THE FANTASTIC WORLD OF D.C. COLLINS (1984)
Article 5077 by Dave Sindelar
Date: 2-10-2016
Directed by Leslie H. Martinson
Featuring Gary Coleman, Bernie Casey, Shelley Smith
Country: USA
What it is: Walter Mitty, Gary Coleman TV-Movie style

A young boy with an overactive imagination becomes the target of spies when he unknowingly comes into possession of a secret cartridge, but given his imagination, no one believes him…

What we have here is THE SECRET LIFE OF WALTER MITTY tailored to the talents of popular child actor Gary Coleman, who become something of a phenomenon when he appeared on the TV series “Diff’rent Strokes”. He was sixteen at the time he made this, but, due to a medical condition that stunted his growth, he looks much younger. He was a skilled comic actor, and if this TV-Movie works at all, it is because of his talent and appeal. Unfortunately, the script really doesn’t give him much help; it’s obvious, it’s not particularly funny, and the fantasy sequences (which reference STAR WARS, RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK, James Bond, Superman, the TV series MAS*H and others) are pretty tepid. My guess is that how much you like this will depend on your fondness for Coleman; it’s pretty much his vehicle.