Who knew there was a genre called "Psychedelic Action"... Well there isn't, technically, but this 1973 super low-budget science-fiction film... not even big enough for a decent cult following... can't really be described any other way. The camera angles and music alone give it that tag; and you won't be bored since there's plenty of action...

The entire picture is one long multi-chase involving a scientist who's been cloned... or is he a clone who thinks he's the scientist? Visually you can figure it out so prick your ears since the sound quality is god-awful. Making otherwise talented actors tone down their skills to drive a story with expressions which are mostly worried, agitated, determined...

Enter Michael Greene playing dual-roles. He's one of those actors you've seen a million times: tall, storky: a unique character actor... This is his only starring vehicle... and if not, it's one of the very, very few... while other familiar faces Gregory Sierra and Otis Young play F.B.I. agents on his scurried tail.

THE CLONES makes surprisingly apt use of a sparse story-line with an energetic pulse, effectively cutting back and forth to the hunted and the hunters - from sneaking along rooftops, traipsing through rocky terrain, stalked on rural highways, in the desert, swamps, then busting into fist fights and, of course, car chases - as if there was actually a budget in this Wrong-Man thriller including an idyllically romantic sailboat scene, thus providing stolen shots of both land and sea...

Meanwhile, the actors seem like they're merely collecting paychecks, sleepwalking through the roles while that same year, serving in heaven as opposed to this scant reign in hell, Sierra would be the hunted in PAPILLON; Otis Young would take THE LAST DETAIL with a never-better Jack Nicholson; and a year earlier, Greene bullied Woody Allen in PLAY IT AGAIN SAM. So they do have merit... The irony is, their CLONES paycheck was probably hardly worth slumming down to. (available on Amazon Prime... Review from cultfilmfreaks.com)

I reason why Clones is taken for a bad movie is because of the films direction. Clones was directed by two directors. Without even looking at the credits, you can tell by the two different styles of direction seen during the movie. One direction is clearly bad as the camera is hand held and always moving. The other direction is classic 1974 "trip" direction that makes you feel like your on a drug. The story is excellent. Original science fiction that can only be matched with Boys from Brazil. When I first wrote this review many years ago, I was contacted by Paul Hunt, the Director who was upset at my comments. The truth he wanted me to let the public know is that they filmed this with a tiny budget and with a short time. Considering this, I would say that the Clones was one of many movies in its era that was quickly pushed out in order to make a quick profit. To give credit when credit is due, the Clones can be considered a misunderstood film. However, it is worth watching just to check out the great ending (which you do not see coming). Trust me.

Scientist Dr. Gerald Appleby (a sturdy performance by Michael Greene) uncovers a nefarious government plot to duplicate the world's top scientists in order to control the weather.

Directors Lamar Card and Paul Hunt, working from an offbeat and interesting script by Steve Fisher, relate the absorbing story at a snappy pace, do a solid job of crafting a suitably paranoid atmosphere, stage the action scenes with aplomb (the bravura wild climax set in an empty amusement park in particular seriously smokes in no uncertain terms),and cap things off with a quintessentially 70's surprise bummer ending. The sound acting by the able cast keeps the film humming: Gregory Sierra as ruthless hit-man Nemo, Otis Young as Nemio's easygoing partner Sawyer, Susan Hunt as Appleby's concerned wife Penny, and Stanley Adams as sinister scientist Carl Swafford. Gary Graver's typically proficient cinematography boasts lots of cool hand-held camera work and a few gnarly solarized visuals; the scenes with Appleby and his clone interacting together are especially well done. Allen D. Allen's lively and funky score hits the groovy stirring spot. A neat little movie.