Nothing Lasts Forever (1984)

User Rating:

6.2/10   

Director:

Tom Schiller

Writer:

Tom Schiller (written by)

Release Date:

September 1984 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Fantasy | Sci-Fi

Plot:

An artist fails a test and is required to direct traffic in New York City's Holland Tunnel. He winds up falling in love with a beautiful woman, who takes him to the moon on a Lunar Cruiser. |

Plot Keywords:

Artist | Tunnel | Moon | Traffic | New York City

Cast

Zach Galligan	...	Adam Beckett
Apollonia van Ravenstein	...	Mara Hofmeier
Lauren Tom	...	Eloy
Sam Jaffe	...	Father Knickerbocker
Paul Rogers	...	Hugo
Bill Murray	...	Ted Breughel
Imogene Coca	...	Daisy Schackman
Dan Aykroyd	...	Buck Heller
Mort Sahl	...	Uncle Mort
Anita Ellis	...	Aunt Anita
Eddie Fisher	...	Himself
Jan Triska	...	Swedish Architect
Rosemary De Angelis	...	Helen Flagella
Clarice Taylor	...	Lu
John Garson	...	Maurice Blaget / Conductor

Runtime:

82 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White | Color

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:PG

Company:

Broadway Pictures

Trivia:

The movie was invited to play at the Cannes Film Festival two years in a row, but MGM wouldn't let it go.

Quotes:

Lunarcruiser: I can see the man in the moon, he's smiling at me.

Movie Connections:

Features Un chien andalou (1929)

Soundtrack:

It's Only a Paper Moon

A friendlier version of "Brazil"

This movie shares some similarities with Terry Gilliam's "Brazil". The mixing of 1930's and 1980's, the totalitarian state that pretends to be caring, a mix of freaky supporting characters and subtext behind every shot and concept. But Nothing Lasts Forever is lighter and more optimistic in tone and a modern (ish) fairy tale of searching for one's talent and purpose. The concepts of the Manhattan Port Authority taking control of New York, underground Angels, going shopping on the Moon in a bus and Bauhaus German techno artists in a mock 30's setting all show great creativity and originality; often missing in a lot of American comedies. And it also works the soundtrack (a mix of original and classical music) into the story extremely well.