*batteries not included (1987)

Director:

Matthew Robbins

Writers:

Mick Garris (story)
Brad Bird (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

18 December 1987 (USA)

Genre:

Family | Fantasy | Sci-Fi | Comedy

Tagline:

Five ordinary people needed a miracle. Then one night, Faye Riley left the window open.

Plot:

Apartment block tenants seek the aid of alien mechanical life-forms to save their building from demolition.

Plot Keywords:

Grill | Memory Loss | Baseball Bat | Bulldozer | Construction

Awards:

2 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

Hume Cronyn	...	Frank Riley, Owner Riley's Cafe
Jessica Tandy	...	Faye Riley
Frank McRae	...	Harry Noble
Elizabeth Peña	...	Marisa Esteval
Michael Carmine	...	Carlos
Dennis Boutsikaris	...	Mason Baylor
Tom Aldredge	...	Sid Hogenson
Jane Hoffman	...	Muriel Hogenson
John DiSanti	...	Gus
John Pankow	...	Kovacs
MacIntyre Dixon	...	DeWitt
Michael Greene	...	Lacey, Real Estate Developer
Doris Belack	...	Mrs. Thompson
Wendy Schaal	...	Pamela
José Angel Santana	...	Goon #1 (as José Santana)

Runtime:

106 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

USA:PG (Certificate #28866) | Australia:PG | Argentina:Atp | Finland:K-10/7 | UK:PG | USA:PG | West Germany:6 | Singapore:PG | Iceland:L

Filming Locations:

East Village, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Universal Pictures

Trivia:

Originally intended to be a story featured in the TV series "Amazing Stories" (1985). Steven Spielberg liked the idea so much he decided to make it a theatrical release.

Goofs:

Continuity: When the two machines first appear in the Riley apartment, the toaster is plugged into different sockets. In the first shot, it's in the bottom socket. In the second, the top socket.

Quotes:

Carlos: [after having money thrown in his face] You kill my head, man.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Mac and Me (1988)

Cute, sweet, funny and warm

Okay, *batteries not included is not a great film. It's not meant to be! The makers of this movie were obviously not trying to win any awards, but make a sweet movie for all ages about love, acceptance, friendship and family.

Frank and Faye Riley (Hume Cronyn and Jessica Tandy)own the cafe that's located on the first floor of the building they live in. Among the other tenants is a former boxer (Frank McRae), a pregnant woman (Elizabeth Pena) and a starving artist (Dennis Boutsikaris). They band together and try to stop an angry developer (John Pankow) and his assistant (Michael Carmine (II)) out to run them from the building. They're assisted by some mechanical aliens and discover the meaning of forgiveness and family, acceptance and love.