Roy Knable, a couch potato, is a struggling Seattle plumbing salesman and former fencing athlete who spends most of his spare time watching hours of television. Roy's neglected wife, Helen, a senior vitamin product manager, resents the fact that they never do anything special or romantic together anymore. As husband and wife begin arguing they are sucked into a hellish television set and must survive the gauntlet of twisted versions of shows in which they find themselves. Stay Tuned was one of those pleasant surprises, which I stumbled upon by mere accident and was overwhelmingly captivated by. I happened to see this flick on streaming moments before it disappeared and I was treated to a marvellous adventure. Our story centres around a family on the verge of dysfunctionality and possible divorce as parents Roy and Helen cannot see eye to eye (quite literally) as Roy is glued to the television, paying more mind to it than anything else, especially Helen. Her efforts to go away and spend time together without the kids backfire at the words of no TV causing her to destroy the television unit. However, a mysterious man named Mr. Spike arrives offering him a new high-tech satellite dish system filled with 666 channels of programs one cannot view on any other networks. Roy, overly excited, takes Spike up on this offer with a free trial period, but little does he know that Mr. Spike is an emissary from hell prowling for additional souls to be obtained entertainingly. Both Roy and Helen end up being sucked in by the satellite, where they come face to face with extraordinary situations they must overcome. This place is a television world, called Hell Vision, where 'candidates' must attempt to survive satirical versions of sitcoms and movies. If they survive for 24 hours, they will be set free, however, if killed, their souls become the property of Satan. Once a part of this unnatural world, the movie takes off, displaying some phenomenal hellish takes on other productions, as well as featuring some unhinged 'products' in commercials. My favourite is a mask for annoying children on long car journeys called The Silencer of the Lambs. The Knables undergo all types of scenarios, from a game show called 'You Can't Win', a wrestling match against the beastly duo Mr. and Mrs. Gorgon to fending off wolves in 'Northern Overexposure'. During their bizarre experience, the couple are aided by Crowley, one of Spike's employees whom he banished to the world. Also helping them, are their two kids back home who work together to find a way of getting the parents out of this predicament. I found the whole idea of being sucked into a Television to be rather fun, especially with so many possibilities to explore. For instance, the animated segment where the parents turn into mice and battle with a robotic cat in Looney Tunes fashion. It was one of my all-time favourite parts and the most iconic. Alongside this style, we see a black-and-white noir serial of a private investigator, a Wild West stand-off, science fiction with a phenomenal knock-off Star Trek: The Next Generation (TV Series 1987-1994), a sports game of hockey, a period drama of 18th Century France called 'Off With His Head' to a music video and plenty more. The creativity of this magnificent adventure is on full display during the channel-skipping sequence that sees varying situations in quick succession as Roy and Spike fight over the world controlling remote. That final battle, especially the sword duel, was truly spectacular and equally can be said about Spike as the main villain who relishes in the chaos. This film throws so many wacky moments at you, filled with laughs, suspense and energetic action, making for top-class entertainment. The argumentative couple slowly begin to reconcile, rekindling their love for one another and the experience helps Roy come to terms with his inactivity, making the effort in every way going forward. Overall, Stay Tuned is one of the wackiest, lesser-talked-about cult classics I have had the pleasure of viewing. There are many references, superb effects, overwhelming creativity, tremendous acting and hilarious comedy. What more could you want from a movie?
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