Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		3.5
Audio		3.5
Extras		3.5
Overall		3.5

Cherry 2000 Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf July 26, 2015

It doesn’t take a detective to figure out which decade gave birth to “Cherry 2000.” It’s a film about the hunt for a replacement sex robot, offering a post-apocalyptic setting that favors pastel outfits, RPGs and Uzis, and displays futuristic cars that drive on three wheels. The feature doesn’t hide its production era very well, but it remains an engaging romp around the shattered society formula, with director Steve De Jarnatt (“Miracle Mile”) using imaginative designs and a taste for stuntwork to bring “Cherry 2000” to life, despite an iffy premise that doesn’t initially suggest a slam-bang actioner to come. There’s encouraging personality to the movie, which isn’t encumbered by a minimal budget, working out its own version of mayhem in the Nevada desert, with enough chases, shoot-outs, and explosions to keep the effort alert and, at times, wildly entertaining.

In the year 2017, world order is being rebuilt. In major cities, society has transformed sex into a legal negotiation, with men turning to robots to satisfy their urges and ease their loneliness. For Anaheim resident Sam (David Andrews), time with Cherry 2000 (Pamela Gidley) has refreshed his life, permitting him romance in a dreary existence. When Cherry 2000 is exposed to water during a foamy make-out session, she fries out, leaving Sam without a replacement for his premiere model. Told that additional Cherries are located in Zone 7, a Nevada wasteland, Sam eventually hires Johnson (Melanie Griffith), a tracker capable of navigating such treacherous terrain, to help him into the heart of danger and pick up another robot. Sneaking into Zone 7, the pair gradually warms up to each other, finding help from Six-Fingered Jake (Ben Johnson) and threat from Lester (Tim Thomerson), a cult leader with a distaste for trackers, defending his tattered realm from trespassers.

The miracle of “Cherry 2000” is how it manages to create a slice of this futuristic world without tripping over itself. De Jarnatt is determined to generate a sense of 2017 without the benefit of a juicy budget, looking to nifty design particulars to help with the illusion. It’s fascinating directorial work, following De Jarnatt as he builds corners of future world Anaheim, a community thriving due to its recycling industry and buoyant night life, where the men of tomorrow seek out pleasures at local clubs. Neon glows and automobile designs try to “Jetsons” the movie up, but entrance into the work spaces and distractions of the city give “Cherry 2000” a visual identity, developed with idiosyncratic touches that display the legal proceedings required for humans to have sex with other humans, and there’s the Cherry 2000 herself: a gorgeous blonde who delivers a level of intimacy with Sam that triggers his utter devotion to a machine. De Jarnatt has a vision for the effort that keeps it involving and surprising, even when the story can’t quite come together as a consistent adventure, and banter leaves much to be desired.

While it commences as a tale of a synthetic society, “Cherry 2000” eventually transforms into a western, with Sam visiting the fringe town of Glory Hole to hire a tracker. Lots of genre motifs and attitude enter the feature, recharging the production’s batteries as it moves from ennui to action, finding Johnson’s entrance backed by big guns and roaring engines, with the pair soon off to Zone 7 to retrieve a new robot. Characterization is built in the early going, as Johnson’s frustrated with Sam’s commitment to a machine while she leads a sheltered, harden life without love. There’s no chemistry between Griffith and Andrews, but select moments work with limited performances, watching De Jarnatt show more interest in developing the duo as action heroes than tentative lovers. The gender twist on the lead roles also carries uniqueness, watching Sam take to the damsel-in-distress part, while Johnson is a gruff master blaster, mowing down enemies with authority.

Sam and Johnson’s drive into Zone 7 brings “Cherry 2000” into the thick of the hunt, with the invaders targeted by Lester and his band of heavily armed goons. Chases ensue, and often in expected places, with a mid-movie set piece taking place at the Hoover Dam, bestowing the production with bigness that helps to cover certain lapses in editing that confuse spatial relationships and firepower. The film actually looks fantastic, favoring craters in the Earth, sand-blasted ruins, and vertigo-inducing dam tunnels, while stunt work is superb, delivering proper smashmouth appeal to “Cherry 2000” as bodies are slapped around, often high above the ground. The plot promises a certain degree of absurdity, but De Jarnatt favors humor, not parody, taking the tale as seriously as possible, which permits Lester to be intimidating and the quest itself to retain some urgency. And when all else fails, the picture unloads with all the gunplay, shattered glass, and explosions a viewer could want.

Cherry 2000 Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The AVC encoded image (1.85:1 aspect ratio) presentation carries the sci-fi mood of "Cherry 2000" adequately, but never superbly, showing some signs of age with a slightly flatter viewing experience. Softness is present with low-budget cinematography, but details survive. Colors are satisfying, eased along by the production's use of bright neons and bold costuming, delivering a stable primaries. Sets also carry decent hues. Skintones are natural. Delineation is acceptable, with evening sequences easily surveyed, while darker interiors retain their shadowy intent. The viewing experience is filmic, with grain present and managed. The print displays pockets of debris and minor scratches.

Cherry 2000 Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The 2.0 DTS-HD MA sound mix arrives on the quieter side, necessitating a boost in volume to reach a cinematic level of engagement. It's a chaotic track, bursting with gunfire, explosions, and energetic scoring, with the music held back a degree to make room for the rest of the action, losing a degree of support. Dialogue exchanges are on the passive side, but nothing is completely lost, while dramatic range doesn't reach distortive extremes. Atmospherics are insistent, which is generally a good thing, but a stretch at Lester's ranch details an unsourced clicking sound that's intentional, but distracting.

Cherry 2000 Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary features director Steve De Jarnatt.

• Interview (13:02, HD) with Tim Thomerson doesn't plunge too deeply into the making of "Cherry 2000," but the actor has a few anecdotes to share about time spent with his seasoned co-stars. Talk of professional history and a gravitation toward playing villains is included, along with a few words about on-set tensions between Melanie Griffith and David Andrews.

• Making Of (6:21, SD) is an EPK featurette that balances film clips and BTS footage, emphasizing the practical action and sensitive characters of the picture, along with its use of Nevada locations.

• And a Theatrical Trailer (2:25, HD) is included.

Cherry 2000 Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

"Cherry 2000" offers a colorful supporting cast (Johnson is expectedly solid as an aging tracker) and a fluid pace. It also retains enough oddity with Lester's cult, which is a vicious band of outlaws who enjoy sandwiches and evening "Hokey Pokey" dances at their desert compound. Limitations remain in De Jarnatt's vision, but considering the story, "Cherry 2000" ends up a satisfying viewing experience with a real sense of adventure. Sure, silliness pops up on occasion, but there's spirit here that likely wouldn't have been found by a different filmmaker. De Jarnatt runs a relatively tight ship, with enough creativity and screen activity to hold attention.