"Knight Rider" Knight of the Phoenix (1982)

User Rating:

6.8/10   

Director:

Daniel Haller

Writers:

Glen A. Larson (creator)
Glen A. Larson (written by)

TV Series:

"Knight Rider" (1982)

Original Air Date:

26 September 1982 (Season 1, Episode 1)

Genre:

Action | Crime | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

A young man set on revenge. His partner... an indestructible car.

Plot:

A detective, believed to have been killed, is given a new face and identity and is armed with an artificially intelligent super car.

Plot Keywords:

Artificial Intelligence | Knight Rider | TV Series Pilot | Gadget Car | Automobile

Cast

David Hasselhoff	...	Michael Knight
Edward Mulhare	...	Devon Miles
Phyllis Davis	...	Tanya Walker
Pamela Susan Shoop	...	Maggie
Lance LeGault	...	Vernon Gray
Noel Conlon	...	William Benjamin
Michael D. Roberts	...	Jackson
Bert Rosario	...	Brown
Vince Edwards	...	Fred Wilson
Richard Basehart	...	Wilton Knight
Ed Gilbert	...	Charles Acton (as Edmund Gilbert)
Shawn Southwick	...	Lonnie
Brian Cutler	...	Bar Manager
Barret Oliver	...	Buddy
Robert Phillips	...	Symes

Runtime:

91 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color | Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono | Mono

Certification:

Sweden:11

Company:

Glen A. Larson Productions

Trivia:

This two hour TV movie is split up into two parts for syndication.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Wilson shoots at K.I.T.T. it ricochets and hits the helicopter but when you see shots of the helicopter damaged, it is smoking on the opposite side. Also when the helicopter comes into land you can clearly see the box attached to the side of it.

Quotes:

Michael Knight: I've spend years of my life fighting criminals of one type or another who always had the upper hand and now this. That's a loner's dream come true. It's been handed to me on a silver platter. The world's most fantastic car. All the money and all the resources of the Knight Foundation. And most of all the best chance I'll ever get to prove that one man really can make a difference.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Knight Rider: Chariot of Gold (#1.17)" (1983)

Soundtrack:

Hit Me With Your Best Shot

OK to watch

David Hasslehof and his talking car may not be the brightest moments in television, but not the darkest neither.

While it may have been a good idea at the time, this just doesn't hold up today. The story is all through silly and would maybe make it in a children's cartoon today. The beginning was really vague and confusing. It kind of made sense later, but still. It's never really believable and you never really forget you're just watching TV. You'll also find the regular clichés in there. Like the take-out-five-guys-alone-in-a-bar-fight-cliché, meet-sexy-girl-with-kid-cliché and not to mention the rich-and-powerful-secret-organization-cliché.

The acting is OK. It's acting and there is no doubt about it. The characters are OK. They make a character of the car and that is good.

The stunts and special effects are obvious, you see the ramps for the jumps and the driver who is not supposed to be there. All together it's not very impressive, but it's fun enough to watch.

As for cinematography it's OK. No shots is bad and here and there, there is a cool one and the lightning is nice. The music is not bad neither. In fact I'd say that theme is the best thing with this whole movie. The rest of the score is good too.

All together this is not quality TV at it's best. Never the less, I found it too be rather entertaining and OK to watch.