Radioactive Dreams / Wired to Kill (1985 / 1986)
2-Disc DVD Set
DIRECTOR: Radioactive Dreams: Albert Pyun (Sword and the Sorcerer, Cyborg) / Wired to Kill: Francis Schaeffer (Headhunter)
STARS: Radioactive Dreams: John Stockwell (Christine, My Science Project), Michael Dudikoff (American Ninja), Lisa Blount (Dead & Buried), George Kennedy (Hotwire, Mean Dog Blues), Don Murray, Reni Santoni / Wired to Kill: Emily Longstreth (Slow Burn), Devin Hoelscher, Merritt Butrick (Star Trek III), Frank Collison, Tiny Lister
SYNOPSIS: Two rare 80's Sci-Fi action films
Radioactive Dreams: This one may not win any awards but it's a personal favorite from the early years of home video. At it's core it has a great concept which would be great to see in big budget remake. It starts off with two 10-year old kids thrown in a shelter after a nuclear bomb is dropped. Cut to 15 or so years later and our two heroes stumble into the sunlight for the first time in their lives. The catch is they raised themselves on old books, movies and music from the shelter. They dress and talk like hard-boiled 1950's gangsters from an old Bogart movie. They even named themselves Phillip Chandler and Marlowe Hammer! Needless to say they are not prepared for the nuclear wasteland, Road Warrior-style villains, cannibals, greasers(!) and general craziness of the new world. This one is basically a comedy (you've never seen Dudikoff act so silly) with some action thrown in. Ultimately the costumes, and set design remind me of 80's music videos from Billy Idol, Loverboy and Tom Petty that took their cue from The Road Warrior as well. There's a ton of songs and even and extended music segment that plays like an MTV video. Lisa Blount is great, but underused, as a dame that Dudikoff falls for. There's also a mutant rat about the size of a VW!
Wired to Kill: The VHS cover of this is one of my favorites even though it might be a little deceiving. You might think this is a Road Warrior style rip-off but it really isn't. This is more of a revenge film. This one is set just a little bit in the future after a plague wipes out a good chunk of the populace. Government, hospitals and police still operate. But the criminals are more outrageous and dangerous. Sexy 80's actress Emily Longstreth (what happened to her?) stars as a young girl crashing at her friend Steve's house after some troubles at home. Unfortunately, it's the same night that a roving gang of motorcycle / truck driving, drug-addicted, psychos (including an insane "Tiny" Lister) decide to do a home invasion. They beat the family bloody and break Steve's legs for good measure. He gets sent home from the hospital in a wheelchair. When the gang thinks his grandmother is going to identify them - they run her over with motorcycles. This is where the plot kicks in as it turns out Steve is a robot and computer nerd who uses his knowledge (and Emily's help) to dispatch the ragtag gang one by one. They use his robot "Winston" which has a camera mounted on it. They watch on a monitor as Winston helps them spy on the gang and get their revenge. One bad guy snorts a bag full of battery acid he though was coke, another one gets a remote controlled knife stuck through his motorcycle seat into his crotch, a booby-trapped walkman kills another, etc.
Fullscreen / Color (both films)
Region Free / Code Free DVD-R
2-Disc DVD Set
DIRECTOR: Radioactive Dreams: Albert Pyun (Sword and the Sorcerer, Cyborg) / Wired to Kill: Francis Schaeffer (Headhunter)
STARS: Radioactive Dreams: John Stockwell (Christine, My Science Project), Michael Dudikoff (American Ninja), Lisa Blount (Dead & Buried), George Kennedy (Hotwire, Mean Dog Blues), Don Murray, Reni Santoni / Wired to Kill: Emily Longstreth (Slow Burn), Devin Hoelscher, Merritt Butrick (Star Trek III), Frank Collison, Tiny Lister
SYNOPSIS: Two rare 80's Sci-Fi action films
Radioactive Dreams: This one may not win any awards but it's a personal favorite from the early years of home video. At it's core it has a great concept which would be great to see in big budget remake. It starts off with two 10-year old kids thrown in a shelter after a nuclear bomb is dropped. Cut to 15 or so years later and our two heroes stumble into the sunlight for the first time in their lives. The catch is they raised themselves on old books, movies and music from the shelter. They dress and talk like hard-boiled 1950's gangsters from an old Bogart movie. They even named themselves Phillip Chandler and Marlowe Hammer! Needless to say they are not prepared for the nuclear wasteland, Road Warrior-style villains, cannibals, greasers(!) and general craziness of the new world. This one is basically a comedy (you've never seen Dudikoff act so silly) with some action thrown in. Ultimately the costumes, and set design remind me of 80's music videos from Billy Idol, Loverboy and Tom Petty that took their cue from The Road Warrior as well. There's a ton of songs and even and extended music segment that plays like an MTV video. Lisa Blount is great, but underused, as a dame that Dudikoff falls for. There's also a mutant rat about the size of a VW!
Wired to Kill: The VHS cover of this is one of my favorites even though it might be a little deceiving. You might think this is a Road Warrior style rip-off but it really isn't. This is more of a revenge film. This one is set just a little bit in the future after a plague wipes out a good chunk of the populace. Government, hospitals and police still operate. But the criminals are more outrageous and dangerous. Sexy 80's actress Emily Longstreth (what happened to her?) stars as a young girl crashing at her friend Steve's house after some troubles at home. Unfortunately, it's the same night that a roving gang of motorcycle / truck driving, drug-addicted, psychos (including an insane "Tiny" Lister) decide to do a home invasion. They beat the family bloody and break Steve's legs for good measure. He gets sent home from the hospital in a wheelchair. When the gang thinks his grandmother is going to identify them - they run her over with motorcycles. This is where the plot kicks in as it turns out Steve is a robot and computer nerd who uses his knowledge (and Emily's help) to dispatch the ragtag gang one by one. They use his robot "Winston" which has a camera mounted on it. They watch on a monitor as Winston helps them spy on the gang and get their revenge. One bad guy snorts a bag full of battery acid he though was coke, another one gets a remote controlled knife stuck through his motorcycle seat into his crotch, a booby-trapped walkman kills another, etc.
Fullscreen / Color (both films)
Region Free / Code Free DVD-R
2-Disc DVD Set
DIRECTOR: Radioactive Dreams: Albert Pyun (Sword and the Sorcerer, Cyborg) / Wired to Kill: Francis Schaeffer (Headhunter)
STARS: Radioactive Dreams: John Stockwell (Christine, My Science Project), Michael Dudikoff (American Ninja), Lisa Blount (Dead & Buried), George Kennedy (Hotwire, Mean Dog Blues), Don Murray, Reni Santoni / Wired to Kill: Emily Longstreth (Slow Burn), Devin Hoelscher, Merritt Butrick (Star Trek III), Frank Collison, Tiny Lister
SYNOPSIS: Two rare 80's Sci-Fi action films
Radioactive Dreams: This one may not win any awards but it's a personal favorite from the early years of home video. At it's core it has a great concept which would be great to see in big budget remake. It starts off with two 10-year old kids thrown in a shelter after a nuclear bomb is dropped. Cut to 15 or so years later and our two heroes stumble into the sunlight for the first time in their lives. The catch is they raised themselves on old books, movies and music from the shelter. They dress and talk like hard-boiled 1950's gangsters from an old Bogart movie. They even named themselves Phillip Chandler and Marlowe Hammer! Needless to say they are not prepared for the nuclear wasteland, Road Warrior-style villains, cannibals, greasers(!) and general craziness of the new world. This one is basically a comedy (you've never seen Dudikoff act so silly) with some action thrown in. Ultimately the costumes, and set design remind me of 80's music videos from Billy Idol, Loverboy and Tom Petty that took their cue from The Road Warrior as well. There's a ton of songs and even and extended music segment that plays like an MTV video. Lisa Blount is great, but underused, as a dame that Dudikoff falls for. There's also a mutant rat about the size of a VW!
Wired to Kill: The VHS cover of this is one of my favorites even though it might be a little deceiving. You might think this is a Road Warrior style rip-off but it really isn't. This is more of a revenge film. This one is set just a little bit in the future after a plague wipes out a good chunk of the populace. Government, hospitals and police still operate. But the criminals are more outrageous and dangerous. Sexy 80's actress Emily Longstreth (what happened to her?) stars as a young girl crashing at her friend Steve's house after some troubles at home. Unfortunately, it's the same night that a roving gang of motorcycle / truck driving, drug-addicted, psychos (including an insane "Tiny" Lister) decide to do a home invasion. They beat the family bloody and break Steve's legs for good measure. He gets sent home from the hospital in a wheelchair. When the gang thinks his grandmother is going to identify them - they run her over with motorcycles. This is where the plot kicks in as it turns out Steve is a robot and computer nerd who uses his knowledge (and Emily's help) to dispatch the ragtag gang one by one. They use his robot "Winston" which has a camera mounted on it. They watch on a monitor as Winston helps them spy on the gang and get their revenge. One bad guy snorts a bag full of battery acid he though was coke, another one gets a remote controlled knife stuck through his motorcycle seat into his crotch, a booby-trapped walkman kills another, etc.
Fullscreen / Color (both films)
Region Free / Code Free DVD-R