Have you ever wondered what "Fletch" would have been like if Chris Lemmon played the role, he was a scientist and was caught up in a cold war plot with a telekinetic cyborg as his sidekick? Apparently the creators of "Firehead" did and the results were about as ridiculous as you'd expect, but in a really fun 80s kind of way.
I saw this gem on Amazon Prime Video. Much like the previously reviewed "Terror Within", "Firehead" has a great cast. Chris Lemmon plays the unwilling scientist turned action hero perfectly, Christopher Plummer is a great secret society villain and Martin Landau makes just long enough of an appearance to give the movie some credence as a sci-fi espionage cult classic.
The movie was made in 1991, so the special F/X are kind of at the end of the whole "wow, look laser beams" phase of things before anyone with a laptop could make simple glow F/X happen on screen. Still, they're fine for the story telling.
I mentioned that the movie reminded me of "Fletch" and really, with Chris Lemmon running around in a ball cap, cracking jokes and making innuendos whenever there was a lull I did keep expecting to hear that wonder "Fletch" score in the background. I'm not saying this is a bad thing, but I did find it kind of strange and distracting. I liked the "Fletch" movies enough for what they were, but never imagined they were something someone else would want to emulate, no less in an action sci-fi movie.
As far as the action goes, there was plenty of it, but much of it was sloppy. Lots of shooting with no cover but nobody getting hit. Fight scenes that looked like they knew who supposed to win, but didn't really choreograph anything and stuff like that. Kind of like late 70s TV show fighting where Buck Rogers would kick a guy and that looked cool, but then he would just shove another guy, because only the kick was scripted and they never bothered to think out the rest. I admit, I was guilty of this sort of thing myself, but every since "The Lunar Pack" I have been blessed to usually have a fight coordinator on set who took care of those details. (Notable exceptions are Jack vs Lanterns and Lumber vs Jack and it shows in my campier fight sequences.)
But, enough about me, back to "Firehead". Overall I think it's a kind of forgettable movie and it's not something I think anyone needs to rush out and see, but if you miss the days of being able to turn on a premium cable station and see a random action comedy, this movie is worth a watch. As far as "buddy" movies go it's not bad either. Don't expect it all to make sense. Don't look for mindboggling special F/X, but do pay attention for clichés and some quick fire jokes from Lemmon.
I saw this gem on Amazon Prime Video. Much like the previously reviewed "Terror Within", "Firehead" has a great cast. Chris Lemmon plays the unwilling scientist turned action hero perfectly, Christopher Plummer is a great secret society villain and Martin Landau makes just long enough of an appearance to give the movie some credence as a sci-fi espionage cult classic.
The movie was made in 1991, so the special F/X are kind of at the end of the whole "wow, look laser beams" phase of things before anyone with a laptop could make simple glow F/X happen on screen. Still, they're fine for the story telling.
I mentioned that the movie reminded me of "Fletch" and really, with Chris Lemmon running around in a ball cap, cracking jokes and making innuendos whenever there was a lull I did keep expecting to hear that wonder "Fletch" score in the background. I'm not saying this is a bad thing, but I did find it kind of strange and distracting. I liked the "Fletch" movies enough for what they were, but never imagined they were something someone else would want to emulate, no less in an action sci-fi movie.
As far as the action goes, there was plenty of it, but much of it was sloppy. Lots of shooting with no cover but nobody getting hit. Fight scenes that looked like they knew who supposed to win, but didn't really choreograph anything and stuff like that. Kind of like late 70s TV show fighting where Buck Rogers would kick a guy and that looked cool, but then he would just shove another guy, because only the kick was scripted and they never bothered to think out the rest. I admit, I was guilty of this sort of thing myself, but every since "The Lunar Pack" I have been blessed to usually have a fight coordinator on set who took care of those details. (Notable exceptions are Jack vs Lanterns and Lumber vs Jack and it shows in my campier fight sequences.)
But, enough about me, back to "Firehead". Overall I think it's a kind of forgettable movie and it's not something I think anyone needs to rush out and see, but if you miss the days of being able to turn on a premium cable station and see a random action comedy, this movie is worth a watch. As far as "buddy" movies go it's not bad either. Don't expect it all to make sense. Don't look for mindboggling special F/X, but do pay attention for clichés and some quick fire jokes from Lemmon.
Take special notice of the clip they use for "high speed chases".
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