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A Shock to the System (1990)

Comedy | 91 minutes
3,25 58 votes

Genre: Comedy / Crime

Duration: 91 minuten

Country: United States

Directed by: Jan Egleson

Stars: Michael Caine, Elizabeth McGovern and Peter Riegert

IMDb score: 6,6 (6.439)

Releasedate: 23 March 1990

A Shock to the System plot

"Climbing the corporate ladder can be murder."

An ambitious advertising executive sees murder as the fastest way to the top. As the death toll steadily rises, a detective and a colleague are on his tail.

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Full Cast & Crew

Actors and actresses

Graham Marshall

Stella Anderson

Robert Benham

Leslie Marshall

Melanie O'Conner

George Brewster

Henry Park

Reviews & comments


avatar

Guest

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avatar van IceTigerGhost

IceTigerGhost

  • 673 messages
  • 2743 votes

Caine single-handedly carries this relatively unknown film about the coldness in the corporate world. The execution is austere but efficient, reminiscent of an episode of some British crime series. Patton's character is very similar to Columbo. Consciously?

It's nice to know that Samuel L Jackson also appears for a few seconds in the film. His career had yet to begin.

dutch flagTranslated from Dutch · View original

avatar van wihu61

wihu61

  • 999 messages
  • 531 votes

Hmm... that went well, for a "black comedy" with such a premise, I didn't think it was black and not funny enough. Dripped along a bit without any real highlights. I also found that detective quite unconvincing in terms of role and person. I think it would have been more. Maybe something for the Coen brothers?

dutch flagTranslated from Dutch · View original

avatar van Moviestar1979

Moviestar1979

  • 1671 messages
  • 975 votes

Michael Caine commented in 2002 that it was a nice little film, but too small for its own good. Roger Ebert described it as a cross between Crimes and Misdemeanors and Wall Street. Although it was a theatrical film, it was released straight to video in some countries. The film is often wrongly seen as Jan Egleson's directorial debut. The director was previously responsible for Billy in the Lowlands and "The Dark End of the Street" from 1981. This was also the last film for Barbara Baxley. The actress died on June 7, 1990 at the age of 67. Finally, we see Samuel L. Jackson appear in a brief cameo.

A reasonable black comedy with a few nice fragments. Most viewers probably thought it was too dark, and the film was forgotten.

2.5 *

dutch flagTranslated from Dutch · View original