Videodrome
Videodrome Image
Metascore
60 out of 100

Mixed or average reviews - based on 6 Critics What's this?

User Score
8.2 out of 10

Universal acclaim- based on 17 Ratings

Your Score
0 out of 10
Rate this:
  • Starring: Deborah Harry, James Woods
  • Summary: Sci-fi horror filmmaker David Cronenberg's diabolical invader is a television show that seduces and controls its viewers. Featuring rock star Deborah Harry (in her first major film) as a kinky hostess, James Woods as a cable programmer looking for the ultimate in viewing thrills, and special make-up effects by Oscar-winner Rick Baker, Videodrome is a pulsating science fiction nightmare about a world where video can control and alter human life. (Universal)… Expand
  • Director: David Cronenberg
  • Genre(s): Sci-Fi, Mystery, Thriller, Fantasy, Horror
  • Rating: R
  • Runtime: 87 min
  • More Details and Credits »

Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 4 out of 6
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 6
  3. Negative: 1 out of 6
  1. TV Guide
    Reviewed by: Staff (Not credited)
    88
    A fascinating rumination on humanity, technology, entertainment, sex, and politics that is virtually incomprehensible on first viewing and needs to be seen several times before one can even begin to unlock its mysteries. (Review of Original Release)
  2. The A.V. Club
    Reviewed by: Scott Tobias
    80
    Its dense mysteries remain more tantalizing than distancing: No other director integrates the creepy with the cerebral quite like Cronenberg. (Review of DVD 9/13/04)
  3. Chicago Reader
    Reviewed by: Dave Kehr
    40
    Never coherent and frequently pretentious, the film remains an audacious attempt to place obsessive personal images before a popular audience--a kind of Kenneth Anger version of "Star Wars." (Review of Original Release)
  4. Chicago Sun-Times
    Reviewed by: Roger Ebert
    Oct 5, 2012
    38
    The characters are bitter and hateful, the images are nauseating, and the ending is bleak enough that when the screen fades to black it's a relief.. Videodrome, whatever its qualities, has got to be one of the least entertaining films of all time.
    All this critic's reviews

See all 6 Critic Reviews

User Reviews

Write a Review
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 4 out of 4
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 4
  3. Negative: 0 out of 4
  1. BlancoA.
    10
    Death to Videodrome! Long live the new flesh! (Great freakin' movie).
  2. AdamA.
    10
    One of the coolest movies ever. Classic Cronenberg. Creepy and original. I compare it to Halloween...this movie keeps your eyes wide open the whole way through.… Expand
  3. monkeybrainspit
    9
    If you fiend for a perfect balance of Fantasy and Sci-Fi, Videodrome delivers.

    "Civic TV. The one you take to bed with you." are the first wo    rds blaring out of the television in Max Renn's apartment - seeming to take the quote almost literally. Max runs a TV channel during the day and seems like he doesn't get much of a break from his duties at home.

    Max Renn, played by the legendary James Woods, is always on the lookout for new cheap erotic thrills to broadcast on his channel and finds what he is looking for when he is called by an employee to view a transmission for a show called "Videodrome".

    Obsessed with trying to get the series on his channel, Max inadvertently reels in his girlfriend Nikki Brand (Deborah Harry) to it's bizarre sado-masochistic wonders and is caught between his want to know more and his fear in its meaning.

    Direction: 8/10 (David Cronenberg keeps pace with our emotions and intrigue as he draws us in)
    Cinematography: 10/10 (Mark Irwin keeps Videodrome seeping out of our TVs for the duration)
    Editing: 8/10 (Roland Sanders delivers once again, as he did with the Fly, intensifying every shot)
    Acting: 8/10 (James Woods gets help from great performances by Peter Dvorsky and Sonja Smits)
    Dialogue: 9/10 (Most of the time Cronenberg's script just wants to get straight to the point)
    Sound: 9/10 (Michael Jay does a great mix-down of all the elements and keeps them in-tact)
    Effects: 10/10 (Rick Baker, involved in "American Werewolf...",makes part of a uniquely creative team)
    Art Direction: 10/10 (Carol Spier authenticates Videodrome's creepiness with matching sets) Costumes: 10/10 (Delphine White makes it all work with simple 80s fashion and a touch of bad)
    Music and/or Score: 10/10 (I'm looking for more of Howard Shore's work after hearing the main theme)

    Total Score: 92/100

    The cast was well chosen and, surprisingly, suits James Woods perfectly.
    It really is an enjoyable experience and doesn't bore you with too much dialogue or cheap scares.
    So prepare to get your Fantasy/Sci-Fi fix and let Videodrome into your mind's eye. Long live the flesh!    … Expand
  4. VerbalCant
    6
    Some food for thought, but not as much as I had hoped. Continually strives to take the plot where you're not expecting, which is meritorious, but unfulfilling. Falls short of greatness, and has dated badly. The future turned out to be a whole lot worse than even David C could imagine.… Expand

Current Movie Releases

Full List »
  1. Star Trek Into Darkness
    Metascore: 72
  2. Fast & Furious 6
    Metascore: 62
  3. Iron Man 3
    Metascore: 62
  4. 42
    Metascore: 62
  5. Evil Dead (2013)
    Metascore: 57
  6. Oblivion
    Metascore: 54
  7. The Great Gatsby
    Metascore: 54
  8. Pain & Gain
    Metascore: 43
  9. G.I. Joe: Retaliation
    Metascore: 41
  10. The Host
    Metascore: 35
  11. The Hangover Part III
    Metascore: 31
  12. Tyler Perry's Temptation
    Metascore: 27
  13. Scary Movie 5
    Metascore: 11
All Current Movies »