Short Circuit 2 (1988)

Featured Audience Ratings

• Lucas M

  
  Something is better that the original...really.

• Nicki M

  
  I can barely remember the first one in all honesty. This one I watched thanks to free movie website Crackle. (I can just see this website is going to be bad news for me. I really can't resist an 80's movie - particularly one I missed out on first time around. Even if I did… More
  I can barely remember the first one in all honesty. This one I watched thanks to free movie website Crackle. (I can just see this website is going to be bad news for me. I really can't resist an 80's movie - particularly one I missed out on first time around. Even if I did miss out on it for a reason as with this one!). This is actually kind of cute. If it was made today, I would write it off as kidsy crap (and that is still a fair comment), but as it does have the 80's nostalgia thing going for it... pretty watchable. The bits with Johnny 5 are a little tedious, the Indian guy is so stereotyped it is almost offensive, (but hey, 80's movie. PC didn't exist back then!), and the bad guys are a bit annoying, but it is funny in it's way and Cynthia Gibb shines as Sandy. Buy it? No way, but watch for free - no complaints here!

• Tim B

  
  We bought this DVD for $2, which is less than the cost of a bootleg. Our son likes it because it has a robot in it. The 1980's kitsch...that's for daddy. SC2 harkens back to a time when everyone went around quoting The Church Lady, and street gangs went to the trouble of… More
  We bought this DVD for $2, which is less than the cost of a bootleg. Our son likes it because it has a robot in it. The 1980's kitsch...that's for daddy. SC2 harkens back to a time when everyone went around quoting The Church Lady, and street gangs went to the trouble of making up rhymes about themselves. It's also fun to see 1988 downtown Toronto, since no effort whatsoever has been made to dress it up like New York City. Overal, this is a light-hearted family comedy, except for the oddly brutal scene, where a couple of goons beat Johnny 5 to pieces, while he wails "Please don't kill me! I am alive! Aaaaahhh!". Don't worry though. SPOILER -The movie ends with a freeze frame of Johnny 5 jumping for joy, and the credits roll over happy saxophone music. Thank you 1980's.

• Anthony L

  
  Looses points for not having any Steve Guttenberg action in it!

• Jason O

  
  Unlike many sequels, "Short Circuit 2" is a good one. Johnny 5's creator, Ben (Fisher Stevens), is making little robot toys when a man named Fred (Michael McKean) convinces him to start a business selling them. Johnny 5 arrives to help the duo out, but some trouble… More
  Unlike many sequels, "Short Circuit 2" is a good one. Johnny 5's creator, Ben (Fisher Stevens), is making little robot toys when a man named Fred (Michael McKean) convinces him to start a business selling them. Johnny 5 arrives to help the duo out, but some trouble arises. Some thieves who are hunting for some jewels try their best to disassemble Johnny 5 so they won't have any obstacles in their way. Johnny 5 must find a way to stop the thieves while also surviving. The "Short Circuit" movies are some of my favorite movies of all time, I grew up watching them. Even now that I'm grown, I never get tired of seeing them over and over. In my opinion, both of the "Short Circuit" movies are great, but I like this one the best. It has some classic scenes such as when Johnny 5 tours the city for the first time and when he helps Ben talk to Sandy (Cynthia Gibb) by putting the words on a huge billboard. "Short Circuit 2" is a great comedy and family movie. It will make you laugh in parts, some parts are sad, and others are heartwarming. Some parts even have a hint of an action movie in them. If you want to see a movie that you'll never forget, watch "Short Circuit 2." I recommend everybody to get it. NOTE: That was my Amazon review from the year 2000. I've always loved the Johnny 5 Short Circuit movies and never understood why only two were ever made, 80's classics for sure! I still can't make up my mind which I like better....probably the original slightly, but still.

• Craig S

  
  <u><b>Directed by:</u></b> Kenneth Johnson. <u><b>Starring:</u></b> Fisher Stevens, Cynthia Gibb, Michael McKean, Tim Blaney. <i><< "I thought you said this thing mis-functioned on you."..."Oh, that is a… More
  <u><b>Directed by:</u></b> Kenneth Johnson. <u><b>Starring:</u></b> Fisher Stevens, Cynthia Gibb, Michael McKean, Tim Blaney. <i><< "I thought you said this thing mis-functioned on you."..."Oh, that is a falsity. What actually happened was we were working on him one day and suddenly he is struck by lightning. And, from this moment on, he's having a mind of his own. So, the government tried to destroy him so he ran away. So, now he's living with my friend in Montana, in a cabin, in the woods, in... cognito." >></i> I find it quite stupid that people think this is better than the original. Personally though I don't hate the film, but I do feel it is quite inferior to the original and has the air about it that it is simply a cash in. But if you can over look the horribly mediocre and unfocused first act, the film picks up the pace, delivers a decent enough storyline and keeps Johnny 5 as the main focus, even when the script is not as charming or funny. Acceptable enough. Full review coming soon.

• danny d

  
  better than the first. an interesting way to pose the philosophical questions about A.I. in a family oriented film.

• Ross C

  
  More from Johnny 5 - I think he gets a gold makeover in this one.

• Jason S

  
  A pretty good next step. I liked the idea of the flick and the casting was done well. It had ties to the original while being it's own movie as well.

• xGary X

  
  The comedy robot deals with "homies" in "the hood" in the big bad city in a project so ill advised, even Guttenberg wanted nothing to do with it...

• Aaron N

  
  Here's Johnny! Somehow, a movie like this turns out to be even better than the first, what are the odds.

• Robotbling -

  
  I must be a sucker for punishment because here I am, reviewing Short Circuit 2 (1988). This time around the writers copied the fish-out-of-water in New York City formula from Crocodile Dundee, which had been the surprise hit of 1986. Fisher Stevens returns in his role as Ben (thick… More
  I must be a sucker for punishment because here I am, reviewing Short Circuit 2 (1988). This time around the writers copied the fish-out-of-water in New York City formula from Crocodile Dundee, which had been the surprise hit of 1986. Fisher Stevens returns in his role as Ben (thick accent in tow), who has lost his job at NOVA Robotics and is peddling a toy version of Johnny 5 on the streets. He gets swindled into a business deal with conman Fred (played by Michael McKean) to build a thousand of the toys in just one month for a toy company. That's a problem, because Ben calculates it will take at least a year to fill the order. A convenient plot device puts a pair of bumbling crooks underneath our hero's makeshift workshop. They're digging into the bank vault across the street to get their hands on some expensive diamonds. Fearing their plan will be jeopardized, the crooks try to scare them away by roughing up the place when they discover Johnny 5. Johnny 5 can build the toys in no time but gets distracted by what the city has to offer. The mandatory scenes of Johnny 5 causing a stir in public are present and accounted for, as he gets into trouble looking for more input. That wouldn't be quite enough to fill out a feature length film, so of course the burglars take advantage of Johnny 5&#8242;s gullibility to break into the bank. It's a by-the-numbers plot, but at least it's better than the first film (though, that's not really saying much). Of course Johnny 5 is still a great looking robot character, and it's easy to see why so many people love him. He even becomes the first robotic American citizen! It's a light-hearted kid's movie, so don't expect many laughs if you're over the age of 8. This review is a repost from my site: www.plasticpals.com

• Yinalí R

  
  Funny!!!

• Lee K

  
  not bad sequel to the original. I still have to find these movies to rent for my son.

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