InnerSpace (1987)
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A test pilot accidentally becomes microscopic and ends up inside the body of a timid grocery clerk.
The story
In San Francisco, aviator Lt. Tuck Pendleton volunteers for a secret miniaturization experiment and is shrunk to microscopic size. During the process, a rival organization attacks the lab, and the wounded experiment supervisor injects Tuck and his pod into an unsuspecting passerby, Safeway grocery clerk Jack Putter. Unaware of the situation, Tuck must navigate the human body to establish contact with Jack. The duo must then collaborate to help Tuck escape the host body and prevent the rival organization from seizing the stolen miniaturization technology.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
After being injected into Jack Putter, Tuck realizes he is inside a human and establishes communication. They learn that a rival group led by Victor Scrimshaw stole a vital computer chip, with the second chip remaining in Tuck's pod. Jack and Tuck's girlfriend, Lydia Maxwell, pose as a henchman to steal the chip from Scrimshaw, but they are captured. During their imprisonment, a kiss transfers Tuck into Lydia's body. The criminals then shrink a henchman and inject him into Jack to find Tuck. Jack and Lydia eventually shrink the criminals and Scrimshaw to half-size while trying to retrieve the chip. Tuck discovers he is inside Lydia, who is pregnant. After another kiss transfers him back to Jack, they attempt to enlarge him. During the process, a henchman attacks Tuck in Jack's esophagus, but Tuck kills him in the stomach acid. Finally, Jack makes himself sneeze to eject the pod from his lungs, enlarging Tuck. Tuck is reunited with Lydia, and the film ends with a wedding where Jack serves as the best man.
- First release year
- 1987
- Runtime (minutes)
- 120
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Joe Dante
- Writers
- Jeffrey Boam · screenplay; Chip Proser · screenplay; Chip Proser · story
- Cast and characters
- Dennis Quaid · Tuck Pendleton; Martin Short · Jack Putter; Meg Ryan · Lydia Maxwell; Robert Picardo; Kevin McCarthy
- Genres
- science fiction; comedy
- Themes
- Size change; Technology; Collaboration
- Tone and mood
- Comedy; Goofy; Loony
- Premise and plot tags
- Science Fiction; Comedy; Miniaturization
- Source material / true-story basis
- Inspired by the 1966 film Fantastic Voyage
- Reception
- The film received positive reviews from critics and was a hit on video, though it was considered a disappointment in its day due to a poor ad campaign.
- Reported review scores
- Metacritic · score: 66 · scale: 100 · review count: 15
- Awards and nominations
- Academy Award · Best Visual Effects · 1988 · Won
- Production trivia
- The film was originally intended to have a much older actor play Tuck's role.; Joe Dante has an uncredited cameo as a Vectorscope employee.; The script was originally intended to feature Michael J. Fox inside Arnold Schwarzenegger's body.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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