Electric Dreams

source: Electric Dreams

Electric Dreams is a quirky '80's film that has remained one of my favorites from that decade. The story of a boy, a girl, and a computer trying to find the meaning of love could have easily been a ridiculously campy movie, but instead is played out with a lighthearted sincerity. Lenny Von Dolen's portrayal of architect Miles Harding is done well, conveying the feelings of insecurity and wonder of falling in love for the first time, and Virginia Madsen's performance as would-be girlfriend Madeline equally shines. The movie is shot more like a music video (Director Steve Barron also worked on Michael Jackson's "Billie Jean" video), and while there have been plenty of films that have used similar "MTV-style" techniques in the '90's, this was an unpioneered format at the time, and it seems to work the best here. The set design is great, the scene pacing doesn't drag on, and the sentiment is in the right place so that viewers can laugh at the humorous parts and relate during the romantic scenes. The music soundtrack is also top-notch, with music from Culture Club, Jeff Lynne, Heaven 17 and Giorgio Moroder. The computer technology and the commercials set this movie firmly in the early '80's, which may make it seem a little dated, but the overall story still holds up well and is fun. Electric Dreams is an enjoyable romantic fantasy that a lot of people may have missed when it was first released (even more so since the film seems to be out of print), but for those wanting to see something a little different, this may be what you've been looking for.

This movie is cute and easy to watch. I was channel surfing at 3am and found this movie about to start and delightfully watched it to the end. It shows off San Francisco and illustrates it's beauty. Virginia Madsen has never been so pretty and innocent. She's the real draw even though the story is enchanting and before it's time. The premise would have been obvious to have today with actual AI systems now operational and talking computers easy to imagine. In fact when the guy visits a store an Apple computer box is on the shelf. It's no wonder that the year this movie was released the little Mac that could was too. I wonder still today if Steve Jobs had any input on this movie. Recommend seeing this movie. The computer's personality is great and the ending is one that would make any engineer tear up or technician cheer.

I remember back in the l970s I saw a TV film with Bill Bixby in which he had a computer that fell in love with his girlfriend and composed poems for Bixby to give to her. I thought that's what Electric Dreams was based on, but haven't heard anyone admit that's the way it came about. But anyway..... Electric Dreams is one of those films that even with some slightly dated technology in it (circa 1984, and even for this film some of the technology is stuff most people don't have in their homes yet!) the story and its effectiveness are timeless. It has a very strong European influence to it that I appreciated--director Steve Barron has a true flair for combining nice visuals and story without each element bogging the other down. Miles (Lenny Von Dohlen) buys a computer to help in his quest to design the perfect earthquake-proof brick. He spills a drink on the keyboard, giving it life in the form of the voice Edgar (Bud Cort). In the meantime, cellist Madeline (Virginial Madsen) moves in upstairs and guess who starts to like Madeline a LOT?.... Several elements make this a winner: The fact that the lead actors Lenny Von Dohlen and Virginia Madsen were cast (relatively unknown actors then) instead of flavor-of-the-month ones. Bud Cort was a brilliant choice for the voice of Edgar in the computer. The music was obviously lesser known to mainstream U.S. audiences but well loved in Europe. Culture Club was a bit established, but artists like Heaven 17, Jeff Lynne (of ELO), Philip Oakey (of Human League), P.P. Arnold, and Helen Terry gave the film a great atmosphere with original songs that still hold up quite well today (yes, the soundtrack is available as an import on CD). I'm proud to say I have the 12" remixes of the songs "Together In Electric Dreams," "Now You're Mine," and "Video" as well as the soundtrack. You don't have to exclusively like romance stories to enjoy this film. It has a little of everything for everyone, and invites repeated viewings. It's charming, will make you laugh, and I dare you to not get a little teary-eyed when the phrase "I LOVE YOU ...ME" appears on the computer screen to the beautiful music piece "Madeline's Theme" from Giorgio Moroder. Two scenes in particular will have you feeling exhilarated--when Madeline and Edgar do a musical duet of a familiar classical piece, and the ending where the song "Together In Electric Dreams" is bringing everyone in the city of San Francisco to their feet dancing. It will give you a rather overwhelming feeling of joy, and a completely satisfying ending. Just make sure to view all the way through the credits, there's a little surprise after them! At the time this review was written, Electric Dreams is only on out-of-print VHS in the United States, but is available on a European region 2 DVD. MGM had been reissuing tons of films on DVD with no frills (except mislabled releases like Swamp Thing--not PG but actually the European cut, and Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2--not actually R but the unrated cut) and I plead with them that when this one is ever issued in the DVD format, that we are given some extras like an audio commentary and behind the scenes features. There must be some very wonderful stories to tell about this charming film and the loyal following it has. As the tagline on the original cover read, it's "The most unusual triangle in the history of love." If only more people could be brought together like this and fall in love, the world would be a brighter place! "Open up your eyes and you will see, love is love is everything to me..."

Now if that summary didn't totally confuse you, I am glad! This is a movie I saw when I was in college and, while I would freely admit it was a really silly and dopey film, it still had a lot of charm and I'm glad I saw it. In particular, I loved the music--even the stuff from (yuck) Boy George. The Giorgio Moroder theme was great and Jeff Lynne's songs were FAR better than the lousy songs he contributed to the rotten film, XANADU. The other contributors also did a good job. I even went so far as to pick up a copy of the album. Lenny von Dohlen and Virginia Madsen were both fine in the movie--he as a nerdy and hopeless nice guy and she as a beautiful cellist. The ULTRA-STRANGE plot involves Lenny buying a home computer than soon begins showing evidence of a personality. Ultimately, the computer and Lenny fall for Madsen and it is all wrapped together for a happy ending (what else?). Strange yes, but also rather watchable. And, as an interesting curio from the mid-80s, it's worth a look!

I was subjected to this film during tenth grade computer studies class, and it was alright, but definitely nothing to spend any money to watch. It tells the rather quirky tale of a man, Miles, who manages supposedly to win the favour of his next-door neighbour, Madeline, through beautiful music that is played by his intelligent, state-of-the-art computer, with its own built-in personality. The problem, of course, is that the intelligent computer then competes with Miles as to who gets the girl. Emotions run high, as you would obviously expect. It's an interesting look at the computer age from the early, formulative stages of it but these days it really does look quite silly and dated. It's nothing more than your average take on man vs. machine and the tension never really grips you. The direction is mediocre, as are the performances, and the 'special effects' regarding the computer are frankly feeble, even for its time. I think the only people who could really get anything from this film are computer lovers, or romance lovers, but it's just another flick for everybody else. ** / *****

Steve Barron's "Electric Dreams" will almost certainly be one of the hardest movies to find, but if you can you should definitely check it out. It got released around the time when computers were starting to become part of everyone's lives, and it seems to be predicting just how much these devices would come to dominate our lives. Lenny Von Dohlen (never heard of him until I saw this movie) plays an architect who buys a computer to get better organized, but an unexpected event turns the thing into a sillier version of HAL...especially after the owner falls for his musician neighbor (a young Virginia Madsen). At once piece of light entertainment and a look at relationships, this movie does it just right. Some scenes are probably just comic relief, like the concert, but the computer does teach the man a good lesson about life. You're bound to love what the computer does in the movie's last scene. All in all, a really fun movie. I can't believe that it's out of print while tons of boring movies get special edition DVDs. Definitely check it out if you can. Watch for a young Miriam Margolyes as a ticket taker.

Electric Dreams (1984) is a good fun film about a geeky office worker Miles Harding who has problems with his organisation skills and buys a computer to help him out. Meanwhile Miles has a new neighbour in the form of Madeline (Madsen), Miles soon falls in love with Madeline and the pair start dating. Everything seems to be going OK for Miles but there is a problem, his COMPUTER!!!! The Computer called Edgar is alive and jealous of the relationship, he too has fallen in love with Madeline and will do anything to wreck the relationship, he wants Madeline all to himself, funny stuff!!! The film has a really good 80's feel about it and has a brilliant soundtrack, the film itself would be average but it's a lot better than average thanks to the computer. Edgar the computer makes this movie a winner and a guilty pleasure!!! Highly recommended for fans of 80's movies, 7/10 for Electric Dreams.

I'm not into hate comments, but this time I had to. I mean I even watched Megalodon till the end to be sure my rating would be based on the whole film. At first I thought 2 would be okay because the lead actress is hot and the song during the credits is fine, but then the film is too weak to deserve a 2 (even a 1 to be honest). This film officially ranks as one (THE ONE) of the worst films I have ever seen, from dreadful acting, abysmal plot... of course the most dreadful of all this is Edgar's abilities, I mean the premises of a lot of science fiction films are easier to believe than that. Don't watch, don't rent, don't allow anyone to watch it, even if you hate them.

If you really LIVED the 1980's, "Electric Dreams" will probably bring back endless memories for you. For everyone else, this little bit of film magic is a quintessential period piece from the decade of decadence. It's worth seeing for anyone who appreciates movies that perfectly represent the time in which they were made (a la "Saturday Night Fever" to the late 70's, or "Singles" to the early 90's) San Francisco residents take note of the special cameos from old KJY DJs at the end of the film. The soundtrack is just as poppy and fun as the movie, including rare new wave gems from Culture Club, Human League, Jeff Lynne, Heaven 17 and more. The "dream sequence" in the middle of the film is still suprisingly moving to me. In spite of the hokey plot and computer animation that is downright archaic by todays standards, they don't really make em like this anymore. Catch it while you can.