Not Quite Human II is a
1989-Events:* "Batman" is released on June 23, and went on to become the biggest blockbuster of the year; Grossing over $250 million at the box office.* Actress Kim Basinger and her brother Mick purchase Braselton, Georgia, for $20 million...
made-for-TV film written and directed by
Eric Luke-Film:Eric Luke began his career in film writing. Previous film work included: Explorers for Paramount Pictures, co-plotting the Gargoyles pilot five-parter for The Walt Disney Company, numerous screenplays for MGM and others, and also wrote and directed the latter two films in the Not Quite Human...
and starring
Jay UnderwoodJay Underwood is an American actor.In 1983, he attended Moreau High School for one year in Hayward, California. He is married to Julie Underwood and has three children. His most recognized work includes portraying Ernest Hemingway in The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles, "Bug" in Uncle Buck, and...
,
Alan ThickeAlan Thicke is a Canadian actor, songwriter, and game and talk show host. He is best known for his role as Jason Seaver, the patriarch on the ABC television series Growing Pains....
, and
Robyn LivelyRobyn Elaine Lively is an American actress. Lively is best remembered for her role in the film Teen Witch, as well as for her roles in the TV shows Doogie Howser, M.D. and Twin Peaks....
. As the second of three films in a series based on the
Not Quite HumanNot Quite Human is the name of a series of young adult novels by Seth McEvoy about a widowered scientist, Dr. Jonas Carson, whose lifetime work was to create an android. Dr. Carson names the android Chip. In order to conceal his project from those who would use Chip or Dr. Carson's skills for...
novels by Seth McEvoy, it follows the social development of an
androidAn android is a robot or synthetic organism designed to look and act like a human. The word derives from ανδρός, the genitive of the Greek ανήρ anēr, meaning "man", and the suffix -eides, used to mean "of the species; alike" . Though the word derives from a gender-specific root, its usage in...
that is designed to appear human, this time as he enrolls in college and is on his own for the first time.
The film begins with Chip (
Jay UnderwoodJay Underwood is an American actor.In 1983, he attended Moreau High School for one year in Hayward, California. He is married to Julie Underwood and has three children. His most recognized work includes portraying Ernest Hemingway in The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles, "Bug" in Uncle Buck, and...
), the
androidAn android is a robot or synthetic organism designed to look and act like a human. The word derives from ανδρός, the genitive of the Greek ανήρ anēr, meaning "man", and the suffix -eides, used to mean "of the species; alike" . Though the word derives from a gender-specific root, its usage in...
, installing specially-ordered software designed to enhance his facial expressions; it is later discovered that he also inadvertently intakes a
computer virusA computer virus is a computer program that can copy itself and infect a computer. The term "virus" is also commonly but erroneously used to refer to other types of malware, adware, and spyware programs that do not have the reproductive ability...
that causes him to malfunction very gradually, diminishing control over his own system's functions.
Not Quite Human II is a
1989-Events:* "Batman" is released on June 23, and went on to become the biggest blockbuster of the year; Grossing over $250 million at the box office.* Actress Kim Basinger and her brother Mick purchase Braselton, Georgia, for $20 million...
made-for-TV film written and directed by
Eric Luke-Film:Eric Luke began his career in film writing. Previous film work included: Explorers for Paramount Pictures, co-plotting the Gargoyles pilot five-parter for The Walt Disney Company, numerous screenplays for MGM and others, and also wrote and directed the latter two films in the Not Quite Human...
and starring
Jay UnderwoodJay Underwood is an American actor.In 1983, he attended Moreau High School for one year in Hayward, California. He is married to Julie Underwood and has three children. His most recognized work includes portraying Ernest Hemingway in The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles, "Bug" in Uncle Buck, and...
,
Alan ThickeAlan Thicke is a Canadian actor, songwriter, and game and talk show host. He is best known for his role as Jason Seaver, the patriarch on the ABC television series Growing Pains....
, and
Robyn LivelyRobyn Elaine Lively is an American actress. Lively is best remembered for her role in the film Teen Witch, as well as for her roles in the TV shows Doogie Howser, M.D. and Twin Peaks....
. As the second of three films in a series based on the
Not Quite HumanNot Quite Human is the name of a series of young adult novels by Seth McEvoy about a widowered scientist, Dr. Jonas Carson, whose lifetime work was to create an android. Dr. Carson names the android Chip. In order to conceal his project from those who would use Chip or Dr. Carson's skills for...
novels by Seth McEvoy, it follows the social development of an
androidAn android is a robot or synthetic organism designed to look and act like a human. The word derives from ανδρός, the genitive of the Greek ανήρ anēr, meaning "man", and the suffix -eides, used to mean "of the species; alike" . Though the word derives from a gender-specific root, its usage in...
that is designed to appear human, this time as he enrolls in college and is on his own for the first time.
Plot
The film begins with Chip (
Jay UnderwoodJay Underwood is an American actor.In 1983, he attended Moreau High School for one year in Hayward, California. He is married to Julie Underwood and has three children. His most recognized work includes portraying Ernest Hemingway in The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles, "Bug" in Uncle Buck, and...
), the
androidAn android is a robot or synthetic organism designed to look and act like a human. The word derives from ανδρός, the genitive of the Greek ανήρ anēr, meaning "man", and the suffix -eides, used to mean "of the species; alike" . Though the word derives from a gender-specific root, its usage in...
, installing specially-ordered software designed to enhance his facial expressions; it is later discovered that he also inadvertently intakes a
computer virusA computer virus is a computer program that can copy itself and infect a computer. The term "virus" is also commonly but erroneously used to refer to other types of malware, adware, and spyware programs that do not have the reproductive ability...
that causes him to malfunction very gradually, diminishing control over his own system's functions. Initially, the virus simply causes Chip to have momentary memory lapses resulting in poor judgment, but within three days it will completely destroy his internal systems, wiping his memory. That same day, Dr. Jonas Carson (
Alan ThickeAlan Thicke is a Canadian actor, songwriter, and game and talk show host. He is best known for his role as Jason Seaver, the patriarch on the ABC television series Growing Pains....
) and his daughter, Becky (
Robyn LivelyRobyn Elaine Lively is an American actress. Lively is best remembered for her role in the film Teen Witch, as well as for her roles in the TV shows Doogie Howser, M.D. and Twin Peaks....
), attend Chip's high school graduation. Chip mentions that he wants to attend college and has already signed up for the summer session; however, his father does not feel Chip is ready to be on his own. Later, Dr. Carson finds Chip standing motionless in his room with a note attached to his shirt that says he has turned himself off and doesn't want to be turned back on until his dad agrees to let him attend college. Becky enters the room and manages to persuade her dad to grant Chip's request, and Chip suddenly turns to them and says "Thanks, Dad", revealing that he had merely been acting like he had turned himself off.
Since Dr. Carson only reluctantly agreed to allow Chip to attend college, he and Becky secretly follow him to the school in a vehicle that is set up as a monitoring station in order to watch from a distance. At the school, Chip sees a girl in a lab coat passing through the hall and becomes infatuated with her. The next day, he follows Roberta (
Katie BarberiKatie Barberi is a Mexican actress best known for her work in telenovelas.-Early life:Barberi was born to a Mexican father of Italian descent and an American mother. Because of the nature of the careers of both her parents, Katie Barberi attended many different schools across the United States...
) into the robotics lab and asks her out on date, where she informs Chip that she is an android. Excited by this revelation, Chip tells her that he is also an android. Chip soon learns that Roberta is not able to decide anything for herself, so he introduces her to the concept of free will by reprogramming her. When Roberta chooses to go with Chip instead of returning to Dr. Phil Masters (
iCarlyiCarly is an Emmy Award-nominated television series, which premiered on September 8, 2007 on Nickelodeon. It first arrived on YTV a month later on October 8, 2007. The show first aired on Nickelodeon UK during Easter 2008 and Nickelodeon Australia in May 2008.The series stars Miranda Cosgrove,...
s
Greg MullavyGreg Mullavey is an American film and television actor who is best known as Louise Lasser's husband in the television series Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman. He also has made appearances in other tv series including The Rockford Files, Bonanza, Hawaii Five-0 and iCarly...
) and the other scientists who developed her, the two of them are forced to flee. Prof. Victoria Gray (
Dey YoungDey Young is an American actress. Among her credits is the part of Kate Rambeau in Rock 'n' Roll High School, a character she re-visited in the 1994 film Shake, Rattle and Rock!...
) discovers that her fellow scientists are responsible for distributing a virus designed to disable competitors' androids, so she joins Dr. Carson in trying to catch up with Chip to provide the antidote.
After being relentlessly pursued a great distance, Chip and Roberta finally manage to escape the scientists, and they are surrounded by desert when Roberta explains that running has used up almost all of her power. With the virus's effects growing more pronounced, Chip is unable to control his body very effectively as he carries Roberta and desperately searches for a power outlet to recharge her. Not finding an adequate power source, Chip slumps to the ground as the virus overtakes him, saying haltingly to Roberta, "I... love... you." Dr. Carson and Becky arrive just a moment later with Prof. Gray, and they manage to successfully administer the antidote just before Chip's systems failed completely. Once he is fully revived, Chip reveals that he had utilized his magnetic finger to write all of Roberta's programming and memories to a diskette before she lost all power, preserving the character and personality of the girl that he had fought to protect. A photograph at the end shows the Carsons together with Roberta and Prof. Gray.
Character development
In each of the three Not Quite Human
films, Chip is at a distinct level of development in his social awareness. While Chip had difficulty carrying on a sensible conversation in the first film and didn't notice how people perceived him, in Not Quite Human II he communicates fairly well but just takes some statements too literally. For instance, when a restaurant waiter asks if the group enjoyed their leek soup, Chip scans the floor and asks "Did I leak soup?" He also sometimes comes close to inadvertently revealing that he is an android, such as when he successfully chases his bus going at full speed down the road. It is this naivety and peculiarity that hinder Chip's efforts to form friendships. Chip's roommate, Brandon Wilson (Scott Nell), does his best to engage Chip in the social scene, but Chip still feels like an outsider. This is why Chip is so glad to encounter Roberta, another android who is also not very developed socially.
Cast
- Jay Underwood
Jay Underwood is an American actor.In 1983, he attended Moreau High School for one year in Hayward, California. He is married to Julie Underwood and has three children. His most recognized work includes portraying Ernest Hemingway in The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles, "Bug" in Uncle Buck, and...
... Chip Carson
- Alan Thicke
Alan Thicke is a Canadian actor, songwriter, and game and talk show host. He is best known for his role as Jason Seaver, the patriarch on the ABC television series Growing Pains....
... Dr. Jonas Carson
- Robyn Lively
Robyn Elaine Lively is an American actress. Lively is best remembered for her role in the film Teen Witch, as well as for her roles in the TV shows Doogie Howser, M.D. and Twin Peaks....
... Becky Carson
- Greg Mullavy
Greg Mullavey is an American film and television actor who is best known as Louise Lasser's husband in the television series Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman. He also has made appearances in other tv series including The Rockford Files, Bonanza, Hawaii Five-0 and iCarly...
... Dr. Phil Masters
- Katie Barberi
Katie Barberi is a Mexican actress best known for her work in telenovelas.-Early life:Barberi was born to a Mexican father of Italian descent and an American mother. Because of the nature of the careers of both her parents, Katie Barberi attended many different schools across the United States...
... Roberta
- Dey Young
Dey Young is an American actress. Among her credits is the part of Kate Rambeau in Rock 'n' Roll High School, a character she re-visited in the 1994 film Shake, Rattle and Rock!...
... Prof. Victoria Gray
- Scott Nell ... Brandon Wilson, Chip's Room-Mate
- Mark Arnott ... Moore, Dr. Masters' Assistant
- Mike Russell
Mike Russell is a radio presenter from Tunbridge Wells in Kent in the United Kingdom.-Biography:Mike began his career working for Gateways In Shaftesbury. in the late 1990s, before joining Key Markets in Crawley in 2000 as their evening show presenter...
... Miller, Dr. Masters' Assistant
- Ty Miller
Ty Wesley Miller is an American actor, probably most well known for his role as The Kid on The Young Riders, which ran for three seasons...
... Austin, Bus Punk
- Eric Bruskotter
Eric Bruskotter is an American actor who has appeared in such films as Major League II, Major League: Back to the Minors, Starship Troopers and Can't Buy Me Love. He also appeared in two episodes of 24 during Season 6...
... Rick, Bus Punk
External links
- Not Quite Human II at the Internet Movie Database
The Internet Movie Database is an online database of information related to movies, actors, television shows, production crew personnel, video games, and most recently, fictional characters featured in visual entertainment media...