Circuitry Man Explained

Circuitry Man
Director:Steven Lovy
Producer:
  • Steven Reich
  • John Schouweiler
Starring:
Cinematography:Jamie Thompson
Music:Deborah Holland
Editing:
  • Gregory Neri
  • Jonas Thaler
Studio:
Distributor:Skouras Pictures
Released: (Seattle International Film Festival)
October 31, 1990
Runtime:93 minutes
Country:United States
Language:English

Circuitry Man is a 1990 American post apocalyptic science fiction film directed by Steven Lovy and starring Jim Metzler, Dana Wheeler-Nicholson and Vernon Wells. It was followed by a sequel, , in 1994.

Synopsis

In post-apocalyptic 2020, pollution has killed off the natural world and the population is forced to live underground. A woman attempts to smuggle a suitcase of contraband drug/chips from Los Angeles to the underground remnants of New York City, while eluding both police and gangsters. Along the way, she is aided by a romantic bio-mechanical pony-tailed android and pursued by Plughead, a villain with the ability to tap into people's minds.

Cast

Production

Circuitry Man was adapted from a student film Steven Lovy made while attending UCLA. Shooting began in July 1989 and took place in Los Angeles and Antelope Valley, California.[1]

Reception

Kevin Thomas of the Los Angeles Times called it "nothing if not derivative" but "consistently distinctive and funny".[2] In The Psychotronic Video Guide, Michael Weldon described it as "a clever, sometimes funny, well-made science fiction adventure" that is more fun than Hardware or Total Recall, two science fiction films that were also released in 1990.[3] Tech Noir author Paul Meehan, discussing film noir in science fiction, wrote that the film attempts to overcome its low budget with gratuitous violence but called Wells "memorably nasty".[4]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Circuitry Man (1990). AFI Catalog of Feature Films. 2017-12-09.
  2. News: MOVIE REVIEW : Pollution Apocalypse in 'Circuitry Man'. Thomas. Kevin. Los Angeles Times. 1990-10-31. 2017-12-09.
  3. Book: Weldon, Michael. The Psychotronic Video Guide To Film. Macmillan Publishers. 1996. 9780312131494. 108.
  4. Book: Meehan, Paul. Tech-Noir: The Fusion of Science Fiction and Film Noir. McFarland & Company. 2017. 9781476609737. 197.