Powder

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Powder

PG-13

1995

1h 51m

Drama

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

50%

Tomatometer

20 Reviews

69%

Popcornmeter

50,000+ Ratings

A mysterious albino teenager, Jeremy "Powder" Reed (Sean Patrick Flanery), is rescued from the basement in which he's lived since birth. But the extremely intelligent Reed is not welcomed into the community. Students at his school fear the outsider because of his bizarre ability to harness extrasensory perception and heal the sick. His relationship with a fellow student, Lindsey (Missy Crider), doesn't help matters either, despite the help of two teachers (Jeff Goldblum, Mary Steenburgen).

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Critics Consensus

Powder has some interesting and potentially affecting ideas, but they're ultimately dust in the wind of a drama that strains far too obviously for uplift.

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Roger Ebert

Chicago Sun-Times

01/01/2000

2/4

Powder has all of the elements of a successful fantasy, and none of the insights. It's a movie where intriguing ideas lie there on the screen, jumbled and unrealized.

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Mike Clark

USA Today

01/01/2000

2/4

Performed to the hilt by Flanery and filmed with conviction by Victor Salva, the movie is finally too solemn to survive its pushy musical strings.

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Barbara Shulgasser

Common Sense Media

07/10/2018

3/5

'90s sci-fi fantasy has violence, cursing.

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Chuck O'Leary

Fantastica Daily

10/06/2005

2/5

Emanuel Levy

EmanuelLevy.Com

08/11/2005

2/5

Caffeinated Clint

Film Threat

05/06/2005

3/5

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Travis M

@TMorg007 May 19

An intriguing story that's superhero adjacent. I really enjoyed it as a fictional excursion. It falls a bit short overall but I still recommend it for it's uniqueness.

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Par H

@Parhwy Mar 15

Powder (1995) is a 111-minute-long sci-fi fantasy which I watched on NITV (Australian free-to-air TV) in March 2026. This is the second time I have seen this film. The last time was decades ago. It resonated with me ever since and so when it popped up on free-TV, I made time to watch it. Watching a movie on telly with ads is nostalgic and enjoyable. Back to the movie. It’s good. It’s Phenomenon’s dark cousin. The bogeyman-fear/bogeyman-hate is similar however the bullying persists and is more intense (the main bully looks like Eddie Vedder, a kind person, so it’s disorienting). The entire film occurs in gloom, mist, overcast. Steenburgen, Goldblum, Henriksen play their usual styles albeit these are early iterations of who we know them to be now. Flanery does Powder well. Powder’s exceptionalism and pacificism shines. I wish Sheriff Duncan had had a greater revelation. Rewatch? Maybe. Recommend? Yes. 7/10.

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thiago S

@Thiagostone Feb 28

Filme fraco, o roteiro é fraco, as cenas são fracas, a história é fraca, o elenco é fraco, e ninguém ajuda a melhorar o filme, os personagens são fracos, e o filme deveria ter cenas bem melhores e relevantes, para fazer o filme ser bom

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David B.

@Baros1962 Feb 6

A truly extraordinary film. Completely underrated and underappreciated. It’s a beautiful and touching film.

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Mary C.

@mhchristiano Dec 20

A great fable about the challenges of growing up in unusual circumstances with unusual capabilities while coming to terms with the dark underbelly of humanity. A sad and heartfelt look at the passages into the understanding of the harsh realities of life.

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Martin S

@MTScreeton Dec 11

One of the best movies out there from the 90's... you will really enjoy it!

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Victor Salva

Director

Mary Steenburgen

Jessie Caldwell

Sean Patrick Flanery

Jeremy "Powder" Reed

Lance Henriksen

Sheriff Doug Barnum

Jeff Goldblum

Donald Ripley

Brandon Smith

Deputy Harley Duncan

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Synopsis

A mysterious albino teenager, Jeremy "Powder" Reed (Sean Patrick Flanery), is rescued from the basement in which he's lived since birth. But the extremely intelligent Reed is not welcomed into the community. Students at his school fear the outsider because of his bizarre ability to harness extrasensory perception and heal the sick. His relationship with a fellow student, Lindsey (Missy Crider), doesn't help matters either, despite the help of two teachers (Jeff Goldblum, Mary Steenburgen).

Director: Victor Salva
Producer: Roger Birnbaum, Daniel Grodnick
Production Co: Caravan Pictures, Hollywood Pictures
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Streaming): Mar 1, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $30.9M
Runtime: 1h 51m
Sound Mix: Surround