Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins (1985)

User Rating:

5.9/10   

Director:

Guy Hamilton

Writers:

Warren Murphy (novel)
Richard Sapir (novel)

Release Date:

11 October 1985 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Comedy | Crime | Thriller

Tagline:

A hero who doesn't exist must save America from an enemy we never knew we had.

Plot:

An officially "dead" cop is trained to become an extraordinarily unique assassin in service of the US president.

Plot Keywords:

Assassin | Ancient Korean Martial Art | Korean | Statue Of Liberty | Ambush

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 3 nominations

Cast

Fred Ward	...	Remo Williams
Joel Grey	...	Chiun
Wilford Brimley	...	Harold Smith
J.A. Preston	...	Conn MacCleary
George Coe	...	Gen. Scott Watson
Charles Cioffi	...	George Grove
Kate Mulgrew	...	Maj. Rayner Fleming
Patrick Kilpatrick	...	Stone
Michael Pataki	...	Jim Wilson
Davenia McFadden	...	NYC traffic control cop
Cosie Costa	...	Pvt. Damico
J.P. Romano	...	Boomer #1
Joel Kramer	...	Boomer #2 (as Joel J. Kramer)
Frank Ferrara	...	Boomer #3
Marv Albert	...	Sports announcer (voice)

Also Known As:

Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins... (USA) (alternative title)
Remo: The Adventure Begins... (USA) (poster title)
Remo: The First Adventure (USA) (poster title)
Remo: Unarmed and Dangerous (UK)

Runtime:

121 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Singapore:PG | Germany:16 | Australia:M | Iceland:14 | Iceland:16 (video rating) | Argentina:16 | Chile:18 | Finland:K-16 | Norway:16 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:PG-13 | West Germany:16

Filming Locations:

Coney Island, Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA

Trivia:

A TV pilot was made and aired, but never went to series. Jeffrey Meek was cast as Remo Williams and Roddy McDowall as Chiun. Craig Safan remained as the series composer.

Goofs:

Continuity: In the beginning of the film, before he was Remo, his head hit the windshield of his car and cracked it. When he's underwater inside the car, the window is not cracked.

Quotes:

'Doctor' in soap opera: Jim, the leg has got to come off.
[Crashing chord on organ]
'Jim' in soap opera: No! No! I was gonna be an All-American!
'Doctor' in soap opera: Well, now you can - you can be all-American for courage!

Movie Connections:

References Saboteur (1942)

Soundtrack:

Janet

A great Saturday afternoon popcorn movie

So what if the the total package is not up to blockbuster standards. We need these types of film to go and have a great afternoon at the movies where you don't have to think and you can eat a lot of popcorn. I dug the hell out of this movie because it didn't take itself too seriously. It looks like they had a fun time making it and God bless em' for it! You started to get a little idea of the outrageousness of it all when Chiun begins talking about all the other great martial arts as mere shadows compared with his fighting style. And then there's the water-walking or running toward the end of the film. And the super secret organization (with only 3 members!) answering only to the President. What a hoot! But every time I see it on the tube, I'm right there watching it if I can.