Powder (1995)
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47% of critics liked it
(19 reviews) -
67% of users liked it
(51,119 ratings)
This unusual modern-day fable concerns a super-powered teenager who inspires nothing but hostility in the small-minded folk of his hometown. Sean Patrick Flanery stars as Jeremy Reed, nicknamed "Powder" because he is an albino. Powder has been living his entire 16 years in his… More This unusual modern-day fable concerns a super-powered teenager who inspires nothing but hostility in the small-minded folk of his hometown. Sean Patrick Flanery stars as Jeremy Reed, nicknamed "Powder" because he is an albino. Powder has been living his entire 16 years in his grandparents' basement, but they have both passed away. The boy is removed from his home and placed in a school. There, science teacher Ripley (Jeff Goldblum) and psychologist Jessie Caldwell (Mary Steenburgen) discover that in addition to being an albino, their new student is the smartest person who ever lived with an IQ off the charts -- and that he is electrically super-charged, which renders him hairless. Powder also has miraculous powers of perception, ESP, and healing, which he uses to ease the death of the terminally ill wife of local Sheriff Barnum (Lance Henriksen) and to give a bigoted redneck hunter (Brandon Smith) a firsthand demonstration of the pain suffered by a deer he's just shot. Powder's gentle nature attracts a pretty coed, Lindsey (Missy Crider), but in spite of his Christ-like demeanor, Powder's abnormalities inspire hatred on the part of many bigoted citizens, especially school bully John Box (Bradford Tatum). ~ Karl Williams, Rovi
- Directed By
- Victor Salva
- Genres
- Drama, Science Fiction & Fantasy
- In Theaters
- Oct 27, 1995 Wide
Critic Reviews
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Mike Clark, USA Today
Performed to the hilt by Flanery and filmed with conviction by Victor Salva, the movie is finally too solemn to survive its pushy musical strings.
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Michael Dequina, TheMovieReport.com
Pretentious, uninvolving headscratcher that aims to be tragic and uplifting and falls way short; the only thing it'll lift is your butt from your seat midway through the film.
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Fred Topel, About.com
Okay drama, could have been more moving
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Ken Hanke, Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)
Interesting film that's just a little too much like an expanded X Files episode
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Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, Spirituality and Practice
Offbeat drama about a mystic with strange powers and a compassionate service of others.
See more critic ratings and reviews on Rotten Tomatoes
Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)
Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)
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Cast
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Mary Steenburgen
as Jessie Caldwell
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Sean Patrick Flanery
as Powder
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Lance Henriksen
as Sheriff Barnum
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Jeff Goldblum
as Donald Ripley
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Brandon Smith (I)
as Duncan
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Bradford Tatum
as John Box
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Susan Tyrrell
as Maxine
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Woody Watson
as Mr. Kelloway
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Ray Wise
as Stipler
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Missy Crider
as Lindsey
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Philip Maurice Hayes
as Greg
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Esteban Powell
as Mitch
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Brady Coleman
as Dr. Deggan
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Alex Allen Morris
as Dr. Roth
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James Houston
as Doc. Assoc. #1
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Barry Berfield
as Paramedic
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Chad Cox
as Zane
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Paula Engel
as Anna
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Reed Frerichs
as Syke
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Bonnie Gallup
as Nurse
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Bill Grant-Minchen
as Doctor Associate
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Dee Macaluso
as Nurse
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Joe Marchman
as Brennan
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Dannete McMann
as Emma
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Tom Tarantini
as Steven Barnum
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Meason Wiley
as Arturo