MINORITY REPORT [2002]

Minority Report is another film from Steven Spielberg's cold, cynical period that saw the director shitting the bed in the final 15 minutes of every project from those mixed days.
Loosely based upon Philip K. Dick's neo-noir short story of the same name, it follows a world where the crime of murder can be foreseen by law enforcement but is put into question when one of it's leading officers is accused of murder himself.
There's plenty of tantalizing ideas and themes thrown around but it's all wrapped around a rather soulless heart that makes it difficult to attach oneself to.  There's several moments of astonishing camera-work, imaginative action sequences and icy yet fascinating visuals that all matches Dick's Cold War paranoia story to a tee.  So maybe it might have been an even more successful adaptation if it were done for an anthology television series instead.

3 spider-bots out of 5

Class of 1999 (1990)

Mark L. Lester returned to campus for a spiritual sequel to his Class of 1984 (1982) film, but second time out he went sci-fi.
A Seattle high school secretly installs three military surplus battle droids as tutors with directives that enable them to dish out disciplinary measures on the spot like a less law abiding Robocop. It's a reversal of sorts from 1984; before it was the students who were to be feared, now it's the teachers.
A youth named Cody Culp, a typical young adult anti-hero, steps up to the mark, but Cody's past makes rallying the troops difficult.
The film's more ambitious than '84 and had a budget that wasn't much higher.
It's ironic good fun seeing Malcolm McDowell as a school authority figure.

3½ negative reinforcements out of 5

Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins (1985)

This entertaining action-adventure comedy suffers from being a tad overlong. A New York street cop's death is staged and he is promptly given a new face and identity. As Remo Williams (Fred Ward, with an attitude), he is trained to be a super solder for the government. The old Korean master who trains him is a hoot. (I later learned he was played by a white guy. ) Despite the title, the film was a box-office disaster and all plans for any further adventures were shelved.

Fun if you're in the mood for a nostalgia trip back to the early '80s.

3 creepy guys clapping out of 5