Kyle Baxter (Ethan Randall) is a teenager who plays very well a video game called `Evolver'. This game was developed by Dr. Russell Bennett (John de Lancie). He wins a competition of Evolver where the prize was a robot similar to the game. What nobody knows is that Evolver indeed is a war machine with artificial intelligence. Therefore, the friends of Kyle are playing against a dangerous weapon. Although being a very predictable and forgettable movie, Evolver really entertains. It has some good special effects and a reasonable thriller. My vote is five.
17 Reviews
A fun, forgotten flick
Leofwine_draca15 August 2019
Warning: Spoilers
EVOLVER is a fun, forgotten sci-fi flick of the mid '90s, with only one recognisable cast member in the whole production, and that's STAR TREK's John De Lancie in a minor role. The main actor is a Fred Savage lookalike, a geeky kid who wins a computer game competition and brings home a hi-tech robot as a prize. Unfortunately the robot's wargaming spills over into real life as it begins a murder spree for real.
This film isn't great in terms of technicality or filmmaking quality but it is certainly entertaining. The pacing is strong and there are lots of interesting little set-pieces in which random victims are slaughtered by the admittedly clunky-looking robot menace. The FX are very mid '90s with even a bit of dated virtual reality thrown into the mix. Nothing very interesting from the cast, but it's watchable enough as a nice time capsule of the decade.
This film isn't great in terms of technicality or filmmaking quality but it is certainly entertaining. The pacing is strong and there are lots of interesting little set-pieces in which random victims are slaughtered by the admittedly clunky-looking robot menace. The FX are very mid '90s with even a bit of dated virtual reality thrown into the mix. Nothing very interesting from the cast, but it's watchable enough as a nice time capsule of the decade.
Crap-alert! Crap-alert!... Must. Terminate. This. Movie.
Vomitron_G25 January 2006
Warning: Spoilers
Well, okay, I'm being harsh. This movie isn't total crap. In fact, though it is pretty lame for today's standards, it's entertaining on some levels. The story is predictable and offers no surprises. Kyle Baxter is a champion in the virtual reality game 'Evolver' and hereby wins a real-life Evolver robot. So Kyle and his friends can now chase it around the house while playing the shoot'n'survive game. But there's a glitch in Evolver's system, making it see enemies everywhere as he gets going on a killing spree. Kyle finds out that its initial program was used in an abandoned military project (you didn't see that one coming, did ya? Harharhar!).
I can imaging a 10-year-old being extremely excited about the coolness of Evolver, but to me it looks like a Transformer-version of Johny 5 from SHORT CIRCUIT. Why EVOLVER got an R-rating is beyond me, 'cause there's almost no blood in it (and certainly no gore or nudity). In Belgium it got a 12-rating, just like it should be 'cause this is a horror/sci-fi-flick for kids. But it is kinda cool that every now and then Evolver upgrades himself to the next level. Though he looks like he's made out of plastic, he really is a tough little bastard. Throwing him in a pool, hitting him with blunt objects and even blowing him up don't seem to shut him down. Why didn't anyone call Optimus Prime to terminate it? The only real surprise this movie provided was when I read in the end-credits that William H. Macy performed the voice of Evolver. So you can imaging your friendly neighbor sounding much scarier than Evo. However, Mr. Macy did have some nice one-liners like "Delete this!" and "Bonus round!" before killing someone. Ethan Embry (as Kyle Baxter and rather young at the time he did EVOLVER) maybe isn't a top-notch actor but he injects a certain enthusiasm in his role and he did manage to show up in the surprisingly good horror-flick THEY (2002), giving a decent performance in it and showing us that he has grown as an actor.
So, EVOLVER is that kinda movie from the mid-90's that's neither good or bad. Just average acting, average special effects and an okay-looking robot. We've seen it all before. Remember the shoot-out scenes from the virtual reality game in GHOST IN THE MACHINE? Well, EVOLVER's got 'em too, only not as good and less dynamic. One good thing might be that the movie never gets really boring, but don't expect any scary stuff either. I say EVOLVER is somewhere stuck between Pyun's ARCADE and Flynn's BRAINSCAN, though none of them are comparable movies for that matter. I was contemplating giving EVOLVER 4 out of 10 stars, but I feel generous and will therefore add one star extra for Mr. Macy doing the robo-voice.
I can imaging a 10-year-old being extremely excited about the coolness of Evolver, but to me it looks like a Transformer-version of Johny 5 from SHORT CIRCUIT. Why EVOLVER got an R-rating is beyond me, 'cause there's almost no blood in it (and certainly no gore or nudity). In Belgium it got a 12-rating, just like it should be 'cause this is a horror/sci-fi-flick for kids. But it is kinda cool that every now and then Evolver upgrades himself to the next level. Though he looks like he's made out of plastic, he really is a tough little bastard. Throwing him in a pool, hitting him with blunt objects and even blowing him up don't seem to shut him down. Why didn't anyone call Optimus Prime to terminate it? The only real surprise this movie provided was when I read in the end-credits that William H. Macy performed the voice of Evolver. So you can imaging your friendly neighbor sounding much scarier than Evo. However, Mr. Macy did have some nice one-liners like "Delete this!" and "Bonus round!" before killing someone. Ethan Embry (as Kyle Baxter and rather young at the time he did EVOLVER) maybe isn't a top-notch actor but he injects a certain enthusiasm in his role and he did manage to show up in the surprisingly good horror-flick THEY (2002), giving a decent performance in it and showing us that he has grown as an actor.
So, EVOLVER is that kinda movie from the mid-90's that's neither good or bad. Just average acting, average special effects and an okay-looking robot. We've seen it all before. Remember the shoot-out scenes from the virtual reality game in GHOST IN THE MACHINE? Well, EVOLVER's got 'em too, only not as good and less dynamic. One good thing might be that the movie never gets really boring, but don't expect any scary stuff either. I say EVOLVER is somewhere stuck between Pyun's ARCADE and Flynn's BRAINSCAN, though none of them are comparable movies for that matter. I was contemplating giving EVOLVER 4 out of 10 stars, but I feel generous and will therefore add one star extra for Mr. Macy doing the robo-voice.
Great,Scary fun
TERMINATOR18015 February 2002
I don't see why people dislike this movie. Probably the same people who watch movies only for special effects (i.e. The Matrix) This movie has alot of entertainment value, especially if you're into Robotics,Virtual Reality or just plain Sci-Fi/Horror.
*** 1/2 out of *****
*** 1/2 out of *****
DATED!
jayg_584 April 2022
The plot has been done many times. AI gaming robot with a secret military subroutine. Hmm? I could start a list. You could do a lot with that with CGI and real actors. Here, there's no CGI (yet), so we have toys and stop motion and bad acting, and unfinished characters, and a primitive Robby the Robot concept from the 50s. The whole movie looks 1980s, not 1995. It almost looks like a high school comedy, but turned dark. I couldn't empathize with any of the characters, and kinda wished all of them had been done in. It's also in 4:3 format. I had my fingers on the FF.
evolver cant loose
asianboyeswagr15 June 2022
Want to play? I sure do after watching this movie. Ethan was amazing and I wish he was in even more films! His cameo in the walking dead did not disappoint and neither did this movie. The only thing I wish I got more of the locker room scene, the butts were hella tight ;) If you've ever played mortal combat imagine that but with a robot that says sweet one liners. I know it may never happen but im still holding on for a reboot or should I say robot!
play the game
lee_eisenberg13 March 2012
Although a little nasty in some scenes, Mark Rosman's "Evolver" is mostly a fun romp. It focuses on a computer whiz (Ethan Embry) who wins a robot with whom to play laser tag, only to find that this particular robot got designed for an army program, and is therefore intended as a killing machine. Specifically, one that never loses. There were a few scenes that I think that they could have done without, but otherwise the movie is pretty enjoyable. Maybe a little predictable, but no one expects much else from one of these movies, right? Also starring Cindy Pickett (the mom in "Ferris Bueller's Day Off") and William H. Macy as the voice of Evolver.
Cheesy yet enjoyable
the-underling29 May 2006
I'm one of those guys who enjoys pretty much any movie, so I guess I don't count. There are some things that struck me as stupid, but what could they do? CDRs didn't exist at that time, so they had to fake it. Still, the fact that they stuck what amounts to a CD in a floppy drive and faked reading it. The effects were great for the time, and are still decent. Back to some technical errors. Now, it IS possible to boost a laser to the point where you can burn things, but the power of the laser goes down as the distance goes up. Which means that if you put one up against a magnifying glass or something, the magnifier would melt. Also, boosting the power of a laser would not change the color. But still, it was a more than enjoyable, in my humble opinion.
so bad it reaches greatness
movieman_kev20 March 2011
Mark Rosman's best movie is this highly guilty pleasure from the mid-nineties. True it's a pretty insubstantial horror film with crappy special effects & highly predictable story, but seriously how can you hate a film that features Q creating a murderous robot with the voice of the Shameless William H Macy? And the family that 'wins' it in a contest. This one has a few very quotable lines as well. It's MUCH better than the similarly-themed "Brainscan" at least. But one note: This movie goes better with alcohol
Eye Candy: 2 extras are topless when evolver goes on a spy run in a locker room
Eye Candy: 2 extras are topless when evolver goes on a spy run in a locker room
We definitely recommend Evolver!
tarbosh2200024 June 2012
Warning: Spoilers
Now here's a find. You won't fail to be entertained by the greatness of Evolver! Teen Kyle (Embry) likes to hang out at "TurboPlay Virtual Excitement", a Virtual Reality (remember VR?) arcade of sorts. He's so good at VR games, crowds come to watch him do his thing. So much so that his buddy Zach (Quinn) takes bets on this neo-Tommy and his neo-Pinball machine. It's also there where he meets the cute Jamie (Rae) and they strike up a friendship/relationship. All seems to be going relatively well in Kyle's world, and when robotics company Cyber Tronix eyes him as a popular video game fan, they announce him as the winner of the "Evolver" contest. What's that you ask? Evolver is a robot that lives in your home and you play with him. He has built in "levels" that get progressively harder.
It seems fun, but there's one problem. Deep in Evolver's (or "Evo" as the cool kids call him) is government-created warfare technology. Seeing everyone as an enemy, Evo goes off the rails and begins killing and maiming people. Can Kyle and Jamie put an end to the robotic chaos? Find out today! Evolver is a wildly entertaining movie that everyone should see. It has no fat or filler - and it doesn't have much time to, as it can only be described as a Sci-Fi Horror Comedy Coming-Of-Age Tale. Amazingly, it all works and is a lot of fun. The movie takes cues from such movies as The Terminator (1984), Robocop (1987), The Last Starfighter (1984), Weird Science (1985), C.H.O.M.P.S. (1979) and most notably the two Short Circuit (1986) movies. But its heart is in lower-budget exploitation like Arcade (1993) or Chopping Mall (1986). The 90's VR trend allows for some lovably dated graphics, and it all adds to the fun.
As far as the Evolver robot is concerned, this li'l homunculus is like some sort of bizarre melding of Nintendo's Rob the Robot, a game of Laser Tag, a Tamagotchi, the "Happy Birthday Paulie" robot, a Roomba and Mr. Bucket. But instead of balls popping out of his mouth (remember the song?) - it's metal ball bearings that shoot at you. Naturally the voice of Evo is none other than William H. Macy. It's truly a career best performance. We're not being sarcastic, he's great as the tricky little bugger. Paul Dooley is on hand as the head of the robotics company, and Ethan Embry does a great job as Kyle. He's a real teen and not a 37 year old in disguise. He really seems to care about the proceedings.
What's great about Evolver is that it's just an insane idea that actually got made. It's not really that predictable for most of its running time either. It should really be more well-known. But maybe this movie was originally made as a tie-in or potential long-form commercial for a real Evolver you can buy in stores, but it never materialized. Either that, or there are hundreds of them buried in secret in the Nevada desert like the E.T. game for Atari. We just better hope they never wake up and go for revenge.
Interestingly, in Kyle's living room at home, not only does he have an NES, but a pretty decent VHS collection, and very briefly on screen you can see an assortment of Vidmark titles (Evolver is a Vidmark). One of which is one of the American Kickboxer (1990) movies! So clearly Kyle has good taste.
Featuring the 90's techno song "Beat the Machine", Evolver will appeal to just about anybody. But fans of 90's nostalgia especially will love the movie's charms. We definitely recommend Evolver.
For more action insanity, please visit: www.comeuppancereviews.com
It seems fun, but there's one problem. Deep in Evolver's (or "Evo" as the cool kids call him) is government-created warfare technology. Seeing everyone as an enemy, Evo goes off the rails and begins killing and maiming people. Can Kyle and Jamie put an end to the robotic chaos? Find out today! Evolver is a wildly entertaining movie that everyone should see. It has no fat or filler - and it doesn't have much time to, as it can only be described as a Sci-Fi Horror Comedy Coming-Of-Age Tale. Amazingly, it all works and is a lot of fun. The movie takes cues from such movies as The Terminator (1984), Robocop (1987), The Last Starfighter (1984), Weird Science (1985), C.H.O.M.P.S. (1979) and most notably the two Short Circuit (1986) movies. But its heart is in lower-budget exploitation like Arcade (1993) or Chopping Mall (1986). The 90's VR trend allows for some lovably dated graphics, and it all adds to the fun.
As far as the Evolver robot is concerned, this li'l homunculus is like some sort of bizarre melding of Nintendo's Rob the Robot, a game of Laser Tag, a Tamagotchi, the "Happy Birthday Paulie" robot, a Roomba and Mr. Bucket. But instead of balls popping out of his mouth (remember the song?) - it's metal ball bearings that shoot at you. Naturally the voice of Evo is none other than William H. Macy. It's truly a career best performance. We're not being sarcastic, he's great as the tricky little bugger. Paul Dooley is on hand as the head of the robotics company, and Ethan Embry does a great job as Kyle. He's a real teen and not a 37 year old in disguise. He really seems to care about the proceedings.
What's great about Evolver is that it's just an insane idea that actually got made. It's not really that predictable for most of its running time either. It should really be more well-known. But maybe this movie was originally made as a tie-in or potential long-form commercial for a real Evolver you can buy in stores, but it never materialized. Either that, or there are hundreds of them buried in secret in the Nevada desert like the E.T. game for Atari. We just better hope they never wake up and go for revenge.
Interestingly, in Kyle's living room at home, not only does he have an NES, but a pretty decent VHS collection, and very briefly on screen you can see an assortment of Vidmark titles (Evolver is a Vidmark). One of which is one of the American Kickboxer (1990) movies! So clearly Kyle has good taste.
Featuring the 90's techno song "Beat the Machine", Evolver will appeal to just about anybody. But fans of 90's nostalgia especially will love the movie's charms. We definitely recommend Evolver.
For more action insanity, please visit: www.comeuppancereviews.com
Surprised I'd Never Seen It
mesaxi30 October 2023
I was born in 87, grew up on video games, watched a lot of schlock movies, I can't believe I had never even heard of Evolver until I stumbled across it a week ago. I was like the prime audience for this, would have loved it as a kid.
Evolver was a perfectly fine piece of low budget 90's schlock. Edgy video game kid, goofy friend with loose morals, meat head bully guy, attractive girl aggressively stalking kid who plays video games, killer robot. A perfect storm. I think some of the problems were that it was heavy on the swearing which would hurt it's distribution for kids, and at the same time the kills were kind of weak and bloodless. There were some truly creative moments, like the laser cage, but the kills were mostly lame.
Definitely check it out if you're into cheap-o 90's b-horror geared at edgy thirteen year olds, it a fun watch.
Evolver was a perfectly fine piece of low budget 90's schlock. Edgy video game kid, goofy friend with loose morals, meat head bully guy, attractive girl aggressively stalking kid who plays video games, killer robot. A perfect storm. I think some of the problems were that it was heavy on the swearing which would hurt it's distribution for kids, and at the same time the kills were kind of weak and bloodless. There were some truly creative moments, like the laser cage, but the kills were mostly lame.
Definitely check it out if you're into cheap-o 90's b-horror geared at edgy thirteen year olds, it a fun watch.
Great sci-fi fun!
SurfNazi23 May 1999
I thought this movie was entertaining and for the most part kept my full attention. There is a lot of computer talk, so if computers aren't your thing then you might search elsewhere. Basically, a kid whose excellence at virtual reality games grants him a free robot named "Evolver". Well, Evolver goes nuts and starts killing people. The story is fun to follow, with characters that are easy to follow and interesting. For the most part, cheesy dialogue but that is expected. Enjoyable little sci-fi gem, check it out!
Violent and crazy but fun!
bellino-angelo201418 July 2023
Warning: Spoilers
I really wasn't that interested in EVOLVER because of the very few reviews here and of its direct-to-video feel. However, being the maximum expert on this sort of movies last May I finally tried it and to my surprise I nearly loved it.
Kyle Baxter (Ethan Embry) is great in playing a shooter game in virtual reality named Evolver, and his dream is to make the record so that he can win a real version of his nemesis, a multi-capacitated robot named Evolver (voice by William Macy). After Kyle's attempt fails he and his friend go in the control room for scrambling the scores so that Kyle is the winner and can have the robot. The robot has some instructions: when it's on the people have to shoot to the robot and he'll try to defend himself shooting blanks and his actions are recorded for the company so that they can monitor the robot's actions. Kyle begins to use the robots for doing some pranks such as spying on the girls in the locker room and chase the school's bullies. And just when Evolver has a struggle with a bully it's hit so hard that doesn't follow his original program anymore and when it's on again, he kills the bully. More the time passes, more Evolver becomes dangerous and a menace for everybody, but Kyle with the help of Jamie and her sisters manage to defeat the robot in a surprise ending.
I think that this is a comedy that would appeal mostly to folks with wicked humour like me. There wasn't a moment where I didn't felt on the edge on my seat and then suddenly laughing for the scary things the robot did. The acting was ok by our young leads, and William Macy must have had the time of his life when he had to dub Evolver. Among the funniest moments: the aforementioned one with the bully (Evolver throws it from the stairs), when Jamie's little sister plays with Evolver and he starts throwing knives and forks but she always manages to avoid them, and before the end credits when Evolver seemed to be dead but it woke up again in the company's truck meaning that there could have been a sequel, and in hindsight it's a shame they never did because it would have been great.
A must see for fans of forgotten 1990s comedies and also for folks with wicked sense humour because they might be the best audience for it. Lots of edgy moments and lots of funny moments... perfect also for a family evening with a movie.
Kyle Baxter (Ethan Embry) is great in playing a shooter game in virtual reality named Evolver, and his dream is to make the record so that he can win a real version of his nemesis, a multi-capacitated robot named Evolver (voice by William Macy). After Kyle's attempt fails he and his friend go in the control room for scrambling the scores so that Kyle is the winner and can have the robot. The robot has some instructions: when it's on the people have to shoot to the robot and he'll try to defend himself shooting blanks and his actions are recorded for the company so that they can monitor the robot's actions. Kyle begins to use the robots for doing some pranks such as spying on the girls in the locker room and chase the school's bullies. And just when Evolver has a struggle with a bully it's hit so hard that doesn't follow his original program anymore and when it's on again, he kills the bully. More the time passes, more Evolver becomes dangerous and a menace for everybody, but Kyle with the help of Jamie and her sisters manage to defeat the robot in a surprise ending.
I think that this is a comedy that would appeal mostly to folks with wicked humour like me. There wasn't a moment where I didn't felt on the edge on my seat and then suddenly laughing for the scary things the robot did. The acting was ok by our young leads, and William Macy must have had the time of his life when he had to dub Evolver. Among the funniest moments: the aforementioned one with the bully (Evolver throws it from the stairs), when Jamie's little sister plays with Evolver and he starts throwing knives and forks but she always manages to avoid them, and before the end credits when Evolver seemed to be dead but it woke up again in the company's truck meaning that there could have been a sequel, and in hindsight it's a shame they never did because it would have been great.
A must see for fans of forgotten 1990s comedies and also for folks with wicked sense humour because they might be the best audience for it. Lots of edgy moments and lots of funny moments... perfect also for a family evening with a movie.
" Game NOT Over!"...
azathothpwiggins20 September 2021
A teen game wizard, Kyle (Ethan Embry) cheats in order to win a contest. His prize is the A. I. robot of the title.
At first, EVOLVER is a "cute" novelty, playing games with Kyle and his friends. Of course, if it stayed like this we'd have another SHORT CIRCUIT on our hands. So, EVOLVER soon becomes a stealthy -if clunky- killing machine!
Terror and death ensue.
If you enjoy killer robot movies like CHOPPING MALL, then this should be a thrill. The cheeeze factor is through the roof, making it a terabyte's worth of fun!
Co-stars John de Lancie as the robot's creator...
At first, EVOLVER is a "cute" novelty, playing games with Kyle and his friends. Of course, if it stayed like this we'd have another SHORT CIRCUIT on our hands. So, EVOLVER soon becomes a stealthy -if clunky- killing machine!
Terror and death ensue.
If you enjoy killer robot movies like CHOPPING MALL, then this should be a thrill. The cheeeze factor is through the roof, making it a terabyte's worth of fun!
Co-stars John de Lancie as the robot's creator...
Excellent teen movie
dspbg23 February 2006
First I'd like to point that I don't consider this a sci-fi movie and therefore I won't judge it like sci-fi. This is more like a teen movie with a slight cyber twist. A distant reminder or titles like "War Games" (more sci-fi) and "Hackers" (more teen and harder to swallow for me as a IT professional). The plot is based on an idea similar to "War Games" - a machine that eventually turns bad, due to inappropriate/biased programming, but here we have also some teen movie elements like boys/girls locker room, teen relationships, etc. I want to point out the good cast of the movie. Cassidy Rae as Jamie Saunders was perfect. Also excellent and very convincing performance from the others. All in all a good and professionally made movie very entertaining and highly recommended if you like this kind of "cyber-teen" movies. I give it 10 out of 10.
a cheesy but cool movie.
moviecollector16 March 2000
I saw this on the sci-fi channel 1 day & thought it was cool. So I decided 2 buy it & I thought that this was a cheesy but cool sci-fi flick. Ethan Randall(at the time, now its Embry) is a whiz at the Evolver game & plays a tournament & wins the 1st made EVOLVER. He is the ultimate in electronics but then goes beserk & starts killing. It has suspense but its more Sci-fi. This was when Ethan R. was getting 2 b more noticed. Its worth seeing if u like chessy movies. I say, give it a look.
See also
Awards | FAQ | User Ratings | External Reviews | Metacritic Reviews
