Testament

Rating:
Summary: Best Nuclear War Film of The 1980's
Review: And perhaps the best nuclear war film ever. I liked "Threads" and "The Day After", but this film is almost the antithesis to those films and is all the better for it. There are no scenes of monumental destruction, no sweeping fires or mushroom cloudes or scenes of the dead. Instead the approach is subtle and extremely emotional. While "The Day After" attemped to show the effects of nuclear war on the entire United States, "Testament" shows you one family. One family living in the suburbs and who anyone could relate to. You are drawn in emotionaly by connecting with each of the characters and by seeing and hearing only what they see and hear. After the attack they are left completely to themselves, nobody's coming to help them. They try to hold together with the other survivors in the community and at first it works, but as the effects of radiation and loss of life continue, this film becomes harder and harder to watch. As characters die for no reason other than radiation, that is when the film becomes so emotional that you can't help but watch it. This film forces you to put yourself in these people's situations and wonder what you might do in their place. This film is extremely depressing and that's where it becomes effective. But it also shows yet another tribute to the human spirit, to survive under impossible odds and even keep some small shred of optimism.

Rating:
Summary: The Death of a Small Town
Review: A very quiet story about a family trying to survive after nuclear war breaks out as a result of a Chineese attack. Jane Alexander stars as a mother who must try and remain strong for her children as she tries to cope with the loss of her husband to the bomb in San Fransico. Rebecca DeMorne and Kevin Costner have supporting actor roles here as a husband and wife that leave the town in the middle of the movie after their baby dies. Most of the town dies in the first month as radiation takes its toll. By the end of the movie Jane Alexander has only one child left and a "godchild" that she is taking care of. A very depressing film as you try to put yourself in Jane's place as you watch your loved ones die.

Rating:
Summary: Not Your Usual End of the World Movie
Review: As most every reviewer here mentions, this is a quietly powerful film. Jane Alexander gives an excellent performance as a mother trying to carry on after the most devastating of events. Perhaps limited by budget, we don't see any gruesome special effects, over-wrought portrayals of screaming mobs, or even an over-blown breakdown of society version in this movie.

And that's a good thing. By concentrating on character, the movie really packs a punch. We can really identify with the family who isn't even sure the father of the family, who may or may not have gone into the blast zone, is alive.

The theme of the movie, an unbelievable cataclysmic event that kills millions (or billions), is as topical as ever, with the continued proliferation of nuclear weapons. Not to mention the specter of bio-terrorism with its threat of an uncontained plague.

One comment I just have to make about the 'editorial review' in this case. The small town in question is just north of San Francisco. Sorry, but California isn't the 'Pacific Northwest'.

Highly recommended.

Rating:
Summary: Gut Wrenching and Unforgettable
Review: Beyond Heartbreaking


I was in my local library a few days back and saw that they had the DVD release of Testament. I decided to borrow the film remembering I saw a few fragments of the film on cable in the mid 1980's. I will probably purchase a copy of the DVD since watching this film is an unforgettable experience.

I've been seeing movies for over 40 years and I can't remember more than a couple of films that have ever brought me to tears. To call this a heartbreaking film does not gives its due. It is truly gut wrenching and devastating. This is a genuine film about the unthinkable - far more disturbing than anything I've ever seen.

Without special effects, graphic images, or typical digitally built tricks and excesses, Testament portrays such a wide range of human emotion and experience for these people suffering through post nuclear holocaust. The filmmakers have not made a political screed or diatribe. This movie is all about humanity, decency and strength in the face of unthinkable horror.

The use of Jane Alexander's voice over narratives, the wonderful characters, incredible acting and directorial restraint as well as the beautifully written script make this film resonate forever.

This is a depressing, devastating yet beautiful movie that shows the decency and humanity of people experiencing the aftermath of the unthinkable. Jane Alexander's Carol, her children and her neighbors are people you care for and want to know even more. There are only a handful of movies or books where I've felt such empathy and genuine compassion.

One of the most unforgettable films I've ever seen.

-----------------SPOILERS----------------------------------

So many scenes remain with me.

-Jane Alexander's "diary voice-over" where she says "I can't believe the man Brad has become ...and the man he won't live to be" while Brad rides his bike through the desolate storefronts of the San Fransciscan hamlet.

-Jane Alexander bathing and singing lullabies to the dying Scottie is one of the most beautiful, powerful and saddest images I've seen on film. I could not stop crying after that scene and lay in bed for hours thinking of it.

-The sweet developmentally-disabled boy Japanese boy giving Scottie's Teddy Bear to Jane Alexander...

- And of course, Jane Alexander calmly sewing the simple white shroud over Mary. That image may be the most emotionally devastating film moment I've seen.

Rating:
Summary: A Human View to Nuclear War
Review: I have a personal reason for reviewing this movie: the writer of the original short story, Carol Amen, was a good friend of mine from church before she died of cancer. Carol told me she woke up in the middle of the night covered with sweat when she envisioned this story and wrote it in one sitting. She worked closely with the screenwriter, John Sacret Young (of "China Beach" fame) and was very pleased that he was able to flesh out the characters and situations without altering the main story.

This film, with its excellent acting (for which Jane Alexander earned an Oscar nomination) and a beautiful, simple yet haunting score by James Horner, is different from all of the other Cold War/Nuclear Holocaust films. It's a story of a family and community coming together. There is no magic pill that saves everybody in the end; there is no squad of commandos rushing in to defeat the evil Ruskies. What IS there is a sense of connection with this ordinary family (particularly Ms. Alexander) as they survive what has happened and ask themselves, "Why was I saved? Why was I allowed to live when so many others died?". This is not a date movie, not a movie for an evening of brainless entertainment. This is a movie to be thought about, to be felt with the heart. As a history teacher, I find this film invaluable and use it in my classes to demonstrate the human costs of nuclear war since most of my students have never had to live under the serious shadow of nuclear annihalation.

Rating:
Summary: A Haunting and Once Again Timely Movie
Review: I was 14 years old when I first saw this film. Now I am 35 and still haunted by it. Every scene, every transaction between husband and wife (although brief), between mother and child (the bulk of this film) is absolutely extraordinary -- full of a kind of richness and warmth that few on screen families have been able to bring to life. We are thrust into the middle of their idyllic life torn asunder not by divorce nor teenage angst, but by the unthinkable: man's inhumanity to man.

What is so striking, is that these people are in the worst crisis imaginable. As the family succumbs to radiation sickness, the bonds only become stronger. Jane Alexander's narration as the mother, the lone remaining head of home and hearth is infused with the heartbreaking sorrow of a mother who knows her family will not survive and yet, she must go on. Bracing herself against the devastation she deals with hourly, even the news her husband has not survived derails her only for second. She grieves and closes it off again, knowing that her fate has likely been sealed as well and there is nothing more to do but go forward into her remaining days.

We get to know this family through the clever use of home movies -- happier times of languid summer days, goofy birthdays, laughter and brilliance. These days are gone, and like the life review so many say they've done when on the verge of death, these movies are a slow, precise and moving reflection on what will never be again.

Although the subject matter is stark and very sad, in my opinion this film is suitable for all family members, provided they are mature enough to handle the subject matter. Consider discussing it together afterward. Given the world's current climate (I write this in August 2004) perhaps this film should be revisited by anyone who needs a reminder of how precious life really is.

Rating:
Summary: Up against the wall stands Jane ...
Review: I was born in 1980 and, obviously, don't remember the nuclear attack paranoia that existed during this period in American history. But, of course, I was alive in 2001 ... and the paranoia that existed (exists) during this period is no different. So this movie is as relevant today as it was back then.

SPOILER ALERT!!!

Jane Alexander hands us a very subdued, melancholy performance, and is utterly fantastic. And credit is due the filmakers because this picture was made in such a way that we're under the impression we're watching a documentary and not a work of fiction at all, and I know this was the intent.

The most upsetting scenes in the movie are the ones where we realize Dad isn't coming back, little Scottie isn't going to make it, and the one where Mary Liz is wrapped up in sheets ... and isn't coming back, either.

As a mother, Jane is perfect. She just keeps reassuring her kids and tries her best to keep them calm in the face of adversity, and actually succeeds ... and makes their deaths that much more easy for them, and almost acceptable.

Jane Alexander definitely deserved her Oscar nomination. It's just a shame we haven't seen much more of her since.

Rating:
Summary: Flawed view of nuclear war
Review: I'm a picky person when it comes the technical aspects of what a movie is supposed to be depicting. This movie has many large holes in it. There is never even a light dusting on the town after the bombs go off. How can the people of the town die from radiation sickness when there is no fallout? In a major nuclear war the sky would be black from ash, dust, and soot, but the sun still shines like it's an ordinary spring day. EMP would typically destroy most electronic equipment, yet things like Ham radios and Speak-and-Spell still work. The town has air raid sirens, but there isn't one old Civil Defense radiation meter anywhere to help warn the people about increasing radiation levels? Nobody in town seems to have ever read a Civil Defense booklet about staying indoors and improvising shielding from household items. Having your son ride around town on his bike without even a dust mask on would have killed him first rather then last.
A real nuclear war would have been far worse then this movie depicts. At least "The Day After" gives some sense of what a nuclear war could do. "Testament" could have just as easily been about a some plague that struck the country. Overall, I do not rate this picture very highly as nuclear war movies go.

Rating:
Summary: Simple, Quality Filmmaking
Review: Of all the movies that I love for the spectacle, design, and great lines, for me this movie ranks as the most important film ever made. Finally, it's on DVD! It isn't flashy, it isn't fussy, but it does have current discussions from the major contributing actors, producer and director.

And it's still a heart-wrenching film with a message probably more important today than it was during the 'Cold War.'

Rating:
Summary: Most Powerful, impacting, emotional films ever made!
Review: Oh boy....here we go...testament has arrived on DVD! Its been a long time coming but I am so excited to see this make it finally to the DVD format.

Let me tell all of you that this movie was a masterpiece. I saw it back in the early 80s on PBS TV and it just rocked me to the core. IM telling you people this movie is so powerful you will never be the same after watching it!

Its about a family living a typical life of experiences and activities. They live in the suburbs of San Francisco Bay Area - the father goes off to work in San Francisco. The kids are watching cartoons after school and then hell is unleashed upon all! The TV is interrupted by news anchor notifying the entire eastern seaboard has been hit by nuclear missiles. A flash explodes in the living room and a air raid siren blasts....

The story begins....we suffer through the agony and hopelessness as the mother tries to do the best she can to get her family (daughter and 2 sons) to go about their daily lives.

You become so emotionally connected to the characters and their feelings that it becomes utterly painful to see the aftermath destruction of nuclear war via radiation and apocalypse.

You will cry till there's no tommorow when you see the family slowly die one by one. Its a feeling I've not experienced watching television or movies. The acting is so beautiful and authentic you can forget you are watching a tv screen and think you are seeing a live performance.

I am so happy to see this come out on DVD it is really a wake up call to human beings as they will appreciate life and the world we live in as opposed to nuclear holocaust that is out there.

Please understand this movie is so depressing that you may need help to recover from it but its a fictional tale that hopefully never comes true. Buy and see this movie as soon as you can because it will be a life changing experience for you - I have no doubt!