Wikipedia

Cyclone (1987 film)

Cyclone is a 1987 science fiction action film directed by Fred Olen Ray, starring Heather Thomas, Jeffrey Combs, Martine Beswick, Huntz Hall and Martin Landau. It concerns a woman who must keep the ultimate motorcycle from falling into the wrong hands.

Cyclone
Promotional film poster
Directed byFred Olen Ray
Written byPaul Garson
T.L. Lankford
Fred Olen Ray (uncredited)
Produced byPaul Hertzberg
StarringHeather Thomas
Jeffrey Combs
Dar Robinson
Martine Beswick
Martin Landau
Huntz Hall
Troy Donahue
CinematographyPaul Elliott
Edited byRobert A. Ferretti
Music byDavid A. Jackson
Haunted Garage (songs)
Distributed byCineTel Films
Release date
  • March 20, 1987 (1987-03-20)
Running time
83 min.
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$750,000
Box office$41,174 (USA)

Plot

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Teri leaves the gym and stops by a motorcycle repair shop to pick up parts for her inventor boyfriend Rick. Rick has developed the ultimate motorcycle, the Cyclone. It is a $5 million bike equipped with rocket launchers and laser guns, which only needs oxygen to operate. The funding for the cutting edge motor cycle was provided by the government who wish to take control of the vehicle. In addition, local criminal arms dealers see the motorcycle as a bonanza and are attempting to steal it to sell on the black market.

When Teri and Rick head out to a local hotspot, Rick is murdered by those who wish to gain control of the prototype. It is now up to Teri to keep the Cyclone from falling into the wrong hands. Teri was told in a video Rick filmed before being stabbed that she can trust Agent Bob Jenkins, but she discovers that Jenkins has also been killed. With no one left that she can trust but herself, she must decide how to be sure the motorcycle is not misused in the future.[1]

Cast

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Production

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Development and writing

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The film was developed from an outline by director Fred Olen Ray under the working title of Cycle Warrior.[2] Paul Garson, a contributor to several motorsports magazines including Hot Bike,[3] was approached to write the screenplay by Ray, who knew him from his press work. He was offered a meager $3500, and given a week to deliver his first draft. Garson, who aspired to write fiction, accepted the challenge and locked himself inside a hotel room to meet the deadline.[4] The titular "Cyclone" prototype was based on a Honda XL350. Its futuristic body was made by Tracy Nelson's Tracy Design of Santa Barbara, California.[3]

Casting

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Ray originally had Linda Blair in mind for the starring role, but she yearned for an image change and more comedic roles. CineTel was then offered the services of Heather Thomas, who was paid just $20,000 for her appearance.[2] She had a clause inserted in her contract that guaranteed she would not do any nudity.[5] Celebrity sons Michael Reagan and Tim Conway Jr. also made their feature debut as a pair of detectives.[6][7]

As usual, vintage movie enthusiast Ray peppered the supporting cast with classic actors. He had known Martin Landau for about two years, but it was the first time he had backers who were willing to pay his rate. However, CineTel were adamantly against the hiring of Huntz Hall, whom Ray had loved as part of the Bowery Boys. They only signed on him after running out of more recognizable candidates, and still refused to give a him a credit on the poster, which offended the actor.[5] Some press items, perhaps based on early promotional material, mentioned Patrick McGoohan, Robert Vaughn[3] and Russ Tamblyn[8] as part of the cast, although they do not appear in the final version.

Filming

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The Los Angeles Times announced the start of principal photography for the fourth week of August 1986.[8] However, another source wrote that Thomas started filming on August 11, 1986.[9] The film was shot in the Los Angeles area over an 18-day schedule for a budget of $750,000.[10][11] The scene where Thomas gets tortured had to be moved to a backstage area not intended for filming, after the real soundstage became unavailable. This explains the distracting background noises heard throughout.[5] Due to his family connections, Reagan's participation entailed the presence of the Secret Service while he was on set.[12]

Ray did not have the best experience with his cast. Star Heather Thomas was difficult, at one point threatening to no-show the next day unless she was given a pair of Fred Segal Tark'1 jeans to wear. She also showed some animosity towards her co-star Ashley Ferrare.[2][5] Some of the veteran actors did not show the expected preparedness. Robert Quarry and Martine Beswick did not cope well with the long days and sometimes struggled with their lines.[5] However, he maintained a good rapport with Landau,[5] and struck a friendship with Jeffrey Combs after discovering that the latter was his neighbor and a friend of his son, which led to further collaborations.[13]

Dedication

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Actor and stuntman Dar Robinson died in November 1986 on the set of Million Dollar Mystery. That movie, Cyclone, and Lethal Weapon were all dedicated to his memory.[14]

Release

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Pre-release

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During an appearance on the NBC talk show Late Night with David Letterman shortly before Cyclone's opening, Heather Thomas denounced the film, saying she had done it to pay for her divorce bills, and that it was "coming to an airplane near you". Her abrasive comments, which strayed from promotional conventions, drew a surprised reaction from the host and audience alike.[15]

Theatrical

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CineTel gave Cyclone a touring regional release. Some press materials indicate that the film was supposed to debut on January 10, 1987.[10] However, no showtimes could be found for it around that date. The film seems to have made its actual debut on March 20, 1987, at various Florida locations.[16]

Home video

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The film arrived on VHS and Betamax tape through RCA Columbia Pictures Home Video on June 25, 1987.[17] It made its domestic DVD debut from budget publisher Platinum Disc on January 7, 2003.[18] Cyclone was slated to come to Blu-ray through Code Red on November 31, 2021, but the release was cancelled after it turned out that MGM, who had licensed the film's rights to the publisher, did not own them anymore.[18][19]

Reception

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Cyclone received mixed-to-negative reviews. Bob Ross of the Tampa Tribune lambasted the film as a "laughably inept chase-adventure [...] that lacks even rudimentary traces of professionalism."[14] Kevin Tomas of the Los Angeles Times found that "Thomas is a spunky, believable action heroine, and she has a strong assist from Martine Beswicke [sic]" but "[a]ction movies don’t come dumber than Cyclone.[20] Tony Frazier of The Daily Oklahoman was marginally more forgiving, writing: "To say Cyclone is a bad movie would be an overstatement. To say it's incomplete would be an understatement. I guess you could call it anorexic."[21]

John Stanley, author of the Creature Features series of books, gave the movie two out of five stars and stated that it contained "one blazing firefight and vehicle chase after another with no plot twists to brag about or motivated characters."[22] Sister publications TV Guide and the Motion Picture Annual gave the movie two out of five stars, writing that "Thomas is a likable enough heroine, though the script makes no real demands of her. The real source of interest is the cast of B-movie veterans whom director Fred Olen Ray habitually assembles for his films."[1] In an article focusing on B-movies, Doug Brod of Video Review gave the film three and a half Bs (a replacement for their usual stars) out of four, and wrote that "[l]ots of action and a terrific supporting cast make this one whirl."[23]

References

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  1. ^ a b Leahy, William, ed. (1988). The 1988 Motion Picture Annual (covering films of 1987). Evanston: CineBooks. p. 44. ISBN 9780933997172.
  2. ^ a b c Gilpin, Kris (February 1990). "Fred Olen Ray". Draculina. No. 10. Moro: Draculina Publishing. pp. 5–11.
  3. ^ a b c Wealey, Papa (November 12, 1986). "In the Wind". Cycle News. Vol. 23, no. 44. Long Beach. p. 2.
  4. ^ Hunter, Chris (March 26, 1987). "Paul Garson Writes Up A Film Storm". Palm Beach Daily News. p. B12  – via newspapers.com (subscription required) .
  5. ^ a b c d e f Vogel, Robert (February 26, 1995). "The 'Guitar Pick' Years". The Asbury Press Park. p. E6  – via newspapers.com (subscription required) .
  6. ^ Scott, Vernon (October 30, 1986). "Reagan offspring goes for show biz". Citizens' Voice. Wilkes-Barre. United Press International. p. 52  – via newspapers.com (subscription required) .
  7. ^ "Sons follow their dads show business career". The Bellingham Herald. October 17, 1986. p. C1  – via newspapers.com (subscription required) .
  8. ^ a b Pecchia, David (August 24, 1986). "High Hopes". Los Angeles Times/Calendar. p. 20.
  9. ^ "More surgery for actress struck by car". Tyler Courier-Times. United Press International. September 18, 1986. p. 12 (Sec. 3)  – via newspapers.com (subscription required) .
  10. ^ a b Jones, Alan (March 1987). "Cyclone". CineFantastique. Vol. 17, no. 2. Forest Park: Clarke, Frederick S. p. 14. ISSN 0145-6032.
  11. ^ Granger, Damien (June 2023). Fred Olen Ray: Il était une fois à Hollywood (in French). Antony: Home Team Media Group. p. 98.
  12. ^ Cohn, Al (September 14, 1986). "Another acting Reagan, but the same old Ford". Newday. New York. p. 9  – via newspapers.com (subscription required) .
  13. ^ Latshaw, Steve (producer, director) (2002). Looking Back at The Phantom Empire (DVD featurette). Northridge: Retro Media. Event occurs at 10:33.
  14. ^ a b Ross, Boss (March 23, 1987). "'Cyclone' compares trivia with its trash". The Tampa Tribune. p. 5-F  – via newspapers.com (subscription required) .
  15. ^ "Heather Thomas interview". Late Night with David Letterman. Season 5. Episode 166. January 13, 1987. NBC. It was a movie, when your money's frozen in a divorce that you need to pay your lawyers for. [...] You got to have a job to pay your lawyers.[...] Coming to an airplane near you [...] I have no idea. They're gonna kill me in L.A.
  16. ^ "Cyclone advertisement". St. Petersburg Times. March 19, 1987. p. 24D  – via newspapers.com (subscription required) .
  17. ^ "Home video guide". The Palm Beach Post/TGIF. June 19, 1987. p. 20.
  18. ^ a b "Cyclone (1987): Releases". allmovie.com. Retrieved April 2, 2023.
  19. ^ Dawn of the Discs (September 9, 2021). "Cancelled". facebook.com. Retrieved May 29, 2023.
  20. ^ Thomas, Kevin (June 9, 1987). "'Cyclone' blows hot air, tepid plot". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved May 29, 2023.
  21. ^ Frazier, Tony. "Makers of weak Cyclone really blew it". The Daily Oklahoman/Weekend. Oklahoma City. p. 2  – via newspapers.com (subscription required) .
  22. ^ Stanley, John (1994) [1981]. Creature Features Movie Guide Strikes Again (4th ed.). Pacifica: Creatures at Large Press. p. 90. ISBN 9780940064102.
  23. ^ Brod, Doug (August 1988). "Movie Guide". Video Review. Vol. 9, no. 5. Viare Publishing. p. 37. ISSN 0196-8793.
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