The Philadelphia Experiment (1984)

User Rating:

6.1/10   

Director:

Stewart Raffill

Writers:

Wallace C. Bennett (story)
Charles Berlitz (book)

Release Date:

3 August 1984 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Drama | Fantasy | Romance | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

Will You Survive?

Plot:

Based on an "actual event" that took place in 1943. About a US Navy Destroyer Escort that disappeared from the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard, and sent two men 40 years into the future to 1984.

Plot Keywords:

Philadelphia | US Navy | Experiment | Male Female Relationship | Redhead

Awards:

1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

Michael Paré	...	David Herdeg
Nancy Allen	...	Allison Hayes
Eric Christmas	...	Dr. James Longstreet
Bobby Di Cicco	...	Jim Parker
Louise Latham	...	Pamela
Kene Holliday	...	Major Clark
Joe Dorsey	...	Sheriff Bates
Michael Currie	...	Magnussen
Stephen Tobolowsky	...	Barney
Gary Brockette	...	Adjutant / Andrews
Debra Troyer	...	Young Pamela
Miles McNamara	...	Young Longstreet
Ralph Manza	...	Older Jim
James Edgcomb	...	Officer Boyer
Glenn Morshower	...	Mechanic

Runtime:

102 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:PG | Finland:K-12 | Norway:15 | Sweden:15 | UK:PG | USA:PG | West Germany:12

Filming Locations:

Charleston, South Carolina, USA

Company:

Cinema Group Ventures

Trivia:

Back in 1980, AVCO Embassay Pictures asked John Carpenter, who serves as an executive producer on this film to both write and direct this film after the success of Halloween (1978) and The Fog (1980). However, Carpenter showed them Escape from New York (1981) (which he wrote years earlier) and they did that instead.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: At the 1940s dance in the opening sequence the camera shot from under the hi-hat cymbals of the drum kit shows four holes in the bottom "Flat" cymbal. These type of hi-hat cymbals called: "Flathats" are made by the Zildjian Cymbal Company of the USA and were not available until the late 1970s.

Quotes:

Jim Parker: Isn't that - water up ahead?
David Herdeg: No. This is a desert. And that's a mirage.
Jim Parker: [later, walking through the flooded plain] How much longer you think this mirage is gonna last?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in 100 Million BC (2008) (TV)

Soundtrack:

The Runner

I'm a sucker for a time travel movie...

I've seen every time travel movie ever made, and I must say that the Philadelphia Experiment ranks pretty high on my list of favorites. Despite the cheesy love story (almost as bad as Titanic or Pearl Harbor) the effects are pretty good and the story is cool.

The actors were fair (Nancy Allen was great, though) and the screenplay is pretty good. It's a really interesting story in itself, though. If you have any interest at all in this movie, I would strongly recommend looking for books about the actual Philadelphia Experiment. (sometimes found in collections of paranormal phenomenon) The supposed true story involves tests to camoflauge a navy ship - rendering it either invisible to radar or TRULY invisible (stories vary as to the exact intent of the experiment) apparently through the use of magnetic fields. The rumor is that the ship disappeared from the Philadelphia naval yard and TELEPORTED to a Virginia naval yard. The crew had a variety of side-effects, ranging from temporary invisibility and/or intangibility to getting phased into solid objects and getting stuck there. (a couple of people who were phased into solid objects can be seen in the movie - pretty cool!) The "true" story makes a great read and even if only a fraction of it is true, it's a pretty remarkable idea that any of it happened in reality.

The Philadelphia Experiment is an entertaining movie, but more for sci fi fans and their girlfriends rather than the average moviegoer. Stay away from the Philadelphia Experiment II, though... it's just awful.