I saw this movie back in 1989 and it blew my mind. Just like today it broke a lot of rules especially about endings.
I saw it in '89 when I was still dating my husband to be. We are still married today and haven't forgotten this movie. But in an era that is 30 years removed from Reagan Bush where males ensure that mass shootings happen 1.5 per each day in America this movie has less impact in the here and now then it did back when it was brand new.
The whole thing had and has a kind of surreal edge, somewhere between the aunjanue taking a Valium at the beginning and the fact that once 4 AM is reached Melatonin is the master of our minds. Somehow the creators of the movie gave it a feel that was very much like the substances that were dominant.
Everything is a little weird, stark, edgy, all from the point when we reach 4 AM and onwards.
Once we get beyond the intro it is real time and once the Mcguffin is dropped the tension just builds. There is a bit of comedy but things get worse and heavier as we tend towards the inevitable end in real time.
Another issue in this movie is that it is recommended to young people who are curious about how people dealt with crises before Internet connectivity.
Without having instant access to instant communication and information people rely on things like word of mouth, hoping people will relay messages, passing on rumors and pay phones. Otherwise they have to travel to the person to whom they wish to communicate.
The hero spends most of his time running around trying to locate his lady and find a way out. It is really weird and indicative of the Reagan Bush era how he is not really willing to say what the problem is and comes up with every excuse (toxic fire with cyanide cloud is just one) under the sun except impending nuclear war when dealing with people.
The closer we get to the very non Hollywood ending the more chaotic things become.
Our hero is never in control but it comes home poignantly as we proceed towards the final quarter of the movie when the surrealism and chaos amps up (cops abandoning the scene scene).
It only took an hour for a rumor to start spreading through the entire city. Without digital connectivity In the middle of the night.
This movie is commendable and recommended for a lot of reasons but be ready for a very non Hollywood ending.
In the end I was kind of left wondering did the war start the rumors or did the rumors start the war. Either seemed equally possible.
The extended ending scenes with them trying to comfort each other through the horror is a beautiful illustration of what love is really about.
Basically if you don't shed a tear at the end you don't really have a soul.
I saw it in '89 when I was still dating my husband to be. We are still married today and haven't forgotten this movie. But in an era that is 30 years removed from Reagan Bush where males ensure that mass shootings happen 1.5 per each day in America this movie has less impact in the here and now then it did back when it was brand new.
The whole thing had and has a kind of surreal edge, somewhere between the aunjanue taking a Valium at the beginning and the fact that once 4 AM is reached Melatonin is the master of our minds. Somehow the creators of the movie gave it a feel that was very much like the substances that were dominant.
Everything is a little weird, stark, edgy, all from the point when we reach 4 AM and onwards.
Once we get beyond the intro it is real time and once the Mcguffin is dropped the tension just builds. There is a bit of comedy but things get worse and heavier as we tend towards the inevitable end in real time.
Another issue in this movie is that it is recommended to young people who are curious about how people dealt with crises before Internet connectivity.
Without having instant access to instant communication and information people rely on things like word of mouth, hoping people will relay messages, passing on rumors and pay phones. Otherwise they have to travel to the person to whom they wish to communicate.
The hero spends most of his time running around trying to locate his lady and find a way out. It is really weird and indicative of the Reagan Bush era how he is not really willing to say what the problem is and comes up with every excuse (toxic fire with cyanide cloud is just one) under the sun except impending nuclear war when dealing with people.
The closer we get to the very non Hollywood ending the more chaotic things become.
Our hero is never in control but it comes home poignantly as we proceed towards the final quarter of the movie when the surrealism and chaos amps up (cops abandoning the scene scene).
It only took an hour for a rumor to start spreading through the entire city. Without digital connectivity In the middle of the night.
This movie is commendable and recommended for a lot of reasons but be ready for a very non Hollywood ending.
In the end I was kind of left wondering did the war start the rumors or did the rumors start the war. Either seemed equally possible.
The extended ending scenes with them trying to comfort each other through the horror is a beautiful illustration of what love is really about.
Basically if you don't shed a tear at the end you don't really have a soul.