A group of Canadian university students agree to partake in a grisly psychological experiment, which renders them incapable of speech but able to communicate telepathically.A group of Canadian university students agree to partake in a grisly psychological experiment, which renders them incapable of speech but able to communicate telepathically.A group of Canadian university students agree to partake in a grisly psychological experiment, which renders them incapable of speech but able to communicate telepathically.
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** (out of 4)
Ultra bizarre film from David Cronenberg has a group of young people agreeing to have a brain surgery, which will take away their ability to think or feel but they will gain the ability to communicate mentally.
STEREO was the first feature to be directed by the young Cronenber and many people see a connection between this film and his later hit SCANNERS. This film here is certainly a well-made piece but it's one of those movies that you can respect much more than actually enjoy while watching. I say that because the film is certainly very well-made and it has a terrific atmosphere and visual look. I loved the B&W cinematography and I thought the director did a very good job with the look and style.
I'd also argue that the actors do a fine job with their roles but, with all of that said, there's very little else going on with STEREO. The film was shot without any dialogue or even sound effects but every few minutes a narrator will fill us in on the "plot." All of this just really doesn't add anything compelling and in the end the film is rather boring and hard to get through even at just 65-minutes.
The topic of a Canadian Academy for Erotic Inquiry is an extremely difficult one to pull off. The way it's made, however, with its austere milieu, its quasi-academic speaker voice and the contrasts between the harsh milieu and the characters' pursuit of the topic of the 'plot' makes it a rather good film its sparse conditions for creation considered, all the more if one is into austere films rather than bombastic ones. Hopefully some 'madwoman' or 'madman' will release a few copies of this movie on dvd, someday.
If you are looking for a film to show at a party, this is not that film. It is black and white, slow-paced and almost entirely silent. Your party people will fall asleep and call you a loser.
If you are someone who loves David Cronenberg or enjoys the study of film and camera techniques, I think you might find an interesting film here. While set up as a faux documentary about the study of "telepathists" at the "Center for Erotic Inquiry", there is very little plot and mostly just interesting scenes and visuals.
Watch the lighting, angles. Pretend you are a guest in the room, a voyeur but not a participant. Notice the dark and creepy feel, despite the fact the story itself is not creepy and no music is added. The angles and lighting alone can give the feeling of darkness and depression.
A beautiful film, and one that really laid the foundation for the next thirty years of Cronenberg greatness. His themes of medical oddities, unusual science and body horror are evident here. The exploration (voluntary or otherwise) of new states of consciousness via sexual experimentation is a major theme in "Shivers", "Videodrome", "Dead Ringers", "Naked Lunch", "M. Butterfly" and "Crash". To understand Cronenberg, one must understand this film.
Did you know
- TriviaDavid Cronenberg (26 at the time) secured funding for the film from the Canadian government by pretending he was writing a novel.
- Quotes
Narrator #1: Now that we have some insight into the concept of experiential space, we may consider interaction among the experiential space continua of a highly unique group of individuals. In general, the study of the varying dimensions of human experience, in the context of man in his society, is known as human social cybernetics. In our experiment, eight category A subjects underwent pattern brain surgery, whose program was developed within the Academy's organic computer dialectic system. The object of surgery was to extend, by a process called biochemical induction, the natural electro-chemical network of the human brain. This extension would provide each subject with telepathic capabilities. A telepathist is one who can communicate with other minds by means which do not involve perception by the senses. Thus, telepathy is a form of extrasensory perception, or ESP. Our subjects were to be kept in isolation at the Institute for three months, where they were to prepare for their first meeting as a group. This meeting was to take place at the Academy sanatorium in the Ontario North Woods.
- ConnectionsFeatured in On Screen!: Shivers (2008)
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Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Стерео
- Filming locations
- University of Toronto Scarborough, Scarborough, Toronto, Ontario, Canada(aka Scarborough College, main location, all interiors and exteriors)
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $3,500 (estimated)
- Runtime
- 1h 5m(65 min)
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.66 : 1