Rating: 
Summary: Ensemble cast shines.
Review: The Day After (Nicholas Meyer, 1983)Recently, motivated by a strong desire to see Threads again, I've been going through a kind of craving for nuclear-holocaust-flick nostalgia. Seeing The Day After again was my first foray back into the world of atom-bombs-blowing-stuff-up. I hadn't seen it since its original television broadcast more than twenty years previous, and was surprised at how well it holds up. The excellent ensemble cast is headed by the late Jason Robards (Magnolia, Enemy of the State, etc.) and John Lithgow (Shrek, Third Rock from the Sun, etc.) as a doctor and scientist, respectively, at two college campuses in the midwest in the aftermath of a nuclear holocaust. (Said nuclear holocaust happens, as one might expect, early in the film, but not as early as you might figure; unlike modern-day films, stuff made a quarter of a century ago actually took time to build its characters before getting into the plot.) Also along for the ride are Robards' right-hand nurse, played by JoBeth Williams (Poltergeist); a family whose house was close to one of the bombed missile silos, the Dahlbergs; Lithgow's right-hand man Aldo (Stephen Furst of Animal House fame), oh, we'll just run down some names: John Cullum, Bibi Besch, Steve Guttenberg, Lori Lethin, Amy Madigan, Jeff East, Dennis Lipscomb, Arliss Howard... you get the idea. This may have been a made-for-TV movie, but didn't shirk on the starpower. Also, look for uncredited appearances by Wayne Knight (Seinfeld's Newman), David Kaufman (Presidio Med, Pearl Harbor), John Lafayette (various movies based on Tom Clancy novels), and the late director Herk Harvey (in his first screen role since Carnival of Souls twenty years before, and the last before his death in 1996). Meyer and co. didn't scrimp on the casting budget. It shows. The whole thing is exceptionally well-acted, though sometimes it's a bit tough to believe these folks are really as devastated as one would think survivors of an all-out nuclear war should be (and that a house situated right next to a bombed missile silo would still be standing just because Steve Guttenberg happens to be hiding there provides a moment of unintentional humor). Robards is probably the best at communicating this, especially in the movie's final scene. The makeup job on Robards was also not scrimped on; by the end of the film, he could be something out of a Romero film. For that matter, the makeup crew did an all-around fantastic job; by the end of the flick, Steve Guttenberg was unrecognizable. (I have heard it opined-- well, okay, inside my own head-- that perhaps he should have kept the makeup on when doing Three Man and a Baby.) The point was brought up in a recent discussion that perhaps those born after the early eighties will probably be too young to really grasp the terrors of the Cold War to those of us old enough to remember "Duck... and Cover!" So perhaps not the best flick to get your kids to thinking about how bad off you were in the old days (for that, use Threads), but it's definitely worthwhile on the nostalgia-trip angle, or if you just like watching Jason Robards act with an equally fantastic cast around him. ****
Rating:
Summary: Just as scary as you remember...
Review: I first saw this film when it aired back on a November Sunday night in 1983. I remember my parents debating whether a teenager should see such a disturbing film, but eventually I was allowed to watch it. If you did not grow up fearing nuclear war, you cannot image what it was like. This movie really brought the perceived reality of war home to lots of Americans, and probably hastened the eventual end of the Cold War. The movie, even with the early 1980's effects, is still very disturbing, especially the depication of the people who were 'lucky' enough to survive the intial blast. This movie is highly recommended, even though the audio and video quality of the DVD are obviously vintage. I'm surprised that no additional information (special features) are contained on the DVD, as this film would certainly seem to garner some added commentary, especially considering the controversy the film engendered back in 1983.
Rating: 
Summary: Still Disturbing Subject Matter
Review: I never saw this film in the 1980s; my mother wouldn't let me watch it. I was in sixth grade and I was terrified of nuclear war. I'm glad that I wasn't able to see this film when I was 11 years old -- I probably would have had nightmares for months (maybe even needed therapy), such was my fear of a nuclear war. I saw the film at Target and had to buy it (it was only $9.44). I'm glad I did. In fact, I applaud Target (and hopefully other retailers) for prominently displaying the film at their point-of-sale areas, which is what prompted me to buy it. Although the special effects may not be what we're used to seeing in films and on TV nowadays, the film is still a seriously disturbing exploration of a nuclear war and the subsequent nigtmare that ensues as a result. I believe that the threat of nuclear war is still a reality today, whether it's provoked or accidental, and I think this film should be mandatory viewing (along with "Threads") for any man or woman who is appointed the leader of a nation with nuclear capabilities. Nuclear war is simply unacceptable and it should be unimaginable as well. The images in this film will convince anyone of that.
One line in particular from in the film resonated with me. An academic was speaking with a group of people holed up at the University of Kansas during the aftermath. They had just listended to a speech on the radio given by the fictional U.S. president asking Americans to basically have faith and that they would rebuild the country (yeah, right -- I think we all know the odds of that ever happening if nuclear war broke out). Anyway, this man said to the group "You all know what Einstein said about how World War IV would be fought if there was a World War III, don't you? With sticks and stones." Let's all pray that if there is ever the opportunity for a conflict of this nature to occur in the future, God forbid, that "cooler heads will prevail" in the end. Or else it will be the end.
Rating:
Summary: solid for the budget
Review: Made in 1983 The Day After gives the viewer an honest look at the aftermath of a nuclear exchange back in the cold war days when the US and USSR had hundreds of ICBM's aimed at each other. A made-for-TV-movie the movie lacks the big budget effects, and more than likely blew most of its money on hiring Jason Robards, but still manages to give the viewewr the creeps when the bombs do hit. There's poor acting abound and too many subplots aren't fleshed out enough for the two hours. This should have been a mini-series of about 6-8 hours to get a full effect of the disaster. Nontheless a worthy anti-war movie that shoots from the heart and not from some Hollywood suit's demographics chart.
Rating:
Summary: Lost a little kick, but still worth owning...
Review: I watched this back in 1983 too, I was just 11 years old and I think I had nightmares about it for months -- for the fact it scared me so much! Special Effects were amazing back in 1983 and although not up to par with the likes of modern movies like "Armageddon, Deep Impact and The Day After Tomorrow, it's quite an accomplishment how this TV's based movie has withstood the test of time after 20+ years! The story may seem confusing to some in 2004 as most of the storyline is based on the actions of the Soviet Union (which of course has fallen) but the basis premise of "Nuclear War" on our homeland is still a story that most of us don't want to think about and certainly makes us think about it after watching. I wish they had some of the news broadcasts that were on prior to the show to explain the reason for showing a movie like this that was bound to scare Americans, but they didn't give us any special bonuses, just the movie, nothing more. But as a standalone movie, you should consider it. It's one of those "What if" movies.
Rating:
Summary: Still powerful today.
Review: I did not see this when it originally aired on ABC on November 20th 1983 (too young), but I have to say watching it now for the first time I was pretty impressed. With the movie that is, not the wimpy DVD, which has absolutely, no special features at all. This movie was watched by close to half of the adult population of America! That's phenomenal and you would think MGM could at least dig up some old commercials or news reports or something. What about the Carl Sagen special that aired directly after the movie in which he compared nuclear war to "two men standing waist deep in gasoline; one with three matches, the other with five." I would love to see that.
Shot in a very low-key fashion the movie opens with different people and families living their everyday lives in Kansas. We get some doctors, a few farmers, a few college students and a soldier. In the background of all these stories we hear news reports on televisions and radios talking about trouble in Europe between Germany and Russia. Things begin to escalate and next thing you know giant ICBM's are blasting out of the ground. Everybody goes completely nuts.
Then....BOOM! The scenes of the missiles hitting had my eyes bugging out like a cartoon. I couldn't believe it. Horses blowing up. Cows. Kids. Everybody's getting cooked. The pitch-black clouds looked absolutely evil.
The survivors (I personally believe that there will be very, very few survivors) do not have four arms and venom shooting tentacles like I had hoped, but they are pretty sick and only get sicker. By the end everybody who's still alive looks like zombies.
The aftermath part of the movie kinda drug a little, but I still found two scenes especially shocking. One was were this man gets shot in the back and then the guy who shot him starts sharpening his knife! The other is toward the very end when it shows the body of a burnt child impaled on a piece of rebar! Yikes! As out of control as the FCC is now I'm not even sure ABC could show this movie today.
While researching for this review I came across some other nuclear war movies. I've only seen a few, but I will eventually review them all...WWIII (great movie, would love to see again), MIRACLE MILE (very good), THREADS, TESTAMENT, FAIL-SAFE, ON THE BEACH, AFTERMATH, THE QUIET EARTH, WHEN THE WIND BLOWS, THE WAR GAME.
D: Nicholas Meyer (STAR TREK II: THE WRATH OF KHAN, TIME AFTER TIME)
S: Edward Hume (TWO MINUTE WARNING, THE STREETS OF SAN FRANCISCO)
Dr. Russell Oakes - Jason Robards (MAGNOLIA, A BOY AND HIS DOG)
Stephen Klein - Steve Guttenberg (SHORT CIRCUIT, POLICE ACADEMY 1-4)
Joe Huxley - John Lithgow (KINSEY, ORANGE COUNTY)
Rating: 
Summary: Apocolyptic!
Review: You'll be blown away by Nicholas Meyer's "The Day After". A movie about what COULD HAVE HAPPENED during the peak years of "The Cold War". The town of Lawrence, Kansas and its suburbs are destroyed by a devastating nuclear war with Russia. Great special effects!
Rating:
Summary: An important primary source for the Cold War
Review: I only saw this film several years after the end of the Cold War. Born in 1979 and having grown up at the tail end of this unfortunate, but thankfully "cold" struggle, I remember the terrible fear of nuclear war that persisted. While it may not be the best movie, artistically (etc.), as a grad student in history, I believe it is an indispensable primary resource for understanding the cultural history of the 1980's. This movie should be required viewing in collegiate courses in modern American and European history, at least to reinstill in students the apocalyptic potential of nuclear military technology. It should be tempered, however, with an explanation of the diplomatic precept of mutually assured destruction and the successful socio-economic crippling of the Soviets through the Reagan Administration's competitive military overhaul. (I am no Democrat!)
This movie demonstrates why total nuclear disarmament is the only humane course of action. The only problem is safely achieving it.
Rating:
Summary: rather weak
Review: Maybe this was shocking back in its day, but I felt it was rather weak. But that could be because it is made for tv and not a feature. The acting was subpar, the story was mediocre at best and not that 'scary' and it filmed like a low budget tv movie. It just doesn't stand up to time. Not like others of its kind. And the dvd contains no extras.
Rating:
Summary: Nuclear Holocaust still vivid 21 years later
Review: I watched this as a 15 year old in 1983 and it scared the daylights out of me. I was in HIgh School and all you ever worried about those days was world war III between soviet union and USA. both countries had the finger on the trigger every minute of the day back then and we all were vulnerable to an end of the world apocalypse any day. I remember there were several "close calls" where malfuntions or errors in the systems actually almost started nuclear attacks from both sides!
The part about this movie that stands out is when the father/farmer/husband comes back on horseback to find stragglers having a bbq on his front yard eating dead and radiated cattle not caring if its contaminated. He pulls out his shotgun and asks what they are all doing there and the people look frightening...all men and a young boy or two. ONe of the men sneaks up behind the farmer and shoots him right in the back! We see a quick flash of his wife and daughter in kitchen suddenly turn to the gunshot sound and you wonder what happened to them later (at the mercy now of the men in the front yard?) - scary exclamation point that comes well after the mushroom clouds blow up....
this movie will scare you like no other....the storyline of the sequence that leads to the war is also quite accurate and believable in terms of berlin being the flashpoint.
I think the greatest movie of all time about nuclear war and its apocalypse is "TESTAMENT"....nothing can ever compare to that movie (still waiting for dVD though) but "the Day After" is anexcellent movie.
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