The Lawnmower Man (1992)

A simple man is turned into a genius through the application of computer science.

Director:

Brett Leonard

Writers:

Stephen King (title only), Brett Leonard (screenplay)

Stars:

Jeff Fahey, Pierce Brosnan, Jenny Wright

3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jeff Fahey	...	Jobe Smith
Pierce Brosnan	...	Dr. Lawrence Angelo
Jenny Wright	...	Marnie Burke
Mark Bringelson	...	Sebastian Timms
Geoffrey Lewis	...	Terry McKeen
Jeremy Slate	...	Father Francis McKeen
Dean Norris	...	The Director
Colleen Coffey	...	Caroline Angelo
Jim Landis	...	Ed Walts
Troy Evans	...	Lieutenant Goodwin
Rosalee Mayeux	...	Carla Parkette
Austin O'Brien	...	Peter Parkette
Michael Gregory	...	Security Chief
Joe Hart	...	Patrolman Cooley
John Laughlin	...	Jake Simpson

Storyline

A scientist performs experiments involving intelligence enhancing drugs and virtual reality on a simple-minded gardener. He puts the gardener on an extensive schedule of learning, and quickly he becomes brilliant. But at this point the gardener has a few ideas of his own on how the research should continue, and the scientist begins losing control of his experiments.

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Plot Keywords:

virtual reality | intelligence | supernatural power | science runs amok | scientist | 

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Taglines:

God made him simple. Science made him a god.

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Genres:

Horror | Sci-Fi

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language, sensuality and a scene of violence

Details

Country:

UK USA Japan

Language:

English

Release Date:

6 March 1992 (USA)

Also Known As:

Stephen King's The Lawnmower Man

Filming Locations:

Brandeis-Bardin Institute - 1101 Pepper Tree Lane, Simi Valley, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$10,000,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$32,101,000 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Allied Vision, Fuji Eight Company Ltd., Lane Pringle Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

108 min 140 min (director's cut)

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Jenny Wright did only the close-ups in the VR strobe scene because the strobe light made her sick. Her wide-angle shots were done using a double, and the close-ups to her face were done with a blue screen so that she didn't have to move.

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Goofs

Dr. Angelo, remarking on Jobe's progress with Latin, says that he himself took a year to learn just the Latin alphabet, which is still in use, plus a few letters, as the English alphabet. (In mitigation, he could be referring to the difficulty in reading ancient manuscripts, or how long a child takes to learn how to read, though this seems unlikely in context.)

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Quotes

Jobe Smith: You realize, Dr. Angelo, that my intelligence has surpassed yours...

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Crazy Credits

At the start of the movie, just after the New Line Cinema logo, the following Virtual Reality 'statement' is given (the director stated that this was rewritten many times): By the turn of the millenium a technology known as VIRTUAL REALITY will be in widespread use. It will allow you to enter computer generated artificial worlds as unlimited as the imagination itself. Its creators foresee millions of positive uses - while others fear it as a new from of mind control...

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Connections

Referenced in Midnight Screenings: X-Men: First Class (2011)

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Soundtracks

State of Shock
Written by John Hayes, Lyn Vaus
Performed by Carnal Garage
Courtesy of Scraping By Music

User Reviews

an early look at the coming power of computers

Stories about a simple person getting turned into something more seem pretty common in movies, but none are like "The Lawnmower Man". Portraying scientist Pierce Brosnan turning retarded Jeff Fahey into a super-genius (with unintended consequences), this is one movie destined to blow your mind. The visual effects were beyond impressive even for 1992, but they never dominate the movie. We might say that the movie deals with the dangers of people relying too much on technology, and also the dangers of militarism, but even aside from that, this is a movie worth seeing. Check it out.

Oh, and I think that we can all agree that the sequel needs to be avoided at all costs.