Videodrome

A sleazy cable-TV programmer begins to see his life and the future of media spin out of control in a very unusual fashion when he acquires a new kind of programming for his station.

• Director: David Cronenberg
• Genre:Fantasy / Horror / Mystery / Sci-Fi / Thriller
• Runtime:88 minutes

Cast

James Woods : Max Renn
Sonja Smits : Bianca O’Blivion
Deborah Harry : Nicki Brand
Peter Dvorsky : Harlan
Leslie Carlson : Barry Convex (as Les Carlson)

Max Renn (James Woods) is the president of CIVIC-TV (Channel 83, Cable 12), a sleazy Toronto UHF television station specializing in sensationalistic programming. Displeased with his station’s current lineup (which mostly consists of softcore pornography), Renn is on a seemingly endless quest for something that isn’t so “soft” and will “break through” to a new audience.

One morning Renn is summoned to the clandestine office of Harlan (Peter Dvorsky), who operates CIVIC-TV’s pirate satellite dish which can pirate broadcasts from as far away as Asia. Harlan shows Renn “Videodrome,” a plotless television show apparently being broadcast out of Malaysia, which depicts the brutal torture and eventual murder of anonymous victims in a bizarre, reddish-orange chamber. Believing this to be the future of television— (staged) snuff TV—Renn orders Harlan to begin pirating the show.

Appearing on a talk show, Renn defends his station’s programming choices to Nikki Brand (Debbie Harry), a sadomasochistic psychiatrist, and Professor Brian O’Blivion (Jack Creley), a pop-culture analyst and philosopher who will only appear on television if his image is broadcast into the studio, onto a television, from a remote location. O’Blivion hijacks the interview and delivers a speech prophesying a future in which television supplants real life.

Renn dates Nikki, who is sexually aroused when Renn shows her an episode of Videodrome and coaxes him into having sex with her while they watch it. Renn goes once again to Harlan’s office, where Harlan informs him the signal delay which caused it to appear to be coming from Malaysia was a ploy by the broadcaster. In fact, Videodrome is being broadcast out of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Renn tells Nikki of his discovery and she excitedly goes to Pittsburgh to try and audition for the show.

When Nikki fails to return to Toronto, Renn contacts Masha (Lynne Gorman), a softcore feminist pornographer with long-standing ties to the porn community, and asks her to help him find out the truth about Videodrome. Through Masha, Renn learns that not only is the footage in Videodrome not faked, but Videodrome is the public “face” of a political ideology movement with unspecified but apparently violent goals. Masha further informs Renn Brian O’Blivion knows about Videodrome. Read more

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