Brainstorm (1983)

Information

Siskoid
When I was 12, I went to see Brainstorm. It freaked me out and stayed with me these last 35 years. How would it compare? Well, it still works as a hard science fiction tale in which Christopher Walken and Louise Fletcher invent the technology to record and share sensations, feelings, memories and skills. The implications of such tech, good, bad and metaphysical are explored, sometimes without exposition that would put too obvious a bow on it (like how Walken's character revitalizes his marriage with Natalie Wood's, here in her last role before her untimely death). It's perhaps unfortunate that the movie turns into a thriller later on, but it's still an engaging one. Screen ratio changes meant to make recorded memories more immersive kind of look wonky on television (weirdly, it's the normal world that seems off until you get used to the convention), and probably why the film had such an effect on me at a young age. As an adult, still some thought-provoking SF. 6 years 3 months ago