Engrenage fatal

"Wisdom" is one of those strange films that is never sure what it wants to be. Young Emilio Estevez comes to the realization that he will never be a success so he decides to become a criminal, a criminal for the people. He aids farmers by destroying records in small-town banks, becoming a sort of Robin Hood figure. His girlfriend Demi Moore is also along for the ride. Obsessed detective William Allen Young will stop at nothing to bring the youths to justice, while the general public is indifferent until Moore has to shoot a police officer. Now the stakes get higher and everything will soon come to a head. Estevez shows his lack of writing and directing experience here. He has some good ideas, but never does execute them in effective ways. The fact that he is not much of an actor does not help either. Everyone else struggles with the direction and screenplay as well. All in all "Wisdom" is not terrible, but its ending basically takes away from the few good things about the film's first 105-minutes. 2 stars out of 5.

I had the pleasure of being Demi Moore's stand-in and photo double for this film, after auditioning against 325 other young actresses for the "role." Normally, you don't have to audition for that crew job, but since this film was Emilio's directorial debut, he wanted to be able to look through the camera lens to "see" what he and Demi would (more or less) look like. The job of the photo double and stand-in is to do all of the takes where you can't really see the stars' faces (drivebys, long distance shots, etc. - yes, I was the one he had slung over his shoulder running in the school parking lot after Karen was shot), as well as to sit in for lighting and sound checks. It was, to put it the most succinctly, like running away and joining the circus!

Notwithstanding some of the legitimate criticisms of the film in other reviews, from a personal standpoint I have to say that Emilio was a total gentleman, and was especially respectful to all of the crew. He thanked the actors after every take and at the end of the day, and he never went into his trailer for meals - he always sat with the crew. The very first day on set, he asked if I had my SAG card, and when I told him I only had my AFTRA card, he wrote in a line for me so that I was eligible to join SAG (they ended up using the shot in the trailer). Emilio didn't have to do that, but it was the kind of thoughtful gesture that he showed others on a regular basis.

Emilio was also well aware of the trust placed in him, being such a young man with a considerable film budget, and he was surrounded by many Hollywood veterans who were equally patient and understanding (Robert Wise, Bernie Williams, to name a few).

While this may not be a true "review" of the film, I thought those of you who had written here might enjoy knowing some of the "behind the scenes" thoughts from someone who was there for the whole shoot. Personally, I enjoyed every moment of the experience, I learned a lot, and I will always be grateful to Emilio for his generosity of spirit and kindness. He was a class act, every step of the way.

Wisdom (1986) was a film that was written, directed, produced and starred Emilio Estevez. This movie was produced during the height of Emilio's career. He was also one of the youngest actors tin Hollywood to ever take on such as task. The end results are that of a novice film makers. In the end he bitten off more than he could chew.

The film is about a young wash out who can't do anything right. So he decides to become a sort of a modern day Robin Hood with his girlfriend/co-conspirator Demi Moore by his side. The young lovers hit the road and decide to make history.

Overall, it's an uneven production. The actors seemed to be unmotivated and the written is pretty run-of-the-mill. A good concept that's executed by mediocre hands. Estevez should have started out small before taking on such a big project. One the other hand I have to give him a big hand for pulling this one off.

Recommended for Emilio Estevez fans.

Factoids: Part of the movie was filmed in my hometown of Sacramento. I remembered all of the hub bub it created ten years ago. Charlie Sheen has a cameo as his "former" supervisor.

why is this movie not on DVD?

and why when i ask if they've seen it do people look at me like i've got three heads?

and why have most of the IMDb comments ripped into it? its great!!OK its no empire strikes back or shawshank redemption but it does the job.good story,good soundtrack,demi moore,what else do you want? i have no doubt that some pretentious English lit grad budding movie reviewer is gonna shoot me down but it ticks all my boxes,if you've not seen it check it out, good old 80's semi post brat pack action pack fun!! that is of course my opinion, you are entitled to yours also.

I've watched Wisdom several times, and still enjoy it every once in a while. I've always been attracted to films with an original idea in them, and this is that kind of flick.

I like Emilio Estevez anyway, and to see him get his first chance to direct was cool. Demi Moore turns in an enjoyable, believable performance too, as did Tom Skerritt and Veronica Cartwright.

The particulars of Wisdom's methods might be a bit muddy, and the end not entirely satisfying to some, but this film is waaay more watchable than what's been out at the theaters lately. Can Hollywood really be SO out of good, original ideas?