User Reviews

Some Spoilers within, but not much.

I taped `The Scorpio Factor' late one night and put the tape away for a few months. It was one of the last movies I taped on a local channel that aired low budget movies at two o'clock in the morning before that station decided to show reruns of People's Court, Judge Mathis, and The Drew Carey Show instead of movies. I still am unsure what to make of this one. It starts off as an espionage thriller, a genre I really dislike. The genre is convoluted, confusing, and boring. I guess Michel Wachniuc thought so too, since he changes his pace entirely, going from espionage thriller to chase movie before the movie is half finished. This makes the movie much better. Sadly, that doesn't mean it makes the movie good, because it doesn't. But at least I wasn't itching to shut the movie off and just had fun watching the chase.

As I said, I don't like espionage films. Despite my best efforts to pay close attention to all that was said and done early on, I still wasn't completely sure of what the plot was about. I do know that a valuable microchip was stolen, and that the thief placed it on his girlfriend shortly before the bad guys that want the chip assassinate him. Police officials and an Interpol agent team up to find the woman and the chip before the hired guns do. The crafty woman finds refuge with a gang of punks that help her avoid both cops and crooks. This is about all there is to it. The movie goes at a snail's pace until the gang of punks is introduced. Up until this point we just had to watch the main characters, none of whom are interesting in the least bit. The lead (David Nerman, who is still acting to this day---a mighty achievement to say the least) is especially dull, but it is more the fault of a screenplay that gives him no personality and nothing to do than the actor playing the part. The first hitmen that we see aren't colorful either, but the second set, two half-witted Brits, are much better. These two, Nigel and Hugo, are some of the only characters given personalities (the others being the punks, particularly one named Rebel), and the actors really go wild with them. Hugo constantly stops pursuit to notice it is snowing, or to examine the vapors from a steam machine. And there is also a scenes where Nigel is flashing a knife at one of the punks, daring him to come closer. A moment later, the punk is hauling Nigel around. Funny stuff.

Once these characters are in place, the chase starts and the movie flows smoothly. But then it just ends at a grinding halt. No explanation as to who the weird woman on the rope is, or who really hired the bad guys. The title isn't really explained, though someone mentions `Scorpio' early on, I was never sure what it referred to. No real resolution, either. Oh, sure, the villains are dealt with, but it isn't a manner at which we should feel good about. There is no anticlimax, which affected and disappointed me greatly. Too bad, as I was starting to really enjoy the movie. Zantara's score: 5 out of 10.