A scientist trains a man with an advanced telepathic ability called "scanning" to stop a dangerous Scanner with extraordinary psychic powers from waging war against non scanners.A scientist trains a man with an advanced telepathic ability called "scanning" to stop a dangerous Scanner with extraordinary psychic powers from waging war against non scanners.A scientist trains a man with an advanced telepathic ability called "scanning" to stop a dangerous Scanner with extraordinary psychic powers from waging war against non scanners.
- Awards
- 3 wins & 9 nominations
Stephen Lack
- Cameron Vale
- (as Steven Lack)
Robert A. Silverman
- Benjamin Pierce
- (as Robert Silverman)
Murray Cruchley
- Programmer 1
- (as Lee Murray)
Géza Kovács
- Killer in Record Store
- (as Geza Kovacs)
Sonny Forbes
- Killer in Attic
- (as Sony Forbes)
Jérôme Tiberghien
- Killer in Attic
- (as Jerome Tiberghien)
Victor Désy
- Dr. Gatineau
- (as Victor Desy)
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaDavid Cronenberg once called this the most frustrating film he'd ever made. The film was rushed through production - filming had to begin without a finished script and end within roughly two months so the financing would qualify as a tax write-off, forcing Cronenberg to write and shoot at the same time. Cronenberg also cited difficulty with and antagonism between the leads, particularly Patrick McGoohan and Jennifer O'Neill.
- GoofsAfter the famous "exploding head" scene, there wasn't a drop of blood on Revok or the table.
- Quotes
Benjamin Pierce: My art... keeps me sane.
[gestures at plaster head]
Benjamin Pierce: Art.
[taps his temples]
Benjamin Pierce: Sane.
- Crazy creditsAs the credits end, the words "Max Security Self Destruct Seconds 1" flash on the screen, then the screen flashes green, as if someone shut the monitor off.
- Alternate versionsThe death of the first scanner ('Victor Del Grande' ) was filmed in two different ways: the theatrical release has Revok (Michael Ironside) causing his head to explode; an alternate take, featured in television versions, shows him dying of a grotesque heart attack instead. The Sci-Fi Network has shown the scene intact.
- ConnectionsEdited into 365 Days, also Known as a Year (2019)
Featured review
A disappointment
I was pretty disappointed. It's more of a step down than a step up for Cronenberg; it seemed like he was sacrificing his vision to make a mainstream-friendly film. As a result, the film is basically a bunch of great scenes strung along by a generic, rather lame plot and some truly terrible performances. Even so, those scenes - the exploding head, the phone line stuff, the final battle - are so fantastic and so memorable in their own right that they make it worth getting through everything that comes between. Just a brilliant combination of sound and image in those sequences. So, overall, the film is nothing great, but it's not a complete wreck, either.
helpful•169
- charchuk
- Dec 14, 2007
- How long is Scanners?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Scanners - Ihre Gedanken können töten
- Filming locations
- Toronto, Ontario, Canada(yorkdale subway station)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- CA$4,100,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $14,225,876
- Gross worldwide
- $14,225,876
- Runtime1 hour 43 minutes
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.85 : 1
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