Arrow Video
Lieutenant Tuck Pendleton (Dennis Quaid) is a test pilot with a less than stellar reputation, putting him at odds with his peers and superiors professionally, just as Tuck also struggles with his personal relationships, his behavior leaving him estranged from his girlfriend, Lydia (Meg Ryan).
After another embarrassing episode, Tuck volunteers for a top secret miniaturization project, which sees him and the submersible vessel he is navigating shrunk down to microscopic size and about to be injected into a rabbit for testing, but with such coveted technology being too tempting to ignore for people with less than honorable intentions, one thing quickly leads to another, and Tuck suddenly finds himself injected into neurotic hypochondriac Jack (Martin Short).
With his oxygen supply dwindling, Tuck must convince Jack to find Lydia so they can help get him back to the lab before it is too late, and the technology either falls into the wrong hands or Tuck draws his last breath.
What works particularly well here is how the film gleefully runs off with its premise and makes the most it, giving it an undeniable charm due to its insistence of not taking itself seriously whatsoever, something the film’s director would be particularly well-known for.
Helmed by Joe Dante, Innerspace is another gem in the filmmaker’s whacky crown of weird comedies, sandwiched between other iconic efforts such as Gremlins and The ‘Burbs, showcasing that one can indeed build a mainstream filmography brimming with creativity and originality.
Much like Dante’s other filmography around the time, Innerspace is another one of those zany 80s comedies that makes people fondly reminisce about the mainstream entertainment of the decade, and it is similarly this zaniness that makes the film well worth a revisit nearly 40 years on, as this kind of outlandish and unapologetically silly comedy is something that has all but disappeared from contemporary release slates, and being part of what makes audiences complain that Hollywood is incapable of producing anything original for the mainstream at current.
The cast all bounce off of each other well, with Quaid being as charmingly obnoxious as usual, Ryan being cutely charismatic, and Short perfectly playing the anxious everyman who rises to the occasion despite the odds.
As a result, Innerspace is tremendously watchable, escapist fun with a snappy pace and a confident vision that does not second-guess itself in the name of wanting to be taken seriously, instead going all in on all the silly gags that would have a contemporary studio executive wagging their finger at the filmmakers before tightening the purse strings.
While it may sound cliché to state that they do not make them like this anymore, the 80s certainly had an abundance of wildly creative comedies for both better and worse, and Innerspace is easily one of the better ones.
This 4K limited edition includes new and archival audio commentary, making of documentary, previously unseen video footage, original storyboards, Polaroids images, still galleries, trailer, fold-out poster, and booklet.
Verdict: 8 out of 10.
