Key Movies Of My Life: Innerspace (1987)

A little bit Fantastic Journey, a little bit The right Stuff, a touch of Ant-Man and a lot of humor.   This is a film by Joe Dante produced by Steven Spielberg, with a great cast, this is Innerspace.

Todays Key Movie:

Lt Tuck Pendleton (Dennis Quaid) is down on his luck and ready to resign.  He hasn’t had a chance to fly a mission in some time, he just lost his girlfriend Lydia (Meg Ryan) and knows he needs to change before he loses everything else.  He soon joins a top secret project where is miniaturized and ends up injected into Store Clerk Jack Putter (Martin Short) who is anything but heroic, in fact he is a nervous hypochondriac who is afraid of everything.  Soon they find themselves being chased by a rival group determined to kill Pendleton and steal the project out from under them.

Why this movie?

As a kid, I was very into SciFi, in fact, any science fiction film made was one I had to see.  When someone like Spielberg got involved, I wanted to see it even more.  At the time, Spielberg was known for producing fun films that were also as intriguing as they were humorous.  They tended to have a lighthearted nature that was missing in most films.  From movies like Goonies, Batteries Not Included, Gremlins, and more, there was always an innocence to the films he produced and this one is no different.

I never saw this film in theaters but I don’t think many did to be honest.  I remember renting it on VHS though and man I watched it a lot! It is an adventure, but it is goofy, fun and a little insane, and that is what makes it a unique experience.

Okay, you like this film, but is it really a ‘good film’?

I love Dennis Quaid as an actor and when he teamed up with Martin Short in a Steven Spielberg production, how could I resist such a film.  Add in some cool humorous sci fi fun directed by Joe Dante, this is all but perfect in every way.  Mixing humor and Sci-Fi was nothing new at the time but his one manages to do it in a unique way. While the lead of the film is Tuck Pendleton (Quaid), the hero is the hapless Jack Putter (Short).  He carries most of the film himself with Quaid only showing up as a voice or in the scenes where we see him inside of Short.  Short is nothing short of amazing (no pun intended) in his role of Jack.  He gets a chance to really show his range as he has to get out of his comfort zone of comedy and get into a little more action.  Short pulls it off admirably seeming almost possessed by the microscopic Quaid.

Meg Ryan also shines in this film, starring as Tuck’s on-again/off-again girlfriend. She proves herself to be much more as she plays a wiley reporter who can certainly hold her own.  In addition to Meg, the villain of the film is played by none other than Kevin McCarthy who plays the vile Victor Scrimshaw.  He is great as always and really pulls off the roll well. There are also a ton of fantastic cameos throughout the film, including the awesome Robert Picardo (of Star Trek fame) who plays The Cowboy, as well as Henry Gibson, William Schallert, Joe Flaherty and even Chuck Jones.

On the technical side, the special effects still hold up.  While the computers are dated, the visuals of the microscopic ship Tuck pilots still looks great. Most of this is due to the use of practical effects and, to me, that is always the best way to go.

All in all, this is a fun film that is really safe for the whole family.  It is certainly one of my favorites and will be for many years to come.

OK, where do I get this movie?

You can pick this one up on bluray for around $15, and you can also get a digital copy for around the same price.   If you want a fun film that will keep you entertained, this one is certainly the one you want.

Of course, the trailer:

Late To The Game 08/02/2018

Thank you for reading today.  I hope you enjoyed the review. If you would like to read more reviews I have a weekly series called Key Movies Of My Life that comes out every Thursday and also a complete review of Star Trek Discovery.  We also have a fun Retro TV Review series in which we are currently reviewing the entire Star Trek The Next Generation Series, episode by episode.

As always, please feel free to comment below and share your experiences with these movies as well. If you just happened by, tell me what you think! Don’t Forget To Follow me if you like the blog!