This time it's Dennis Quaid's turn to get miniaturised and injected (into a bunny this time round) for experimental purposes, except he doesn't quite get there...

Quaid, as test pilot Tuck Pendelton, is a great old-fashioned movie hero here, a cross between a young Jack Nicholson and Harrison Ford, and at this stage in his career it looked like that's where he was headed.
The real hero of the piece, however, is the inestimable Martin Short, who plays meek supermarket clerk Jack Putter, an absolute dweeb whose life is turned upside down by the accidental addition of Tuck into his bloodstream.

Short is physically and verbally hilarious as he goes through panic, confusion and eventually sheer heroism, spurred on by this 'alien' presence inside him. Plus there's Meg Ryan in a typically goofy 80's role for added fun.

The action never lets up and the effects are spectacular (and hey, no CGI in sight!) building to the (literally) breathless climax in Short's oesophagus (er, that didn't come out right), as Tuck does battle with another miniaturised craft set to destroy him.

As it's a Joe Dante film, it has all the director's trademarks; actors Robert Picardo (as the hysterical Cowboy; "Women love me"), Dick Miller (as a grumpy taxi driver), cartoonist Chuck Jones, Henry Gibson, plus the usual quota of film references, in-jokery and repeat-viewing-worthy gags (check out how many references there are to rabbits or Alice in Wonderland). Not to mention a cracking, heart-thumping score by Jerry Goldsmith, the John Williams to Dante's Spielberg.

What more could anyone ask? It's silly, it's fun, it really is a fantastic voyage. And on DVD, that picture and sound is going to be jugular-poundingly good. Relive the fun!!

Spielberg-like roller-coaster.
Review date: 2000-11-19 Rating: 6 out of 10

This film brings to mind the immortal remark of Harrison Ford in "Raiders of the Lost Ark" who, when asked what he was going to do next, replies "I dunno, I'm making this up as I go along." Whilst I have no doubt that the abrupt and witty plot twists were all carefully scripted and planned at the outset, the production techniques, and particulary the editing (or, indeed, the apparent lack of it), certainly give the viewer the impression of spontaneity and helps to add to the unpredictability and ultimate enjoyment. The playing, particularly in the lead parts, nicely complements the effect, such that we feel that the actors are as much in the dark as to the development of the story as we are. The casting, of course, helps here - Short, in possibly his funniest film role to date, has always seemed completely aloof of what's going on around him, and Ryan is at her cookiest. Quaid's character does have some influence on the plot but even this is reactionary to other happenings.

Quaid's performance is perhaps the most intriguing of them all as he manages to bring his charisma through despite the fact that he spends the largest part of his screen time strapped into the cockpit of the miniaturised pod which is injected into Short in a moment of emergency at the beginning of the picture. This means that he is unable to bring a great degree of animation or action to his own performance. This, however, is overcome in two ways - firstly, by virtue of Quaid's ability to bring life and feeling to his character from his trapped position - and secondly, by his character's potential for controlling Short's bodily functions. For the most part, this is done for comic effect (similar in content to the Steve Martin/Loly Tomlin vehicle "All of Me"), but it is also done at times with pathos, in such a way as Short can be a substitute for Quaid, his thoughts, emotions and actions.

The support playing, by comparison, is adequate (although it is always pleasing to see the legendary Kevin McCarthy, albeit here in a rather self-effacing role), but the films succeeds as a result of the interaction of its comedy, its special effects and its apparent spontaneity, all pulled together by director Dante in a typically Spielberg-like roller-coaster way.

Product Details/Specifications