#2 – Scanner Cop (1994)
Goofy title or not, Scanner Cop is a good movie. Some days I love it even more than Cronenberg’s original. That might sound like heresy to some, but I cannot deny my true feelings. The film centers on the aforementioned Sam Staziak (Daniel Quinn), of course, although here merely an officer. Dropping the comedic angle of Scanners III, this fourth film is just a straight up cop thriller in the early ‘90s vein.
Our villain this time out is a crazed doctor (Richard Lynch) with a hatred for cops who is brainwashing regular citizens into murdering police officers. That’s honestly about as sci-fi as it gets. Were one to remove the fact that Staziak is a scanner, this could easily function as the plot of a Lethal Weapon movie (or one of its derivatives). After three films of scanner vs. scanner action, it’s kind of refreshing to have an outing that skews in a different direction.
Scanner Cop is a tightly-written and paced cop thriller that just happens to have a telekinetic as its lead character. Quinn is great as the fresh out of the academy Staziak and Lynch is as wonderful a villain as ever. Both are backed up by a few other fun cast members, including Mark Rolston (Aliens) and Brion James (Blade Runner). It’s just a damn good sequel.
