Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins

PG-13

Released Oct 11, 1985

2 hr. 1 min.

Action

Adventure

List

41%

17 Reviews

Tomatometer

59%

5,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

A New York cop wakes up from a mysterious accident with a new identity. He finds himself in the employ of a secret unit which was set up to investigate a dangerous industrialist whose organization has secured several government armaments contracts, including a top-secret strategic defense system.

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Cookie M

Watched this when it originally came out, watched it again, in a day where cgi is the majority of the movie, refreshing to see a movie holding by itself.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

08/15/23

Full Review

Captain T

Okay Remo is a bit outdated, a little corny, not for the safe place types dialogs and the sound! Almost hurts my ears. But other than that, it is a movie that gave a few laughs and made me miss the free 80s

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

07/21/23

Full Review

Dark M

I'll take watching this over and over to watching any of the MCU movies any day.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

12/26/22

Full Review

shoeless j

Cult classic. Part of HBO's OG library. Joel Grey is great. Was supposed to be a mega franchise. For the most part, this hero's origin popcorn movie works.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

christopher c. m

It's exciting but it does drag in places, it's way better than the critics said. The stunts are impressive and most of the characters are cool. Doing research for this review I can see one of the biggest problem, besides the Asian character of Chiun was a stereotype marital arts master trope but I didn't realized until now that it was white actor and singer Joel Grey in yellow face. Not sure in 1986 they couldn't hire an Asian actor to play an Asian character, I thought we were past that. But I still like it as a problematic but still good classic.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

matthew d

"Professional assassination is the highest form of public service." - Chiun English director Guy Hamilton's espionage action-adventure thriller Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins (1985) is fantastic fun with an all American James Bond feel! I loved Hamilton's playful direction that has B movie camp action and effects like his Bond movies Goldfinger or The Man with the Golden Gun. Additionally, Hamilton's masterful mood creation is similar to his 60's and 70's classics like Funeral in Berlin or Evil Under the Sun. Remo Williams is a hilarious comedy and a cool spy feature simultaneously. Writer Christopher Wood's witty screenplay is stuffed full of hilarious jokes and wise advice. His hazy espionage narrative has enough intrigue and mystery to engage you even when you don't understand what is happening. The pulp novel authors Warren Murphy and Richard Sapir show respect for Korean culture and mythology. But Remo Williams' producers Dick Clark, Mel Bergman, and Larry Spiegel truly could not hire an Asian actor for Chiun? "A Korean's word is his bond," shows how much Wood cares for the character, but he often leans too much into cliches of Asian masters. Wood's fast food, soap operas, eating rice, and timepiece jokes are hilarious. His script has sheer wit and a real pithy gall to their wise sayings and blunt jokes. The assassin training is so entertaining. The hidden assassins, corrupt weapons manufacturers, and secretive organization CURE all reminded me of spy films like Guy Hamilton's early 60's and 70's classics. It's like an espionage or paranoia thriller like The Parallax View mixed with the martial arts training lessons of The Karate Kid and Star Wars. Fred Ward's cool composure makes him an awesome action hero as Remo Williams the assassin. His majority stunt work from dangerous balancing acts of courage to brave fight choreography is fantastic. Fred Ward is just so cavalier and funny as Remo Williams besides with a cool action star, he is likable and charismatic. His easy line delivery helps Remo's apt sense of humor and casual heroism. Joel Grey plays Korean martial arts master Chiun. It's a tasteless, dated, and insensitive casting decision, period. However, Grey is up to the task of giving Chiun dignity, even if he's a Fu Manchu stereotype. He has humor and charm and is easily the best character in Remo Williams. He's got a hilarious delivery and a nice fatherly chemistry with Fred Ward's Remo. His nerve ending chakra attacks are as neat as his bullet dodges and sage wisdom. The fictional Korean martial art of House of Sinanju is very cool and practical as it appears here. Wilford Brimley' shadowy head of CURE named Harold Smith is really neat. You just see him deliver a hard speech about American values declining and violence sadly being necessary. It's chilling and informative about his and CURE's motives. He is perfectly mysterious. J.A. Preston is nice as Conn MacCleary with his enigmatic performance and witty joke delivery. George Coe is excellent as the corrupt General Scott Watson. Kate Mulgrew is charming and fun alongside the charismatic Fred Ward. Her Major Rayner Fleming is sweet and a sterling heroine until she gets nothing to do in the finale. Charles Cioffi's billionaire hunting CEO George Grove is creepy and sinister enough for an action movie villain. Patrick Kilpatrick is neat as the diamond tooth studded henchman Stone. Jon Polito's Zack, the henchman at The Statue of Liberty, is a neat early career cameo for legendary character actor Polito. He gets a fun death moment with Chiun. William Hickey cameos as the shyster Coney Island Barker in a wonderful scene, wherein Chiun wins a cute Pink Panther plush animal. Hickey's distinctive voice is so funny and his exasperated face at Chiun's skills is great. Mark Melnick's crafty editing makes entire training montages happen in moments and Remo Williams' 121 minutes feel like a brisk 45 to me. Cinematography Andrew Laszlo gives a moody atmosphere with his tricky shots. All the stunts being in wide shots really lets you know Fred Ward is actually doing the stunts even the ferris wheel one, incredibly. Production designer Jackson De Govia's sets have a neat low budget quaintness to the military base or Chiun's basic apartment. Frederic C. Weiler's set decoration gives Chiun's apartment an inviting spaciousness, yet modest furnishings as he does not care for many material things. Composer Craig Safan's synthpop score is incredible. He creates a moody atmosphere that rushes to life with all sorts of soft synth melodies layered over one another. I think Remo Williams has one of the 1980's best film scores. It's very plucky. Costume designer Ellen Mirojnick gives Fred Ward a couple of cool everyman looks with jean and black jackets. I really like all of Chiun's Asian inspired outfits that he'll casually have on with an easy swagger. In short, Remo Williams' franchise ended before it ever got a chance to take off, but I actually wish it had as Remo could have been America's James Bond.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

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Guy Hamilton

Director

Fred Ward

Remo Williams

Joel Grey

Chiun

Kate Mulgrew

Maj. Rayner Fleming

Wilford Brimley

Harold Smith

J.A. Preston

Conn MacCleary

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Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins: Official Clip - Elevator Attack!

1:56

Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins: Official Clip - Explode and Walk Away

1:54

Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins: Official Clip - Walking on Water

2:06

Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins: Official Clip - Ferris Wheel Training

2:18

Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins: Official Clip - Korean Fingerboard

3:01

Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins: Official Clip - Wet Cement

1:33

Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins: Official Clip - Breathe

2:30

Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins: Official Clip - Log Attack

1:36

Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins: Official Clip - Glasshole

1:58

Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins: Official Clip - You Rely on What You Know

2:10

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Michael Sragow

The Atlantic

You can get carried along by the exuberance and likability of Remo: The Adventure Begins, only to have the despair of the pop mythology underneath it catch up with you the morning after.

Sep 6, 2018

Full Review

Paul Attanasio

Washington Post

... just tell me when it ends.

Jan 4, 2018

Full Review

Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

A missed-opportunity exercise that might as well have been called Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins... and Ends.

Rated: 2/4

Feb 19, 2022

Full Review

Mike Massie

Gone With The Twins

Over and over again he's caught in a jam that could be resolved by a simple firearm, but he insists on remaining stupidly unarmed.

Rated: 4/10

Sep 7, 2020

Full Review

Tom Long

Santa Cruz Sentinel

Need a tough guy? Call the "Commando." Forget "Remo."

Feb 4, 2019

Full Review

Ed Travis

Cinapse

Remo Williams is one of the most outright enjoyable action adventure films to ever come out of the 1980s, science and logic be damned.

Dec 7, 2018

Full Review

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Synopsis

A New York cop wakes up from a mysterious accident with a new identity. He finds himself in the employ of a secret unit which was set up to investigate a dangerous industrialist whose organization has secured several government armaments contracts, including a top-secret strategic defense system.

Director: Guy Hamilton
Executive Producer: Mel Bergman, Dick Clark
Screenwriter: Christopher Wood
Distributor: Orion Pictures
Production Co: Orion Pictures
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Action, Adventure
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Oct 11, 1985, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 16, 2008
Box Office (Gross USA): $14.4M
Sound Mix: Surround
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)

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