Creator (1985)

An eccentric scientist teaches a student in his own manner while he looks for a way to clone his deceased wife.

Director:

Ivan Passer

Writers:

Jeremy Leven (novel), Jeremy Leven (screenplay)

Stars:

Peter O'Toole, Mariel Hemingway, Vincent Spano

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Peter O'Toole	...	Dr. Harry Wolper
Mariel Hemingway	...	Meli
Vincent Spano	...	Boris Lafkin
Virginia Madsen	...	Barbara Spencer
David Ogden Stiers	...	Dr. Sid Kullenbeck
John Dehner	...	Paul
Karen Kopins	...	Lucy Wolper
Kenneth Tigar	...	Pavlo
Elsa Raven	...	Mrs. Mallory
Lee Kessler	...	Mrs. Pruitt
Rance Howard	...	Mr. Spencer
Ellen Geer	...	Mrs. Spencer
Ian Wolfe	...	Prof. Brauer
Mike Jolly	...	Boom-Boom
Burton Collins	...	Lyman

Storyline

Dr. Harry Wolper is a character. First he steals Boris, a new student assistant by promising him a co-ed's phone number. Then he hijacks new high tech equipment for his own research, confusing the other university researchers who can't see "the big picture." Harry has a plan, he wants to clone his dead wife, but first he needs an egg and a host. He mounts his search by stapling notices to every telephone pole in town from his bike, which is how he meets Mili. As the year progresses, he sees Boris' romance follow the same pattern as his own, twenty-five years ago.

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Plot Keywords:

smelling clothes | student | assistant | riding a bike | title same as book | 

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Taglines:

He is obsessed to re-create his wife...she died thirty years ago.

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Genres:

Comedy | Romance | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

R

Did You Know?

Trivia

Some movie posters for the film featured a long blurb preamble that read: "He's a famed biologist. But she's more interested in anatomy. Twenty-five years ago, Dr. Harry Wolper became a widower. Ever since, he's been trying to bring back his wife. But just when he was about to unravel the mystery of life, a sexy young assistant moved in. Now, the only life that's come unraveled is his own".

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Quotes

Boris: Love is dead, Harry.
Dr Harry Wolper: How depressing. Never mind, Boris. Women's liberation will run its course and we will prevail.

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Alternate Versions

Outtake added to broadcast version: A flashback scene of young Harry Wolper cavorting with wife Lucy in an amusement park and on a beach.

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Connections

Referenced in Demon Queen (1987)

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Soundtracks

String Trio Rock
Composed by Mark Cargill (as Mark K. Cargill)

User Reviews

A wacky, gentle, thoughtful love story.

Actually three love stories in one. There's Harry Wolper and his long departed wife, putting the lie to "till death do us part." Then there's the developing relationship between Meli and Wolper. And finally the impulsive young love of Boris and Barbara. All interwoven like so much spaghetti. There's so much love in the air that this would be a great date movie so long as both parties are comfortable with the occasional detours into science and philosophy. The dialogue is usually sharply written and often witty, almost intellectual. The editing, though, was a bit choppy.

In today's world, where human cloning is coming ever closer to reality and paranoia about it is common, Jeremy Leven's screenplay should be a good reminder that genes don't make us who we are. As Boris said, even a cloning breakthrough wouldn't be able to bring back the woman he loved, for he could never recreate the experiences that originally shaped her mind and soul.

Peter O'Toole again plays his patented charming eccentric. It's a role virtually tailor-made for him, and he carries it well. Whether he's spouting technical or medical jargon, wistfully remembering his lost wife, or rhapsodizing on the nature of God and the Big Picture, O'Toole truly loses himself in this character and comes through as totally convincing. Vincent Spano and Virginia Madsen showed great chemistry as the young college couple. Mariel Hemingway was the weak link. Her character was supposed to be street-smart and self-assured but unfortunately often came across as simply shrill.

The melancholy score meshes well with the movie, successfully evoking the loneliness surrounding the characters. Surprising, as it was composed by Sylvester Levay, best known for his pounding, synthesizer-rich theme for TV's "Airwolf."

It's worth renting this movie on tape or DVD, because the version edited for television cuts several scenes that are very important to the plot. Without those scenes, some lines just don't make sense. Regrettably, there is no widescreen version even on DVD, although the standard 1.33:1 Academy Frame does help keep the story intimate. Occasionally, though, some characters will have their faces cut off the side of the screen. But even the DVD is a very imperfect version. The sound level wavers wildly, the only DVD I've ever had that does this. Sometimes it's barely audible while seconds later it's back at full volume. And the beginning of the movie is truncated, with the opening titles cutting in a few notes into the score. The print is also grainy, painfully so in a few of the darker scenes. All in all, a very careless transfer.

Note for Star Trek fans: this film contains a veritable cavalcade of Trek guest stars. At least four of the cast have appeared on various incarnations of Trek, including Madsen and Stiers on The Next Generation and Ian Wolfe and Jeff Corey on the original show.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

20 September 1985 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Big Picture

Filming Locations:

Alexian Bros. Hospital, San Jose, California, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$2,019,728, 22 September 1985

Gross USA:

$5,349,607

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$5,349,607

Company Credits

Production Co:

Kings Road Entertainment, Universal Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

107 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1