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Scanners

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Scanners (1981)

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76 %
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Reviews Counted: 25

Fresh: 19

Rotten:6

Average Rating: 6.9/10

Runtime: 1 hr 47 mins

Genre: Science-Fiction/Fantasy

Synopsis: Scanners are men and women born with incredible telepathic and telekinetic powers. This breed of superbrains was developed as an accidental side effect of a tranquilizer administered to some women during pregnancy. Cameron Vale is one... Scanners are men and women born with incredible telepathic and telekinetic powers. This breed of superbrains was developed as an accidental side effect of a tranquilizer administered to some women during pregnancy. Cameron Vale is one such scanner, and he, like most of those with similar powers, exercises the benefits of his special gifts in a safe and judicious manner. But a group of renegade scanners, led by the nefarious Revok, plans to create a race of telepathic ubermenschen who will rule the world. Vale must team up with a like-minded female scanner in order to thwart the plans of the fiendish gang. The protracted end game between Revok and Vale is heightened by a dark secret which is shockingly revealed just before their duel begins. [More]

Starring: Stephen Lack, Michael Ironside, Jennifer O'Neill, Patrick McGoohan

Starring: Stephen Lack, Michael Ironside, Jennifer O'Neill, Patrick McGoohan, Lawrence Dane

Director: David Cronenberg

Director: David Cronenberg

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Release:

Aug 28, 2001

[DVD Details]
 
 

DVD Features:

  • Region 1
  • Keep Case
  • Anamorphic Widescreen - 1.85

Audio:

  • Dolby Digital Mono - English
  • Dolby Digital Mono - French

Additional Release Material:

  • Trailers - 1. Original Theatrical Trailer

Reviews for Scanners

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1 - 20 (sorted by date)
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No review available.

comment Comment
04/13/08
Cole Smithey
ColeSmithey.com
Ratings Image

Like Tod Browning, Cronenberg doesn't have the stylistic resources to match the forcefulness of his ideas, but his movies remain in the mind for the pull of their private obsessions.

Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment Comment
06/05/07
Dave Kehr
Chicago Reader
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Ironside is fantastic as the lethal Revok, helping make this a popular cult favorite.

Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide | comment Comment
06/05/07
TV Guide's Movie Guide
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
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All this should give fans of David Cronenberg's previous pix their money's worth, although lack of any rooting interest vitiates any possible suspense and highly elegant visual style works against much shock value.

Full Review Source: Variety | comment Comment
06/05/07
Variety
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Ratings Image

Excellent Cronenberg horror flick

comment Comment
03/16/07
Lori Hoffman
Atlantic City Weekly
Ratings Image

Part conspiracy thriller, part political tract, it is Cronenberg's most coherent movie to date, drawing a dark (but bland) world in which corporate executives engineer human conception to produce ever more powerful mental samurai.

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
06/24/06
Derek Adams
Time Out
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A mind-blowing telekinesis thriller that immediately put Michael Ironside on the map as one of the most intense actors around.

comment Comment
02/20/06
Chuck O'Leary
FulvueDrive-in.com
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No review available.

comment Comment
09/23/05
Michael Szymanski
Zap2it.com
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No review available.

comment Comment
07/14/05
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com
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No review available.

comment Comment
04/22/05
Nicolas Lacroix
EnPrimeur.ca
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No review available.

comment Comment
04/02/05
Philip Martin
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
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An early masterpiece by David Cronenberg.

Full Review Source: Combustible Celluloid | comment Comment
10/25/04
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Combustible Celluloid
Ratings Image

Scanners is so lockstep that we are basically reduced to watching the special effects, which are good but curiously abstract, because we don't much care about the people they're happening around.

Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | comment Comment
10/23/04
Roger Ebert
Chicago Sun-Times
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The quality of the film's inventiveness is not always of the first order, which is too bad because Mr. Cronenberg does seem to be a director-writer of some style.

Full Review Source: New York Times | comment Comment
08/30/04
Vincent Canby
New York Times
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Cronenberg's obsession with making the human insides visible begins here.

comment Comment
03/08/04
Jake Euker
Filmcritic.com
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No review available.

comment Comment
08/22/03
Carol Cling
Las Vegas Review-Journal
Ratings Image

An absolute must-see cult classic for horror and sci-fi fans alike.

Full Review Source: Filmcritic.com | comment Comment
04/20/03
Christopher Null
Filmcritic.com
Ratings Image

This relatively early work from Cronenberg shows all his signature stylistics in full bloom.

Full Review Source: Austin Chronicle | comment Comment
03/10/03
Marjorie Baumgarten
Austin Chronicle
Ratings Image

The film is awkward and, at its worst, listless and meandering.

Full Review Source: Film Freak Central | comment Comment
03/09/03
Walter Chaw
Film Freak Central
Ratings Image

Classic Cronenberg, famous for its exploding head.

comment Comment
02/07/03
Jeffrey M. Anderson
San Francisco Examiner
1 - 20 (sorted by date)
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Latest News for Scanners

October 02, 2007: Cory Goodman to Remake Cronenberg's Brood
You guys! Check it out! You aren't going to believe this, but...it's a news item about a remake! More...

April 21, 2007: "Scanners" Remake Explodes...with Politics
It's easy to remake old horror movies with newfangled CGI effects. Recapturing their spirit is another story. That's what David Goyer hopes to do with his script for... More...

April 11, 2007: "Batman Begins" Writer Tackling a "Scanners" Remake
He's written some of the most popular movies of the past few years, but writer/director David S. Goyer isn't slowing down. His remake "The Invisible" hits screens... More...

March 01, 2007: "Saw" Maker to Tackle "Scanners" Remake
Darren Lynn Bousman, director of "Saw 2," "Saw 3," and the upcoming "Saw 4," will soon be helming a remake of David Cronenberg's... More...

See More Topics...

Related Forums for Scanners

could have been a classic
by: joescannura 6/8
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