Inspector Gadget

When security guard John Brown witnesses the murder of a famed robotic scientist, he gives chase, catches the perpetrator but is badly hurt in an explosion where the villain (known as the claw) escapes. He awakes to find himself rebuilt by the scientist's daughter and with all manner of gadgets at his disposal.

I watched this on a wet, cold generally miserable Sunday afternoon while I lazily did some ironing. I didn't expect much from it and I was surprised (and slightly ashamed) to find that I actually quite enjoyed it. The plot is nonsense and the action is all very silly and aimed at kids, but it does have it's tongue in it's cheek and seems to know that it's all just bit of dumb fun. As a result we have everything exaggerated for humour – whether it be Gadget's gadgets or the performances themselves, it is all playing to the adult audience saying `we know this is silly but bare with us'.

This may annoy many but I can quite enjoy a silly film as long as it acknowledges what it is and goes with it. The film had a few really good jokes in it as well as the odd movie reference or post-modern adult gag in it. My favourite bit was in the end credits, where a repentant henchman attends a henchman anonymous group meeting – in the crowd are various Bond villains including Jaws and Odd Job! While the film lacks the wit and sophistication of films that really play to kids and adults, this was still quite fun to watch even it is all was very silly.

The cast do a reasonable job with the material – again, all seeming to do it with a wink to the audience to acknowledge what we were thinking. Broderick is better than this, but is still OK in the role, he plays it fairly straight but is still amusing. Fisher has less to do and the voice of the Gadget Mobile is just a bad Chris Rock impression. The one character than dominates the film is Everett, he plays it so very OTT and knowing that he is fun to watch. He, like us, knows it is silly but is determined to have fun – I had fun watching him, whether he is hamming it up or dropping references (`Madonna'). He helped raise the film by simply playing to it's sole strength – that it's dumb but fun!

Overall this is not a great kids movie if you view it alongside cleverer movies such as Toy Story etc which serve both types of audience (kids/adults) equally well. However it still manages to be fun and, if you're in the mood for a dumb silly film where the comedy is slightly self-mocking then, while there's still much to be annoyed by, there's still some daft fun to be had.

I grew up watching the old Inspector Gadget cartoon as a kid. It was like Get Smart for kids. Bumbling boob can't solve any case and all the work is done by the walking talking dog Brain and his niece Penny. I had heard the live action movie was decent so I checked it out at the library. I rented this movie for free and felt I should have been paid to see this.

Broderick comes nowhere near the caliber of acting Don Adams had as the voice of gadget. His voice was all wrong. The girl who played Penny looked nothing like the cartoon Penny. She is brunette where the cartoon version was blonde with pigtails. But she does do a decent job given what she had to work with. Dabney Coleman gives a good performance as Cheif Quimby. Saldy he never hid in any odd place or had exploding messages tossed at him accidently by Gadget.

The gadget mobile was wrong. It never talked in the series and it did fine. Why did they do this?

Gadget was too intelligent in this film. In the show he was a complete idiot. Here he had a halfway decent intellect. It would have worked better if he was a moron.

Also the completely butchered the catchphrase. Borderick says "Wowser". It is and should always be "Wowsers". It sounds lame with out the 's'. I got upset when they showed the previews and they didn't have the correct phrase.

The ONLY decent gags were during the credits. The lacky for Claw is in front of a support group for recovering henchmen/sidekicks. Seated in the audience is Mr. T, Richard Keil aka Jaws of Bond movie fame, a Herve Villacheze look alike, Oddjob, Kato and more. This is about the only part I laughed at.

The other is at the end where Penny is checking out here gadget watch and tells brain to say somethin. Don Adams voices the dog saying that "Brain isn't in right now. Please leave your name at the sound of the woof. Woof." of course this isn't laugh out loud funny, just a nice piece of nostalgia to hear Adams in the movie. He should have at least voiced the stupid car.

Kids will like this, anyone over 13 won't.

I grew up watching Inspector Gadget. It was, and still is, one of my favorite cartoons, if not my absolute favorite. I learned a lot of geography and history from the spin-off Inspector Gadget's Field Trip. I wanted to slip on a banana peel and become the greatest detective ever.

But the film has ruined the reputation of the wonderful cartoon.

Matthew Broderick, an actor with potential, was definitely NOT the role for Inspector Gadget. First thing- in the film, Inspector Gadget is smart. Not so in the cartoon. In the film, Gadget solves the mystery mostly by himself. In the cartoon, it was almost always Penny, Brain, and the awesome book (I still want her book!). If Gadget solved the mystery, it was by accident. Gadget in the film seems to be a competent detective, but in the cartoon was pretty dumb, which was where the humor came from.

Another thing is that it's too much "Good Guy v. Bad Guy" in the film. It's not just meant to be a silly Saturday morning cartoon. Also, Gadget never should have a love story, but Disney Corporation is filled with idiots.

Also I miss the true gadgets that Gadget had, and especially the Gadget car. In the movie it was a chic convertible. In the cartoon it was a sedan police car and could turn into a van. It also barely had any gadgets and was mainly there to get him from place to place.

But if anything, the one thing that was terrible about the movie was that it was a feature movie. Inspector Gadget was a silly Saturday morning cartoon. The movie was too serious, too overdone, had too much of a plot and wasn't even remotely as funny.

Tip for those who haven't seen it: NEVER see it. EVER. Watch the cartoon, it's a true classic.

First of all, I absolutely love the cartoon, it is a classic, and great fun for adults and kids alike. Unfortunately, while there are some redeeming qualities, Inspector Gadget, came across for me as dull, uninspired and disappointing. But it is not the worst movie ever, I did think Disaster Movie and Home Alone 4 were much worse.

There are some bright spots. One is the special effects, they were very very good and the best part of the movie. It is true that the film is a tad low on laughs, though the part when the thumb turns itself into a cigarette lighter does raise a chuckle or two. There are some terrific scenes involving Gadget's robot self, a car chase and a helicopter. And Joely Fisher is lovely as Brenda, and Rupert Everett, ever reliable, makes an entertaining Doctor Claw.

Unfortunately, that's where the positives end. I am in complete agreement with anyone who thinks that it could've been so much better. Matthew Broderick struggles to make a convincing enough title character, but I do think it is to do with the fact that the role of Inspector Gadget is badly underwritten. Having said that, the script is very weak, and lacks any sense of plot and drive, and the plot is rather slow moving and doesn't make much sense. Plus the editing was rather choppy.

Overall, a disappointing film, that could've been so much better. Had it been more faithful to the show, and had more of a sense of fun, it could have been a great film rather than a mediocre one. 4/10 for trying. Bethany Cox

I don't think there has been a worse film to come around like this since Ski Patrol. I wanted to like it (Matthew Broderick is one of my favorite actors of the 90's), but he is undermined by effects (some good, some pointless) and a Rupert Everett claw man. Only one part of this film is remotely watchable, that is the end where there is a seminar for bad guys including the metal mouth from the James Bond films and Mr. T. I reccomend that part to movie buffs, but thats it. If you are really interested though, just watch the cartoon version, which is at least reccomended for kids. Among the worst of the year (unfortunately). D+