I have over 100 movies in my "too be watched" pile. I know there are some good ones in there but for some reason I am drawn to the crap. If you can believe it, CYBERNATOR is worse than the crap. You've heard of bottom of the barrel? Well, if you pick up that barrel and dig about 10 feet into the ground that is where you will find CYBERNATOR.
The future is now and, oddly enough, it looks a lot like the late 80s. Director Robert Rundle definitely shot CYBERNATOR on the fast and cheap. He uses rote camera setups and has a stiff directorial style that would make Amir (SAMURAI COP) Shervan jealous. Sets are re-dressed over and over to appear as different rooms (the tops of the flats can even be seen sometimes). However, shoddiness can be forgiven if a clever script is used. Keep dreaming. The script, by Rundle and producer/co-star Ed Sanchez, features amazingly cliché and laughable dialogue exchanges. My favorite:
Snitching lab assistant: "Meet me at the alley way at Hollywood and Vine."
All knowing cop: "Yeah, we know the place."
Lead Lonnie Schuyler is hands down the worst actor I have ever seen. Seriously, my dog conveys emotions better. Looking like a cross between Corey Feldman and John Stamos (and sporting some big 80s hair to boot), Schuyler delivers some of the funniest facial expression while trying to act dramatic. You would think he is acting in a spoof the way he acts. Schuyler is complemented in the horrific acting department by female lead Christina Peralta as love interest/lounge singer Blue. Her swaying during a lip synched musical number is a sight to behold. Also, watch for the scene where they surreptitiously break into a building at nighttime and she is wearing a black turtle neck and short jean shorts. The only saving grace is the reliable William Smith as evil Colonel Peck. While his screen time ads up to just under 10 minutes, Smith's gruff voice is a welcome reprieve from the amateur hour on display. I hope he was paid and paid well.
Amazingly, director Robert Russell failed upwards and went on to make more films. Also noteworthy in his cinematic canon is the trash classic THE DIVINE ENFORCER (1992) starring Erik Estrada, Jim Brown, Robert Z'Dar, Don Stroud and a very drunk Jan Michael Vincent (whose lines you can actually see taped to the inside of a newspaper!). Thankfully, he keeps Schuyler out of the picture.
