Customer Reviews

Remote Control [VHS]

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Remote Control is a bad, yet enjoyable 80's sci-fi movie-within-a-movie about Aliens trying to take over the world that stars two less talented younger siblings of famous actors of the era--Kevin Dillon and Jennifer Tilly.

Remember back in the 80's, when home video was new, and there was a mom and pop video store on every corner? You know, back before Blockbuster put them all out of business? Meg's younger sister plays the hot chick who comes into the little no name video store to ask for some crappy sci-fi movie from the 50's. Since this was way back when video rental was a new concept, and people were a lot less picky, it's already checked out. The video comes in after the store closes, and the boss tells Matt's little brother that he has to deliver it to her house, despite the fact that she's only asked about it, and not actually paid for it yet.

That's an unusual rental policy, you may say to yourself, my video store never gives me front door service. Well, it's actually a much more common practice than you would think. As a former video store employee, as well as a female sci-fi/horror fan, I happen to know that ALL sci-fi/horror geeks who work in video stores have a policy of giving front door service to anyone who comes in asking for some ultra geeky sci-fi or horror movie, if they also happen to be really hot chicks. This is most common among hot women who ask for Star Wars movies, but is not limited to one series or gender. Also, and this is probably just a coincidence, but those people don't tend to rack up very many late fees, either.

As you can probably guess, the video tape she wants turns out to be a means for the Aliens to control our minds and take over the world. So this movie was obviously the key influence in Hideo Nakata's "Ringu." Now, when I watched this movie, I naturally asked myself, "hmmm...if I were an Alien race planning to mutate and take over the world, would I want to control people's minds via an old crappy sci-fi movie from the 50's that nobody remembers, or would I go for the new summer blockbuster that people keep calling the video store every ten minutes and asking about?" Then, when the movie had ended, I became aware of how mushy my brain felt, and I realized that this wasn't a flaw in the plot at all. It was just that the kind of people who enjoy watching old crappy sci-fi movies like this one are much easier for the aliens to reach that those who want, "Schindler's List." (Although, if they wanted my advice, I would have recommended using "Fools Rush In," starring Matthew Perry, for its insipid brain-numbing, as well as its mass appeal.)

Perhaps that funniest thing about this movie is that it's just as bad as the 50's sci-fi movie it's trying to make fun of. I tried to come up with a good metaphor to explain what it's the cinematic equivalent of, but I couldn't think of anything too profound. So just think of something you've experienced that you wouldn't want to do again, but didn't actually hurt you, and you've got it. It's got that cool 80's New Wave look, but if you're looking for sci-fi of that flavour, you should check out another 80's flick called "Liquid Sky" instead.

I have to admit I am biased - this movie gives me a great big dose of pleasurable 80's nostalgia. Which is ironic, considering the movie itself seems to be nostalgic for the 50's era (or at least an 80's look back at a cheesy sci-fi perception of the 50's). The story itself uses the old "aliens come and try to take over the world" plot, but this time using the semi-new (semi-new at the time, mind you) technology of VHS tapes. The world of the VCR was exploding around the time this movie was made, home-grown video stores (before the era of Blockbuster) were popping up in strip malls all across America. A perfect vehicle for the mostly unseen aliens to spread their brain washing murderous plot. Implant the brain washing scheme into a cheesy 50's movie, package it into VHS tapes...and BOOM, you have yourself a fast moving epidemic. Yeah, the story sounds as cheesy as the 50's sci-fi it's trying to parody, and that's the fun of it. If you relax and immerse yourself in the atmosphere, you soon realize the story isn't half bad either. This is near the top of my list of movies I wish was on DVD.

This movie was so influential on me as a teenager, that to this day I will occasionally yell "No...we win Cosmo!!" for no particular reason. This is absolutely on my top ten 80's movies list, and why nobody knows about it and there's no info on the web about it is beyond me.

I have to admit I am biased - this movie gives me a great big dose of pleasurable 80's nostalgia (the movie was released around 1988, not 1997 as the Amazon info says). Which is ironic, considering the movie itself seems to be nostalgic for the 50's era (or at least an 80's look back at a cheesy sci-fi perception of the 50's). The story itself uses the old "aliens come and try to take over the world" plot, but this time using the semi-new (semi-new at the time, mind you) technology of VHS tapes. The world of the VCR was exploding around the time this movie was made, home-grown video stores (before the era of Blockbuster) were popping up in strip malls all across America. A perfect vehicle for the mostly unseen aliens to spread their brain washing murderous plot. Implant the brain washing scheme into a cheesy 50's movie, package it into VHS tapes...and BOOM, you have yourself a fast moving epidemic. Yeah, the story sounds as cheesy as the 50's sci-fi it's trying to parody, and that's the fun of it. If you relax and immerse yourself in the atmosphere, you soon realize the story isn't half bad either. This is near the top of my list of movies I wish was on DVD.

If "Gone With The Wind" and "Ben Hur" and "Titanic" are the movie equivalents of dove under glass and "Terminator" and "The Matrix" are the same as a roast beef dinner, then "Remote Control" is like a peanut butter sandwich. It is a nice experience but it probably won't change your life. It is a sci-fi look at a world where the enemy is a VHS tape called "Remote Control." In this movie in a movie a guy named Cosmo and a girl named Belinda have to save the world from an interplanetary gang that threatens to take over by using the video rental store as it's base of operations. It also has a hideout in a video reproduction industrial warehouse. Kevin Dillon is attractive as the hero. There is enough action without going overboard. The movie doesn't always look good but that is probably explained in the credits where we see the names of 38 stunt performers and only one make up person. I liked the movie and would show it to friends as a comedy science fiction flick that would pair well in a double feature with "Lust in the Dust" or "Teen-agers From Outer Space." Tom Willett