Rent A Shock to the System (1990)

Entertaining Dark Comedy - A Shock to the System review by GI

Michael Caine has been reported as saying that this film was too small for it's own good resulting in it getting little distribution or renown whereas it's quite an amusing black comedy enhanced by Caine as the corporate manager overlooked for promotion in favour of a younger man. He plays Graham, married to a nagging wife but bolstered by the anticipation of a long yearned for promotion. When he is bypassed and after a bizarre incident on the subway Graham discovers a dark side that enables him to remove the obstacles to his happiness. I think if this were made today it would be a Netflix or similar release or even a TV drama as it's a relatively short film which makes it all the more watchable as plot wise it rattles along at a good pace. Caine plays the part of Graham as quite nuanced but with a fiery anger that is a little unsubtle at times. Elizabeth McGovern plays a love interest who starts to suspect Graham is hiding secrets and in some ways this is story a little like Falling Down (1993) of a man who is pushed to breaking point and reacts in a very dark way. Well worth checking out, if like me, it has passed you by until now.