O Passageiro do Futuro

I found the director's cut better than the theatrical version. The story is interesting with a scientist who experiments on a disabled gardener who transforms into something else. I think it's interesting on the Virtual Space Industries and what goals are they trying to do. The director's cut have more build-up towards the characters and their problems throughout. It's also builds the character Jobe on how he's a simple guy but becomes smarter and more dangerous later in the movie. We also see the new abilities he gains when he is doing the experiments and uses that for his advantage. In the director's cut, we see how the industry isn't a good company and shows how their work can cause something to go very wrong. Also, later in the movie, the climax gets pretty crazy with Jobe using his new abilities to attack either his enemies or people get in his way. That part is pretty fun to see how bizarre this movie gets.

The theatrical version lacks any build-up towards the characters, and it feels like it happened pretty quickly.

I saw this shortly after its theatrical release and for years that was the only version of this story that I knew. It was campy, felt King-ish (despite King removing his name from the production) and had some interesting story elements. Then and now I can't escape the fact that the plot seems lifted directly from Flowers for Algernon set in what was at the time cutting edge CGI. The only thing missing from the "stolen" plot is the human science experiment (Jobe) losing his recently gained super-intelligence. In this flick, he becomes evil and unpredictable - but predictably so.

After a nostalgia viewing of the Director's Cut I can say that the restored footage makes a big difference in fleshing out the story. The original theatrical cut was a complete shitshow compared to the extended version. Angelo's girlfriend in particular became a whole character and some formerly missing scenes really helped the movie's overall cohesion. However, none of the restored scenes take away from some truly trite plot elements and wooden acting, particularly in nearly every role associated with "The Shop." Brosnan is decent, perhaps a bit overdoing the petulant scientist genius but Fahey's portrayal of Jobe is still very good. The transformation of his character from dolt to cyber god always struck me as well done and it holds up. Still unexplained in any adequate detail is the relationship with Dr. Angelo's neighbors.

The CGI, as mentioned in other reviews, is laughable in the modern day. Setting that aside, the themes explored in the movie still seem relevant and frankly I'd love an updated telling that incorporates contemporary sensibilities and more cohesive storytelling. Worth a watch - if you temper your expectations. After all, this was a 90s take on technology's implications, an idea that could have been great but suffered too much from corporate editing and profit goals in its native time.

The first half of this science fiction horror tale (based on a short story from Stephen King's Night Shift Collection) is thought provoking and gripping, but the latter half decides to dive deep into an eccentric and confusing mix of special effects and pseudo-scientific mayhem. Dr. Angelo (Pierce Brosnan) is a brilliant but obsessed computer science specialist that is engaged in secret government experiments to create super-intelligent soldiers out of chimpanzees by using virtual reality simulations to stimulate the brain. When the experiment goes haywire, and a rogue chimp gets away, Angelo believes his destiny is to better mankind by using a human subject for his projects for the purpose of curing brain diseases and not warfare. His subject is Jobe, (played perfectly by Jeff Fahey) the half-wit lawnmower man that lives in the shed of a church next door. As Dr. Angelo's experiments progress, Jobe becomes an intelligent super-human genius whose powers eventually spiral out of control.

This film is triumphant on many various levels. Films dealing with a gradual transformation/disintegration of a central character are very intriguing to watch, and this is very much "Cronenbergian" in its portrayal of Jobe and how he develops into a telekinetic mad genius from a complete idiot and ultimately becomes a tragically vengeful and emotionless entity. The themes dealing with the unlocking of the human primordial intellect and controlling its power by impatient force and not wisdom work wonderfully. The performances are superb as well as the animation sequences, and director Brett Leonard (Virtuosity) is good at integrating them into a live action film. There are many sinister government character types that add suspense to the plot, and Jenny Wright is great as the sexy seductress neighbor who has her way with Jobe. The only time this fails is when Jobe gets revenge on the government goons and the characters that antagonized him by merging his powers with the world of virtual reality resulting in some far out murder sequences that just don't seem to make any sense. Jobe eventually infuses himself with the computer mainframe, and the climax becomes a bit too bizarre, even for sci-fi computer geek fans. Nonetheless, this is a well-made, above-average assault on the senses. If you can find the VHS unrated director's cut, it is much better than the DVD release which is cut by almost twenty minutes, losing most of its character development and style. This is highly recommended for fans of mind-bending sci-fi/horror.

Stories about a simple person getting turned into something more seem pretty common in movies, but none are like "The Lawnmower Man". Portraying scientist Pierce Brosnan turning retarded Jeff Fahey into a super-genius (with unintended consequences), this is one movie destined to blow your mind. The visual effects were beyond impressive even for 1992, but they never dominate the movie. We might say that the movie deals with the dangers of people relying too much on technology, and also the dangers of militarism, but even aside from that, this is a movie worth seeing. Check it out.

Oh, and I think that we can all agree that the sequel needs to be avoided at all costs.

Brilliant scientist Dr. Lawrence Angelo (Pierce Brosnan) uses simple-minded gardener Jobe (Jeff Fahey) as a guinea pig in his virtual reality experiments, using mind altering drugs and immersive computer technology to enhance his subject's intelligence and awaken parts of the brain that have lain dormant for centuries. As Jobe becomes smarter and smarter, the evil corporation behind Angelo's funding pull a switcheroo on the drugs, making the gardener more aggressive. Eventually, Jobe attempts to leave the physical realm to inhabit the worldwide computer network, where he would be a technological god.

So dissimilar is this film to Stephen King's original short story, that the author successfully sued the company that made it. Despite this, The Lawnmower Man still feels very much like a King product, especially with its dysfunctional characters, small-town setting, and occasional religious overtones. Since I deem anything King-related to be worth a watch, no matter how slight the connection, I had a reasonably good time with the film, although there no denying that its once cutting-edge visuals now look horribly dated, and render the film less effective overall (it's hard to be impressed by graphics that most of today's kids could do better on their laptop).

Watch to see a cyberchimp firing a pistol, Fahey transforming from a simpleton to super buff stud-muffin, an abusive father being chased by a big red lawnmower, Jenny Wright as a rich floozy, and a pre-Bond Brosnan with floppy hair pulling Semtex out of thin air. Don't watch expecting to be wowed by incredible special effects (the burning of a sadistic priest ranks amongst the worst CGI that I have ever seen).