Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		4.0
Audio		3.0
Extras		1.5
Overall		3.5

Cyborg 2087 Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf September 15, 2017

In the future, old men will be robots, and they will all wear ascots. That’s the promise made by “Cyborg 2087,” a 1966 time travel adventure directed by Franklin Adreon, who attempts to stretch roughly 30 minutes of story into an 86-minute-long film. He’s not exactly a miraculous architect of suspense, with the feature enduring incredible padding just to make it to a release-worthy length, but there’s a certain tone of super-serious no- budget sci-fi that keeps the effort entertaining, even when it isn’t doing anything onscreen. “Cyborg 2087” isn’t a genre classic, that’s for sure, but it retains some appeal due to committed performances and Adreon’s B-movie hustle, often doing anything he can to keep the picture on the move.

Sent from the year 2087, cyborg Garth (Michael Rennie) is on a mission to stop scientific research conducted by Marx (Eduard Franz), who’s on the brink of introducing psychic communication to the world after a recent breakthrough. Garth, on the hunt for his target, receives help from Dr. Sharon (Karen Steele), Marx’s assistant and a woman whose eyes are opened to the dangers coming for humanity once mind control is made possible. On Garth’s tail are two cyborg “Tracers,” who jog around the city looking for their fugitive half-man/half-robot, threatening Dr. Sharon, Dr. Zeller (Warren Stevens), and The Sheriff (Wendell Corey, whose sobriety is in question during certain scenes) along the way.

“Cyborg 2087” isn’t exactly “The Terminator,” but it offers basically the same futuristic urgency, with Garth sent from the future to prevent the public debut of mind control, which causes chaos in the titular year. However, Garth isn’t a Schwarzenegger-style brute capable to destroying anyone who gets in his way. Instead, the character is an older man with stiff hair and a perfectly positioned ascot, looking more like a father of six from 1953 than a futureman on a mission to save the world. The Tracers are also aging, doughy men, making youth an undesirable commodity in the future, but teenagers are present in “Cyborg 2087,” setting up a generational divide as the production panders to adolescent audiences, offering screen time to herky-jerky dancing and young wisdom from uncorrupted minds, providing clarity for adults stuck in difficult relationships.

Cyborg 2087 Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

"Cyborg 2087" arrives on Blu-ray labeled as "Newly re-mastered in HD." The AVC encoded image (1.84:1 aspect ratio) presentation offers a bright look at the feature's plain style, and detail is encouraging, doing fine with facial particulars and the effort's costuming, which delivers adequate textures for period garb and silver future wear. Sets and locations are also open for examination, offering reasonable dimension. Grain is filmic, heavier at times. Colors are secure, with healthy primaries and greenery, and skintones are natural. Delineation is passable, but blacks look a tad brightened at times. Source has its share of speckling and mild scratches.

Cyborg 2087 Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The 2.0 DTS-HD MA mix isn't anything remarkable, tending to the basics of the "Cyborg 2087" listening event. Hiss is present throughout the track, but dialogue exchanges survive, preserving excitable performances. Scoring is bland but it registers with reasonable presence, supporting the action when required. Sound effects are little weak, but perhaps inherently so.

Cyborg 2087 Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary features filmmaker Chris Alexander.

• A Theatrical Trailer has not been included.

Cyborg 2087 Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

As previously mentioned, "Cyborg 2087" is absurdly padded, with large chunks of the picture reserved for real-time driving and searching, following the Tracers as they run from destination to destination, inspecting all kinds of buildings and residences. The production is well aware of narrative shortcomings, forcing Adreon to stretch everything to absurd lengths, which doesn't do much to encourage suspense, but unintentional laughs are plentiful. Once the feature finds focus, its dramatic potential increases, delivering a degree of character and concentrated performances to create necessary tension as the hunt for Marx finally takes shape in the third act. "Cyborg 2087" always seems to pull away from complete boredom at the last minute, suddenly interested in its plot again, creating a strange energy to the piece, which appear eager to stage a rip-roaring tale of time travel and futureworld destruction, but only manages to find intermittent inspiration. It's not exactly a disappointment, but replace all the footage of people making three point turns with actual drama, and the film could be so much more.