I would also like to say that the title song of the film (Somewhere I belong)is very nice and the lyrics go very well with the film. My personal ratings would be 10/10

I cant help feeling that Daryl could well have been a young Jason Bourne. Synopsis: A military experiment lab loses its super enhanced human subject to the outside world who is now suffering from amnesia while the military hunts him down. Sounds familiar? Daryl got there first but thinking about it, there is no reason why the Bourne trilogy cannot be seen as unofficial sequels to Daryl. But enough of that. I remember loving this film when I first saw it 20 years ago so when I watched it again I expected to find it dated and perhaps much of the magic gone. The opposite happened. I was spellbound. It is somewhat dated but that simply adds to the charm as the 80s was the epitome of childhood innocence, wonder and mischief before the internet age came along. What elevates this film above most children's films is the abundance of heart, soul and values of friendship. All the actors play their part with natural aplomb and it has to be said that Barrat who plays the boy robot with human emotions, was played to perfection. Mckean plays the foster father delightfully (although has a frightening resemblance to ex UK Prime Minister Tony Blair). The film is sprinkled with humour throughout particularly with Turtle teaching Daryl how to behave and how to deal with adults! There is no action in the first three quarters of the movie (apart from a brief car chase at the start). Instead we are invested in the characters and relationships so that we truly care about them by the time the thrilling final act kicks into gear. And boy, is the last act so exciting, with perhaps the best car chase I have seen in any children's film and a climactic action finale that I can only conclude Die Hard 2 stole from! Daryl is an under rated 80s classic.