Simon 1980
Directed by
Marshall Brickman
Made by
Orion Pictures
Simon Plot Summary
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The Institute for Advanced Concepts is a think tank with an unlimited budget and a knack for fabricating national hysterias. The five scientists hatch a plan to trick a man into believing he is from another world by brainwashing him, and they deploy their talking computer Doris to conduct a nationwide search that culminates in selecting a psychology professor named Simon Mendelssohn, a man who was abandoned at birth and is attempting to run a personal experiment using an isolation tank. At the institute, Simon is submerged in the isolation tank for an extended period and emerges in a weakened mental state, replaying the entire history of life on Earth from single-celled organisms to modern humans. While he is in this altered state, the scientists plant hypnotic suggestions that his mother is an alien spaceship and that he was manufactured rather than born. They broadcast Simon’s ramblings to spark a national mood swing, offering provocative ideas for reforming American culture. When they decide he has become too dangerous due to his sudden celebrity, they summon the military to kill him, but his girlfriend Lisa steps in to rescue him.
As the couple goes on the run, they encounter a commune that worships a television, which they call the “magic box,” and they discover a founder who used to work for the American Broadcasting Company and now drives a truck equipped with a high-powered TV transmitter. The military soon traces the origins of Simon’s hijacked signals, forcing the fugitives to flee once again. Lisa finally convinces Simon that he is human when she reveals she is pregnant with their child.
Dr. Becker, the institute’s head, blames the release of a gas that once lowered IQs on Simon’s actions. As the group regresses into childish behavior, Becker and the military commander devise a rocket plan meant to send Simon home to his planet, but it turns into a literal launch into space. Simon calls and surrenders, and Becker—convinced he has outsmarted him—accompanies him to the rocket. In a tense struggle, Simon overpowers Becker, straps him into the rocket seat, and escapes in a NASA uniform as Becker is launched into space.
The final scenes show Simon and Lisa settling in Canada with their child, choosing a quiet life away from constant pursuit by the American media. Yet the world keeps asking questions, including a radio broadcast that hints at Simon’s Nobel Peace Prize, attributed to his broadcasts’ odd but well-meaning reforms—such as proposals to rethink public restrooms and towel usage—leaving a sense of uneasy peace as a new era begins.
Simon Timeline
Follow the complete movie timeline of Simon (1980) with every major event in chronological order. Great for understanding complex plots and story progression.
Institute scientists hatch a plan
The Institute for Advanced Concepts decides to fabricate a national hysteria by brainwashing a man into believing he is extraterrestrial. They recruit their talking computer Doris to conduct a nationwide search and selection process for a suitable subject. They settle on psychology professor Simon Mendelssohn, who matches their criteria of vulnerability and potential influence.
Simon is chosen and isolated
Simon Mendelssohn is selected as the subject and subjected to an isolation tank experiment at the institute. After an extended session, he emerges in a weakened mental state and begins to reenact the entire history of evolution from single-celled organisms to modern man.
Hypnotic implantation
While in the altered state, the scientists plant hypnotic suggestions that his mother is an alien spaceship and that he was made as a machine rather than born naturally. This manipulation ensures the beliefs they aim to trigger when his ramblings are broadcast.
Doris broadcasts Simon's ramblings
The scientists broadcast Simon's ramblings through national channels to provoke mass hysteria. The broadcasts spark a nationwide search and quickly turn Simon into a celebrity figure.
Simon's newfound celebrity and proposals
With public fascination growing, Simon becomes a figure of celebrity and begins offering proposals to reform American culture. The institute watches with growing concern as his influence expands beyond their control.
The institute calls in the military
As his influence escalates, the scientists decide he has become too dangerous and call in the military to kill him. The plan marks a turning point as the pursuit shifts from manipulation to elimination.
Lisa rescues Simon
Lisa, Simon's girlfriend, intervenes and helps him escape the attempted killing. The couple goes on the run, trying to outrun both the military and the Institute's machinations.
A TV-worshiping commune appears
On the road, they encounter a commune that worships a television, calling it the 'magic box'. The founder, a former ABC employee, has a truck with a high-powered transmitter that amplifies Simon's signals.
Signals traced; another escape
The military locates the origins of Simon's hijacked TV signals, forcing the couple to flee again. They must stay ahead of the search while the Institute's apparatus continues to pull strings from the shadows.
Pregnancy revelation
Lisa reveals to Simon that she is pregnant, persuading him that he is human. Her revelation shatters his belief in his alien ancestry and strengthens their bond.
Gas blame and the rocket plan
Dr. Becker blames a release of gas that reduces IQs on Simon. The four remaining scientists, acting childish, and a military commander arrange a rocket launch to get rid of Simon.
Becker is launched; Simon escapes
Simon overpowers Becker, straps him into the rocket seat, and escapes in a NASA uniform as Becker is launched into space. The chase continues, but Simon gains the upper hand and seizes control of his fate.
New life in Canada
Simon and Lisa settle in Canada with their child, choosing a quiet life away from American media. They plan to live in peace and obscurity while the search for Simon continues.
Nobel Prize broadcast
A radio broadcast informs Lisa that Simon has won the Nobel Peace Prize for his suggested reforms to American life. The prize signals international recognition of his controversial ideas amidst continuing media intrigue.
Simon Characters
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Simon Mendelssohn (Alan Arkin)
A psychology professor who is hijacked by the Institute's plan and subjected to mind-altering experiments. His evolution from isolation tank experiment to a public celebrity triggers a crisis of identity, as his supposed origins and abilities are planted by the scientists. He begins to reenact the entire history of life as a manifestation of his emerging vulnerability and power.
Lisa (Judy Graubart)
Simon's girlfriend who believes in his humanity and resilience. She travels with him while trying to ground him in reality, eventually revealing her pregnancy to anchor their future. Her loyalty and love provide the emotional counterweight to the scientists' manipulation.
Dr. Carl Becker (Austin Pendleton)
Head of the Institute who orchestrates the plan to weaponize Simon's supposed alien origin. He excuses unethical experiments with a sense of scientific progress, but his actions ultimately trigger a desperate response from the military and Lisa. Becker's arrogance and fear drive the climax.
Doris (the talking computer)
The Institute's sentient or semi-sentient computer that conducts a national search for an asset to exploit. It serves as the operational brain behind the scheme, orchestrating broadcasts and data gathering.
Maj. Gen. Korey (Fred Gwynne)
Military commander who helps coordinate the rocket launch meant to remove Simon from the scene, reflecting the government's readiness to erase perceived threats.
Adolph Green as Commune Leader
Leader of the commune that reveres television as a sacred object and broadcasts from a high-powered transmitter. The commune embodies a satirical critique of mass media's influence on belief and community.
Simon Settings
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Location
Institute for Advanced Concepts, Commune Worshiping a Television, United States, Canada
The Institute for Advanced Concepts is a well-funded think tank where a small group of scientists hatch and execute manipulation schemes. A separate commune reveres a talking television as a deity and uses a high-powered transmitter to broadcast its beliefs. The action shifts from the United States to Canada as Simon and Lisa seek safety, reflecting a broader collision between media power, science, and national borders.
Simon Themes
Discover the main themes in Simon (1980). Analyze the deeper meanings, emotional layers, and social commentary behind the film.
🧠
Mind Control
The scientists engineer a mass hysteria by controlling what Simon believes and broadcasts. Brainwashing, hypnotic suggestions, and media manipulation reveal how easily public perception can be shaped when a single individual becomes a national focal point.
👥
Identity
Simon grapples with whether he is a person or a manufactured tool. Lisa's insistence on his humanity and the revelation of his pregnancy force him to redefine who he is beyond the role others assign him.
📺
Media & Power
Television becomes a weapon and a religion—the 'magic box' that can make or break a person's reality. The film critiques the commodification of information and how mass media can manufacture heroes, scares, and national narratives.
Simon Spoiler-Free Summary
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In a near‑future where a well‑funded think tank thrives on manipulation and media frenzy, a group of scientists devise a controversial project: they will convince a single individual that he is not a human being at all, but a living emissary from another world. Their lab, equipped with a sentient computer called Doris, becomes the engine of a far‑reaching social experiment that blurs the line between scientific inquiry and covert propaganda, hinting at a society willing to rewrite reality for the sake of control.
Simon Mendelssohn, a seasoned professor of psychology, is chosen as the test subject. Abandoned at birth and driven by a personal fascination with consciousness, he spends his days in an isolation tank, seeking to map the evolution of thought from the simplest cells to modern minds. His scholarly curiosity makes him both an ideal candidate and a reluctant pawn, as the institute’s relentless conditioning begins to overlay his own introspections with alien narratives.
By his side is Lisa, a determined partner whose affection for Simon is rooted in both love and a shared skepticism of the institute’s motives. Their relationship adds a human counterweight to the sterile, ultra‑scientific environment, offering moments of tenderness amid an otherwise cold, procedural world. Together, they navigate a maze of suggestion, authority, and the ever‑present hum of surveillance, each questioning what it means to belong to a species.
The film’s tone balances unsettling psychological dread with darkly satirical commentary on a culture that embraces grandiose visions of progress without questioning the cost. It paints a picture of a society teetering on the edge of obedience and rebellion, where the very act of believing becomes a battlefield. Within this fragile tableau, Simon and Lisa embody the tension between prescribed identity and the primal desire to define oneself.
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