Plot
Like his father, young Samuel is a “scanner” – a telepath capable of reading and even exerting a certain measure of control over others’ minds. Following his dad’s harrowing, tragic death, the boy is adopted by a compassionate police officer. Now grown up, he decides to join the LA Police Department, following in his adoptive parent’s footsteps.
A particularly disturbing case arises when a resentful neurosurgeon uses an unsettling brainwashing procedure to turn unsuspecting citizens into crazed cop killers. In order to discover the identity of this malevolent puppet master before more boys in blue fall victim, the rookie cop must use his paranormal abilities, but by doing so, Sam puts his very sanity at risk.
An extremely high dose of an hallucinogenic compound was injected into his brain.
Critique
5.5The fourth entry of the “Scanners” franchise veers into the police genre in an attempt to break new narrative ground. The result is an enjoyable film with none of the depth of its progenitor, but one that still succeeds nicely as basic entertainment. Pierre David, producer of the earlier films in the series, directs this one with a certain knack for pacing, and the practical special effects don’t disappoint either (especially noteworthy are Samuel’s dad’s monstrous hallucinations).
In the acting department, Richard Lynch’s over-the-top performance as an unhinged, evil surgeon is reminiscent of the mad Dr. Channard of “Hellbound: Hellraiser II” (1988). TV actor Daniel Quinn is protagonist Samuel Staziak, a scanner who would make Darryl Revok jealous, given that he seems blessed with any and every psychic power conceivable: telepathy, telekinesis, clairvoyance… and to top it all off, he can even read faster than the legendary Johnny 5 from “Short Circuit” (1986)!
After this, the series continues on autopilot with Steve Barnett’s “Scanner Cop II” (1995).
More Info
Quotes
- An extremely high dose of an hallucinogenic compound was injected into his brain.
- Damon Pratt has been programmed to kill cops in uniform.
Trivia
- During the course of the film, explicit reference is made to “The Manchurian Candidate” (1962), the benchmark psychological political thriller focusing on the theme of a brainwashed sleeper agent.
Products
Disclosure
This page contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Image source: Amazon Partner Program
| Product name | Price | |
|---|---|---|
![Scanner Cop [4k Ultra HD / Blu-ray Set]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/41piLo1thSL._SL75_.jpg) | Scanner Cop [4k Ultra HD / Blu-ray Set] |
| Nome del prodotto | Prezzo | |
|---|---|---|
 | Scanner Cop | |
| Scanner Cop - Rimasterizzato in HD (DVD) |
| Product name | Price | |
|---|---|---|
 | SCANNER COP - (Daniel Quinn - Darlanne Fluegel) - DVD Region 2 (IMPORT - UK FORMAT) |
| Nombre del producto | Precio |
|---|
| Produktname | Preis |
|---|
| Nom du produit | Prix | |
|---|---|---|
![Scanner Cop [Import Belge]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/41L1Tet9OZL._SL75_.jpg) | Scanner Cop [Import Belge] |
| Product name | Price | |
|---|---|---|
| Vinegar Syndrome Scanner Cop [4K Ultra HD / Blu-ray Set] | |
 | Scanner Cop / Scanner Cop (Bilingual) |