Generation (1985) (TV)

Director:

Michael Tuchner

Writer:

Gerald Di Pego (writer)

Release Date:

24 May 1985 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Family | Sci-Fi | Sport

Plot:

Story of a family in the (then) future of 1999, and how the son's invention of pro-hockey armor affects the rest of the family.

Plot Keywords:

Hockey | Los Angeles California | Family Relationships | Millennium | 1990s

Cast

Richard Beymer	...	Allan Breed
Hannah Cutrona	...	Bel Breed
Marta DuBois	...	Kate Mendez Breed
Drake Hogestyn	...	Jack Breed
Priscilla Pointer	...	Ellen Breed
Cristina Raines	...	Roma Breed
Bert Remsen	...	Tom Breed
Kim Miyori	...	Teri Tanaka
Reid Shelton	...	Raymond Wilkes
Lorene Yarnell	...	Pal
Scott Paulin	...	Graff
Harrison Page	...	George Link
Liz Sheridan	...	Clara
Michael Young	...	Rick Tolmer
Grand L. Bush	...	Catt

Runtime:

120 min (including commercials)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

See the future in retrospect! Impossible?

Now that I've watched it I can say that I loved it. Yes cheesy, yes corny but I'm a sucker for anything that is "future-y", just can't help it.

The storyline was plausible though not very accurate, 15 years in advance might not be a long time to forecast but they picked the WRONG 15 year period. Think about all that happened in technology between 1985 and 1999, the year in which this movie takes place. So many things, the least of which is the internet. There's a scene where the girl is doing homework in front of her computer and she turns to her parents and asks, "Who was the president after Ronald Reagan?" and her mom tells her to "look it up". Isn't that (and any) a question to ask the computer? Laughable! And the biggest "miss", the representation of the Los Angeles street gang, which was oddly non-Latino. Ludicrously absurd and glaringly inaccurate. During one of the street fights one guy takes out another guy with a slingshot! No joke. I think the level of available firepower any name-brand LA street gang has is a couple notches above a slingshot. To express civil disobedience they all blow whistles in unison. Seriously, stop laughing. And the weirdest line of all? The one about "explaining the war with Mexico". It doesn't go any further but the line was delivered definitively. Hmm.

Anyway, nice try at futuristic Sci-Fi on a TV movie budget. Obviously, so obviously, they didn't have mucho bucks to work with here. But the family drama is intact on a few different levels, the sports parallel was funky enough and best of all... there were CARS! Only about 8 in total but some cool future oddities including a low slung yellow roadster and what looks like a minivan of today. The police car has a funny whooshy rocket turbine sound, like a large vacuum cleaner coming in for a landing. Aren't all police cars turbine powered these days? This movie was an enjoyable hoot. I literally watched it twice in a 12 hour period and I can't wait to share it with a few friends. It will be hard to be quiet while they watch though, some parts are just too funny! 7 stars out of 10, highly recommended on a kitschy level.