Blast from the Past (1999)

A romantic comedy about a naive man who comes out into the world after being in a nuclear fallout shelter for 35 years.

Director:

Hugh Wilson

Writers:

Bill Kelly (story), Bill Kelly (screenplay),

Stars:

Brendan Fraser, Alicia Silverstone, Christopher Walken

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Brendan Fraser	...	Adam
Alicia Silverstone	...	Eve
Christopher Walken	...	Calvin
Sissy Spacek	...	Helen
Dave Foley	...	Troy
Joey Slotnick	...	Soda Jerk
Dale Raoul	...	Mom
Hayden Tank	...	Adam age 3½
Douglas Smith	...	Adam age 11
Ryan Sparks	...	Adam age 8
Don Yesso	...	Jerry
Scott Thomson	...	Young Psycho
Ted Kairys	...	Navy Pilot
Rex Linn	...	Dave
Cynthia Mace	...	Betty

Storyline

Adam Weber is the child of an eccentric inventor and his wife. Following a bomb scare in the 1960s that locked the Webers in their bomb shelter for 35 years, Adam Weber must venture out into Los Angeles and obtain food and supplies for his family. He meets Eve, who reluctantly agrees to help him out.

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Plot Keywords:

bomb shelter | 1960s | food | cuban missile crisis | naive man | 

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Taglines:

She was a woman of the world. He had never been around the block.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance | Sci-Fi

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for brief language, sex and drug references

Details

Official Sites:

New Line

Country:

USA

Language:

English French German Latin

Release Date:

12 February 1999 (USA)

Also Known As:

Buscando a Eva

Filming Locations:

1972 Canyon Drive, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$35,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£266,625 (UK) (2 April 1999)

Gross:

$26,494,611 (USA) (14 May 1999)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Forge, Midnight Sun Pictures, New Line Cinema

Technical Specs

Runtime:

112 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

When Mr Webber first goes back up after 35 years he meets a transvestite prostitute who says to him "Like the song says, a country boy can survive". The song he was referring to was "A Country Boy Can Survive" by Hank Williams Jr..

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Goofs

When Adam drops his baseball cards and Eve helps to pick them up, they forget one card located near the side of the suitcase. When the scene changes to where Adam and Eve start to walk away, the card is gone, although no one ever bent down to pick it up.

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Quotes

Eve: So for four thousand dollars, all I have to do is drive you to your hotel?
Adam: Uh-huh!
Eve: That's it?
Adam: Yes.
Eve: And I don't have to take a physical in your spaceship?

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Connections

Featured in Siskel & Ebert: Message in a Bottle/My Favorite Martian/Children of Heaven/Blast from the Past/God Said, 'Ha!' (1999)

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Soundtracks

"Happy Birthday to You"
Written by Mildred J. Hill and Patty S. Hill

User Reviews

Blast from the Past: 7/10

There surely is a lack of originality in movies now. Romantic comedies always seem to have the girl outwit the guy, the guy persisting, and then they finally get together. That's exactly the case in Blast from the Past, except that the guy has been living in a bomb shelter for all of his life. It's a joke that could work for a five minute sketch, or it might just flop overall, but that's not the case here. It's a simple romantic comedy with a huge twist thrown in, which works to the movie's advantage.

Adam (Brendan Fraser) had lived in a fallout shelter for all of his life, because his father (Christopher Walken) thought a nuclear bomb was dropped on the house. 35 years afterwards, Adam goes up to bring supplies and meet a girl, which he does. Eve (Alicia Silverstone) is a feisty, typical 90's American, but since Adam had never met anyone else besides his parents, he just accepts it. Soon he falls in love with her (hence, Adam and Eve), but the reverse is not the same. Will he convince her? Only the cliché on romantic comedies will tell us!

Blast from the Past is surprisingly lightweight romcom. It never goes to take itself seriously, which helps keep the mood light, which is what it's supposed to be. At times it gets silly, including a Benny Hill-ish chase scene, and the obligatory man-who-can't-drive-car-drives-car-wildly scene. A scenario like this could easily descend into heartstring-plucking land, but thankfully stays on the top, and over the top. Director Hugh Wilson, whose resumé includes such movies as the original Police Academy and The First Wives Club, can keep a movie that could turn drastically wrong on the right track.

Fraser is great. It really seemed like he was brought up in a fallout shelter. His mannerisms were all from the sixties, and the way he acted was exactly on key. Silverstone was okay, but nowhere near as good as Walken and Sissy Spacek as Adam's parents. They embody their roles as people who have to live in the same space for 35 years. This movie is everything romantic comedies today don't have: no crude humor, funny lines, good acting, and a fun story. People could really learn a lesson from watching Blast from the Past.

My rating: 7/10

Rated PG-13 for brief language, sex and drug references.