Linbeymusol Wonderful character development!

Softwing Most undeservingly overhyped movie of all time??

filippaberry84 I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

Brooklynn There's a more than satisfactory amount of boom-boom in the movie's trim running time.

gwnightscream James Woods, Deborah Harry and Les Carlson star in David Cronenberg's 1983 sci-fi/horror film. Woods (Vampires) plays Max Renn, a manager of an x-rated TV station. Soon, he stumbles onto a mysterious program, "Videodrome" which consists of real violence & torture. Max starts to feel strange after viewing it and his reality changes. Harry (Blondie) plays Nicki Brand, a radio shrink who Max gets involved with and the late, Carlson plays Barry Convex, the producer of Videodrome plus Carlson also worked with Cronenberg in "The Dead Zone" and "The Fly." This is a bizarre 80's flick, Woods is good in it and Rick Baker's make-up effects are terrific as usual. Give this one a try at least once.

MartinHafer I do understand in some ways what the film was trying to say. I also know that it's been praised and many consider it an exceptional film. However, I tried watching it tonight and ended up turning it off about halfway through the movie. Why? Because the extremely violent images were very disturbing...especially because I am sure folks enjoyed watching this. You see folks being tortured, a woman getting off with some VERY realistic masochistic behaviors (involving needles, burning herself and more) and after a while it just was too much. And, at that point I just said to myself...'how much of this can I take and SHOULD I even keep watching?'. Seeing folks brutalized just isn't my cup of tea...especially when it's combined with pornographic images and sex. Perhaps I am too squeamish, but life is too short for me to fill my mind with such stuff and I do not plan on trying to watch this one again...once was enough...so you are forewarned.

Michael_Elliott Videodrome (1983) *** (out of 4) Max Renn (James Woods) is a television programmer who looks for shows to play on his sleazy station. One day a pirated video signal is hacked where he sees people being tortured. There's no plot or anything like that and soon he realizes that the show, Videodrome, is real but it's much more deadlier than just that.David Cronenberg's VIDEODROME is yet another very strange and surreal movie from the Canadian director who by this time had a strong reputation for delivering films unlike anything you had seen before. I must admit that the first time I watched this film I really hated it for a number of reasons but this second viewing had me appreciating it a lot more. Obviously the film is very much original and it's certainly unlike anything you've seen before and the journey you go on is quite entertaining.Viewing the film today you can't help but see the satire that is right there in front of you. Of course there's an underlying message about television having certain messages in it that can pollute ones brain and you can't help but think this here has pretty much came true. Another thing Cronenberg does wonders with is the message of whether or not watching such trash has an impact on the one watching it. VIDEODROME is full of bizarre images of violence with some of it being realistic with other bits so far-fetched but at the same time the director manages to make you believe what you're watching. The various scenes with Woods and his stomach are top-notch work from Rick Baker.It also helps that you've got such a strong cast here with Woods doing a very good job in the lead role. Not only is he believable in the role of this sleazy exec he just makes you feel that you're watching a real guy who finds himself losing control and his mind. Deborah Harry is also good in her role as is Jack Creley, Lynne Gorman and Sonja Smits. The special effects are wonderful, there's a terrific atmosphere and the music score puts you just in the right frame of mind for the material.

Leofwine_draca Wow! After the highs of Scanners, Cronenberg delivers a much different movie in which Baker's special effects merely complement the story. It's certainly one of Cronenberg's weirdest movies, considering that it involves kinky sex, bizarre hallucinations, and a national conspiracy to control the public. Yet these factors and more combine to make VIDEODROME a unique, compelling, and ultimately disturbing movie with a wonderful premise.James Woods is on top form once again (does this man ever give a bad performance?) as the seedy boss of a cable show who's always looking for new kicks. In this day and age, softcore pornography isn't enough and Woods wants something harder. Into his life comes the alluring Debbie Harry, who seduces him by stubbing out a cigarette on her breast. However, soon she is gone again and Woods is left alone in his apartment to become obsessed and hypnotised by the disturbing video tapes he has in his possession.The first notable special effect shows a video cassette pulsating and is completely shocking and unexpected. Things get more and more elaborate from here. Woods' television set becomes a living, breathing organism and he manages to stick his head through the screen before waking up the next morning, his mind a mess. Throughout the film, wilder things happen, like Woods sticking a gun and then a tape into a cavity in his stomach. In the end it turns out that it's all part of a plan for public domination and that Woods is a test subject.There are some great characters in this film to support the excellent Woods in his lead. I especially liked Brian O'Blivion, a character who communicates only through the television screen. Elsewhere we have a nerdish associate of Woods, a pushy secretary, and the creepy proprietor of the show. Things culminate in some astonishing bloody scenes at the end which are often jaw-dropping. Seen today, Cronenberg's film seems quite prophetic in detailing how television can be used to control a nation and the importance it plays in our lives. The idea is sound and if viewers can get over the abstract, complex nature of the film then I'm sure they'll find themselves enjoying it. VIDEODROME is certainly a clever, shocking and disturbing horror movie with an original idea and fine execution from the master of the grotesque.