Dr. Otto and the Riddle of the Gloom Beam

This 1985 sci-fi comedy features Jim Varney (The "Ernest" films) headlining as the title character with a hand growing out of his head who wants to punish the world starting with it's economy and undergoes a few disguises in the process. I just watched this for the first time and it's bizarre yet amusing. Varney is great in it as usual and does appear as Ernest P. Worrell , but only briefly. The film feels like a pre "Mystery Science Theater 3000" and cheesy 80's music video mixed together. Give this a try.

Jim Varney fans stop reading this and go watch this one. If you like Varney this is a great movie. If you don't like him, it's not. It's that simple. Varney plays just about ALL his characters in this one. It's silly. It's fun.

This is officially the first film in the long running Ernest series. It was based on a series of commercials. Ernest himself actually only has two minutes of screen time in the entire movie. He turns into this supervillain named Dr. Otto. At least I think that's him or does he turn into Ernest? He tries to take over the world by destroying the economy. A lot of this seems to be filmed in the dark, but it also surprisingly has a lot of color. My favorite part is when there's a newspaper that says "Francs Collapse", only for a guy named Frank to literally collapse. I thought this was a compilation film at first. It kind of was, as we got to see Jim Varney in all these different personas that did seem like separate parts. The film isn't memorable, but is completely harmless. It's the highest rated Ernest movie here, but I'd probably say "Ernest Saves Christmas" is the best, not that any of them are technically good. **1/2

DR. OTTO AND THE RIDDLE OF THE GLOOM BEAM is an odd and wacky children's comedy of the mid 1980s, one replete with science fiction staples and more than bizarre costumes. The dialogue is a waste of time and most of the reason to tune in is to see Jim Varney, the future comedy actor, playing a crazy megalomaniac complete with a hand attached to the top of his head. It's a cheap costume for sure, but somehow effective. The rest is a mix of exaggerated acting and a campy tone; it's fast paced and has lots of action and humour, even if it is really cheap.

I first saw this movie when I was very young. I loved Jim Varney and Ernest at the time, and still do, and having recently come across this movie again I must say. The plot is strange and only mildly existing and the hero is a bumbling fool, who is not Ernest, but all that being said I really like the movie. It is corny but if you like Varney it is great. Dr. Otto is an over the top villain and its worth watching just for him, and the thing you will find if you like the movie is that you are routing for him. This character was later used in other Ernest shorts, especially his Saturday morning kinds show but this is where he came from. We get to see Varney do many characters and many of his voices. I find the movie very enjoyable.

I bought this movie on DVD. This movie was one of the zaniest I've ever seen. I loved it!! I find Dr. Otto Von Schnick-ick-ick-ick strangely attractive. I couldn't help but side with Dr. Otto because of how awful his parents treated him. Lance Sterling, IMO, was a pathetic hero. He really didn't know all that much but he was born to a wealthy family so I guess money talks. Dr. Otto and Lance are total opposites. Otto wants to destroy the world by making money worthless. He demagnetizes credit cards, damages bank accounts, scrambles the stock market. The government has no idea who owes who and how much. In a way, this movie wasn't far off the mark. This was ahead of its time. It reminds me of how the economy is today: In a huge mess. I love the 'Changing coffin'. Dr. Otto becomes Rudd Hardtact with a lizard on his shoulder, Auntie Nelda, Laughin' Jack and Guy Dandy. What I liked as well was that Bill Byrge actually had a speaking role as the gas attendant. We all know Bill as 'Bobby' on other 'Ernest' movies. This is not an Ernest movie per se. It had a darker theme to it. But, of course, I cracked the hugest smile at the end of the movie when none other than Ernest P. Worrell stepped out of the changing coffin. Gotta love Ernest. I recommend this movie and not only because of Ernest. But because it's also pretty crazy. But seeing Ernest is a bonus!

This is the 1st of the Ernest Movie Series even though Ernest himself only has about a minute or 2 of screen time. I can't believe this movie was the prequel to the Ernest Movie Series since he was only shown for about a minute throughout the whole movie. Maybe they decided Ernest was the only interesting thing to come out of this trashy B Movie.

As far as stories go, it seems that the writers here could only pass a kindergarten story writing class. Plot? Dr. Otto wants to destroy the world! That's all. However, what you get is the Brilliance of Jim Varney, not as Ernest for 90 minutes (I'll be the first to admit that to be a hard challenge), but Jim portraying a variety of other Characters that we only get glimpses of in other movies and his TV series. He is brilliant as he throws himself into these wild, wacky characters. Think of it as a bunch of 10-20 minute short films each with a different lead character by Varney, and each around a central theme that were spliced together, each short fairy self contained. It's much easier to watch this movie then. If you want to see some great character acting (or at least Jim Varney not playing Ernest), definitely watch this movie if you can find it.