User reviews

A cold-war-era style tale of alien invaders brainwashing the masses via VHS, Remote Control stars Kevin Dillon (younger brother of Matt) as video store clerk Cosmo, who discovers a plot by extraterrestrials to destroy mankind by altering an old sci-fi movie so that it causes uncontrollable violence when viewed. With the help of his best pal Georgie (Christopher Wynne) and babe Belinda Watson (Deborah Goodrich), Cosmo sets out to destroy all the copies of the film on video before they can be shipped nationwide, but can they succeed without being exposed to the deadly movie themselves?

How '80s do you like your films? I only ask because this quirky little sci-fi flick from director Jeff Lieberman (Just Before Dawn/Satan's Little Helper) takes everything already tacky about the decade of day-glo and back-combing and pushes them to the limits, with exaggerated fashion disasters and bizarre hairstyles that make Cyndi Lauper and A Flock of Seagulls look positively reserved by comparison. If you find the idea of metallic lame blouson jackets at all upsetting, then you would probably be better off giving this one a miss. If, however, you appreciate absurd low budget obscurities and revel in the colourful and kitsch, then dive on in.

In addition to its clever plot device (whereby the '50s film that the aliens use to control their victims has the same narrative as the film we are watching) and all of the gaudy 80s style, Remote Control delivers lots of nostalgia for those who grew up in the video era (check out all of the cool titles and posters in the video stores!), some cheesy fight action, Jennifer Tilly sporting a truly awful hairdo, a surprisingly good explosion, and an impressive full body burn stunt. While not quite as accomplished as Jeff Lieberman's horror movies—a bigger budget would certainly have helped to fully realise its potential—Remote Control is still a unique experience from a true auteur, and should provide a fun time for those curious enough to seek it out.

God I love Jeff Lieberman's work and it never seems to amaze me. 'Remote Control' is no different, and it's probably his most obscure feature. All this guy needs is quite a healthy budget to let those innovative ideas and visions truly evolve. What's lined up in the VCR (yep it's the glorious video era) is a B-grade Sci-fi retro spoof on 1950's Sci-fi set in modern times and the late 80s video boom that's mainly spot on with its send up, even with such limited resources and slight material. It's quite well done (in typical 80s spirit) and ejects rather an inventive premise that have aliens using an mind-controlling video which features an hilarious shoddy old-fashion Sci-fi film called "Remote Control' that sees the viewer becoming apart of the screen action and virtually losing control, killing anybody near. So it's up to a video clerk who discovers the secret to put a stop to it all. Something only the 80s could spit out.

From the get-go everything falls on the quirky and low-key side. It's daft, but it knows it and plays it accordingly with its often witty, but undemanding script. Where it builds upon paranoia and conspiracy laced inclusions, but despite its small groundwork Lieberman's able direction makes it work and the self-parody is hard to dislike. Even Peter Bernstein's music, expertly harked back to those eerie 50's sci-fi scores. The vibe that was created was perfectly pitched. Tim Suhrstedt's camera-work sparsely moves around and effectively judged which it's at its best during the attack scenes.

Little to no FX is used (which would be due to the considerably low-budget), but an attempt at story-telling and heighten suspense comes to the forefront. It works to its strengths and this is what makes it more so successful. Some passages can get slack or repetitive, but the pace manages to be snappy and the fashionable décor holds your attention. Not letting you forget what era this was from. There's convincing performances (done in mock-seriousness approach) from a reliable Kevin Dillon, a wonderful Deborah Goodrich and an all too short, but a perky Jennifer Tilly. No matter how small her part is, Tilly always does her best to leave an imprint on proceedings. I didn't think that Dillon would be strong enough to carry the lead role, but surprisingly he looks and acts the part.

A cheesy yet very fun horror/sci-fi flick with a great deal of nostalgia permeating every frame. The movie itself is an 80's look back on a warped sci-fi version of the 50's, which sounds strange but works well. It must be remembered that around the time this movie was made, there was a fad for all things 50's and retro, and "Remote Control" makes nostalgic fun of that trend, while also being part of it. Video stores were still mostly independently owned in those days and were sweeping the country, so the writers here took the old "aliens invade earth" scenario and use the VCR growth as a means in which the aliens can infiltrate and infect the human population. How so? Well, whoever watches the video will become hypnotized/entranced/controlled by the secret message, and will turn into a crazed murderous freak! You all of the sudden have this sudden urge to kill anyone around you! Still, it's not as gruesome or bad as it sounds, and is instead a great deal of fun. Kevin Dillon (who starred later in the '88 version of "The Blob") isn't the best actor, and neither is anyone else in this flick, but that strangely adds to the charm. It's cheesy, it's meant to be cheesy, and all these years later it's even better - because now it's nostalgic 80's cheese. Love it!

I'd never heard of Remote Control, weirdly enough it got added to my watchlist out of curiosity when it was mentioned during the independent horror film The Bible Belt Slasher (2010)

Starring Matt Dillon it tells the story of a video tape doing the rounds at all the video stores that is making people lose control and kill those around them. Basically The Ring (2002) but really terrible, cheesy and not even remotely scary.

Remote Control is also the most 80's film I've ever seen, like they were intentionally going overboard with the decades style but not exactly explaining why.

The movie starts competently enough and even had a small role for the excellent Jennifer Tilly, but by the half way mark it's lost it's way.

Remote Control wasn't a very good concept to begin with, so combine that with some poor writing and you've got a mediocre film at best.

The Good:

Jennifer Tilly

The Bad:

Trails off really quite badly

Things I Learnt From This Movie:

Part of me really badly misses video stores

80's BDSM gear was awesome

Gunfire in the middle of a mall will get no reaction from shoppers

Guns are invisible to all those who aren't involved in the confrontation

Firemen will happily allow civilians to walk into a building they're currently working on

Cosmo DiClemente and Georgie are two video rental store employees.They discover that science-fiction film from early 50's called "Remote Control" contains subliminal mind-control messages that turn all viewers into mindless killers.Distribution of the film predates an upcoming alien invasion.I love Jeff Lieberman's "Squirm" and "Just Before Dawn",so it was the highest time to check out his "Remote Control".The film is a fun sci-fi/horror spoof with likable central performances by Kevin Dillon and Deborah Goodrich.The premise of killer videotapes is quite absurd,but the film works as a parody.It's not on par with fantastic "Just Before Dawn",though.7 aliens out of 10.

I watched this film because I love Jennifer Tilly but how could I have done such a mistake!It's even unthinkable that this movie is from '87.The script could have been set down better but it could be overseen if we aren't too pretentious.But what I can't forgive is the incredible bad acting performance what could have been a bit better(in my opinion)if the directing qualities were more professional.Anyway this was not the spot I suppose.They just wanted to give a popular sci-fi teen movie that fitted fine in that years.IF you want watch it if you're curious, eventually I did the same but if you avoid it it's better.

Aliens with knowledge of marketing and earthly hypes develop the brilliant plan of distributing an altered 50's Sci-Fi movie that holds the ability to brainwash its viewers through the television screen and turn them into mad-raving maniacs out to kill their own species. I tell you; only in the demented 80's decade some producer would actually consider pumping money into a goofy horror premise like this. "Remote Control" couldn't be more eighties if it tried to be (I'm actually surprised Duran Duran didn't sign for the soundtrack), but at the same time it's extremely amusing as long as you interpret the film like it should, namely as a light-headed spoof. The silliness of the plot, the over-the-top grotesque costumes, the cheesy sound and make-up effects and the tongue in cheek acting performances all clearly indicate that the film shouldn't be taken too seriously and that the whole thing is merely a big juicy wink at the so-called "video revolution" that boomed during the mid 80's. Any film that simultaneously parodies an entire cinematic sub genre (alien invasion flicks of the 50's) and an entire way of life (80's punks with crazy hairstyles and an awful taste in clothing) is at least worth a bit of praise, regardless of the overall tacky elaboration and the occasional dull moments in the screenplay. Kevin Dillon, Matt's less famous brother, looks and behaves exactly rebellious enough to accidentally stumble upon the aliens' fiendish conspiracy and to take on the battle. He works in a video store where the video, also called "Remote Control" is a tremendous success and together with his co-worker and a stereotypical 80's beauty they go after the distributors. The movie doesn't really offer quality material, but at least it's spirited and writer/director Jeff Lieberman surely always knows where to put the emphasis. Speaking of which, Lieberman undeniably was (is, in fact) one of the most peculiar contributors to the genre of horror during the 70's and 80's. I'm a big fan of his work, but he's still sadly under-appreciated and too often neglected. He didn't make that many films, but the premises were always strikingly original and refreshing. He served killer worms in "Squirm", bald and murderous LSD-trippers in "Blue Sunshine", backwoods rednecks in "Just Before Dawn" (admittedly not that innovating) and now – ladies and gentleman – the only horror movie ever to feature VCR-aliens! "Remote Control" flopped big-time during its initial release (I even read in an interview that the failure resulted in Lieberman's aversion to directing) and it's still incredibly obscure these days. Ironically enough, if "Remote Control" actually were an extraterrestrial project to take over our planet, it severely would have failed as hardly anyone bothered to rent it.

Remote Control (1987) was one of the many bad sci-fi films that came out during this time period. It also marked the use of many younger siblings of popular actors (Jennifer Tilly & Kevin Dillon). Well this is just another run-of-the-mill video fodder that revolves around the old "technology gone amok" scheme. Low budget, a bad script and wooden acting make this one null and void. Films like this are instantly dated and are gladly forgotten within a few years. Unless you're a huge fan of 80's movies this one is not worth a look.

Not recommended.

Take my advice, grab your remote and change the channel if this tripe ever shows up on your t.v. screen!

not the worst film ive ever seen, not by a long shot, but man, this was painful, this was bad, this was annoying! so many interesting films get labelled as misogynistic simply because they have women being murdered. well if ever a film deserved that title, this filmis that film! it has plenty of sexism to go around. the main character is little more than an annoying rambo wannabe, he seems to exist solely to get angry and abuse people, neither of which adds to the enjoyment of the film or the plot! the plot i might add is not particularly interesting, let alone striking or innovative. its not very original, it certainly has little to do with videodrome (as opposed to what other commentators might say) and is far to badly handled to ever inspire any thoughts on it being a fun nod to old b movies. irritating trash of the worst kind!

I like this film alot. It is quite like Videodrome in that the whole movie is obsessed with itself and also obsessed with video formats and makes references to the video revolution of the 1980's.

great concept plus great imagery: takes every-day 80's concepts that slowly meld into futuristic looking situations. E.g. girl in work-out clothes later looks futuristic... The idea that watching a video makes you crazy enough to kill is great...plus the fact that the video story is recursive...the story on the video is about people who watch a video...

It's one of the strangest movies I have seen and that's what's great about it

I have seen this movie on TV. When I was a kid, I was really into the Sci- Fi movies and I used to watch them whenever it was running on TV. This film was one of them.

It seems like low budget film, but the basic idea is so interesting. Even though this movie was made in 80's, most of scene are good except for several unnecessary and weird action. If some famous directors remake this, it will be fantastic. Also, the female actress, Deborah is so cute. She's not so popular in my country, but I know she was starred in April Fool's Day.

I've got this film recently. It was really hard, but it deserved it and reminded me of the old memory.

My review was written in August 1988 after watching the movie on International Video Entertainment video cassette.

"Remote Control" is an unsuccessful attempt to use the home video phenomenon as a plot peg for science fiction. Given the subject matter, pic appropriately has been released direct to video stores, bypassing the originally intended theatrical release step.

Kevin Dillon, Matt's bro (starring here before he topline "The Rescue" and "The Blob"), energetically portrays a clerk at a video store who unwittingly becomes the chief suspect, along with his boss Christopher Wynne, , in a murder case when a neighbor spots them at the crime scene.

Farfetched premise has aliens from Outer Space fabricating a film on video, a black & white feature purporting to be a sci-fi made in the '50s, which causes the viewer to see himself acting within the film and turns him into a homicidal maniac. Dillon's mission, on the lam with Wynne and his dream girl Deborah Goodrich, is to destroy all copies of the video and its manufacturing plant, run by Bert Remsen.

Helmer Jeff Lieberman, whose horror pic "Squirm" was an effective 1970s B title, does well with the b&w film-within-a-film footage (also titled "Remote Control"), but claustrophobic approach fails to elaborate on the basic storyline. Though opening title sets the action on "Earth 1987", Daniel Paredes' fanciful costumes create something of a parallel-world atmosphere. Various details ring false, particularly Dillon's memorizing the English-dubbed dialog from a video of Francois Truffaut's "Stolen Kisses" in order to impress (which he suceds in doing) Goodrich, a fan of that Antoine Doinel feature.

Cast, particularly Jennifer Tilly in a supporting role (with kookie hairdo and voice) as Dillon's new wave girlfriend, is peppy. Remsen previously was featured in a dissimilar sci-fi film about aliens invadiing via tv, "Terrorvision".