Damnation Alley (1977)

User Rating:

4.6/10   

Director:

Jack Smight

Writers:

Roger Zelazny (novel)
Alan Sharp (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

21 October 1977 (USA)

Genre:

Sci-Fi | Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

You have seen great adventures. You are about to live one.

Plot:

In an post-apocalyptic world, a group of survivors travel and find other settlements in huge custom designed all terrain vehicles.

Plot Keywords:

Travel | Desert | Post Apocalyptic | Post Nuclear | Animal Attack

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Jan-Michael Vincent	...	Tanner
George Peppard	...	Maj. Eugene Denton
Dominique Sanda	...	Janice
Paul Winfield	...	Keegan
Jackie Earle Haley	...	Billy
Kip Niven	...	Airman Tom Perry
Robert Donner	...	Man / Guard
Seamon Glass	...	Mountain Man #2
Trent Dolan	...	Technician
Mark L. Taylor	...	Haskins
Bob Hackman	...	Colonel
Terence Locke	...	Air Policeman
Marcia Holley	...	Gloria
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Erik Cord	...	Burning Man

Also Known As:

Survival Run

Runtime:

91 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Sound 360°

Certification:

Iceland:12 | Norway:16 | Australia:PG | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | UK:PG | USA:PG

Filming Locations:

20th Century Fox Studios - 10201 Pico Blvd., Century City, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Trivia:

The destruction of the missile base used stock footage from another George Peppard film, Operation Crossbow (1965).

Quotes:

Tanner: [the Landmaster refugees are being waylaid by the "Mountain Men" in the desert] How long have you men been here?
Man: Since everything went to hell.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Get a Life: Paperboy 2000 (#1.6)" (1990)

A true post-nuclear disaster.

"Damnation Alley" is a dumb film. I can't say it any plainer then that. It takes place after a nuclear disaster. There are only a handful of survivors left. George Peppard leads the pack looking as if he can't wait for "The A Team" to come along.

The survivors make their way around in a trumped up camper. Jan-Michael Vincent plays the standard hunky hero. This was near the end of his successful run in the 70's. Movies like this did him in (though he would bounce back nicely the next year in "Hooper" with Burt Reynolds).

One scene that is well done and worth noting is when the crew is overtaken by a deadly breed of cockroaches. It was quite effective on the big screen with stereo sound but, sadly, loses much of its potence on television.

The special effects are mostly cheap looking with obvious sets in many scenes.

"Damnation Alley" is not even a good time waster. You'll be so busy laughing at its silliness or shaking your head at the effects that it is likely to make you feel as empty as the world its characters inhabit.