Movies: Cherry 2000

Quick! Name a movie you liked that starred Melanie Griffith. Nothing coming to mind? I've got mine...



Okay, so the trailer doesn't really do a good job of portraying what "Cherry 2000" is all about, but suffice it to say that it is one of the best post-apocalyptic wasteland movies ever filmed. "Cherry 2000" eats up Kevin Costner stinkers like "Waterworld" and "The Postman" for breakfast.

The movie's about a man named Sam Treadwell who is in search of a replacement for his malfunctioning sex bot (you read that right...sex bot). He hires E. Johnson (Melanie Griffith) to go into the wasteland in order to find one, but the duo are hunted relentlessly by Lester (played with homicidal gusto by Tim Thomerson). This may be the only movie where you'll see Melanie Griffith shooting up a car with an AC-556 (a fully auto Mini-14). I'm pretty sure she didn't shoot anything up in "Working Girl."

The whole movie straddles the line between camp and seriousness pretty well. You have some exciting action scenes, some real drama, and enough cornball goofiness for anyone (the members of Lester's gang dress up in Hawaiian shirts(!)). Curiously enough, the film is scored by the legendary Basil Poledouris, lending a suitably epic air to the whole proceeding. Throw in an inspired performance by Ben Johnson, and you have a cult classic.

Rating: 7/10