IMDb RATING
6.6/10
5.9K
YOUR RATING
When electrocuted by the fuse box at home, Graham gets ideas concerning his nagging wife and the guy, who got Graham's promotion at the office.When electrocuted by the fuse box at home, Graham gets ideas concerning his nagging wife and the guy, who got Graham's promotion at the office.When electrocuted by the fuse box at home, Graham gets ideas concerning his nagging wife and the guy, who got Graham's promotion at the office.
- Awards
- 1 nomination
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- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaMichael Caine said of this movie in a 2002 interview with "Venice Magazine", "That was a lovely little film, but it was too small for its own good, really. It got lost. It was the sort of film, were it made today, that would be great as a film for HBO, or something. But at the time, it just got lost in the system."
- GoofsLt. Laker questions Stella and writes down his telephone number on a piece of notepad paper for her. Later, when she decides to call him, she has his business card.
- Quotes
Lieutenant Laker: He was your superior, wasn't he?
Graham Marshall: No, he was my boss.
Featured review
Crime DOES Pay if You Kill Horrible People!!!
Who says Michael Caine is a so-so actor? He plays the perfect combination of a truly nice guy ground down by his shrewish wife, his slimy peer-then-boss, and corporate life, in general. Movies like this give us corporate slaves a little relief from the utter amoral depravity of the 'civilized' world we inhabit in these rabbit warrens, otherwise known as 'Cubical Hell'.
This man makes you completely sympathize with every one of his murders, all nicely planned to look like accidents. In fact, I am amazed that some lawyer hasn't pulled the 'Shock to the System' defense. Certainly, it has as much attraction for the frustrated as the films usually blamed. It's just more subtle, more high-brow and takes a little more finesse.
The detective is wonderfully nosy, but how he can walk up to Caine in the middle of New York City is quite amazing to me. A little too much dramatic license, too much coincidence to be believable but you tend to forget your logical approach to life.
Reality is easily suspended as Caine gets in his licks for all the humuliations we nice people have suffered in the corporate world, where the rapacious are rewarded by CEO salaries. The laughs are fast and furious, all delivered in that great understated British fashion.
Mr. Downtrodden gets his licks in and when the new boss talks about his Cessna, you've already fixed the engine. There are traces of 'The Ruling Class' in here, as Mr. Nice Guy becomes king of the mountain by firing everyone 'who is not a contributor', thus ingratiating himself with Mr. Cessna. McGovern gives her Basset hound, soulful looks all through the film, and you feel her conflict about turning this wonderful guy in. She is promoted out and away, and all is well, which is usual for corporate shenanigans. They just usually don't involve murder.
Buy it and love it. Forget the professional reviewers for once on this. It's not meant to be 'Hamlet'.
This man makes you completely sympathize with every one of his murders, all nicely planned to look like accidents. In fact, I am amazed that some lawyer hasn't pulled the 'Shock to the System' defense. Certainly, it has as much attraction for the frustrated as the films usually blamed. It's just more subtle, more high-brow and takes a little more finesse.
The detective is wonderfully nosy, but how he can walk up to Caine in the middle of New York City is quite amazing to me. A little too much dramatic license, too much coincidence to be believable but you tend to forget your logical approach to life.
Reality is easily suspended as Caine gets in his licks for all the humuliations we nice people have suffered in the corporate world, where the rapacious are rewarded by CEO salaries. The laughs are fast and furious, all delivered in that great understated British fashion.
Mr. Downtrodden gets his licks in and when the new boss talks about his Cessna, you've already fixed the engine. There are traces of 'The Ruling Class' in here, as Mr. Nice Guy becomes king of the mountain by firing everyone 'who is not a contributor', thus ingratiating himself with Mr. Cessna. McGovern gives her Basset hound, soulful looks all through the film, and you feel her conflict about turning this wonderful guy in. She is promoted out and away, and all is well, which is usual for corporate shenanigans. They just usually don't involve murder.
Buy it and love it. Forget the professional reviewers for once on this. It's not meant to be 'Hamlet'.
helpful•266
- alicecbr
- Sep 20, 1999
- How long is A Shock to the System?Powered by Alexa
Details
Box office
- Budget
- $12,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $3,417,056
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $1,002,158
- Mar 25, 1990
- Gross worldwide
- $3,417,056
- Runtime1 hour 28 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.78 : 1
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