User Reviews

A murderer is on the loose and the citizens of San Francisco are frightened.As the police become baffled by the case,the city's only hope is an unconventional sleuth played by Garry Goodrow.Like the other reviewer said this film is a huge disappointment.It lacks scares and gore and is really boring.Avoid this one at all costs!

This has to be the weirdest movie I ever saw.Number 1 because it dosent really have a plot and 2 some of the acting is so bad you'll laugh.The one good thing about this movie is that if your from san francisco you will notice that the movie was filmed in the raphael hotel which is now the maxwell hotel and actually the movie was filmed where that sprial stair case is in the hotel.

That's it! With God as my witness (hmm, maybe Satan would make a better witness in my case), this is the absolute last time I allow an appealing VHS-cover to fool and trick me into watching a movie that is generally – and righteously - considered as a huge piece of crap. "Cardiac Arrest" is downright unendurable 80's junk and, maybe it's just me, but there's something seriously wrong with the plot. The lousy excuse for a "film" opens and continues with the investigation of a couple of murder cases where the hearts have been surgically removed from the victims' bodies, only … we didn't see the murders happening! Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't it the point of horror films to show the violence and blood? This is more like a comedy with homicide coppers puking each time they encounter a corpse and that sort of lame things. "Cardiac Arrest" is a totally senseless and incoherent piece of crap with lousy characters, irritating dialogs, a dreadfully boring pace and – as said before – no gore. I made a rookie mistake picking out this film for its cover, and I'm trying to make the pain go away by advising others to avoid it like the plague. Suffering from a cardiac arrest yourself even looks like more fun.

I used to love afternoon detective shows. Columbo, Quincy, Ironside, even the newer crop like Diagnosis Murder and Monk. Murder mysteries, kooky maverick investigators and everything wrapped up in a speedy blast of low key suspense and twists. Cardiac Arrest is reminiscent of that whole realm of television, but it's stretched out over 93 minutes and has little suspense or flair. A sensational plot (heart theft, medical skulduggery) gives way to uninspired filler, underpowered acting and a distinct lack of thrills, TV movie level direction keeps this crawling along at the bare minimum pace required to keep from flatlining and the premise goes sadly wasted. At least Garry Goodrow is fairly good value as the cop investigating; he does his level best with the material, projecting a certain neat sense of kooky dedication. Michael Paul Chan is also solid as his refreshingly cliché free Asian partner. Max Gail and Susan O'Connell emote to the best of their abilities as a couple who get involved, there's a brief appearance for a young Fred Ward, side roles by and large make little to no impression or are simply hammy. A modicum of interest is provided by the late 70's San Francisco setting, in intervening years such city-scapes and their portrayal on film has perhaps changed forever, with its resolute ordinariness the film gains a certain time capsule quality. Also it's almost interesting to watch a film with realistic, human characters pretty much across the board, people that aren't glamorous, that make mistakes and don't seem to yell "I'm in a movie" by their very presence. But both these points still need some kind of underlying tension and there just isn't any so the film falls almost wholly flat. Its just dull, dull viewing, it picks up in the final quarter hour or so but its too little too late. The length really hurts this one, at half its length it could be a good TV episode, at 70 to 75 minutes it could have been a good pilot episode, but at over an hour and a half there just isn't enough there, and the characters don't stand out enough for any digressions (such as the hero interrupted whilst with his girlfriend) to work. I don't like to rag on films like this, for I enjoy cinema at most levels of quality, but this really was a stinker and not one that I would recommend to, well anyone.

Erroneously advertised as a horror movie, this is in fact a DETECTIVE DRAMA; it might solicit praise from "Monk" or "Columbo" fans not simply because its paced as a TV movie or an extended teleplay, but because a lot of time is spent on the development of humane characters with real fallibility. The mystery takes time to unravel, and it does so in a reasonably realistic and tasteful manner. In an ocean of conflated stereotypes, stilted scripts and nerve-wracking formulas, watching a subdued, 70s-style drama like this one can be quite pleasant. Moreover, however slow or lacking in suspense, no one will say that this story bores with its predictability.

The person who wrote the earlier review shown on the IMDb page is simply wrong. This is a very good mystery film, set in the San Francisco bay area, and starring Garry Goodrow as an eccentric but dedicated detective with a comically weak stomach for murder scenes (and who bears an amazing resemblance to film critic Gene Siskel). Goodrow was involved in the early 60s with the Beats and the Living Theatre, and his acting chops definitely show in the role of Clancy Higgins. This was far from just your run of the mill horror cheapie, there were some true talents involved in it. Perhaps the overly harsh IMDb reviewer who gave this "one star" was expecting a hardcore Tobe Hooper gorefest from looking at the poster showing a doctor holding a human heart, but it is anything but that, and it is certainly nothing approaching "one of the worst films ever", that's total nonsense and the film deserves much better than that. It's a thought provoking suspense drama, and its well worth the few dollars you'll pay for the bargain bin DVD release (which has very good pic/sound quality). The film is probably even suitable for younger viewers (say 10 and up), I first saw it in the late 70s on HBO and I thought it was great back then too. Seriously, this is one of my favorite films that almost nobody has seen.

Ok picture this... your walking along the rows and rows of horror films just browsing 'till something catches your eye. You see "Cardiac Arrest" and read the description of it and you think it sounds soooo awesome and suspenseful. You think you have a winner. So, you take it to the desk and pay your hard earned money to rent it. You take it home pop it in the VCR and start watching it, throughout the movie you are feeling very disapointed. Its not scary, its not suspenseful, the actors suck,the plot is so boring and redundant, and the color is drab and very bad (No, its not my color settings on my TV). You hope it will get better, but NOPE the movie ends and it was a total waste of time, money, and shelf space. It just plain bites. Don't waste your money on it.

Who is Garry Goodrow, may you ask? I only remembered him, as the sleazy smart talker, Berrudi, in the 83's hit Breathless. But this film, he's running the show, and I'm glad. Most of the film's enjoyment, I got out of his cop character, but he's playing more true to life, as in the character, but of course he's not the most conventional cop. Hey, if he wasn't, we wouldn't have as good a movie. C.A. does show moments of Amateurville, with not the greatest script for starters. Watching it last night, it looks very old now, kind of 70's film noir, which it is, but I'm saying, if the film was made today, and set in that period. The engaging film, which I 'spose could of made better use of it's great story, which today of course would seem old hat or tiresome, has people being butchered, and their hearts missing. The killer or killers responsible, have very expensive motives let say, and I'll leave the story there, and you can fill in the rest. Yes this is an oldie, but it's a good one, you should witness. It is though, and I really re-iterate here, Goodrow's presence and his show that engages you. For a cop, he doesn't have the strongest stomach. His girlfriend cop, dinkying him on her three wheeler bike, is a hoot, or watching him devour a sandwich with his Asian colleague, and their arguing differences were great, if only getting better dialogue. A real medical cop thriller, that's a heart starter.

Cardiac Arrest (1980)

1/2 (out of 4)

Detective Garry Goodrow (Clancy Higgins) gets sick at the sight of blood, which isn't a good thing considering his latest case. Set in San Francisco, the detective is trying to track down a serial killer who is ripping the hearts out of his victims. It turns out that the killer might be involved in a harvest program.

CARDIAC ARREST hit video shelves and was being sold as a horror movie with a pretty good cover showing an evil doctor holding a heart. I'm going to guess that this film was put into theaters as a detective story but it flopped so the producers tried to make their money back on video by passing it off in the slasher era. Sadly, the film is just really awful from the start and has very little working for it.

I will say that the idea of an evil doctor, hearts being stolen and sold is a pretty good idea but sadly nothing is done with it here. I really thought this was a poorly made movie right from the start as it lacks any real tension and there's never an atmosphere or anything else built. Even worse is how awful some of the performances are as you'd really think that they filmed a rehearsal because the performances are that bad.

The mystery of who the killer is was well kept but at the same time the viewer is so bored by the film that by the half hour mark they won't even care who is doing it. The lead detective isn't very interesting and neither is everything that happens for him to solve the case. With the mystery side of things not working you'd hope for some good kill scenes but that doesn't happen either as we usually just see the aftermath so those expecting gore or violence should go somewhere else.

CARDIAC ARREST is a film that just doesn't work and should only be viewed by those wanting to see the bottom of the barrel.

This has to go down as one of the cheesiest police thrillers ever.Let me just say the acting is pathetic in a laughable way.Though good san francisco scenery.If you know where the maxwell hotel is in san francisco then youll know what I'm talking about.Some of the movie is filmed inside the lobby and even on the staircase to the 2nd floor.

CARDIAC ARREST is the story of the notorious "missing heart murders". The killer has just struck again, and detectives, Higgins and Wong (Gary Goodrow and Michael Paul Chan) are on the case.

Meanwhile, a man (Max "Wojo" Gail) finds himself involved in what could be a black market for human organs, when his wife needs a heart transplant.

This is a surprisingly enjoyable movie with an intriguing plot. It's actually far more complex and conspiratorial than one might expect. Unfortunately, due to the marketing of this film as a slasher, it's been maligned by those expecting a blood-soaked ancestor of DR. GIGGLES. It isn't. At all.

WARNING: Since this is a movie from the late 1970's, uninitiated viewers may be shocked by the mile-long cars, fashion fiascos, and ubiquitous chain-smoking going on!

Co-stars Fred Ward, and there's even a cameo from Marjorie Eaton (THE ATOMIC BRAIN)!...