Videodrome Review

Disclaimer: Contains spoilers!

Plot Summary: The owner of a cable station discovers a bizarre, pirate broadcast of real life torture and murder as next level zany antics ensue.

Review: Well, potheads, this one's for you. There are few films as imaginatively strange as "Videodrome." Honestly, it's hard to even think of what to say without going into endless, nonsensical tangents. Although the medium of cassette has come and gone, and television itself has fallen into shambles, this film still offers a story with implications applicable to today. There are numerous times you will be left wondering what is real and what is imagined yet it never comes off as a cheap trick. Due to the horror elements, "Videodrome" is simply too captivating and you are left wondering where this freaky trip is heading. Does it completely succeed in this effort? Yes and no. You will certainly remember this film for years to come, however, I don't think the vision of the story's scope is fully realized; we are left with a lot of unanswered questions by the end.

You know, it occurred to me that the director/writer, David Cronenberg, really should have teamed up with Clive Barker at some point in the '80s; they could have made one hell of movie! Or how about a "Videodrome" sequel mixed with "The Ring?" Now that could be epic! Anyway...where was I? Oh yes, so what the hell is happening here? The main character, Max, played by James Woods, is looking for something edgy to add to the cable channel he operates. A "hacker" reveals to Max a show that is nothing but random people being tortured and murdered which is called--you guessed it--videodrome. When investigating into the matter, Max begins to experience nightmarish hallucinations that appear to warp reality in the process. Eventually Max learns that videodrome is more of a weapon intended to kill the degeneracy of society that would enjoy watching videodrome to begin with; apparently when watching videodrome you develop brain tumors as a side effect to the hallucinations. Toward the end, Max is controlled by the shady characters behind videodrome until he is told he must transcend his flesh form--becoming one with the TV universe or something. Hell if I know--it could ALL be a hallucination at this point as far as I'm concerned. After killing his handlers, Max kills himself as we fade to black...left to believe whatever we want to believe.

Obviously the biggest draw for the film is the crazy visuals which includes some impressive special effects. Where else are you going to see an erotic TV come to life and a guy lose a gun inside his chest-vagina-betamax player?! But there is more to the set pieces than freaking out unsuspecting stoners. There is this theme that watching TV changes a person. The film proposes the notion that certain parts of the brain are triggered when in the viewing state which fundamentally alters the human form. Watching TV does put you in a susceptible state, but the film takes things up a notch by showing a physical transformation resulting from watching increasingly edgy viewings like videodrome. Realistically, we could spend a lot of time dwelling on this subject, but let's leave it at the notion that it's interesting!

As for my individual gripes with "Videodrome:" I feel like the film kind of unravels toward the end. What is real and what is hallucination is questionable and the endgame of the villain seems outlandish. I dare say things feel rushed to get to the credits--like a scene or two has been cut somewhere along the way that would have spread out the ideas. Likewise, what is happening can be somewhat confusing during the last 15 minutes or so. I mean, one minute Max realizes he's been betrayed, then he's brainwashed, then he's un-brainwashed(?), then he's at a shipyard shooting himself? Ehh. The buildup and pacing are so great that it's tough to see things fall to pieces at such a critical moment in the story. Finally, James Woods' acting can be uneven. Sometimes he's properly scared, as he should be during freaky moments, but then he's a smug bastard all of a sudden? Not buying it.

I want to add that, annoyingly, there was a deleted scene that explained how videodrome came into existence which would have helped to see years ago! So I'd suggest you make sure to track down that scene if you're going old school and actually watching this on VHS (the only way to go). And you should watch this since it's something much weirder than the typical slasher fare the '80s were infamous for. Not only was "Videodrome" going outside of the box, it made the box explode with tumors. While I have covered other unusual films like "Hausu" and "Crazy Lips," this film is it's own level on the weirdness scale. This is yet another instance where you essentially need to to see it to believe it...which is quite apropos. Death to videodrome! Long live the new flesh!

Notable Moment: Hmm...very tough to pick. I guess my favorite would be when the TV comes to life so to speak. The effect for the screen is especially noteworthy.

Final Rating: 6.5/10