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I'm trying to figure out the name of a movie I saw on TV as a kid, in the mid-to-late 90s, in the US, in English, on daytime TV.

I remember it being kind of Starship Troopers-esque, but everyone had these glowing lights in their chests. They glowed in different colored patterns, and I think it had something to do with whether you were attracted to someone or not (I was probably like 7 when I saw it, I didn't really understand the context of that part yet).

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    What year were you 7? What part of the world did you see this on TV? What language was the movie in? Jul 1, 2014 at 17:36
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    That sounds like Brian Aldiss' novel The Primal Urge but I can't find any suggestion that it was filmed
    – mmmmmm
    Jul 1, 2014 at 22:02
  • @SystemDown all very good questions, sorry for not including those in the original question. This would have been in the mid-late 90's, in the US, in English, on daytime TV.
    – user28913
    Jul 2, 2014 at 14:16

6 Answers 6

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If it's the one I'm thinking of, it was a pilot for a series that never aired called "Island City" (1994). Does this sound familiar?

From Wikipedia:

In the future, humanity develops a "fountain of youth" drug, but as many people around the world begin to take it, most begin to mutate into a barbaric proto-humanoid state. The few people immune to this side-effect of the drug band together and live in a futuristic city while the mutants live in the vast wasteland outside its gates.

...

Citizens of the city wore a colored crystal on their sternum and could only mate with other citizens of the same color, which was based on the individual's genetic makeup. Progeny that resulted from breeding outside of your prescribed color would have the genetic mutation that, when combined with the "fountain of youth" drug, created the race of proto-humanoids.

Thanks to the wonders of YouTube, here's the intro. In some of the scenes, their uniforms are unbuttoned just enough that you can see the crystals embedded in the chest.

The show had some popular 90's actors in it but never took off. I didn't realize until I looked just now, but the main character was played by Kevin Conroy, widely famous as the voice of Batman.

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    Wow. This looks dreadful...
    – Valorum
    Jul 1, 2014 at 20:50
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    Special effects aside, a lot of these 90s shows were true diamonds in the rough.
    – Omegacron
    Jul 1, 2014 at 20:52
  • I'm pretty impressed that you were able to make this ID, thank you.
    – user28913
    Jul 2, 2014 at 17:26
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Could it have been "Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future"? The associated movie was "Captain Power: The Beginning"

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-6bXbNqSH9ic/UBDUfMPUEdI/AAAAAAAAJUo/YBXQIUia3ZU/s1600/Captain_Power_And_The_Soldiers_Of_The_Future.jpg

Lots of chest glowing and adult subtext. There was even an at-home gun you could shoot the TV with :-)

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  • That's as good a guess as any, I suppose. What was the story with the glowing chests?
    – user28913
    Jul 1, 2014 at 19:55
  • I just remember having a gun and shooting the bad guys. I was also too young to understand the real plot. Jul 1, 2014 at 19:58
  • You can see a minute of it here: youtube.com/watch?v=M678PVOf5F0 Jul 1, 2014 at 20:05
  • @user28913 - The bad guys had glowing chests (but they were robots), and it had nothing to do with attraction or anything of the sort. Still, it's a really cool series that ended way too early. Jul 1, 2014 at 20:42
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    @PaulD.Waite - Whenever an identify this question pops up that mentions people in armor I have to fight the urge to answer "Captain Power!" Jul 1, 2014 at 20:55
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The episode "Legacy" (1990) of Star Trek: The Next Generation featured a planet full of underground tunnels and rag-tag warriors who had proximity sensors in their chests that caused them to glow in kind of a blinking way. Could that be what you're thinking of?

You can see a YouTube video that shows the glowing chest effect below, at the 3-minute mark.

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  • FWIW this link is now effectively dead as per This video contains content from CBS CID, who has blocked it on copyright grounds
    – Peter M
    Aug 6, 2017 at 22:33
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In the movie Cocoon during a swimming pool scene didn't they glow when the aliens wanted to "share" themselves. I can't exactly remember if it was just there chests or the whole body though. I found a link in youtube but don't know how to link it here.

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It was Island City (1994). I remember it too.

From IMDb:

A 21st-century genetic experiment goes chaotic, creating a race of genetically-violent mutants.

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    Could you add some information, like why do you think this is the one? What hints are in the question that you find suitable for the answer you provided?
    – Mor Zamir
    Aug 18, 2019 at 10:23
  • Can you provide any evidence? You shouldn't post an answer just agreeing with an existing answer; that should be a comment.
    – DavidW
    Aug 18, 2019 at 10:27
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Laserblast (1978), but played on TV when you asked.

From Wikipedia:

Laserblast is a 1978 American science fiction film about an unhappy teenage loner who discovers an alien laser cannon and goes on a murderous rampage, seeking revenge against those who he feels have wronged him.

Laserblast poster

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    This answer would be very much improved if it explained why this could match the criteria in the question.
    – Obsidia
    Aug 6, 2017 at 16:34

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