Death Machine

Death Machine is a 1994 science fiction horror film written and directed by Stephen Norrington. It stars Brad Dourif, Ely Pouget, William Hootkins, John Sharian, and Richard Brake. Rachel Weisz, still early in her career at the time of the film's release, appears briefly in the role of a Junior Executive. The film was the directorial debut of Norrington, who had previously worked as a special effects artist on films such as Lifeforce, Aliens, Hardware, The Witches, and Split Second. However, Norrington infamously expressed dissatisfaction with the original cut, and the film has undergone numerous re-edits since. The film garnered controversy for both its excessive violence and Dourif's character. These factors resulted in the film being banned in several countries, including Sri Lanka, Iran, China, Malaysia, Iraq, and Australia. Despite the controversy, the film received mixed reviews. Many critics praised the special effects, but criticized the acting and plot. Plot In 2003, the controversial megacorporation Chaank Armaments is the world's leading manufacturer of cutting-edge weapons and military hardware. A cybernetically-enhanced supersoldier, codenamed "Hard Man", malfunctions and massacres the patrons of a roadside diner before being detained by security operatives led by John Carpenter. Public outcry ensues following the incident, the majority of complaints directed at the company's new chief executive Hayden Cale. Chairman of the Board Scott Ridley, fearful of the potential termination of Chaank's contracts due to the bad publicity, tries to cover up the incident and numerous issues with Project: Hard Man itself. Cale demands immediate and full public disclosure, having purposely leaked a number of top-secret documents to the press in defiance of Ridley's attempts to suppress knowledge about his shadier activities. She also demands for Jack Dante, a deranged weapon designer and lead developer of Project: Hard Man, to be fired. Despite Carpenter's acknowledgement of the project's numerous fatal flaws, the board simply ignores Cale's requests, no one seeming to care about her interests except for Dante himself. Cale is warned by a junior executive about Dante's unstable behavior and the fate of Nicholson, her late predecessor. Cale goes to confront him, demanding to know about Dante's secret project in Vault 10, for which he never submits progress reports.