Inspector Gadget [DVD]

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Product Description ------------------- John Brown (Matthew Broderick) is an inept security guard employed by scientist Artemus Bradford and his daughter Brenda (Joely Fisher) to safeguard their work on the synthesis of robotics and human tissue. When the Bradfords' arch-rival Sanford Scolex steals their work, John gives chase, and both end up involved in a car c. Sanford looses his hand in the c, but John's injuries are much more serious, and Brenda takes this as an rtunity to use her her's technology to transform the security guard into Inspector Gadget, the ultimate crime-fighting cyborg. For his part, Sanford replaces his hand with a robotic substitute, changes his name to 'Claw', and - desperate for revenge - sets out to discredit Gadget by creating an evil robot lookalike, one which will wage a campaign of terror throughout the city. .co.uk Review ------------- Strictly for kids, this 1999 live-action feature version of the popular cartoon series seems long even at 80 minutes. As a video, it's easier to take and appreciate for what works best in the story: the special effects. Matthew Broderick plays the security guard who is physically transformed into a multi-use cyborg with a zillion attachments, from stilts to helicopter blades to skis. A crime fighter in raincoat and fedora, and equipped with a nifty Gadgetmobile, the hero investigates the death of a man linked to the villainous Sanford Scolex (Rupert Everett). Scolex, who blames Gadget for having to wear a prosthetic hand, develops an evil robot twin of the good inspector, causing much mischief and giving Broderick an rtunity to poke fun at his own performance of the virtuous Inspector. The action is shaky, the script plods along and the effects soon take over; Everett has to go to the extremes of overacting just to be seen above it. But children of a certain age will almost certainly engage with the more clever stuff and forgive the rest. --Tom Keogh