CheerupSilver Very Cool!!!

Wordiezett So much average

Lawbolisted Powerful

Actuakers One of my all time favorites.

Sam Panico Senator Nick Rast (Blowup, Barbarella, Deep Red) has a son, Alex, with leukemia and a loveless marriage to his wife, Sandy (Carmen Duncan, Turkey Shoot). In fact, a doctor goes as far to tell them that they should just let their son die as the film begins.At a birthday party, Alex meets a clown who makes him smile. That clown ends up being Gregory Wolfe (Robert Powell, Asylum, The Asphyx), a faith healer in the mold of Rasputin (hint: the name Rast is tsar backward). The more time he spends with Alex, the better the child feels. Sandy also falls in love with Wolfe, despite the fact that he does some insane feats, like holding Alex over a cliff to make him come to grips with death.Meanwhile, the senator is controlled by Doc Wheelan (Broderick Crawford, All the King's Men and you know the rules when it comes to Old Hollywood actors) and he warns him that Wolfe isn't what he seems and could be a danger to his family.Also called Dark Forces, Harlequin was to originally star David Bowie as Wolfe and Orson Welles as Doc Wheelan. Director Simon Wincer has quite the strange directorial history, with films like Free Willy, The Phantom (the Smash Evil! version), plenty of episodes of The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles, Crocodile Dundee in Los Angeles and NASCAR: The IMAX Experience.If you know the story of Rasputin, this film follows it, with Wheelan's men killing Wolfe over and over again, but the results of meeting the Harlequin makes Rast reconsider his life as his son takes over the mantle of that Wolfe left behind.This is seriously one odd movie, but Powell's performance (and frequent costume changes) make it something truly special. It feels like more viewings will unearth more hidden meanings, but upon watching it once, I'm hooked.Again - as seems to be a theme this week - this film should have a bigger cult than it does. Then again, the Alamo Drafthouse programming team shared it as one of their 2017 discoveries, so perhaps more folks will start sharing their love of this film. Has anyone reading this seen it?

Rrrobert Like many Antony I Ginnane productions this one boasts some minor league international 'name' actors (Broderick Crawford, David Hemmings), along with some Australian TV celebrities known for soap opera acting roles (Carmen Duncan, Mark Spain, Alyson Best, Sean Myers, Julia Moody, Bevan Lee, John Frawley) and late night commercials spruiking land deals in Mt Evelyn, Victoria (Gus Mercurio). And as with most Ginnane productions, the story involves mystery, intrigue, and some low-budget supernatural events.Unfortunately it is one of the more muddled outputs of the Ginnane stable. The script seems clunky with a Harold Holt style disappearance, a Rasputin type healer, political intrigue, and a Damien Thorne type diabolical tyke. The story never really seems to come together and the various elements seem confusing.Robert Powell is great to watch and he sports some fab costumes. Sadly with the murky story the viewer soon becomes engrossed in spotting things like the costumes and makeup, former (and future - Jeremy Sims) screen stars, Carmen Duncan's range of hairdos, and the décor and views of the mansion in which much of the action takes place. Not a good sign.The score by Brian May seems incongruous and heavy handed.

Theo Robertson I saw this in 1983 and remembered it as a very haunting supernatural drama so I made a point in staying up late tonight to watch it on TV . Unfortunately it's one of these movies that disappoints after seeing it again after a very lengthy period . When it's good it's very good but there's not enough good moments . Thankfully the ending still compels when Wolfe returns to tell Rast what's going on plot wise but much of the movie revolves around long talkative scenes The major problem with HARLEQUIN is that it's an Australian movie . There's nothing wrong with that in itself but as well as being a supernatural drama it's also a political thriller but does the machinations of Australian state politics interest a potential audience compared to global American politics ? In other words just think of how more thought provoking the story could have been if Wolfe had befriended the family of a man who's running for party nomination for presidential candidate . Wouldn't that have made for a better , more thought provoking film ? We can all understand how powerful a potential candidate for US President is but for much of the movie I was scratching my chin as to what's the big deal about deputy governor of an unnamed Australian state Despite my disappointment HARLEQUIN is if not a great movie it's far from being a bad one . Robert Powell doesn't go over the top in a role that demands much subtlety while David Hemmings likewise plays Senator Rast in a cleverly understated manner . Despite the obvious parallels to the legend of Rasputin , directing that seems better suited to a TVM and some underwhelming special effects the last twenty minutes are nothing less than nail biting and I still recommend this movie as long as you've got the patience to stay with it

ichobodcrane I saw this film in my youth and after years of searching for it, finally taped it off the telly. Robert Powel is exceptional as the title character as is David Hemmings as the senator. There are a few films out there that can just bewitch you as you're watching them, The Wickerman being the best example, but this one comes very close. If you see this little gem airing on your TV in the wee small hours I urge you to tape it.