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Reviews with images
WHO was that masked (Robo) Man??? OK spy/sci-fier. More a curiosity than anything else.
BOTTOM LINE: An intriguing spy melodrama, with modest sci-fi overtones. Not great, not bad. Decent transfer and a few bonus goodies thrown in to sweeten the pot. Worth a look. 3 STARSTHE STORY: American scientist is mortally wounded in an automobile accident staged behind East Berlin's Iron Curtain. Soviet doctors use radical experimental cybernetic surgery to put the man back together, in the hopes of getting invaluable Top Secret info out of him. After six months, he is suddenly freed. But is the "man" returned to the Americans really the same person? Or is he a spy? Or... is he something else entirely?THOUGHTS: Adapted from the novel by Algis Budrys, WHO? is more of a cold war / spy thriller than a sci-fi film. The central character has been drastically altered surgically, and so the true heart of the movie deals with the ability (or inability) of U.S. agents to determine exactly who - or what - this cyborg is. The film is more of an introspective look into what really makes a person uniquely individual. Is it looks, knowledge, history, race? What? All of these things can either be copied or imitated to a certain degree... so what really is it that makes a person unique? Elliot Gould turns in a strong performance as Sean Rogers, the FBI agent determined to find out if the metal half-man is truly who he claims to be. British acting legend Trevor Howard is pretty good as crafty Soviet KGB agent Colonel Azarin, though his Germanic/Rooksie accent isn't fooling anybody. Joseph Bova, as cyborg scientist Lucas Martino, does an impressive job buried under some odd, unconvincing make-up. He carries the whole role with his voice and mannerisms, and his eyes. Technically speaking, the SPFX make-up is easily the film's weakest link. It looks goofy, archaic and obvious; really only a step or two up from the skullcap & silvery grease paint used to turn Jack Halley into The Wizard of Oz's "Tin Man." The look used on the cover of one of the novel's many printings would have made a much better design blueprint (see photo). The film is also known by the silly video re-release title ROBOMAN, which, in conjunction with some totally deceptive artwork & tagline changes, was used in a shameless attempt to trick people into thinking that WHO? was some kind of TERMINATOR/ROBOCOP action flick, which it most definitely is NOT. The cinematography & direction for WHO? are both solid, if somewhat flat. Lastly, I found the film's ending to be one I didn't expect, and while not "traditional" it was thought-provoking and pretty cool in its own right.THE BLU-RAY: The Kino Lorber release of WHO? sports a nice transfer. Video portion is very good, with essentially no artifacting, pixelation or crush. Solid color reproduction with no fading or smearing. The picture isn't as sharp as I'd prefer, but this was a remaster, not a restoration. It is what it is. Audio is level and strong. Bonus features include a few trailers and, most importantly, a nice full-length audio commentary with the film's director Jack Gold, who shares some interesting stories about the film and its production.
Top reviews from the United States
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Reviewed in the United States on May 8, 2023
Reviewed in the United States on January 26, 2017
THE STORY: American scientist is mortally wounded in an automobile accident staged behind East Berlin's Iron Curtain. Soviet doctors use radical experimental cybernetic surgery to put the man back together, in the hopes of getting invaluable Top Secret info out of him. After six months, he is suddenly freed. But is the "man" returned to the Americans really the same person? Or is he a spy? Or... is he something else entirely?
THOUGHTS: Adapted from the novel by Algis Budrys, WHO? is more of a cold war / spy thriller than a sci-fi film. The central character has been drastically altered surgically, and so the true heart of the movie deals with the ability (or inability) of U.S. agents to determine exactly who - or what - this cyborg is. The film is more of an introspective look into what really makes a person uniquely individual. Is it looks, knowledge, history, race? What? All of these things can either be copied or imitated to a certain degree... so what really is it that makes a person unique? Elliot Gould turns in a strong performance as Sean Rogers, the FBI agent determined to find out if the metal half-man is truly who he claims to be. British acting legend Trevor Howard is pretty good as crafty Soviet KGB agent Colonel Azarin, though his Germanic/Rooksie accent isn't fooling anybody. Joseph Bova, as cyborg scientist Lucas Martino, does an impressive job buried under some odd, unconvincing make-up. He carries the whole role with his voice and mannerisms, and his eyes. Technically speaking, the SPFX make-up is easily the film's weakest link. It looks goofy, archaic and obvious; really only a step or two up from the skullcap & silvery grease paint used to turn Jack Halley into The Wizard of Oz's "Tin Man." The look used on the cover of one of the novel's many printings would have made a much better design blueprint (see photo). The film is also known by the silly video re-release title ROBOMAN, which, in conjunction with some totally deceptive artwork & tagline changes, was used in a shameless attempt to trick people into thinking that WHO? was some kind of TERMINATOR/ROBOCOP action flick, which it most definitely is NOT. The cinematography & direction for WHO? are both solid, if somewhat flat. Lastly, I found the film's ending to be one I didn't expect, and while not "traditional" it was thought-provoking and pretty cool in its own right.
THE BLU-RAY: The Kino Lorber release of WHO? sports a nice transfer. Video portion is very good, with essentially no artifacting, pixelation or crush. Solid color reproduction with no fading or smearing. The picture isn't as sharp as I'd prefer, but this was a remaster, not a restoration. It is what it is. Audio is level and strong. Bonus features include a few trailers and, most importantly, a nice full-length audio commentary with the film's director Jack Gold, who shares some interesting stories about the film and its production.
WHO was that masked (Robo) Man??? OK spy/sci-fier. More a curiosity than anything else.
Reviewed in the United States on January 26, 2017
BOTTOM LINE: An intriguing spy melodrama, with modest sci-fi overtones. Not great, not bad. Decent transfer and a few bonus goodies thrown in to sweeten the pot. Worth a look. 3 STARSReviewed in the United States on January 26, 2017
THE STORY: American scientist is mortally wounded in an automobile accident staged behind East Berlin's Iron Curtain. Soviet doctors use radical experimental cybernetic surgery to put the man back together, in the hopes of getting invaluable Top Secret info out of him. After six months, he is suddenly freed. But is the "man" returned to the Americans really the same person? Or is he a spy? Or... is he something else entirely?
THOUGHTS: Adapted from the novel by Algis Budrys, WHO? is more of a cold war / spy thriller than a sci-fi film. The central character has been drastically altered surgically, and so the true heart of the movie deals with the ability (or inability) of U.S. agents to determine exactly who - or what - this cyborg is. The film is more of an introspective look into what really makes a person uniquely individual. Is it looks, knowledge, history, race? What? All of these things can either be copied or imitated to a certain degree... so what really is it that makes a person unique? Elliot Gould turns in a strong performance as Sean Rogers, the FBI agent determined to find out if the metal half-man is truly who he claims to be. British acting legend Trevor Howard is pretty good as crafty Soviet KGB agent Colonel Azarin, though his Germanic/Rooksie accent isn't fooling anybody. Joseph Bova, as cyborg scientist Lucas Martino, does an impressive job buried under some odd, unconvincing make-up. He carries the whole role with his voice and mannerisms, and his eyes. Technically speaking, the SPFX make-up is easily the film's weakest link. It looks goofy, archaic and obvious; really only a step or two up from the skullcap & silvery grease paint used to turn Jack Halley into The Wizard of Oz's "Tin Man." The look used on the cover of one of the novel's many printings would have made a much better design blueprint (see photo). The film is also known by the silly video re-release title ROBOMAN, which, in conjunction with some totally deceptive artwork & tagline changes, was used in a shameless attempt to trick people into thinking that WHO? was some kind of TERMINATOR/ROBOCOP action flick, which it most definitely is NOT. The cinematography & direction for WHO? are both solid, if somewhat flat. Lastly, I found the film's ending to be one I didn't expect, and while not "traditional" it was thought-provoking and pretty cool in its own right.
THE BLU-RAY: The Kino Lorber release of WHO? sports a nice transfer. Video portion is very good, with essentially no artifacting, pixelation or crush. Solid color reproduction with no fading or smearing. The picture isn't as sharp as I'd prefer, but this was a remaster, not a restoration. It is what it is. Audio is level and strong. Bonus features include a few trailers and, most importantly, a nice full-length audio commentary with the film's director Jack Gold, who shares some interesting stories about the film and its production.
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