White Dwarf (film)
White Dwarf | |
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RHI Entertainment | |
Original release | |
Network | Fox |
Release | May 23, 1995 |
White Dwarf is a 1995 American
Originally intended as aPlot
In the year 3040, New York medical student Driscoll Rampart (Neal McDonough) is completing his internship on Rusta, a rural planet which due to it being tidally locked to its primary, is divided into contrasting halves of day and night with the halves separated by a wall. The two sides are involved in a civil war: The day side containing a Victorian-styled colony is at odds with the night containing a medieval kingdom. The differences between the two cultures leaves Rampart in a state of wonder. Rampart arrives from Earth for a six-month stint at the Light Side clinic run by Dr. Akada (Paul Winfield). Rampart's ambition is to eventually set up a private practice in Manhattan on Park Avenue.
Cast
- Paul Winfield as Dr. Akada
- Neal McDonough as Dr. Driscoll Rampart
- Ele Keats as Ariel
- CCH Pounder as Nurse Shabana
- David St. James as King Joist's Royal Guard
- James Morrison as Peter
- Katy Boyer as Lady X, Immortal Prisoner
- Kevin Brophy as Orderly
- Marsha Dietleinas Emma
- Michael McGrady as Lieutenant Strake
- Robert O. Cornthwaiteas King Joist of The Dark Side
- Roy Brocksmith as Guv'ner Twist
- Thomas F. Duffy as Parasite Man
- Giuseppe Andrews as Never The Shifter
- Beverley Mitchell as XuXu, Older Twin
- Time Winters as The David
- Chip Heller as Osh, Warden of The Keep
- John Dennis Johnston as Morgus, Osh's Assistant
- Gary Watkins as Marshall Bardaker
- Maggie Baird as Scarred Cultist
- Ralph Drischell as Dr. Gulpha, King Joist's Advisor
- Kirk Ward as Samuel
- Tara Graham as XaXa, Younger Twin
- Maya McLaughlin as Armanda, Rampart's Late Wife
- Tycho Thal as Twist's Servant
Production
Paul Winfield willingly accepted a pay cut to be part of this film. Said Winfield, "I thought it was a (feature film). I'm a real sci-fi nut. Even as a kid, that was my pleasure, reading science fiction. I read Heinlein, the big anthologies, Asimov. I've always liked science-fiction movies too. I like being in them, just to see how they do it." He expanded that during filming, the film "sort of started to have a life of its own."[10]
Bruce Wagner claims his inspiration was drawn from the cover-art of science-fiction novels. Having a limited budget, the project was shot at multiple locations within 40 miles of Los Angeles: scenes of the prison were constructed in the same location where
Releases
The film originally aired May 23, 1995 on the
Reception
The film was reviewed as having promise, but received generally negative reviews. The New York Times wrote that the film began with a "shamelessly incredible premise" which "takes off into a wholly unbelievable stratosphere". They also observed that the film's collection of protagonists and antagonists do nothing to improve it, and while keeping track of them is "often exasperating", it "is hardly boring. The film's offers decent special effects, but the soundtrack by Stewart Copeland "is curiously inept", and its actors "give readings as lifeless as departure announcements for the Long Island Rail Road."[1]
TV Guide granted the film offered a "broad panorama" with a "rich, detailed setting" but the setting was unable to "compensate for the lack of a coherent plot." They expanded that the film's representation of a split culture "is evenly handled, with neither side portrayed as wholly good or bad", but concluded that "the film's potential is badly marred by an incoherent plot which is unable to sustain the setting and characters. Dramatic conflicts are practically non-existent and the various plots are given too little time to develop." The film has action, but it is not relevant to the thin plot, and what few moments of potential momentum is lost with characters "who discover things too soon or resolve things too easily."[5]
New York Daily News wrote that Bruce Wagner's "Futuristic White Dwarf is a fuzzy dud." Their complaint was toward how illogical it was that in a time when interstellar travel was commonplace, dependence on stagecoaches and horseback was nonsense, and the "medical facilities, equipment and medications seem as primitive as the transportation system." They concluded the "participation of Francis Ford Coppola and Robert Halmi Sr. as executive producers with Wagner, as well as a fine production team, still doesn't make this movie worth more than about the 30 seconds it takes to watch one of Fox' promos for it."[12]
Awards and nominations
- Received a 1995 ASC Awards nomination for Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography in Movies of the Week or Pilot[11]
References
- ^ a b O'Connor, John J. (May 23, 1995). "Healing the Sick In the Stratosphere". The New York Times. Retrieved October 11, 2013.
- ^ Bierbaum, Tom (May 23, 1995). "Review: 'White Dwarf'". Variety. Retrieved October 12, 2013.
- ^ Willman, Chris (May 23, 1995). "Review: 'White Dwarf' Takes Peek at 31st Century". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved October 11, 2013.
- ^ Johnson, Allan (May 23, 1995). "Strange World: Quirkiness Infuses Fox's 'White Dwarf'". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved October 11, 2013.
- ^ a b staff. "White Dwarf: Review". TV Guide. Retrieved October 11, 2013.
- ^ Baltimore Sun. Retrieved October 11, 2013.
- ^ Endrst, James (May 22, 1995). "Shortage Of Drama Distances Viewers From 'White Dwarf'". Hartford Courant. Retrieved October 11, 2013.
- ^ Associated Press (May 22, 1995). "White Dwarf' Airs Tuesday". Rome News-Tribune. Retrieved October 11, 2013.
- ^ Jicha, Tom (May 22, 1995). "Fox Pilot Out Of This World". Sun Sentinel. Retrieved October 11, 2013.
- ^ a b c d O'Hare, Kate (May 21, 1995). "The Light And The Dark Side Of 'White Dwarf'". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved October 12, 2013.
- ^ a b staff. "10th Annual ASC Awards — 1995". American Society of Cinematographers. Retrieved October 11, 2013.
- ^ Mink, Erik (May 23, 1995). "...BUT HIS FUTURISTIC 'WHITE DWARF' IS A FUZZY DUD". New York Daily News. Retrieved October 12, 2013.
External links
- White Dwarf (1995) at IMDb
- White Dwarf at Rotten Tomatoes