Modern Problems (1981)

User Rating:

4.4/10   

Director:

Ken Shapiro

Writers:

Ken Shapiro (writer) &
Tom Sherohman (writer) ...

Release Date:

25 December 1981 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Tagline:

A broken-hearted man + amazing moving powers = Out-of-control fun.

Plot:

Jealous, harried air traffic controller Max Fielder, recently dumped by his girlfriend, comes into contact with nuclear waste and is granted the power of telekinesis, which he uses to not only win her back, but to gain a little revenge.

Plot Keywords:

Air Traffic Controller | Telekinesis | Nose Bleed | Telekinetic Sex

Cast

Chevy Chase	...	Max Fielder
Patti D'Arbanville	...	Darcy
Dabney Coleman	...	Mark Winslow
Mary Kay Place	...	Lorraine
Nell Carter	...	Dorita
Brian Doyle-Murray	...	Brian Stills
Mitch Kreindel	...	Barry
Arthur Sellers	...	Mobile Supervisor
Sandy Helberg	...	Pete
Neil Thompson	...	Controller #1
Carl Irwin	...	Controller #2
Ronald E. House	...	Vender (as Ron House)
Buzzy Linhart	...	The Tile Man
Henry Corden	...	Dubrovnik
Christine Nazareth	...	Redhead

Runtime:

89 min | 93 min (FMC Library Print)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Singapore:NC-16 | Iceland:L | USA:PG (certificate #26438) | Australia:M | UK:PG

Company:

Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Trivia:

Contains Dabney Coleman's only on-screen nude scene.

Goofs:

Continuity: On the exterior shot of the "Bates Motel" house, Max's car is in a different position than it was when he parked it.

Quotes:

Max: I'm starting to see things move in thin air. Like this morning, I think I caused Darcy's coffee cup to slide across the table and crash. And then everything around was shaking and quaking...
Brian Stills: You trashed the place 'cause you're mad at this Daisy chick, right?
Max: No, no, Brian, I did it but I didn't touch anything.
Brian Stills: Look, we all think we got some monster inside us that's ready to explode any minute. You break things. I masturbate, so what? Same difference.

Movie Connections:

References The Desert Rats (1953)

Soundtrack:

She Takes All Of Me

Just...weird

I never really got into this movie, it's more strange than it is funny. And Chevy wasn't his usual self either, he was way to morose and distant to really side with his character or empathise with him in any way.

Chevy plays Max Fielder, an air-traffic controller who's life is constantly in the toilet and bad luck follows him everywhere. He's very paranoid and possessive over his girlfriend, so much so that she dumps him for some total dork.

On his way home from a disastrous night out his car is sprayed with radioactive gunk from a leaky government truck. He is soon blessed/cursed with telekinetic abilities, which he uses to get revenge on those who make his life miserable.

It could have been really fun but it's just...weird. Ken Shapiro (who?) does not have the same edge in his direction as Harold Ramis, Michael Ritchie or John Landis and he doesn't know how to fully use Chevy's brand of humor. There are some laughs to be had though, but their not so memorable.

The DVD is in 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen but it's mostly all shot in soft focus so there's nothing outstanding here. The sound is plain old Mono and it's alright if nothing else, though the dialogue has very heavy use of ADR. A trailer and TV spot are included. Oh...and that theme song playing over the menu, opening and closing credits? Yuck!