The Day After (1983) (TV)

Director:

Nicholas Meyer

Writer:

Edward Hume (writer)

Release Date:

20 November 1983 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Sci-Fi | War

Tagline:

The day before. The day of. The Day After.

Plot:

A graphic, disturbing film about the effects of a devastating nuclear holocaust on small-town residents of eastern Kansas.

Plot Keywords:

Mass Destruction | Nuclear Bomb | Blast | Vaporization | Mushroom Cloud

Awards:

Won 2 Primetime Emmys. Another 3 wins & 10 nominations

Cast

Jason Robards	...	Dr. Russell Oakes
JoBeth Williams	...	Nurse Nancy Bauer
Steve Guttenberg	...	Stephen Klein (as Steven Guttenberg)
John Cullum	...	Jim Dahlberg
John Lithgow	...	Joe Huxley
Bibi Besch	...	Eve Dahlberg
Lori Lethin	...	Denise Dahlberg
Amy Madigan	...	Alison Ransom
Jeff East	...	Bruce Gallatin
Georgann Johnson	...	Helen Oakes
William Allen Young	...	Airman Billy McCoy
Calvin Jung	...	Dr. Sam Hachiya
Lin McCarthy	...	Dr. Austin
Dennis Lipscomb	...	Reverend Walker
Clayton Day	...	Dennis Hendry

Runtime:

127 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:PG | South Korea:All | Canada:14A | Finland:K-14 | France:-12 | Norway:12 (1984) | Norway:15 | Sweden:15 | UK:12 | USA:Unrated | West Germany:12 (w) | Singapore:PG | Brazil:18

Filming Locations:

Harrisonville, Missouri, USA

Company:

ABC Circle Films

Trivia:

Unable to get permission to use U.S. Department of Defense stock footage of mushroom clouds (although able to get stock footage of Minuteman III ICBM test launches), producers were forced to recreate mushroom clouds using special effects.

Goofs:

Errors in geography: Surely intentional by the director but the movie kept referring to Sedalia where Whiteman AFB is located. Sedalia is several miles East, the name of the small town where Whiteman is located is Knob Noster.

Quotes:

Dr. Landowska: There is a rumor that they are evacuating Moscow. There are people even leaving Kansas City because of the missile base. Now I ask you: To where does one go from Kansas City? The Yukon? Tahiti? We are not talking about Hiroshima anymore. Hiroshima was... was peanuts!
Dr. Russell Oakes: What's going on? Do you have any idea what's going on in this world?
Dr. Landowska: Yeah. Stupidity... has a habit of getting its way.

Movie Connections:

Edited from Meteor (1979)

Stupidity DOES have a habit of getting its way.

The small town of Lawrence, Kansas suffers the horrifying effects of a full-on nuclear strike in this landmark made-for-television movie. "The Day After" is very matter-of-fact: this is a glimpse of just what life might be like as people suffer the effects of nuclear fallout. The movie is grim, graphic, and disturbing. Many of the performances are thoughtful and compelling - even Steve Guttenberg shows us that he can deliver a fine performance if he is given a good role and a good script.

The Cold War may be a thing of the past, but the simple message of this story is still timely.

The first half moves rather slowly: characters are introduced and voice-overs tell us the events leading to the nuclear war. Then, just before the halfway point, the strike occurs, and for the rest of its running time we see the characters slowly getting sicker and sicker.

I won't forget "The Day After" any time soon - and I will be hoping for the rest of my life that this day never, ever comes.

10/10