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The Wizard (1989)

PG  |   |  Adventure, Comedy, Drama  |  15 December 1989 (USA)
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A boy and his brother run away from home and hitch cross country with the help of a girl they meet to compete in the ultimate video game championship.

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Title: The Wizard (1989)

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Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
...
Vince Trankina ...
Tate (as Vincent Leahr)
...
Dea McAllister ...
...
...
...
...
Will Seltzer ...
Roy Conrad ...
...
Roderick Dexter ...
Ray Bickel ...
Chuck Skinner ...
W.K. Cowan ...
Salesman #1
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Storyline

Corey and Jimmy Woods are two brothers who are being separated due to their parents divorcing. Jimmy is a mentally unstable kid that has had problems ever since his sister died at a young age. One day, Corey discovers that Jimmy has a natural talent for playing video games. He is one of the best around, and the two journey to the West Coast to compete in a video game championship, but along the way, they must avoid the adults, who are trying to take Jimmy away. Written by Anonymous

Plot Summary | Add Synopsis

Taglines:

They're on a cross-country adventure to the world's greatest video championship. It's more than a game...it's the chance of a lifetime. See more »


Certificate:

PG | See all certifications »

Parents Guide:

 »
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Details

Country:

Language:

Release Date:

15 December 1989 (USA)  »

Also Known As:

Vidéokid  »

Filming Locations:

 »

Box Office

Budget:

$6,000,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$14,278,900 (USA)
 »

Company Credits

Show detailed on  »

Technical Specs

Runtime:

Sound Mix:

Color:

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1
See  »
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Did You Know?

Trivia

The dinosaurs in the film are an actual tourist attraction, located at the Wheel Inn Restaurant in Cabazon, CA (near Palm Springs). They also appear in Pee-wee's Big Adventure (1985) and in the music video for the Night Ranger song Sing Me Away. See more »

Goofs

In the first encounter between Putnam and Sam, Sam pulls out a shovel and repeatedly hits Putnam's car as he tries to leave. If you watch closely, Sam destroys the front left headlight twice. After smashing it the first time, a few seconds later it shows him hit it again as if it had not been hit yet. See more »

Quotes

Lucas: Pick any game you want. I'm good at all of 'em. I've got 97 of 'em.
Haley: You know all 97 of them?
See more »

Connections

Features Double Dragon (1987) See more »

Soundtracks

Leavin' On Your Mind
Written by Wayne Walker and Webb Pierce
Performed by Patsy Cline
See more »

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User Reviews

Love Nintendo, and (sorry) love this movie
3 September 2002 | by (Netherlands) – See all my reviews

The fond memories I had of this flick from my youth were not disappointed when I finally caught up with it again recently.

Its simply a great kids adventure. Many claimed at the time that it was little more than a rather enormous advert for Nintendo, and it is. But they bothered to make a decent movie out of it as well. I remember how excited I was at the prospect of Super Mario Bros 3, and this movie plays up to those expectations very entertainingly.

If you love videogames, the film is a fascinating cultural artifact. If you are a youngster, you should thoroughly enjoy a very well maintained adventure, with surprisingly few flaws.

It may sound pretentious, but for what it is, it is near flawless. Go figure!


11 of 13 people found this review helpful.  Was this review helpful to you?

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