|
 he Guyver" was one of the first in a series
of Western film adaptations of anime, released in hopes of capitalizing on
the success of "Akira". Given the cold shoulder when initially
released in the USA, New Line Pictures gave the film another shot by
releasing it as a director's cut. While the few minutes of extra footage
do relatively little in terms of improving the picture, it's still an
enjoyable monster fest.
The film opens with a scientist running through the
night, holding onto a mysterious parcel for dear life. He's intercepted by
thugs from his employer, the Chronos Corporation, and the result is his
death. But the package is safe from his evil employers, stashed in an
alley where a college student stumbles upon it. It transforms him into The
Guyver, a powerful bio-suit weapon that the Chronos Corporation is
desperately searching for. Now the new owner of the weapon must team up
with a rebellious C.I.A. agent to keep it from falling into the wrong
hands.
The creature effects by Screaming Mad George and Steve Wang ("Drive")
are remarkable, not just in their audacious design but realistic
execution. With fluid movements, amazing details, and some nifty
transformation scenes, these monsters are the highlight of the film. The
Guyver, especially, looks great, a truly biomechanical wonder to behold.
However, George and Wang should have stuck to monster effects and stayed
away from the director's chair. Their efforts are wildly uneven; they do
an excellent job with the monster scenes, but seem perplexed as to what to
do when humans take center stage.
As The Guyver, Jack Armstrong has the distinction of
being the least likeable comic book hero. His character is immature, with
a bad temper, and you're happy when he's encased in Guyver armor -- at
least he's a lot quieter. Luckily for Armstrong, he has a strong
supporting cast to back him up. Mark Hamill ("Comic
Book: The Movie") plays his role as renegade C.I.A. agent rather
well, and looks as if he's truly enjoying himself. Michael Berryman also
gives an equally good performance as Chronos' lead henchman, at times
deliciously going over the top.
Of course, every film featuring an evil corporation
needs a loathsome and cold CEO. The late David Gale ("Re-Animator")
gives us that in spades; he's so creepy and sadistic that it's impossible
to feel any empathy for him. Fans of Scream Queen Linnea Quigley should
keep their eyes peeled for her cameo, where she lampoons her real life
job.
The main problem area with "The Guyver" is the script by John
Purdy. Granted, it's enjoyable, with plenty of monster action and comic
relief, but it gets needlessly bogged down in a confusing backstory about
humanity being created by aliens to be super weapons. It's as if Purdy was
trying to add more depth to the film, then just gave up and stuck to
monster scenes. He also has a slight problem with dialogue, and some of
the lines the cast are forced to utter are so bad it's amazing they didn't
wince while saying them. Even if the situation is fantastical, at least
make the characters sound real.
The director's cut adds four minutes of new footage, but it really has
little effect on the film. There are no new revelations about the plot and
no new character traits are revealed. It's just a case of New Line
scraping up some cuts off the editing room floor and sticking them back
into the film.
"The Guyver" is not a perfect film by any means, but it is an
enjoyable and silly guilty pleasure. It's best to switch your brain off
and enjoy the absurdity onscreen. The film won't raise your I.Q. points,
but it will give you a good time. |
