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Radioactive Dreams

R 1986 1h 38m Sci-Fi List
Reviews 45% Audience Score 100+ Ratings
Phillip (John Stockwell) and Marlowe (Michael Dudikoff) emerge from a bomb shelter in 2010 after 15 formative years of reading Raymond Chandler. Read More Read Less

Audience Reviews

View All (19) audience reviews
William D This is absolutely one of the worst films I have ever seen. Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 12/07/23 Full Review John R I just love the wacky premise, made during a time when filmmakers had to find a way within a budget to physically create their vision. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 06/06/23 Full Review Audience Member I saw this movie a long time ago and it was strange then as I'm sure it is strange now. It was full of action and it has that total 80s vibe. Not the best but not the worst. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/22/23 Full Review Audience Member One of my favorite post apocalypse movies mostly because it does not take itself too seriously. From the very height of capitalizing on the fear of the big atomic meltdown, Radioactive Dreams begins with a grainy glimpse of our eventual heroes as children being tucked away with their respective bank robber fathers ill-gotten gains just as the first bombs are dropping. This sets the stage for their eventual escape from their buried cave come bomb shelter years later as young adults. The whereabouts of their fathers for the entire time they were trapped and growing up becomes the catalyst for their gumshoe style romp in the sun drenched aftermath of the atomic war that trapped them in the cave and separated them from their fathers. A goofy array of highly stereotyped gangs await them in the last city standing including mutant biker girls, more concerned with their wigs than surviving a fight, cannibal hippies and many many more that accost and befriend our naive and lovable heroes. After a wacky chain of events our heroes find themselves in the center of a race to the last ultimate weapon but they want no part of it and only seek the answers to their long entrapment and their fathers disappearance. The tongue in cheek humor is a welcome change to the often grim Post Apocalypse movies of the era and the acting, while mostly "B" level and below fits nicely with the comical array misfits in this bizarrely segmented city of freaks they find themselves drawn through. The city itself often stands in striking contrast to the otherwise low budget nature of the film and its complexity and attention to broken down detail helps to genuinely give this odd world a bit of life it might otherwise lack form the less than stellar supporting actors. This movies one truly appalling downfall is a soundtrack that would make a Yoko Ono album sound melodic and pleasing to the ear. The song "Nightmare" sung by an atrocious 80's stereotype going by the name Jill Jaxx is of particular note and the most important reason for the mute button on your remote. Keep it handy. Lucky the movie ends on a better but not great jazzy tune called "Zim Bim Zowie" that helps to erase the nightmare of Jill Jaxx's "Nightmare". So if you grab a beer and your best 1980's asymmetrical shirt and go into this movie expecting little more than some fun, "B" movie action and a light but still interesting plot, you may just enjoy this forgotten gem from the age of Apocalypse Inc. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/26/23 Full Review Audience Member (minor spoilers) Where else can you get cheesy acting, completely unbelievable subplots, and really - I mean REALLY - bad puns?!? All put together in typical 80's fashion. (or at least typical for 80's post-apocalyptic B-movies of the time) I saw this one when it came out and loved it. You have main characters Phillip & Marlowe - two innocent, naive twenty-somethings who want to start the first post-apocalyptic detective agency. They happen to stumble onto the keys for the last nuclear bombs that could be launched to finally destroy the world. And they practically lay themselves out as bait in order to draw out all of the bad guys/girls. Then top it off with one of the guys is dead set on creating the first post-apocalyptic dance moves! Sorry if you don't see the humor in this one, but if you take everything in it with a grain of salt and just enjoy, you might surprise yourself with this one! Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/01/23 Full Review Audience Member Mutant rats, George Kennedy, and a dance number. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/23/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Radioactive Dreams

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Cast & Crew

Movie Info

Synopsis Phillip (John Stockwell) and Marlowe (Michael Dudikoff) emerge from a bomb shelter in 2010 after 15 formative years of reading Raymond Chandler.
Director
Albert Pyun
Rating
R
Genre
Sci-Fi
Original Language
English
Box Office (Gross USA)
$210.2K
Runtime
1h 38m
Sound Mix
Surround