The Experts (1989 movie)

The Experts is a 1989 American Cold War comedy movie starring John Travolta, Arye Gross and Kelly Preston. It was written by Steven Greene, Eric Alter, and Nick Thiel and directed by Dave Thomas. The movie was distributed by Paramount Pictures.

Plot
Two American nightclub owners from New York City, Travis (John Travolta) and Wendell (Arye Gross) are drugged and kidnapped while on their way to opening a nightclub in rural Nebraska. The KGB spy Cameron Smith (Charles Martin Smith) takes them to the Soviet Union, as "experts" on the "American lifestyle" with the intention of teaching KGB spies to be like Americans. And under the influence of drugs they think they have arrived in "Nebraska" to open the nightclub. Travis and Wendell are brought to the phony town of "Indian Springs", which is populated by Russians who speak perfect American English and act like Americans. KGB spies go there to study "American people" and "American culture", but is stuck in the 1950s. The KGB spy Smith is in charge of the "typical American town" built for espionage-training purposes and hopes that his fellow spies will learn real American culture. But things get out of control when Travis and Wendell introduce their fellow "American" neighbors current pop culture, turn a bar into a rock music club and teach the townsfolk to dance. Both also flirt with local women. 
Travis and Wendell increasingly become suspicious, but when they get lost in a forest and stumble upon a military base where everyone is speaking Russian, they realize that they are actually in the Soviet Union. Things also get dangerous when the townsfolk taste freedom, and the KGB decides to stop the experiment and kill the American "guests", who have to find ways to flee the country.

Cast
John Travolta as Travis
Arye Gross as Wendell
Kelly Preston as Bonnie
Deborah Foreman as Jill
James Keach as Yuri
Jan Rubeš as Illyich
Brian Doyle-Murray as Mr. Jones
Charles Martin Smith as Mr. Cameron Smith
Mimi Maynard as Betty Smith
Eve Brent as Aunt Thelma
Rick Ducommun as Sparks
Steve Levitt as Gil
Tony Edwards as Nathan
David Mcalpine as Farmboy

Reception
The Experts did very badly at the box office (it was a massive "box office bomb"); its budget was estimated at $3 million and the box office was only $169,203. The film was also badly criticized by the film critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a positive rating  of only 26% from the audience.

References

Other websites

Category:English-language movies
Category:1989 comedy movies
Category:American comedy movies
Category:Canadian comedy movies
Category:Cold War movies
Category:Movies set in New York City
Category:Movies set in Russia
Category:Movies set in the 1980s
Category:Movies composed by Marvin Hamlisch