Videodrome

The film is interesting also because Deborah Harry appears in one of the main female roles here, perhaps better known as Debbie Harry, the lead singer of the band Blondie. And she looks good with dark hair too. Cronenberg succeeded with the film, it is a beautiful example of the influence media can have on us, how our brain connects with the images that are served to us daily, and we constantly want more and more and more. But we can never get enough. The final loop is proof of that. (2013-11-22)

A solid wacky ride from the 1980s made by a madman, which plays homage to the VHS. That’s how I’d describe Videodrome in a nutshell. James Woods played his weirdo with so much passion that every time he goggled his eyes on the screen made me fear for my life, and every time some guts were spilled I felt incredible disgust. A solid horror movie in the vein of Carpenter’s The Thing, in comparable quality. (2019-07-23)

Big disappointment. Unlike The Brood, for instance, Videodrome is not intense enough. Cronenberg keeps his feet incredibly close to the ground and we don’t get anything special from all the possibilities offered by the topic of hallucinations, which is utterly unexploited (yeah, the cassette in the belly is interesting, but can’t be called brutal, disgusting or shocking, as other users have written). Unlike David’s other films, this one keeps the viewer at arm’s length and never brings them into the story, which takes place only on screen instead of within the viewer. Totally depersonalised and neutral, this time for also the viewer. (2008-04-22)

The film is violent and detailed, but also unnecessarily brittle and superficial, applying basic Cronenbergian clichés to its inherently interesting and schematically rich idea. In its time it may have been strongly timeless physical horror thanks to its direct depiction of taboo scenes and their symbolically destructive effects on the human psyche, nowadays, however, it’s a rather outdated presentation of 80’s genre hype with zero effect on the slightly more jaded viewer, whose unreadable plot still doesn't lose its impact, but the untapped potential of the hallucinogenic and severely depressing subject matter is felt more and more noticeably. (2016-07-14)

A very distinctive allegory of the psychological deformation and gradual destruction of a man affected by the sight of the greatest taboo. Videodrome could have been filmed in dozens of different ways. David Cronenberg chose the one that suits him best – bloody, repulsive, physically literal. Whether you accept his directorial language or not, there is one thing that you cannot deny – this film is stimulating, mysterious and maximally unpredictable, though it’s still not as captivating as his best works. (2003-05-23)