Senator Nick Rast (Blowup, Barbarella, Deep Red) has a son, Alex, with leukemia and a loveless marriage to his wife, Sandy (Carmen Duncan, Turkey Shoot). In fact, a doctor goes as far to tell them that they should just let their son die as the film begins.At a birthday party, Alex meets a clown who makes him smile. That clown ends up being Gregory Wolfe (Robert Powell, Asylum, The Asphyx), a faith healer in the mold of Rasputin (hint: the name Rast is tsar backward). The more time he spends with Alex, the better the child feels. Sandy also falls in love with Wolfe, despite the fact that he does some insane feats, like holding Alex over a cliff to make him come to grips with death.Meanwhile, the senator is controlled by Doc Wheelan (Broderick Crawford, All the King's Men and you know the rules when it comes to Old Hollywood actors) and he warns him that Wolfe isn't what he seems and could be a danger to his family.Also called Dark Forces, Harlequin was to originally star David Bowie as Wolfe and Orson Welles as Doc Wheelan. Director Simon Wincer has quite the strange directorial history, with films like Free Willy, The Phantom (the Smash Evil! version), plenty of episodes of The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles, Crocodile Dundee in Los Angeles and NASCAR: The IMAX Experience.If you know the story of Rasputin, this film follows it, with Wheelan's men killing Wolfe over and over again, but the results of meeting the Harlequin makes Rast reconsider his life as his son takes over the mantle of that Wolfe left behind.This is seriously one odd movie, but Powell's performance (and frequent costume changes) make it something truly special. It feels like more viewings will unearth more hidden meanings, but upon watching it once, I'm hooked.Again - as seems to be a theme this week - this film should have a bigger cult than it does. Then again, the Alamo Drafthouse programming team shared it as one of their 2017 discoveries, so perhaps more folks will start sharing their love of this film. Has anyone reading this seen it?

Robert Powell, fresh from what is arguably his most famous role (Jesus Christ), plays here another character who can perform miracles, although this time he is more ambiguous and enigmatic. Is he an angel or a demon? What does he want? Just how powerful are his powers, and how did he get them? Can he die? Some of these questions are answered, some are not, but the film certainly keeps you guessing, and Powell's performance is mesmerizing: you never know what he is going to do next. As films about telekinetic and/or magic powers go, "Harlequin" is not quite in the same league as "The Medusa Touch" or "The Fury", but it's not bad at all. **1/2 out of 4.

Harlequin is set in Australia where deputy governor Eli Steele (Jack Ferrari) disappears while snorkeling in the sea, a rescue team is dispatched within minutes but no trace of the governor is found. 4 year old Alex (Mark Spain) is the son of Senator Nick Rast (David Hemmings) who is next in line for Eli's high powered job, Alex has leukaemia & is no longer responding to treatment. One night the Rast's family home is visited by Gregory Wolfe (Robert Powell) who claims he can cure Alex, after just a few minutes with him Alex seems so much better. As Wolfe manages to work his way into Senator Rast's life & sleeps with his wife Sandra (Carmen Duncan) it becomes clear he has more on his agenda than just curing his son...This Australian production was directed by Simon Wincer & is an odd film which is sort of hard to categorize, I thought it was watchable but nothing particularly special. The script by Everett De Roche takes itself extremely seriously & is a uneasy mix of mild horror, fantasy, thriller, drama & political satire. There are two basic stories here, one concerning the mysterious Wolfe & one revolving around the back stabbing world of politics where it seems sinister unseen people other than those who stand in front of the cameras & give speeches run things. I think Harlequin is a film where the filmmakers want to leave entirely up to the audiences own interpretation as to whether you believe the supernatural angle or whether it's all a magic con trick although there are scenes which seem to suggest there are magical forces at work because there is no other explanation for them. I think the magic vs science plot here doesn't sit together that well & they don't compliment each other, in fact I think they take something away from each other. Just my opinion but overall I don't think Harlequin works that well & ends up being confusing.Director Wincer does OK but it has little style, the special effects won't impress anyone these days & it's just a bit on the dull side. Nothing that exciting happens, it's not scary, it has no tension & lacks any atmosphere. I don't know maybe I'm missing something here but Harlequin just didn't really do anything for me, it's watchable I suppose but I'll have totally forgotten about it by the end of the week. This film has helped me in one sense though, it has taught me not to keep acid in the bathroom, not to keep acid in the bathroom next to the shampoo & definitely not to keep acid in the bathroom next to the shampoo in exactly the same style bottle as the shampoo because that would just be silly wouldn't it?Technically the film is OK, some of the special effects look dated but it's reasonably well made for what it is. The acting isn't the best, Powell does alright but no ones going to win any awards.Harlequin is an odd film & one I'm not entirely sure who it's meant to appeal to, it's perfectly watchable & tells a story but it's forgettable & nothing special. Not really my cup of tea to be honest.

Very compelling 80s Aussie horror/thriller. Personally, I found this title one of producer Anthony Ginnane's better films.Once again, this is one of those Ginnane's movies that was marketed distinctively at international audiences rather than domestically. This can be seen by the creators' reluctance to rely upon any national stereotypes that are perhaps more prevalent in other Australian movies feature foreigners in starring roles, for instance THE SUNDOWNERS, SUMMER OF THE SEVENTEENTH DOOL, ON THE BEACH etc. This is very much an international film. The political "scandal" in the movie could just have easily occurred in Norway. The movie itself is quite ingenious and is B-grade only in budget and perhaps the choice of actors, though most of these faces would be more immediately known at home. Everything is top notch and David Hemmings once again kicks arse. I guess if you liked THIRST and THE SURVIVOR you should see this - you won't regret it! Once again equipped with a delightful score by the deceased legend, Brian May.