The Junior Defenders (2007)

A deranged fan goes on a mission to kidnap the former cast of a 1970s kids superhero show in order to produce his own episode.

Director:

Keith Spiegel

Writer:

Keith Spiegel

Stars:

Ally Sheedy, Brian O'Halloran, Justin Henry

Cast

Credited cast:
Ally Sheedy	...	Jill Fields
Brian O'Halloran
Justin Henry	...	Bobbi
Jason David Frank	...	Tommy Keen
Fred Hazelton	...	Norman Nields
Bill Raymond	...	Bill Samuels
Art Patriquin	...	Darryl Dunsmere
John Griesemer	...	David Drake
Pauly Shore	...	Himself
Florence Henderson	...	Herself
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Erick J. Barbic	...	Security Guard
Diana Devlin
Russell J. Dreher	...	News Reporter Ted Daniels
Sandra Gartner	...	News Broadcaster
Ken Holmes	...	Groupie

Storyline

THE JUNIOR DEFENDERS is a fast-paced, quirky, cult-style comedy about the cast of a fictional 1970s hit television show. With a fan base that rivals Star Trek's, "The Junior Defenders" is one of the top TV hits of the late 1970s. Every kid in America dreams of being one of the show's crime-fighting kid superheroes. Twenty-five years after the show's sudden cancellation, a crazed fan named Norman Nields is still obsessed with the show. In his mania, Norman goes on a mission to travel across the country in a stolen Winnebago, kidnapping the four washed-up former child stars from his beloved childhood program. The kidnappings spark a national media frenzy. Once in Hollywood, Norman takes over a soundstage and forces the cast at gunpoint to act in his brand-new episode of "The Junior Defenders".

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Plot Keywords:

1970s | former child star | three word title | superhero spoof | independent film | 

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Taglines:

TV is BETTER than real!

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Genres:

Comedy

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

23 October 2007 (USA)

Also Known As:

Groupies

Filming Locations:

Vermont, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$125,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Technical Specs

Runtime:

83 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

User Reviews

Cinematic Reinterpretation of the Uncertainty Principle is Awful

This should have been a much shorter movie-- thirty seconds at most. Seriously, a few of the hundreds of visual gags work, and they probably add up to thirty ticks or less. They were going for the self-referential post-pop-populist de-deconstructionist sorta thing, but they failed horribly. It's obviously the audience's fault, though: the filmmakers, actors and everyone else involved were too cool for us, so their endless attempts at intentional humor go way over our heads, and the same terminal hipness also rules out any chance of us flyover types finding even a smidgen of unintentional humor in this eighty-one-and-a-half-minute-too-long epic.

What was Ally Sheedy thinking? Did she formulate any coherent thoughts at any time during the making of this movie?

And those superhero suits on the adult actors Are. Just. Wrong.

On a positive note, Peter Tork seems to be aging quite gracefully.

And-- this might be Pauly Shore's best movie.