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Testament (1983)
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Overview
User Rating:
Director:
Writers:
Release Date:
December 1983 (USA)
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Tagline:
It happened in an instant. The televisions went blank, the radios - silent. The cities were gone, the future abandoned. And the only thing they have left to hold onto, is the people they love. more
Plot:
Nuclear war in the United States is portrayed in a realistic and believable manner. The story is told...
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Plot Keywords:
Awards:
Nominated for Oscar.
Another 1 win
&
4 nominations
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NewsDesk:
User Comments:
Probably the best of the "triumverent"
more (73 total)
Cast
(Cast overview, first billed only) | Jane Alexander | ... | Carol Wetherly |
 | William Devane | ... | Tom Wetherly |
 | Rossie Harris | ... | Brad Wetherly (as Ross Harris) |
| Roxana Zal | ... | Mary Liz Wetherly |
 | Lukas Haas | ... | Scottie Wetherly |
| Philip Anglim | ... | Father Hollis Mann |
 | Lilia Skala | ... | Fania Morse |
| Leon Ames | ... | Henry Abhart |
| Lurene Tuttle | ... | Rosemary Abhart |
 | Rebecca De Mornay | ... | Cathy Pitkin |
 | Kevin Costner | ... | Phil Pitkin |
 | Mako | ... | Mike |
| Mico Olmos | ... | Larry |
| Gerry Murillo | ... | Hiroshi |
| J. Brennan Smith | ... | Billdocker |
Additional Details
Parents Guide:
Runtime:
90 min
Country:
Language:
Color:
Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Certification:
Australia:PG |
Hong Kong:IIA |
Sweden:11 |
Finland:K-12 |
Norway:15 |
UK:PG |
USA:PG |
West Germany:12 |
Singapore:PG
Filming Locations:
Company:
Fun Stuff
Trivia:
Flashback sequences were shot with a hand-held Super 8mm camera, to give the effect of a "home movie".
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Quotes:
Brad Wetherly:
Doesn't radiation get into water?
Carol Wetherly: Well, it can. Maybe it won't be so bad here. But we'd better be careful.
Scottie Wetherly: What's "radation"?
[pause]
Mary Liz Wetherly: Here, have a banana.
Scottie Wetherly: You never gave me one before.
Mary Liz Wetherly: I did now.
Carol Wetherly: There may not be any... more for a while.
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Carol Wetherly: Well, it can. Maybe it won't be so bad here. But we'd better be careful.
Scottie Wetherly: What's "radation"?
[pause]
Mary Liz Wetherly: Here, have a banana.
Scottie Wetherly: You never gave me one before.
Mary Liz Wetherly: I did now.
Carol Wetherly: There may not be any... more for a while.
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Movie Connections:
Featured in Testament at 20 (2003) (V)
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Soundtrack:
This Is It
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FAQ
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There was "The Day After," a U.S. production about as subtle as someone hitting you over the head with a bat going "Nuclear war is BAD! BAD BAD BAD!"
Then there was "Threads," the BBC answer to Day After. Gripping, yes. Also unrelentingly graphic, violent and disturbing with little in terms of acting.
Then you have "Testament," a quiet little American Playhouse production that, quite simply, runs circles around the other two. No mushroom clouds, no graphic scenes of mass destruction and death incarnate. Just simple, raw human emotion. "Testament" handles its subject manner with a surprising gentle touch, understated, yet effective. The film is the best of the three because of its subtlety. A small Californian town isn't hit by the blast, but rather the aftermath.
It works. At first, the town manages to hold together fairly well, even proceeding with the elementary school play. But then the children begin dying, then the grownups. And the film rapidly becomes a story about surviving as best you can, rather than rebuilding and going on. I won't spoil the film by revealing plot details, but there are several twists that are both subtle and heartbreaking.
This film relies on its emotions to tell the story, and the actors are up to the task. Jane Alexander is, in a word, brilliant (how she didn't win the Oscar she got nominated for is beyond me), but she's not the only one. Her children, particularly Lukas Haas and Roxanna Zal (in their movie debuts), are stunning as well, while some of the bit players make the most of what they have.
In the end, it's the gradual NON-appearance of the actors that make the point. Life will go on, yes, but for how long? "Testament" relies on the loss of those we learn to love to make its point in the best way possible: by letting us get it on our own.