Directed by John Badham

?Short Circuit? was one of my favourite films for the 80s, so much so that I actually bought the video all those years ago. The sequel was even better and that is so rare in movies. So I jumped at the chance to grab a DVD version of the film. I hadn?t watched the movie in a long long time and the only word I can think of to describe it now is ?DATED?. It is a film that hasn?t stood the test of time. If you show this film to kids now they will probably laugh at the technology rather than the funny one liners scattered throughout the movie.

?Short Circuit? revolves around NOVA Robotics who have produced five robots, each costing $11 million, to use in the military. Unfortunately, when they are showing off the capabilities of these robots the fifth robot, aptly named ?Number 5? gets struck by lightning and begins to malfunction. He somehow manages to leave the complex and his creator Dr Newton Crosby (Guttenberg) and his sidekick Ben (Stevens) are called on to retrieve the robot and avert a possible disaster.

The robot falls off a bridge during his travels and lands on Stephanie Speck?s (Sheedy) van and she initially thinks he is an alien. Stephanie is not all that bright really!!! Number 5 tells her he needs input and begins to speed read encyclopaedias and watches way too much television in his quest for knowledge. Stephanie eventually realises that she has a robot on her hands and Number 5 tells her he doesn?t want to go back to NOVA because he doesn?t want to be disassembled because disassemble equals death and ?Number 5 is alive?.

Number 5 manages to convince Stephanie that he is alive but now the challenge is to convince Newton Crosby of the same thing while trying to protect Number 5 from her ex boyfriend Frank who is keen to get his hands on the $25,000 reward and Skroeder (Bailey), the security chief from NOVA, who wants the robot destroyed to protect civilians from its deadly laser. Will Stephanie and Number 5 prove to Newton that ?Life is not a Malfunction? before it is too late?

As I mentioned earlier, the film is very cute and has a feel good storyline guaranteed to make you smile. It is a nice way to spend 90 odd minutes, there is plenty of humour and a little romance thrown in. The film is fairly predictable and the fact that there is a sequel should tell you a little about the film?s ending. I would probably have given it a higher rating if I was seeing it for the first time, it has certainly lost a lot of its appeal after so many viewings. I would certainly have giggled a lot more particularly with the scenes involving Ben and Number 5. They provided a lot more of the laughs than the more famous lead actors. One of my favourite scenes was when Number 5 dances with Stephanie and serenades her with ?More than a woman? from ?Saturday Night Fever? and when he re-programs the other robots to behave like the ?Three Stooges?.

Many of the actors in ?Short Circuit? are rarely seen in films these days, they seemed to struggle getting roles once the nineties began. Steve Guttenberg is quite forgettable in this film overall and seems to play more of the straight role which he is clearly not good at Fisher Stevens made very few movies and is probably more famous for being Michelle Pfeiffer?s ex boyfriend. Ally Sheedy showed why the acting roles dried up so quickly after this film too as her performance was pretty ordinary as well. The true star of this film is the robot, even if he does look dated. I don?t care!!!

?Short Circuit? is a film for all the family to enjoy. There is no nudity and only low level coarse language and the star of the movie, Number 5, is simply adorable. Even if the technology and the robot are dated, the film itself is still worth a look whether it is for the first time or if you simply just want to reminisce. I hope they decide to release the sequel on DVD too. (Editor’s note: Short Circuit 2 has been released by Columbia TriStar)

THE EXTRAS

Scene selection is available as expected and the only other special feature is titled ?How Number 5 came alive: Interviews with the men responsible?. The first person who discusses the robots is Eric Allard (Special Effects Engineering) and most of this featurette revolves around him sitting on a couch being interviewed about the technology for nearly 35 minutes. I must admit I had little interest in watching featurettes on such old technology. Syd Mead (Special Effects Design) then sits on a couch and discusses the design of Number 5 for a further 17 minutes.

CONCLUSION

?Short Circuit? has finally been released on DVD, nearly twenty years after it was first shown in cinemas. The technology is very dated but the film is still entertaining and guaranteed to make you giggle. Number 5, a robot designed to be used in military battles has malfunctioned and escapes NOVA Robotics. The robot finds it way to Stephanie?s home (Ally Sheedy) and proves to her that he is in fact alive and now Stephanie must make Dr Newton Crosby (Steve Guttenberg), his designer, believe that a miracle has happened and that ?Life is not a malfunction? before he is destroyed by NOVA. If you haven?t seen this film before, it is well worth a look.