Electric Dreams (1984)

An artificially intelligent PC and his human owner find themselves in a romantic rivalry over a woman.

Director:

Steve Barron

Writer:

Rusty Lemorande

Stars:

Lenny von Dohlen, Virginia Madsen, Maxwell Caulfield

Nominated for 1 BAFTA Film Award. Another 2 wins & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Lenny von Dohlen	...	Miles Harding
Virginia Madsen	...	Madeline Robistat
Maxwell Caulfield	...	Bill
Bud Cort	...	Edgar (voice)
Don Fellows	...	Mr. Ryley
Alan Polonsky	...	Frank, Co-Worker
Wendy Miller	...	Computer Clerk
Harry Rabinowitz	...	Conductor
Miriam Margolyes	...	Ticket Girl
Holly De Jong	...	Ryley's Receptionist
Stella Maris	...	Woman at Airport
Mary Doran	...	Millie
Diana Choy	...	Check-Out Girl
Jim Steck	...	Removal Man
Gary Pettinger	...	Removal Man

Storyline

Miles buys himself a state-of-the-art computer that starts expressing thoughts and emotions after a having champagne spilled down on him. Things start getting out of hand when both Miles and Edgar, how the computer calls himself, fall in love with Madeline, an attractive neighbour.

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Plot Keywords:

cello | smart house | artificial intelligence | boy wearing glasses | human versus computer | 

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Taglines:

Meet Edgar. He'll make you sing, make you dance, make you laugh, make you cry, make you jealous, make you nuts.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Music | Romance | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

20 July 1984 (USA)

Also Known As:

Amor é Música

Filming Locations:

1115-1117 Mason Street, San Francisco, California, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$1,009,586, 22 July 1984, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$2,193,612

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$2,467,664

Company Credits

Production Co:

Virgin

Technical Specs

Runtime:

95 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Stereo

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The scene in which Miles gets chased by a munching thing was inspired by the video arcade game, Pac-Man.

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Goofs

Miles and Edgar both quote the wrong release dates to each other for the respective Sleeping Beauty and Cinderalla movies they are referencing.

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Quotes

[Edgar flicks on the bedside lamp]
Edgar: Maybe she loves *me*.
[Edgar flicks off the bedside lamp]

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Crazy Credits

In the opening credits: Green Text: A VIRGIN PICTURES PRODUCTION Multicolored Text: hello Green Text: HELLO Multicolored Text: is this a story? Green Text: YES Multicolored Text: what type? Green Text: FAIRYTALE FOR COMPUTERS Multicolored Text: name? Green Text: ELECTRIC DREAMS Then, both texts disappear and the movie's title appears in the multicolored text.

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Alternate Versions

When released on DVD in region 2, distributed by Hollywood Classics on behalf of Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment LLC and made available to the UK exclusively by Second Sight Films, the opening card was again the MGM lion, with URL added, but omitting the a capella opening lyrics entirely. The opening text starts at "A VIRGIN PICTURES PRODUCTION".

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Connections

References Pinocchio (1940)

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Soundtracks

The Dream
Performed by Culture Club
Composed by Culture Club
Produced by Steve Levine for Do Not Erase Productions
(c)1984 Virgin Music (Publishers) Limited

User Reviews

Likeable!

A decent enough piece of film, and one that works just fine, when say, every channel on TV has an infomercial, wrestling, and a reality show on. I saw this when it went to HBO, or Showtime in late 1984, or early '85. I recall it WAS NOT a box office champ, by any means.

The leads are both very likeable, and Bud Court's "EDGAR", works just fine. What I noticed was a very "not-quite American" feel to it. Even though it is set in San Fransisco, the movie felt European. The pacing of some of the lines, and some of the interior shots could have just as well been in London.

See it for the chemistry between the three(!) and do enjoy the standard 80's format for a movie. Strong sound track, pretty stars, somewhat implausible(For 1984 technology)plot!