Mulher Nota 1000

Weird Science was a lot of fun, a perfect light and frothy 1980s movie.

Although, having said that it is quietly subversive and more than a little risqué, it is unlike the other Directorial works of John Hughes.

In a nutshell, whilst two high-school nerds are watching a colourised version of Frankenstein, they hit upon the idea of using a computer program to literally create the perfect woman, who promptly turns their lives upside-down.

In a scene that echoed the earlier WarGames and perhaps foreshadowed AI our nerds tap into non-specific massive computing power via a dial-up modem!?

In any case, that perfect woman turns out to be Kelly LeBrock at the absolute peak of her powers, and not only does she do a bang-up job as Lisa she also seems to be having an absolute ball.

Aside from the year before's The Woman in Red the rest of Kelly's career was rather a non-event, which on this showing seems a shame.

The film also contains very early appearances for Bill Paxton and a pre-Junior Robert Downey.

We also have Vernon Wells relatively fresh from his rather similar role in Mad Max II, who then went on to appear in the following years Commando up against Arnie.

Last of note is Michael Berryman, best known for playing Pluto in the iconic The Hills Have Eyes.

These latter two actors have gone on to have prolific careers racking up more than 100 movie appearances each.

Of the two lead actors, only Anthony Michael Hall's's career amounted to much, his co-star Ilan Mitchell-Smith went on to do very little else.

I mention all this to illustrate just how varied and fickle this business we call show can be.

As Lisa's classic first line goes, and these are words to live by: "so, what would you little maniacs like to do first"?

Weird Science is the best 80's comedy that was ever made. I'm saying it. Ghostbusters, Summer Rental, The Great Outdoors, Strange Brew, Gung Ho, Mr. Mom, all of these movies have their place, but none of them can match Weird Science for laughs or pure....eightiesness. Yes eightiesness is a quality. It's a corny, dated quality but one that is tangible and valued by my fellow eighties loving brethren to this day. Come back with me if you will to a time when Anthony Michael Hall was still fielding calls and Kelly LeBrock was French for sexy.

Weird Science has everything that an eighties comedy needs: A least one hot girl, a few actors who are no longer working or who do anything that will come along, plenty of dashing eighties threads, a corny as hell eighties soundtrack,(and Oingo Boingo is as corny and eighties as they get), and plenty of cheap funny jokes.

Undoubtedly the best thing about Weird Science is Bill Paxton, who plays Wyatt's older brother Chet. Chet is the worst big brother ever to grace a movie screen and is a role model for all big brothers everywhere, me included. Chet delights in extorting money and valuables from Wyatt in exchange for his silence about Wyatt's activities. The best part in the movie is when Chet gets turned into the toad thing or whatever it is. Man I love that part.

The rest of the cast does a good job of being their stock characters. Kelly LeBrock does a good job of being hot. Robert Downey Jr. shows none of the signs of future drug addiction. The film is unremarkable in the fact that it isn't anything groundbreaking or special. It's just a funny movie. And an eighties classic.

Bottom Line: If you grew up in the eighties and you never saw Weird Science then you must atone for your crimes by going out and buying it right now. Then send me an email telling me how grateful you are that I put you on the path to rightousness and eighties correctness.

During most of the 1980s, I was working in or running movie theatres. I showed this movie and previewed it before it even opened. The one thing which struck me upon first viewing it was that it is essentially a teen-age version of Dr. Seuss's "The Cat in the Hat", right down to the house being magically cleaned up and the last piece of furniture sliding into place just as the parents return home to find everything as they left it. I always wondered if Hughes borrowed the plot on purpose or if he wrote Weird Science without realizing it's commonalities with one of the best loved children's story of all times. Anyone have opinions on that?

Even when John Hughes makes a mediocre film such as "Weird Science," the nature of his intent still shines through, to the point where you can't necessarily fault him for anything except not making a better one. "Weird Science" serves as the ultimate 1980s high school nerd fantasy, one in which babes see social awkwardness as a turn-on and bullies and extortionist older brothers help themselves to large servings of humble pie. The movie truly doesn't need to be anything more, even in spite of the shallowness of its characters and general disregard for logic.

Anthony Michael Hall (in his fourth Hughes film in three years) and Ilan Mitchell-Smith star as two losers who determine that if they can't get girls the "old-fashioned" way that they can use their computer smarts to play Frankenstein and create the ideal woman. After some illegal hacking they pack her with a high IQ (and an appropriate breast size) then hook a doll up to a machine. One crazy storm inside their house later and suddenly there's Lisa (Kelly LeBrock), who's every bit as stunning with a type A personality as a nerd could possibly imagine or desire.

The story then goes the unexpected route. Lisa, equipped with mad street smarts and magic powers, literally takes over the driver's seat and the young Gary and Wyatt for a wild ride. After helping them loosen up a bit, she determines they need a few tests to find the courage they need to stand up to bullies and go after the girl.

Hughes determines that Lisa needs no rhyme or reason other than causing an appropriate amount of mischief so the boys can learn a valuable thing or two. She's the fairy godmother of this fantasy; it's one thing to stand up to your parents, for example, and tell them you're going to a party, and it's another to have a hot model do it for you (and cause your father to forget who you are).

Hughes basically sticks it to everyone who made his life crappy during his teens, though to be fair, he recognizes the nerd's shortcomings and doesn't paint them as heroes. Hughes has always played things close to the chest, filming most of his movies in the Chicago suburbs where he grew up, even naming the high school in "Weird Science" after the main road where his actual high school was. In this film he has absolute loony fun with his usual tropes, going as far as turning Bill Paxton, who plays Wyatt's militaristic older brother Chet, into a steaming pile of crap that looks like Jabba the Hut.

Fans of the more romantic side of Hughes, who love his candid nature toward portraying high schoolers, might find "Weird Science" to be the wild mutt of the family with its irreverence, and high level of silliness. It could be considered the "cult favorite" of the Hughes collection and that's fine. It definitely caters to those who can relate to being a socially outcast teenage boy and not too many others, but by no means is it a slip-up for the coming-of-age master.

~Steven C

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Does a movie need definitive plot points or events that move the characters forward? No! Weird Science proves that a movie need be nothing more than a series of jokes and visual gags. But Weird Science is also a movie with a message. That message – horny boys and science is a wicked combination. Once you see John Hughes' masterpiece about Frankensex, you will be asking yourself why you ever quoted The Breakfast Club. I sense you doubting that Weird Science effectively taps into the troubled teen psyche with sincerity and insight. Well consider the following. A bodacious babe is front and center with Einstein's intellect and essence of David Lee Roth. A teenage girl is stripped naked by a vacuum cleaner chimney – which is okay cuz it's in the name of science. Bill Paxton is reduced to a Jim Hensonesque troll! A giant phallic missile penetrates a suburban house. Still not convinced? Well, just watch the last half hour. A gang of road ragers crashes the obligatory 80s teen party, do donuts all over the floors and smack random guys in the crotch. Bennet from Commando asks the heroes if they have tossed off to any good books lately and Anthony Michael Hall get's all Dirty Harry on their uninvited post- apocalypse asses. This is a work of unparalleled brilliance and sophistication. It's got Robert Downey Jr. in it too!