Yeah, exactly! An intriguing sci-fi with an interesting and well written script. Thank you for watching Bruce. Apologies it's taken a long time to reply though!
I didn't appreciate this film when I was younger because it is purely story driven and i thought it was slow. Now i find it to be profound. Sadly, so many people today lack the patience and have such short attention spans that they will miss out on things like this.
Hi Sean! It is such a wonderfully written film, with quips along the way. I genuinely wasn't sure what it would be like, so it was a pleasant surprise. It's story really does serve it well, but yes some may find it far too slow for today's standard who just want fast paced action or something happening every second. I'm definitely not one of those, as you can probably tell. I love these brilliantly made masterpieces in their own right. Definitely profound! It's great to see others who love the film too! Yeah, I totally agree with you on the attention span of people today. Somewhat that of a gnat! I'm a poet and I didn't know it. Most don't even get past the first 10 minutes of something before their searching for something else because they find it boring or slow. Thank you for taking time to comment and watch Sean, it's most appreciated!
I had a similar reaction when I was a young teenager and first saw this film. I think it is also the clinical, objective presentation that might alienate some people. I'm 54 now and I regularly re-watch this film and thoroughly enjoy the deliberate pacing and the careful building up of information. Robert Wise was a very accomplished director and the casting was perfect.
Crichton wrote the book after reading the ICPRESS File. I recently rewatched it and realized the plot of the movie is a smokescreen. The CIA was actively working on the CORONA Program when the film was made, wasn't declassified until 2011. The early cover the CIA used for the satellite launches was that they were collecting "biological samples."
@@CaminoAir I watched it while young, but kept falling asleep since it kept airing as a midnight movie. I'm 55 and finally completed it in the 90s and it's a favorite of mine. The slower pace of movies back then doesn't work in today's movies, but they bring me back to my youth.
I saw this film in 1973. I was fascinated by everything in this film, including the medical ands scientific proceedures. I'm not a sci-fi geek like many but I love a good movie. And this is a good movie. It's Michael Crichton after all.
Crichton's novels are so believable because they include large elements of reality. As part of the Apollo Lunar missions, NASA built the Lunar Receiving Laboratory to receive the Lunar material and quarantine the crew in case something went wrong. Part of the lab inclueded a heavily shielded bunker 15 meters underground to measure radiation of the samples. Rumors were that the bunker would be used to entomb everything in case of a biological "event".
You're very welcome Andre! Most definitely a brilliant film. I concur, modern films definitely don't stand up to most classics. Thank you so much for watching
Hi Shermanlin! You're very welcome. It does appear I'm one of few (I believe the 2nd person to react to this) to react to it. Wonderful film too! Definitely a classic that holds up. Apologies it's taken a while to reply to this, thank you for watching!
The soundtrack on its own in this movie is scary as hell. I saw this as a kid and thought it both scary as hell and incredibly good. The Andromeda Strain was not created in that lab, it was captured or 'scooped' into the satellite as it travelled through space and then it was programmed to land back on Earth, it landed in Piedmont and the doctor opened it thus causing everyone to get infected. Just a great film.
Hi Dylan, yeah, it really is creepy! Thanks for letting me know about when you first watched this, it's always lovely to hear the stories. Thank you so much for the info and for watching! (Apologies it took a long time to reply)
I watched this one at the drive-in with my parents when I was only in 1st grade but it had totally held my attention. It was the first time I told my teacher about something I had done that we truly had in common. She told me about how she was really looking forward to seeing it too and it totally humanized teachers outside of school for me! I was such a Sci Fi nerd early on!
Oh wow, Brina! I love drive-in movies. That must have been one heck of an experience! I need to go to more drive-ins. They have something magical about them, don't they? Aww, that's so amazing, your teacher sounds awesome! Yeah, I had a similar experience with a teacher who loved old movies way back when and it was a point that did the same for me too. I love that you're a Sci-Fi nerd! Here's to the nerds! Thank you so much for watching and sharing your story Brina!
Michael Crichton also wrote the script to a little film called "Westworld" about a futuristic adult amusement park run amok. Yul Brenner stars as a robot.
A line at the end of the book mentioned that the air in the facility is removed at 5 seconds (iirc) before the nuclear weapon was set off. So, in the book, Hall's turn of the key came only *3* seconds before the air was going to be removed.
This is a wonderful reaction. Thanks so much! This film is amazingly well thought out and seemingly very possible. I love the lack of "action" in this film. The tension comes from the real human reactions to these not so far fetched situations. The production design and cinematography along are worth the price of admission, so to speak. Keep up these great films. It's very much like watching a movie with a fellow film buff. Peace always 😌
Thank YOU so much, Douglas! I feel most films really were made so much better back then. SO well thought out! Yeah, there's so much tension. Similar to what I felt when watching 2001, very tense. In this though, it's just about the drama of the situation. Yes, exactly, the real human reactions. It could happen, heck it kind of DID happen! Oh, most definitely. I loved the cinematography in this. Simple, artistic and so well done in some instances. The split diopter lens shots were brilliant. Thank you! I certainly shall! I love all the requests I've had and they are all greats, from what I can tell. Aw, thank you so much! I do love film and do love that you call me a film buff, but I feel I have so much to watch that I haven't seen before that haha. But yes, a fellow film lover I am and I appreciate it! It's always fantastic watching these and having you guys watch along with me. Speaking of watching together, it might be great to also do a watch along on a live stream for something too (not sure what though), sometime in the future. Thank you for watching Douglas and for being such a supporter of the channel and I 🤗
Oh yes, most definitely! I'm so intrigued when I watch films back and find new things. I find that often when I come back to even films that I have seen a thousand times. I'm so glad you stuck around for the trivia too, I often wonder if people do. I plan on coming back to watch this masterpiece in the future (maybe not on here though, unless it's asked for). It's a wonderfully done film. Thank you for watching and taking the time to comment Niall! It's very much appreciated
Directed by Robert Wise, who edited Citizen Kane (1941) when he was in his early 20s. This is the second of his three science fiction movies. The others are "The Day The Earth Stood Still" (1951) and "Star Trek: The Motion Picture" (1979). He was great at genre films, horror, boxing, westerns, war, musicals ("The Sound of Music" and "West Side Story" both won Best Picture and Best Director Oscars). I'll watch a movie just because he directed it, no matter the subject.
Hi Alan. Oh wow, I didnt realise he had done Citizen Kane too. I watched that on here and wish I'd seen this before then. Thank you for letting me know Alan. I believe "The Day The Earth Stood Still" is another one on my list to watch! I look forward to it and can't wait to see more of his work. Oh wait, did he also do the original "West Side Story" then too? I have that on the list too. Thank you so much for info! He's a very talented man. Thank you so much for watching! (Apologies it took a long time to reply)
@@MoviesWithMarty Another Robert Wise films is also a personal favorite scary film - "The Haunting" (1963). Like "Andromeda Strain", it too was directly based on a best selling novel of its time, and has some first class cinematography in it.
Big shout-out is in order to composer and jazz musician Gil Mellé for his pioneering electronic musical score, which incorporated at least one instrument I'm aware of that he himself apparently designed, the Percussotron -- basically an early example of electronic drumpads. He was a saxophonist (mostly baritone) from the early '50s on, but later ended up creating a lot of soundtrack music, including for shows like Columbo and -- guess what? -- The Six-Million Dollar Man! His 1968 jazz album Tome VI showcases both his use of acoustic instruments (such as saxophone) and electronic elements, and you should be able to find a short clip on TH-cam of him demonstrating the Percussotron. Enjoyed your reaction commentary very much!
Very enjoyable reaction! My read of what they discovered: The •Wildfire facility• was designed and built with a primary purpose being: biological warfare and research. However, in the film, neither Wildfire nor other government programs were actively developing germs as weapons. The Andromeda entity was something that came back to Earth from space, on the small grain/pebble that impacted the mesh of the spacecraft (as we saw). They used Wildfire to •examine• it, but didn't in any way create it. The story takes a (relatively) benign view of the U.S. government & its intentions: It sunk a ton of money into Wildfire, and made it look like there was nothing out in the desert for an enemy to know about, kept it manned but essentially 'on-standby,' waiting for a potential biological emergency that might never have come. When they ask at the film's end, "How do we know this won't occur again?" - I think the primary thrust of the meaning was: How do we know a similar entity won't come back to Earth on a future returning spacecraft? (Or, less likely, on a meteorite that survives atmospheric re-entry?) ...If you interpret his question more broadly, as in: "How do we know a biological emergency, from whatever cause, won't occur again," that would include disasters from human-engineered bio-weapons, gain-of-function research, etc.
In the (Bestselling) Novel: It was Definitely Alien / not of this Earth. There was a postscript: Where the re-entry Burn-up/loss of Manned spacecraft Andros IV was "officially" attributed to materials failure in the laminate heat shield. The (implied) REAL reason was that Andromeda (now inhabiting Earth's uppermost atmosphere) ATE the heat shield. Effectively "quarantining" humankind against space flight, for the foreseeable future...(!)
In the book, which has the space is there for more characterization, (‘Dr Stone, who remembered scientific facts and blue jokes with equal facility’) in detailing by a combination of official looking documents and fictional writing, how Wildfire came about, there is a line about how surprising the scientists were that such an expensive laboratory was built so quickly with so little objection from those holding the purse strings.
Captain Blue was voiced by Ed Bishop, who also played Commander Straker on UFO. God, I loved Captain Scarlet. It played here at 7:30AM on Saturday morning and I never missed an episode. My favorite Gerry Anderson series. With UFO being a close second. The CGI Captain Scarlet was good. But I missed Derek Meddings' miniature effects.
In the book, Dr Levitt was a man, but they made Dr Levitt a woman in the movie. Kate Reid was a brilliant actress, who played a fantastic part in this movie. She also appeared in an episode of Columbo.
I love her in this. When they are going through the cleansing process and give her the suppository. "Anyone want to join me for a smoke?" she says in annoyance.
Stumbled upon your reaction after being in the mood to re-watch (for the umptenth time!) one of my all time favourite films. Definitely the choice of shots, pace of the unfolding story and set design are what keep me coming back. Some recommendations for you in a similar (to some extent) vein in case they aren't on your radar: Capricorn One (1977), Phase IV (1974) Fail Safe (1964) and The Bedford Incident (1965). All thrilling and with great plots. Fail Safe is probably my favourite for its originality - Directed by Sidney Lumet - incredibly tense and gripping. Loved your commentary, will definitely check out some of your other movie reactions!
Oh wow, what an experience. Yeah, this kind of threat late at night is nightmarish. It was very late night / early morning when I watched it for this video too and I was a little creeped out with it. Reminds me of when I went to see a horror film many years ago and it was a midnight showing that I saw by myself. Scared the heck out of me as I walked home alone as it was deadly quiet and a cat jumped out on me haha. Just like in a horror movie!
Love this story, and not just because someone named Hall saves the world. The director is Robert Wise, a true veteran, who also directed The Day the Earth Stood Still and (much of) West Side Story. Based on one of the earliest (and I think best) of the Michael Crichton ("Cry-ton") novels. You can neatly excise the few minutes suggesting Earthbound germ warfare and save yourself a LOT of confusion -- Andromeda is "simply" an alien messenger, like in the chalkboard cartoon with a scientist looking through a microscope at a Petri dish saying "Take us to your leader." All the germ warfare talk is very topical, yes, but ultimately irrelevant. I enjoy thinking that Manuel Rios, the baby, is still with us and only in his early fifties.
I read the book before i watched the movie. It's at least as exciting as the movie and contains more science side notes. So sad that Crichton died so early, he had a unique way to mix science with fiction.
I had a couple of great aunts that drank squeeze. They also drank alcohol from shoe polish, and poor quality shine where the methanol was left in so the moonshiner would have more to sell. It took a toll. They went blind, eccentric, had ulcers, and eventually liver failure. Not even doctors, or benzodiazepines like valium, could break them from alcohol. It’s a terrible addiction.
love the film, for all the reasons you give. its implied terror, minimal jump cuts/physical scares. the cinematography is great, cause the director started his career as a cinematographer, robert wise. hes clearly a master of filming technique. i actually dont know if he filmed this himself, too lazy to look that up. FX were by douglas trumbull, of 2001 fame. based on the first bestselling novel by michael crichton, who famously presented the novel as a narrative documentary of a real event, with a multi page bibliography of scientific references, all entirely made up. so this film started the "lets make a movie out of a crighton book", and he was at the set, even appears in a cameo. but, im extra happy you reviewed this. i was able to meet the director, prior to his filming. my father was working on an art project for his home. i went to a broadway show, the musical "dont bother me, i cant cope" starring Paula Kelley, the nurse in this movie. met her backstage, as he was recruiting her/hiring her/checking in with her on her new role. so i feel an intense personal connection to this film. i even went to his malibu beachside mansion, saw his OSCAR for sound of music. he also directed "the day the earth stood still", "west side story", and "star trek the motion picture". all faves of mine. glad you enjoyed it. he was clearly in his element with science stuff, this feels so absolutely authentic as to how actual scientists would react. the actors really dove in on this one.
Must have been around 9 or 10 years old when I first saw it on tv, back in 1973 or 74. It was slow burn of a movie for a kid my age, but the atmosphere, the mystery, suspense and tension had me glued to the seat. I mean, the REAL moon missions had just ended and in all, Apollo had brought back hundreds of pounds lunar samples!! And knowing that, after watching this movie my young imagination went into overdrive.
There was only one helicopter pilot in the 1960's who was a member of the Screen Actor's Guild, so every single movie from the 60's and 70's that required one to speak lines had the same guy cast in the role.
Well, I'm very glad I could watch it! It's really a great film. I hadn't much of an idea as to what the film was about, but it was superb! Thank you for watching!
This film is the one of Michael Crichton's novels that I actually like, as it isn't a rework of another story. Westworld became Jurassic Park, Congo is Tarzan if Tarzan died as a baby, unadopted by the White (superior) Gorillas, and so on. It bears similarity to 'The Quatermass Experiment' and 'A For Andromeda', especially in the way a tiny crystalline organism can adapt to escape the Wildfire environment, while another colony of it can be doing the same thing in the atmosphere of Earth, failing to kill anyone else after first contact, proving itself intelligent, changeable and adaptable. In TQE, the space thing affected a human, after failing with two previous humans, and then began to hybridise with plants, etc., into a world-seeding organism; in 'A For A' it carried data that enabled it to build it's own body once it had copied someone. This also bears similarity to 'The Thing From Another World', in that if this kind of life is common in space, why aren't we already it, and perhaps we are it. The crystalline alien idea even turned up in the Haruhi Suzumiya novels and comics, implying that all life was coming from such things arriving on Earth, with primitive entities being viruses, complex ones limited to planets being human-like, and advanced ones in distant regions having names like 'The Integrated Data Thought Entity' or 'The Heavenly Canopy Domain'. The novel The Andromeda Strain intriguingly ends with a space mission failing due to interference with it's controls, and this implies that the Earth has been quarantined by the alien organism. Hard to show in a movie, but chilling nonetheless.
Oh, yes. Michael Crichton's 'The Thirteenth Warrior' is 'Beowulf' and the travel diary of an Arab who met with Vikings long ago made into a novel. Crichton even ends the novel with a historically accurate 'the rest of pages are lost to history'.
Not all that many Reactors would probably have the perception and mental wherewithal to really enjoy what was going on here. And, yes, that is a compliment. Best. Mike.
Aw wow, thank you Michael! I take that as a huge compliment, so thank you so much. I really do go into watching films with an open mind and a passion for the industry and a love of the history of film too. Which also means that I try to keep an eye out for things connecting and how the plot comes together. I enjoy finding new films, most which get requested. I end up loving them and I try to say what I'm thinking without interrupting the flow of the film or miss what's going on. I'm really glad you enjoy my reactions though! Kind regards, Marty
The implication from the novel is that the Andromeda Strain was an extraterrestrial’s method of one-way communication with other intelligent life. The organism that thrives on polymer hydrocarbon chains is conveniently placed on a graphite-like capsule (the smooth surface on one side of the “rock”). As something impacted with the capsule, forming the jagged edges, it made its way to Earth, got caught in our planet’s gravity, and remained in orbit for hundreds, thousands, or millions of years. Scoop was meant to capture unusual biological samples from the high atmosphere and low Earth orbit, with the idea that germs that escaped our surface and thicker atmosphere might mutate and become incredibly interesting subjects of germ warfare study at far lower cost. The fact Scoop encountered a space germ wasn’t entirely improbable, but that it was the Andromeda Strain, meant to be a form of alien “time capsule”, was a one in a million chance.
Robert Wise didn’t want to use well known actors in this, he felt it would be more believable. They all did a fine job but I loved James Olson, he was excellent. Love this movie and have watched it many times over the years, it still holds up well👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
Ooh, thank you for the info! I completely agree about it feeling more believable. It certainly does. Still a great film these many years later, yeah it definitely holds up. Yeah, James Olson IS wonderful in this! Thanks for watching Nancy, I hope you're well and had a lovely weekend
It certainly seems so James! This is a fantastic film and I'm very glad I got it recommended. If you have a favourite Crichton book into a film, then I'd gladly check it out. Thank you for watching/commenting!
@@jamesalexander5623 Ooh, yes! I actually haven't read the book, but I've only seen the film of Jurassic Park once growing up and LOVED it, but not seen it since and have not seen the others... are the sequels any good? What about the newer ones too... I saw the trailer to the newest one where they brought back some cast members and it looked very well done, so would be interesting to see what they do. Do you recommend me watching them?
Oh really, that's amazing that you got to see it as a child, Shane! I can certainly imagine so. Which part got to you the most. I find it so eerie in places. The town scene was certainly a creepy one and would give me the shivers if I had seen this as a child. Definitely a wonderful film! Thank you for watching and taking the time to comment. It's very much appreciated. Have a wonderful day!
@@MoviesWithMarty I saw this as a kid as well and the music in this film was quite scary back then. There are many moments of great tension and drama throughout the film as well like the moment they realize they can't drop a nuclear bomb on the town or it would only feed Andromeda.
@@MoviesWithMarty I saw this movie when I was 11 in 1971. The two things in this movie that got to me the most were that the organism turned one's blood to a powder and that the organism could not be stopped by a nuclear bomb, our most powerful weapon, but instead would feed on the energy released by the bomb. Understand that at that time, during the height of the Cold War, the threat of possible nuclear annihilation was the greatest existential fear, and here was an organism that would eat a nuclear blast for breakfast and then turn your blood to a powder.
Another great reaction!! One of those Sc-Fi movies based closer to actual science than just creating great special effects. Though the practical special effects came across as somewhat believable in this film for that time. Look forward to future reactions. Suggest 'Planet of The Apes' - 1968.
Thank you so much! Yes, it seems so. Great that they showed it to medical students too. Reminds me of the accuracy of Interstellar, for which Nolan got the correct maths and science for certain things in the film. Honestly, practical effects are the best way to do them. If they can be done practically. This film for example does have some great effects, as you say. Thank you! Ooh yes, another great film that I have yet to see. Added to the list! I watched 2001 A Space Odyssey recently, so that will be coming soon to the channel too
Project SCOOP was an attempt by the military to find Biological Weapons in Outer Space and they definitely succeeded. This film was made during Cold War paranoia and the fear of biological weapons being developed by foreign powers making this very timely today.
I have never read the book. But that really doesn't make sense. So you are saying that this satellite was put in orbit to purposely get struck by a meteoroid that contained an extraterrestrial life form, ie. a virus? Hoping it would be fatal or at least harmful to humans? And then somehow the people who put the satellite up there, caused it to de-orbit and fall to earth? I always figured the meteoroid was what caused it to come down. But if they caused it to fall to earth, why would they purposely have it fall next to a little American town to possibly kill its occupants? Or if it came down because it was hit, then they would have no way to know where it would come down. It could have landed in Los Angeles and ended up wiping out millions of people. You really think they would do something like that? I mean its true that US government has done some very diabolical stuff to their own population. But would they risk killing millions of people. Someone might notice...
Thanks for reacting to this. It's one of my favorite "real/down-to-earth" sci-fi films. The methodical approach the scientists use is very real and totally fascinating.
Hi Gerald, thank you very much! It's a great film and I'm glad you enjoyed. You're very welcome, I hope you're having a wonderful day. Thanks for watching and commenting
My reaction to your reaction.... 2:14 I LOVE titles sequences like this. When I see Saul Bass's name, I perk up. Even if I turn out not to like the movie itself, I know I'll enjoy the titles. (And usually, if they thought to bring in Saul Bass to design the titles, then I WILL like the movie.) 3:50 Robert Wise also made a lot of use of the split diopter lens when filming Star Trek: The Motion Picture. I believe he used the same cinematographer for both films. 7:01 Michael Crichton is the doctor sitting is in the corner behind the window. He is seated because he couldn't fit on camera... literally. He was six foot nine (206 cm). For reference, Peter Mayhew, aka Chewbacca, was 7'3", Shaquille O'Neal is 7'1", Ted "Lurch" Cassidy was 6'9", Brad Garrett is 6'8", and the Incredible Hulk himself, Lou Ferrigno, is 6'5". 9:15 That was a reflection of light off a fighter jet. If something went wrong and the helicopter pilot refused to go back and let himself get incinerated, the pilot had instructions to shoot him down. 11:43 The pilot made a hand signal to them that he'd give them another ten minutes. This was one of the few real flaws in this movie; there's no way they could have seen him from that distance. 14:55 He said, "It's no fake." Underground base or no, the agricultural center was practical. 17:14 I'm with you. I LOVE this set. The entire base is one of my all-time favorite movie sets; the production design is amazing. 18:38 Kate Reid was a major asset to this movie. Her performance is great. 22:08 I know that the Humane Society supervised the animal testing scenes, and in-film, I know they HAD to kill the rats and monkeys; it was them or millions of people. But it still hurts to watch this. 24:20 I still laugh at that line, "Establishment gonna fall down and go boom." 35:57 I remember reading that the filmmakers deliberately made the flashing lights too slow to trigger a seizure; they didn't want anyone to have a fit for real while watching this. 41:42 I believe his name was pronounced, "CRY-ton." 45:46 I may catch it for this, but.... You may be lucky to have not seen any of the Star Wars films. Now, if you had seen the first set back in the 70's or 80's, you'd love them. The problem is, you can't see them in their original form. Lucas re-edited (more like butchered) them all for the re-release, and he refused to release the original versions anywhere. Now Disney owns it, but they don't care. I've gotten disgusted with what Star Wars has turned into in recent years, and we can't even go back and enjoy the original films as they were meant to be enjoyed. I thoroughly enjoyed watching this reaction. I'll have to catch some of your others; you did great with this and Forbidden Planet.
Thank you!!! I was just thinking about this again, I'm so glad you mentioned it. His work was fantastic, such a brilliant actor and had a great voice too! Much appreciated, thank you for watching
In 1971, the pen-and-screen device was a Light Pen, invented in the 1950s and used as a pointer device with CRT screens in some military applications, notably the SAGE (Semi-Automatic Ground Environment) system.
I saw this at the movies in 1971 when I was 9. Afterward, we went out to eat at a restaurant, and i went alone to the men's room, which had a sort of "air lock" to enter (two sets of doors with a dimly lit short hallway in between). I remember being absolutely terrified that I would breathe in the Andromeda germ! I think I had to hold my breath. My brother got the novel and I read it - actually much better than the movie.
Fantastic request, Shane! Thank you. Zardoz is added to the list (updated on Letterboxd) - I've not seen Dr No either to be fair. I do need to get around to watching the Bond movies, as I've only seen the modern ones
Michael Crichton (pronounced Kry-ton) has had several books made into movies. Including Sphere, Timeline, Rising Sun, The Terminal Man, Congo, and The 13th Warrior (from his book Eaters of the Dead). Crichton was also a director. His first theatrical film was Westworld (excellent). He also adapted his book The Great Train Robbery starring Sean Connery (also excellent). He directed the film version of Robin Cook's medical thriller Coma. He made a couple of very good original Sci Fi films that had a lot of interesting ideas. Runaway is a film about a police unit in the near future that deals with crimes involving robots and new technology. Looker is a particularly prescient film about the manipulation of media using computer generated images. All of the films Crichton directed are well worth seeing. Crichton also came up with the story for the film Twister and co-created the TV series ER.
Marty, I just now discovered your channel. Loved ❤your intelligent and perceptive reaction to The Andromeda Strain, which is one of my favorite films. Very few people seem to know this film even exists, and fewer still appreciate the genius of its design. Story, screenplay, production design, music (Gil Melle!!!!), editing, etc, it's a near-perfect gem of a movie (imho). I heard one high school science teacher talk about how he shows this film to his students, to vividly illustrate the methodical approach that scientists use to solve problems. I can't think of any other sci-fi movie which does that.
This movie is closer to the book than any other movie is to its source material. Two minor scenes are deleted, and there are trivial changes like making Leavitt a woman, moving the town from Piedmont Arizona to Piedmont New Mexico, and changing its population from 48 to 68, and "In case of fire notify division 222" changed to division 21, and the automated defenses in the central core were changed from poison darts to LASERs.
@@JnEricsonx Well now you made me do it. I remember the dialog in the car when Dutton says to Leavitt, "Ever used a glove box? ... At Wildfire we have whole rooms that work like glove boxes." And then in the pathetic remake the glove box is a...box on a table.
Hi DSR, I've not seen that one, so will definitely add it to the list! I've heard about it being a classic over the years and just never got around to it. Thank you so much and for watching too
This is the second review of this movie I’ve seen here on TH-cam (the first I saw was done by TBR Schmidt). I’m quite glad to see people are actually covering this film. I had first watched this movie when I found it at the library after having read the book (I was just starting to get into Crichton’s work). I had no clue that this movie existed, and it seemed so obscure that I thought it was just going to be my own little thing. So it’s really cool to see other people interested in this movie too
Oof. This video is a year old at this point. I’ve really been sleeping on people’s appreciation for a creative adaptation of Michael Crichton’s first novel
It certainly is a wonderful one Arturo! So many great quips and shots too. Thank you for watching/commenting. From a comedy aspect, it has some great bits too, the "ding a ling" bit gets me every time too.
Hi Gregg, it certainly is a darn good one! Crichton is a terrific writer and it really translated well to the screen! What and who was your favourite part and character? Thank you so much for watching
Ooh! Yes, most definitely. I've not heard anything about it, but the name rings a bell. I shall add it to the list, thank you Mark! Thank you for watching and commenting too ;)
Interesting watching someone watching A.S. for the first time. This movie has been one of my favorites for nearly my entire 60 years. I try to rewatch every few years. Because of this and Contagion, when the ‘Roanie Rona one 9’ happened, I was rather feaked out for a few weeks. We were so lucky actually, it could have been SO much worse. Back to the film, so glad you enjoyed it. Don’t bother watching the remake, this one is by far the best. Look into how they did the visual effects and display screens, fascinating.
Coming back through. Logan's Run, Fantastic Planet- English version, Dr Strange Love, any spoggetti western, original time machine, original planet of the apes, Blade Runner. THX1138 pre-star wars. small but powerful forgotten little movies 1960s 70s are so unusual. A free for all of thinking. A time capsule of thought and reasoning. Anyway great job
Yes Shane!! Logan's run will be the next film I do on the channel, but not the next video. I've watched it already and it's wonderful. Thank you for the suggestions! Fantastic Planet I didn't know existed until this very comment, so that will be added to the list. I shall certainly add Dr Strangelove too. I've seen the trailer and it looks oddball and interesting - right up my street! Ooh yes, Spaghetti Westerns are something I've not seen ANY of, from what I know. The others are absolutely fantastic suggestions and I'm adding them all now! It blows my mind that they don't get spoken about much these days. It's such a shame. For instance, Fantastic Voyage and this one were two that really surprised me as being amazing and yet not heard of them before they were suggested to me. Thank you so much! I'm so glad you like the content Shane!
MICHAEL CRIGHTON WAS A GENIUS!!! ALL OF HIS BOOKS ARE GREAT, MANY MADE INTO EXCELLENT FILMS--- TERMINAL MAN JURASSIC PARK CONGO PREY SPHERE TIMELINE EATERS OF THE DEAD "13TH WARRIOR" FIVE PATIENTS
Ooh! Yes, I shall it to the list. Had that in the back of my head to watch many years ago, but completely forgot. Thank you so much! Yes, usually the originals are so much better!
The end leaves one absolutely uncertain if we created the organism or if it really originated in outer space and it accidentally became entangled in the satellite which just later crashed in Piedmont.
Thank you for this! I didn't realise there had been Westworld films?! I thought it was just a TV show. I need to look into it more, were they any good? Heck, I may even watch the films on here in the future. Thank you for watching and letting me know.
@@MoviesWithMarty the movies are worth a watch Westworld and Futureworld, the old TV series not so much and i think they only shot around six episodes of it
15:00 I haven’t seen this film since I was a kid (when it was shown for the first time on TV in the 70s). I remember being blown away by this scene and from this point on it’s a completely different film. I’m suggested this film a few times when COVID-19 first hit, but you’re the first reactor Ive seen to watch it. Woo hoo!
Robert Wise, who directed this movie, also directed Star Trek The Motion Picture. He was a sucker for plausability and realism in his movies, no matter how fantastic the story. His own masterpiece might be the movie The Sand Pebbles. I hope you ever get to watch it, its magnificent.
simultaneous, split screen filming is hard to do right but 1968's "the boston strangler," starring tony curtis, henry fonda and george kennedy, is another excellent film that uses split screen to great effect. check it out. its yet another unappreciated film classic from the past.
I did a book report on ‘The Andromeda Strain’ in HS when it came out. It was a fascinating story for me. The back is filled with an appendix of “sources” that was pages long…. and very well annotated. Except almost every one of them were completely fake…. things like “The odd man out” hypothesis or how colors (every level had a different color) affects work performance, etc. I only found out they were fake because I spent hours in the library using card catalogs, microfiche and reference books (no internet in those days) to hunt them all down and finding only a very few were real. Having an engineering degree led me to a career where I’ve now built a few labs to contain and grow viruses for vaccine development, I can say that the film had a profound effect on me. I’m still waiting for the chance to build one with a nuclear self-destruct device 😂😂😂
Each of the 5 levels of Wildfire are painted a different color, which is supposed to have a psychological effect on the people working there. Michael Crichton knew about things like that as a doctor, since the "vomit green" gowns worn by surgeons are supposed to put patients as ease.
@@MoviesWithMarty and thank you - I love that you are looking at old movies [wow - that makes me feel REAL old🙊- I was in university in the 70s] I remember when this one came out - I loved it!🐵
Great reaction to a good movie that I haven't seen in FOREVER! I thought I'd remember more of the movie than I did, it was really great doing a "refresher" with you. Usually the reactions I watch are of movies I know like the back of my hand so this was a slightly new experience! Ok, next up: Fantastic Voyage! You really are hitting those stylish sci-fis of the late 60s/early 70s. Hey, totally different but have you seen the original "Planet Of The Apes" from 1968? It actually came out the same DAY as "2001: A Space Odyssey". That's a great one, makes a great reaction video (there are a few out there, not nearly enough though!).
You're watching a lot of my favorite films. There were a lot of great Sci Fi films from the early 70s. Many were more serious minded and issue oriented than what we got post Star Wars. Some that I don't see on your channel that I think you would enjoy are: Colossus: The Forbin Project (no doubt an influence on War Games and the Terminator films) Silent Running (special effects from the people who worked on 2001: A Space Odyssey) Westworld (a clear influence on The Terminator) A Boy and His Dog (from a story by Harlan Ellison) Phase IV (terrific insect photography) Soylent Green (basec on a book by Sci Fi author Harry Harrison)
You talked about the hologram effect featured in the movie,..and for cgi not being invented yet, it is quite impressive how simplistic it was accomplished, well if you haven't do check out Forbidden Planet, on TCM, one night they didn't have the original special effects guys from the movie, but special effects guys from other shows were on and can't remember how they found out, but they explained a phenomenal scene in the movie, where Walter Pigeon, is taking Leslie Nielsen and crewman on a tour of a facility,..similarly that goes deep underground on an alien planet, and they use a transport similar to the one in Logan's Run, and explain the most simplest techniques I've ever heard of for the effect, one I would never have guessed that's how they did it,..and you so cracked me up when they were debating in the movie about destroying a possible sentient being, and you mentioned yeah like a Dalek..and I was like,..ohh no, if it's them, they have to go, no destroy them, them and all their exterminate!, rantings,..no the Daleks have to go, just like ticks, fleas, mosquitoes,..scourge of the planet, ..the flies can stay, cause, you know, what would spiders eat if not for them,..but, this movie, man, it absolutely terrified me, when the doctor cuts open that man's arm when they're checking the town out, and sand, powder comes out, I mean right off the back you get the sense that some plague, has stricken, and I was in I think junior high, no medical knowledge, but it just seemed logical from knowing my own body, humans can't live with sand in they're veins,..and I think it was the first time I was confronted with something unseen by the naked eye that could kill you,..by the time I came along in the 60's,.polio was a distant thing, we were vaccinated for everything else, so in watching this movie, it also facinated me how scientists would go about fighting something so small and seemingly invisible, like the fantastic scene where they're trying to figure out how big the microbe is, is it bigger than a bread box😉, smaller than a virus, and they use filter after filter to gain how to stop it from reaching the animal they have in the box, and also the conundrum of what a poor little screaming baby and a alcoholic old man have in common that protected them from the fate of their fellow townspeople, seeing this movie sparked the science nerd in me,..also I recognized at the time so many actors in this, Paula Kelly, the nurse, was in so many, many shows, she danced with Shirley McClaine in Sweet Charity, fantastic dancer, not the only scifi for her, Soylent Green, Arthur Hill, was in so many shows, the senator or what ever authority questioning Hill at the end was in Porky's,..he was the principal, another very good similar subject, movie, is The Satan Bug, George Maharis is in it, done 5, 6 years prior,..do check it out, and also the updated Andromeda Strain with Viola Davis, Daniel Dae Kim, it also very good,..love that you watch the older cinema, do check out Outer Limits original series in black and white,..loads of scifi, inexplicable plots, with the simplest ideas, and most likely even simplest ideas for special effects,..do keep going,..Godspeed, Peace ✌
For "The Andrameda Strain" .., one person to note is director Robert Wise...with his long history as director with many successful films. Here's a small sliver of his background: He directed "West Side Story" 1961. Earlier, he directed another Sci-Fi classic "The Day the Earth Stood Still" 1953. Still earlier, he was editor for the classic "Citizen Kane" 1941, ...A truly prolific and marvelous filmmaker. Marty, I recommend reviewing "The Day the Earth Stood Still" if you haven't already. It's black & white. And, it's done with 1953's effects. It's not a huge film. But, the story takes you in.
Crichton had quite a few of his books adapted. A genuis at adapting true science to popular fiction drama without boring the reader. Jurassic Park being the most successful. There was Congo, about a gorilla who speaks to humans with sign language. Sphere, with Dustin Hoffman about something found at the bottom of the ocean, similar to this movie where a team of select scientists are brought in to study it. The Eaters of the Dead, adapted by the movie 13th Warrior. Disclosure, a 90s tech thriller with Michael Douglas and Demi Moore. And Timeline which delves into Quantum Theory and time travel, the movie was schlock money grab, unfortunately. Rising Sun with Wesley Snipes and Sean Connery was about Japanese culture. There were a few other notable films as well
Both bits of trivia about the 601 error code could be true (I have no idea if they are or not.) The first piece of trivia said the film was referencing the lunar landing (the first landing?) which came before the film. The second piece of trivia said the code was used in windows computers and chips in cars which came after the film and could be referencing either the lunar landing or the film. They are not mutually exclusive although one or both may not be true.
Dr. Ruth Leavitt averts her eyes from the flashing red lights outside the "Agricultural Station". The flashing lights play the role of a Chekhov's Gun, a seemingly unimportant object at the time. Later, as she is monitoring the growth results the one result that shows no growth has flashing red print, causing Leavitt to blank out and thus not see the critical result. It's not until near the end that the red flashing warning lights cause Leavitt to have a full epileptic fit and go into convulsions. The signs of Dr. Leavitt's epilepsy were there right from the beginning for those who could recognize it.
With the silver key inserted and turned, the nuclear explosive for self destruct is armed. In the event that contamination is detected, indicating the escape of a biological agent, the nuclear device will be activated via a timer that will count down to detonation. During the count down, the man with the red key can abort self destruct by turning his red key in any substation key receptacle on any level. If I recall, the idea behind this is that the man with the red key is someone who doesn't have any emotional ties (family, wife, etc.) that may impair rational judgement on whether self destruct should continue. The idea is that one with ties may permit self destruction to continue in an act of selflessly saving others. While that may seem honorable, the act would be considered emotional in response rather than rational; there is a possibility that the self destruct may have been triggered by mistake or where there is no actual danger.
Great reaction. Saw this movie in the theatre at 8 or 9...to this day consider it as one of the scariest movies I've ever seen..from the theme, to the realism, to the near futuristc...remember it was pre home computer, pre video game pre tech revolution....only future wish lists. You mention the effects, there is something about creating the imaginary from nothing but things at hand, that can lead to magic. If you do star wars, start with episode 4 the first movie, with an original cut, or try 2001 a space odyssey, you'll see practical effects at perfection, no cgi. Models, painted bacground mats, hand applied efects on film....magic. Dont think the strain was made but captured, accodentally or purposefully...they're referring to the potential manipulation into...?
they filmed the Beginning in "DayNight"or"NightDay" lol streetname,,,,,they shot it in the day then just filtered it or "Stop'd it Down" like Hell on the Caneras when they shot it,,,in most cases nightShoots were/are just to expensive,,, RockOn🌎📽️🎶🎶🎶
Thank you so much Marla, yeah a few people mentioned this to me. I had sworn I'd heard it mentioned the way I say it, so apologies and thanks for letting me know
The novel has a short epilogue (Spoiler Alert): After Andromeda migrates away, into the far uppermost atmosphere (to "avoid" too much oxygen), one American and one Russian manned spacecraft burn up on re-entry, putting an indefinite hold on both space programs. The cryptic implication is that Andromeda, in near-space, "ate" their metal/polymer composite heat shields. The final line of the novel: "The decision is out of our hands...".
I think the Six Million Dollar Man first season episode that used some of this footage was Population Zero. I think it was the first regular season episode, after the 3 pilot movies.
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The best thing about the movie is that it did not treat the audience as stupid. It's good sci-fi.
Yeah, exactly! An intriguing sci-fi with an interesting and well written script. Thank you for watching Bruce. Apologies it's taken a long time to reply though!
I didn't appreciate this film when I was younger because it is purely story driven and i thought it was slow. Now i find it to be profound. Sadly, so many people today lack the patience and have such short attention spans that they will miss out on things like this.
Hi Sean!
It is such a wonderfully written film, with quips along the way. I genuinely wasn't sure what it would be like, so it was a pleasant surprise. It's story really does serve it well, but yes some may find it far too slow for today's standard who just want fast paced action or something happening every second. I'm definitely not one of those, as you can probably tell. I love these brilliantly made masterpieces in their own right. Definitely profound! It's great to see others who love the film too!
Yeah, I totally agree with you on the attention span of people today. Somewhat that of a gnat! I'm a poet and I didn't know it.
Most don't even get past the first 10 minutes of something before their searching for something else because they find it boring or slow.
Thank you for taking time to comment and watch Sean, it's most appreciated!
I had a similar reaction when I was a young teenager and first saw this film. I think it is also the clinical, objective presentation that might alienate some people. I'm 54 now and I regularly re-watch this film and thoroughly enjoy the deliberate pacing and the careful building up of information. Robert Wise was a very accomplished director and the casting was perfect.
Crichton wrote the book after reading the ICPRESS File. I recently rewatched it and realized the plot of the movie is a smokescreen. The CIA was actively working on the CORONA Program when the film was made, wasn't declassified until 2011. The early cover the CIA used for the satellite launches was that they were collecting "biological samples."
@@CaminoAir I watched it while young, but kept falling asleep since it kept airing as a midnight movie. I'm 55 and finally completed it in the 90s and it's a favorite of mine. The slower pace of movies back then doesn't work in today's movies, but they bring me back to my youth.
I saw this film in 1973. I was fascinated by everything in this film, including the medical ands scientific proceedures. I'm not a sci-fi geek like many but I love a good movie. And this is a good movie. It's Michael Crichton after all.
He didn't say it's all fake. He said it's no fake, meaning it looks as real as possible to fool even experts.
Ah, thank you for that Glenn, helpful to know. Changed the whole meaning!
@glennwisniewski9536 Moreover, it is an ACTUAL research station- up top.
Crichton's novels are so believable because they include large elements of reality. As part of the Apollo Lunar missions, NASA built the Lunar Receiving Laboratory to receive the Lunar material and quarantine the crew in case something went wrong. Part of the lab inclueded a heavily shielded bunker 15 meters underground to measure radiation of the samples. Rumors were that the bunker would be used to entomb everything in case of a biological "event".
Thank you so much for the info and for watching! (Apologies it took a long time to reply)
Holy crap. I did not know about the "entombment" thing. It does make sense.
Thanks for reacting to this film, it is a S-Tier sci-fi classic that puts modern movies to shame.
You're very welcome Andre! Most definitely a brilliant film. I concur, modern films definitely don't stand up to most classics. Thank you so much for watching
Wow thank you. You might be the only reaction video of the Andromeda Strain. Absolute classic that still holds up today. Cheers
Hi Shermanlin! You're very welcome. It does appear I'm one of few (I believe the 2nd person to react to this) to react to it. Wonderful film too! Definitely a classic that holds up.
Apologies it's taken a while to reply to this, thank you for watching!
The soundtrack on its own in this movie is scary as hell. I saw this as a kid and thought it both scary as hell and incredibly good. The Andromeda Strain was not created in that lab, it was captured or 'scooped' into the satellite as it travelled through space and then it was programmed to land back on Earth, it landed in Piedmont and the doctor opened it thus causing everyone to get infected. Just a great film.
Hi Dylan, yeah, it really is creepy!
Thanks for letting me know about when you first watched this, it's always lovely to hear the stories.
Thank you so much for the info and for watching! (Apologies it took a long time to reply)
I watched this one at the drive-in with my parents when I was only in 1st grade but it had totally held my attention. It was the first time I told my teacher about something I had done that we truly had in common. She told me about how she was really looking forward to seeing it too and it totally humanized teachers outside of school for me! I was such a Sci Fi nerd early on!
Oh wow, Brina! I love drive-in movies. That must have been one heck of an experience! I need to go to more drive-ins. They have something magical about them, don't they? Aww, that's so amazing, your teacher sounds awesome! Yeah, I had a similar experience with a teacher who loved old movies way back when and it was a point that did the same for me too. I love that you're a Sci-Fi nerd! Here's to the nerds! Thank you so much for watching and sharing your story Brina!
Michael Crichton also wrote the script to a little film called "Westworld" about a futuristic adult amusement park run amok. Yul Brenner stars as a robot.
A line at the end of the book mentioned that the air in the facility is removed at 5 seconds (iirc) before the nuclear weapon was set off. So, in the book, Hall's turn of the key came only *3* seconds before the air was going to be removed.
This is a wonderful reaction. Thanks so much! This film is amazingly well thought out and seemingly very possible. I love the lack of "action" in this film. The tension comes from the real human reactions to these not so far fetched situations. The production design and cinematography along are worth the price of admission, so to speak. Keep up these great films. It's very much like watching a movie with a fellow film buff. Peace always 😌
Thank YOU so much, Douglas! I feel most films really were made so much better back then. SO well thought out! Yeah, there's so much tension. Similar to what I felt when watching 2001, very tense. In this though, it's just about the drama of the situation. Yes, exactly, the real human reactions. It could happen, heck it kind of DID happen! Oh, most definitely. I loved the cinematography in this. Simple, artistic and so well done in some instances. The split diopter lens shots were brilliant. Thank you! I certainly shall! I love all the requests I've had and they are all greats, from what I can tell.
Aw, thank you so much! I do love film and do love that you call me a film buff, but I feel I have so much to watch that I haven't seen before that haha. But yes, a fellow film lover I am and I appreciate it! It's always fantastic watching these and having you guys watch along with me. Speaking of watching together, it might be great to also do a watch along on a live stream for something too (not sure what though), sometime in the future.
Thank you for watching Douglas and for being such a supporter of the channel and I
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Yes the director had to take microbiology and make it terrifying and he did so incredibly well.
He really did!
So glad you liked this film. It's worth a rewatch sometime because like the trivia page, the small details just keep appearing.
Oh yes, most definitely! I'm so intrigued when I watch films back and find new things. I find that often when I come back to even films that I have seen a thousand times. I'm so glad you stuck around for the trivia too, I often wonder if people do. I plan on coming back to watch this masterpiece in the future (maybe not on here though, unless it's asked for). It's a wonderfully done film. Thank you for watching and taking the time to comment Niall! It's very much appreciated
This is a great film that seems to have slipped through the cracks. I'm happy that you found it and reviewed it.
Directed by Robert Wise, who edited Citizen Kane (1941) when he was in his early 20s. This is the second of his three science fiction movies. The others are "The Day The Earth Stood Still" (1951) and "Star Trek: The Motion Picture" (1979). He was great at genre films, horror, boxing, westerns, war, musicals ("The Sound of Music" and "West Side Story" both won Best Picture and Best Director Oscars). I'll watch a movie just because he directed it, no matter the subject.
You ever watched his The Sand Pebbles? I believe its his best movie.
Hi Alan. Oh wow, I didnt realise he had done Citizen Kane too. I watched that on here and wish I'd seen this before then. Thank you for letting me know Alan.
I believe "The Day The Earth Stood Still" is another one on my list to watch!
I look forward to it and can't wait to see more of his work.
Oh wait, did he also do the original "West Side Story" then too? I have that on the list too.
Thank you so much for info! He's a very talented man.
Thank you so much for watching! (Apologies it took a long time to reply)
@@MoviesWithMarty Another Robert Wise films is also a personal favorite scary film - "The Haunting" (1963). Like "Andromeda Strain", it too was directly based on a best selling novel of its time, and has some first class cinematography in it.
It holds up just as much today as it did back then. I I've seen it several times over the years, it is an undervalued and underestimated film.
Big shout-out is in order to composer and jazz musician Gil Mellé for his pioneering electronic musical score, which incorporated at least one instrument I'm aware of that he himself apparently designed, the Percussotron -- basically an early example of electronic drumpads.
He was a saxophonist (mostly baritone) from the early '50s on, but later ended up creating a lot of soundtrack music, including for shows like Columbo and -- guess what? -- The Six-Million Dollar Man! His 1968 jazz album Tome VI showcases both his use of acoustic instruments (such as saxophone) and electronic elements, and you should be able to find a short clip on TH-cam of him demonstrating the Percussotron.
Enjoyed your reaction commentary very much!
Very enjoyable reaction!
My read of what they discovered: The •Wildfire facility• was designed and built with a primary purpose being: biological warfare and research. However, in the film, neither Wildfire nor other government programs were actively developing germs as weapons. The Andromeda entity was something that came back to Earth from space, on the small grain/pebble that impacted the mesh of the spacecraft (as we saw). They used Wildfire to •examine• it, but didn't in any way create it.
The story takes a (relatively) benign view of the U.S. government & its intentions: It sunk a ton of money into Wildfire, and made it look like there was nothing out in the desert for an enemy to know about, kept it manned but essentially 'on-standby,' waiting for a potential biological emergency that might never have come.
When they ask at the film's end, "How do we know this won't occur again?" - I think the primary thrust of the meaning was: How do we know a similar entity won't come back to Earth on a future returning spacecraft? (Or, less likely, on a meteorite that survives atmospheric re-entry?) ...If you interpret his question more broadly, as in: "How do we know a biological emergency, from whatever cause, won't occur again," that would include disasters from human-engineered bio-weapons, gain-of-function research, etc.
In the (Bestselling) Novel: It was Definitely Alien / not of this Earth.
There was a postscript: Where the re-entry Burn-up/loss of Manned spacecraft Andros IV was "officially" attributed to materials failure in the laminate heat shield.
The (implied) REAL reason was that Andromeda (now inhabiting Earth's uppermost atmosphere) ATE the heat shield. Effectively "quarantining" humankind against space flight, for the foreseeable future...(!)
I’ve seen the film 🎥 several times,over the year’s,but,I think,I’ve read the book first,by;Michael Crichton(the late,Michael Crichton,now!).
In the book, which has the space is there for more characterization, (‘Dr Stone, who remembered scientific facts and blue jokes with equal facility’) in detailing by a combination of official looking documents and fictional writing, how Wildfire came about, there is a line about how surprising the scientists were that such an expensive laboratory was built so quickly with so little objection from those holding the purse strings.
Captain Blue was voiced by Ed Bishop, who also played Commander Straker on UFO.
God, I loved Captain Scarlet. It played here at 7:30AM on Saturday morning and I never missed an episode. My favorite Gerry Anderson series. With UFO being a close second. The CGI Captain Scarlet was good. But I missed Derek Meddings' miniature effects.
In the book, Dr Levitt was a man, but they made Dr Levitt a woman in the movie.
Kate Reid was a brilliant actress, who played a fantastic part in this movie.
She also appeared in an episode of Columbo.
I love her in this. When they are going through the cleansing process and give her the suppository. "Anyone want to join me for a smoke?" she says in annoyance.
One of Michael Crichton's earliest novels - you know him of Jurassic Park fame!!!
Stumbled upon your reaction after being in the mood to re-watch (for the umptenth time!) one of my all time favourite films. Definitely the choice of shots, pace of the unfolding story and set design are what keep me coming back. Some recommendations for you in a similar (to some extent) vein in case they aren't on your radar: Capricorn One (1977), Phase IV (1974) Fail Safe (1964) and The Bedford Incident (1965). All thrilling and with great plots. Fail Safe is probably my favourite for its originality - Directed by Sidney Lumet - incredibly tense and gripping. Loved your commentary, will definitely check out some of your other movie reactions!
At 17, I went to a local theater by myself at night. This movie scared me to death.
Oh wow, what an experience. Yeah, this kind of threat late at night is nightmarish. It was very late night / early morning when I watched it for this video too and I was a little creeped out with it. Reminds me of when I went to see a horror film many years ago and it was a midnight showing that I saw by myself. Scared the heck out of me as I walked home alone as it was deadly quiet and a cat jumped out on me haha. Just like in a horror movie!
Love this story, and not just because someone named Hall saves the world. The director is Robert Wise, a true veteran, who also directed The Day the Earth Stood Still and (much of) West Side Story. Based on one of the earliest (and I think best) of the Michael Crichton ("Cry-ton") novels. You can neatly excise the few minutes suggesting Earthbound germ warfare and save yourself a LOT of confusion -- Andromeda is "simply" an alien messenger, like in the chalkboard cartoon with a scientist looking through a microscope at a Petri dish saying "Take us to your leader." All the germ warfare talk is very topical, yes, but ultimately irrelevant. I enjoy thinking that Manuel Rios, the baby, is still with us and only in his early fifties.
I read the book before i watched the movie. It's at least as exciting as the movie and contains more science side notes.
So sad that Crichton died so early, he had a unique way to mix science with fiction.
I had a couple of great aunts that drank squeeze. They also drank alcohol from shoe polish, and poor quality shine where the methanol was left in so the moonshiner would have more to sell. It took a toll. They went blind, eccentric, had ulcers, and eventually liver failure. Not even doctors, or benzodiazepines like valium, could break them from alcohol. It’s a terrible addiction.
love the film, for all the reasons you give. its implied terror, minimal jump cuts/physical scares. the cinematography is great, cause the director started his career as a cinematographer, robert wise. hes clearly a master of filming technique. i actually dont know if he filmed this himself, too lazy to look that up. FX were by douglas trumbull, of 2001 fame. based on the first bestselling novel by michael crichton, who famously presented the novel as a narrative documentary of a real event, with a multi page bibliography of scientific references, all entirely made up. so this film started the "lets make a movie out of a crighton book", and he was at the set, even appears in a cameo. but, im extra happy you reviewed this. i was able to meet the director, prior to his filming. my father was working on an art project for his home. i went to a broadway show, the musical "dont bother me, i cant cope" starring Paula Kelley, the nurse in this movie. met her backstage, as he was recruiting her/hiring her/checking in with her on her new role. so i feel an intense personal connection to this film. i even went to his malibu beachside mansion, saw his OSCAR for sound of music. he also directed "the day the earth stood still", "west side story", and "star trek the motion picture". all faves of mine. glad you enjoyed it. he was clearly in his element with science stuff, this feels so absolutely authentic as to how actual scientists would react. the actors really dove in on this one.
Must have been around 9 or 10 years old when I first saw it on tv, back in 1973 or 74. It was slow burn of a movie for a kid my age, but the atmosphere, the mystery, suspense and tension had me glued to the seat. I mean, the REAL moon missions had just ended and in all, Apollo had brought back hundreds of pounds lunar samples!! And knowing that, after watching this movie my young imagination went into overdrive.
There was only one helicopter pilot in the 1960's who was a member of the Screen Actor's Guild, so every single movie from the 60's and 70's that required one to speak lines had the same guy cast in the role.
Never seen anyone react to this movie...a true classic.
Well, I'm very glad I could watch it! It's really a great film. I hadn't much of an idea as to what the film was about, but it was superb!
Thank you for watching!
@@MoviesWithMarty Did you get a chance to watch Colossus: the Forbin project?
This film is the one of Michael Crichton's novels that I actually like, as it isn't a rework of another story.
Westworld became Jurassic Park, Congo is Tarzan if Tarzan died as a baby, unadopted by the White (superior) Gorillas, and so on.
It bears similarity to 'The Quatermass Experiment' and 'A For Andromeda', especially in the way a tiny crystalline organism can adapt to escape the Wildfire environment, while another colony of it can be doing the same thing in the atmosphere of Earth, failing to kill anyone else after first contact, proving itself intelligent, changeable and adaptable.
In TQE, the space thing affected a human, after failing with two previous humans, and then began to hybridise with plants, etc., into a world-seeding organism; in 'A For A' it carried data that enabled it to build it's own body once it had copied someone.
This also bears similarity to 'The Thing From Another World', in that if this kind of life is common in space, why aren't we already it, and perhaps we are it.
The crystalline alien idea even turned up in the Haruhi Suzumiya novels and comics, implying that all life was coming from such things arriving on Earth, with primitive entities being viruses, complex ones limited to planets being human-like, and advanced ones in distant regions having names like 'The Integrated Data Thought Entity' or 'The Heavenly Canopy Domain'.
The novel The Andromeda Strain intriguingly ends with a space mission failing due to interference with it's controls, and this implies that the Earth has been quarantined by the alien organism. Hard to show in a movie, but chilling nonetheless.
Oh, yes. Michael Crichton's 'The Thirteenth Warrior' is 'Beowulf' and the travel diary of an Arab who met with Vikings long ago made into a novel.
Crichton even ends the novel with a historically accurate 'the rest of pages are lost to history'.
Not all that many Reactors would probably have the perception and mental wherewithal to really enjoy what was going on here. And, yes, that is a compliment. Best. Mike.
Aw wow, thank you Michael! I take that as a huge compliment, so thank you so much. I really do go into watching films with an open mind and a passion for the industry and a love of the history of film too. Which also means that I try to keep an eye out for things connecting and how the plot comes together. I enjoy finding new films, most which get requested. I end up loving them and I try to say what I'm thinking without interrupting the flow of the film or miss what's going on. I'm really glad you enjoy my reactions though!
Kind regards,
Marty
The implication from the novel is that the Andromeda Strain was an extraterrestrial’s method of one-way communication with other intelligent life. The organism that thrives on polymer hydrocarbon chains is conveniently placed on a graphite-like capsule (the smooth surface on one side of the “rock”). As something impacted with the capsule, forming the jagged edges, it made its way to Earth, got caught in our planet’s gravity, and remained in orbit for hundreds, thousands, or millions of years.
Scoop was meant to capture unusual biological samples from the high atmosphere and low Earth orbit, with the idea that germs that escaped our surface and thicker atmosphere might mutate and become incredibly interesting subjects of germ warfare study at far lower cost.
The fact Scoop encountered a space germ wasn’t entirely improbable, but that it was the Andromeda Strain, meant to be a form of alien “time capsule”, was a one in a million chance.
Robert Wise didn’t want to use well known actors in this, he felt it would be more believable. They all did a fine job but I loved James Olson, he was excellent. Love this movie and have watched it many times over the years, it still holds up well👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
Ooh, thank you for the info! I completely agree about it feeling more believable. It certainly does. Still a great film these many years later, yeah it definitely holds up. Yeah, James Olson IS wonderful in this! Thanks for watching Nancy, I hope you're well and had a lovely weekend
Crichton's Books and Stories have been made into many Great Films!
It certainly seems so James! This is a fantastic film and I'm very glad I got it recommended. If you have a favourite Crichton book into a film, then I'd gladly check it out. Thank you for watching/commenting!
@@MoviesWithMarty Jurassic Park is a Crichton book!
@@jamesalexander5623 Ooh, yes! I actually haven't read the book, but I've only seen the film of Jurassic Park once growing up and LOVED it, but not seen it since and have not seen the others... are the sequels any good? What about the newer ones too... I saw the trailer to the newest one where they brought back some cast members and it looked very well done, so would be interesting to see what they do. Do you recommend me watching them?
@@MoviesWithMarty There's actually 2 Jurassic Park books. They're much better than the movies.
Seen it as a child. It seemed scary then. It's a good movie from that time.
Oh really, that's amazing that you got to see it as a child, Shane! I can certainly imagine so. Which part got to you the most. I find it so eerie in places. The town scene was certainly a creepy one and would give me the shivers if I had seen this as a child.
Definitely a wonderful film! Thank you for watching and taking the time to comment. It's very much appreciated. Have a wonderful day!
@@MoviesWithMarty I saw this as a kid as well and the music in this film was quite scary back then. There are many moments of great tension and drama throughout the film as well like the moment they realize they can't drop a nuclear bomb on the town or it would only feed Andromeda.
I was 14 when I seen this in theaters. Enjoyed it.
@@MoviesWithMarty I saw this movie when I was 11 in 1971. The two things in this movie that got to me the most were that the organism turned one's blood to a powder and that the organism could not be stopped by a nuclear bomb, our most powerful weapon, but instead would feed on the energy released by the bomb.
Understand that at that time, during the height of the Cold War, the threat of possible nuclear annihilation was the greatest existential fear, and here was an organism that would eat a nuclear blast for breakfast and then turn your blood to a powder.
So glad you are watching these old classics.
Thank you so much Scubasmith! I'm glad you're enjoying them too. They're fantastic pieces of cinema
Another great reaction!! One of those Sc-Fi movies based closer to actual science than just creating great special effects. Though the practical special effects came across as somewhat believable in this film for that time. Look forward to future reactions. Suggest 'Planet of The Apes' - 1968.
Thank you so much! Yes, it seems so. Great that they showed it to medical students too. Reminds me of the accuracy of Interstellar, for which Nolan got the correct maths and science for certain things in the film.
Honestly, practical effects are the best way to do them. If they can be done practically. This film for example does have some great effects, as you say. Thank you! Ooh yes, another great film that I have yet to see. Added to the list! I watched 2001 A Space Odyssey recently, so that will be coming soon to the channel too
@@MoviesWithMarty See all 5 Planet of the Apes movies to get the full message.
16:10 - "How short is he?!" - He is 5 foot 5 inches and the chap he is talking to is 6 foot 3 inches.
Project SCOOP was an attempt by the military to find Biological Weapons in Outer Space and they definitely succeeded. This film was made during Cold War paranoia and the fear of biological weapons being developed by foreign powers making this very timely today.
I have never read the book. But that really doesn't make sense. So you are saying that this satellite was put in orbit to purposely get struck by a meteoroid that contained an extraterrestrial life form, ie. a virus? Hoping it would be fatal or at least harmful to humans? And then somehow the people who put the satellite up there, caused it to de-orbit and fall to earth? I always figured the meteoroid was what caused it to come down. But if they caused it to fall to earth, why would they purposely have it fall next to a little American town to possibly kill its occupants? Or if it came down because it was hit, then they would have no way to know where it would come down. It could have landed in Los Angeles and ended up wiping out millions of people. You really think they would do something like that? I mean its true that US government has done some very diabolical stuff to their own population. But would they risk killing millions of people. Someone might notice...
Thanks for reacting to this. It's one of my favorite "real/down-to-earth" sci-fi films. The methodical approach the scientists use is very real and totally fascinating.
Great reaction to one of my favorite films. Thanks!!!!!
Hi Gerald, thank you very much! It's a great film and I'm glad you enjoyed. You're very welcome, I hope you're having a wonderful day. Thanks for watching and commenting
Saw this when i was a Junior at University ..... Freaked me and plenty of other People the eff Out!
My reaction to your reaction....
2:14 I LOVE titles sequences like this. When I see Saul Bass's name, I perk up. Even if I turn out not to like the movie itself, I know I'll enjoy the titles. (And usually, if they thought to bring in Saul Bass to design the titles, then I WILL like the movie.)
3:50 Robert Wise also made a lot of use of the split diopter lens when filming Star Trek: The Motion Picture. I believe he used the same cinematographer for both films.
7:01 Michael Crichton is the doctor sitting is in the corner behind the window. He is seated because he couldn't fit on camera... literally. He was six foot nine (206 cm). For reference, Peter Mayhew, aka Chewbacca, was 7'3", Shaquille O'Neal is 7'1", Ted "Lurch" Cassidy was 6'9", Brad Garrett is 6'8", and the Incredible Hulk himself, Lou Ferrigno, is 6'5".
9:15 That was a reflection of light off a fighter jet. If something went wrong and the helicopter pilot refused to go back and let himself get incinerated, the pilot had instructions to shoot him down.
11:43 The pilot made a hand signal to them that he'd give them another ten minutes. This was one of the few real flaws in this movie; there's no way they could have seen him from that distance.
14:55 He said, "It's no fake." Underground base or no, the agricultural center was practical.
17:14 I'm with you. I LOVE this set. The entire base is one of my all-time favorite movie sets; the production design is amazing.
18:38 Kate Reid was a major asset to this movie. Her performance is great.
22:08 I know that the Humane Society supervised the animal testing scenes, and in-film, I know they HAD to kill the rats and monkeys; it was them or millions of people. But it still hurts to watch this.
24:20 I still laugh at that line, "Establishment gonna fall down and go boom."
35:57 I remember reading that the filmmakers deliberately made the flashing lights too slow to trigger a seizure; they didn't want anyone to have a fit for real while watching this.
41:42 I believe his name was pronounced, "CRY-ton."
45:46 I may catch it for this, but.... You may be lucky to have not seen any of the Star Wars films. Now, if you had seen the first set back in the 70's or 80's, you'd love them. The problem is, you can't see them in their original form. Lucas re-edited (more like butchered) them all for the re-release, and he refused to release the original versions anywhere. Now Disney owns it, but they don't care. I've gotten disgusted with what Star Wars has turned into in recent years, and we can't even go back and enjoy the original films as they were meant to be enjoyed.
I thoroughly enjoyed watching this reaction. I'll have to catch some of your others; you did great with this and Forbidden Planet.
"So THATS who Daft Punk is!" I damn near choked on my lunch at that.
Haha! I'm glad you liked it. Thank you for watching and hope you recovered from choking on your lunch 😅
@@MoviesWithMarty I did. I've loved this movie since I was a kid. Never watch the TV remake unless you want your soul destroyed.
Small fun fact: Michael Crichton the author of The Andromeda Strain appeared in a small cameo when mark was called out from surgery in that scene.
Oh wow! That's so cool, I had no idea the man himself had made a cameo appearance! Thank you for letting me know, Destiny and thanks for watching!
the one place where there was supposed to be a sub-station and wasn't - is the most realistic thing about this whole movie lol
30:00
The late great Ed Bishop.
Thank you!!! I was just thinking about this again, I'm so glad you mentioned it. His work was fantastic, such a brilliant actor and had a great voice too! Much appreciated, thank you for watching
In 1971, the pen-and-screen device was a Light Pen, invented in the 1950s and used as a pointer device with CRT screens in some military applications, notably the SAGE (Semi-Automatic Ground Environment) system.
One of my favorite films. I saw it when it first came out.
The error code was a tribute to Apollo 11’s 1202 alarm. It’s exactly half the number.
I saw this at the movies in 1971 when I was 9. Afterward, we went out to eat at a restaurant, and i went alone to the men's room, which had a sort of "air lock" to enter (two sets of doors with a dimly lit short hallway in between). I remember being absolutely terrified that I would breathe in the Andromeda germ! I think I had to hold my breath.
My brother got the novel and I read it - actually much better than the movie.
How about, Zardoz - Sean Connerys first movie after Dr No 007. 1970s mushroom movie.
Fantastic request, Shane! Thank you. Zardoz is added to the list (updated on Letterboxd) - I've not seen Dr No either to be fair. I do need to get around to watching the Bond movies, as I've only seen the modern ones
@@MoviesWithMarty too many films to watch in your life time. Sad but true
Michael Crichton (pronounced Kry-ton) has had several books made into movies. Including Sphere, Timeline, Rising Sun, The Terminal Man, Congo, and The 13th Warrior (from his book Eaters of the Dead).
Crichton was also a director. His first theatrical film was Westworld (excellent). He also adapted his book The Great Train Robbery starring Sean Connery (also excellent). He directed the film version of Robin Cook's medical thriller Coma. He made a couple of very good original Sci Fi films that had a lot of interesting ideas. Runaway is a film about a police unit in the near future that deals with crimes involving robots and new technology. Looker is a particularly prescient film about the manipulation of media using computer generated images. All of the films Crichton directed are well worth seeing.
Crichton also came up with the story for the film Twister and co-created the TV series ER.
Marty, I just now discovered your channel. Loved ❤your intelligent and perceptive reaction to The Andromeda Strain, which is one of my favorite films. Very few people seem to know this film even exists, and fewer still appreciate the genius of its design. Story, screenplay, production design, music (Gil Melle!!!!), editing, etc, it's a near-perfect gem of a movie (imho). I heard one high school science teacher talk about how he shows this film to his students, to vividly illustrate the methodical approach that scientists use to solve problems. I can't think of any other sci-fi movie which does that.
This movie is closer to the book than any other movie is to its source material. Two minor scenes are deleted, and there are trivial changes like making Leavitt a woman, moving the town from Piedmont Arizona to Piedmont New Mexico, and changing its population from 48 to 68, and "In case of fire notify division 222" changed to division 21, and the automated defenses in the central core were changed from poison darts to LASERs.
We dont talk about the abysmal remake of this though-EVER.
@@JnEricsonx Well now you made me do it. I remember the dialog in the car when Dutton says to Leavitt,
"Ever used a glove box? ... At Wildfire we have whole rooms that work like glove boxes."
And then in the pathetic remake the glove box is a...box on a table.
Also, please watch the 1976 film "Carrie" if you have not seen it. It is Iconic - a Classic!
Hi DSR, I've not seen that one, so will definitely add it to the list! I've heard about it being a classic over the years and just never got around to it. Thank you so much and for watching too
This is the second review of this movie I’ve seen here on TH-cam (the first I saw was done by TBR Schmidt). I’m quite glad to see people are actually covering this film. I had first watched this movie when I found it at the library after having read the book (I was just starting to get into Crichton’s work). I had no clue that this movie existed, and it seemed so obscure that I thought it was just going to be my own little thing. So it’s really cool to see other people interested in this movie too
Oof. This video is a year old at this point. I’ve really been sleeping on people’s appreciation for a creative adaptation of Michael Crichton’s first novel
This a great science fiction movie.
It certainly is a wonderful one Arturo! So many great quips and shots too. Thank you for watching/commenting. From a comedy aspect, it has some great bits too, the "ding a ling" bit gets me every time too.
Damn Good 'Film'!!
Micheal Crichton...!!!
Hi Gregg, it certainly is a darn good one! Crichton is a terrific writer and it really translated well to the screen! What and who was your favourite part and character? Thank you so much for watching
MICHAEL CRIGHTON WAS A DOCTOR AND SCIENTIST.❤❤❤👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼
I would be interested to see your reaction to Fahrenheit 451 Francois Truffaut version !!!
Ooh! Yes, most definitely. I've not heard anything about it, but the name rings a bell. I shall add it to the list, thank you Mark! Thank you for watching and commenting too ;)
What "Book" would you be in that world?
@@Otokichi786 The Critic by Sheridan
Interesting watching someone watching A.S. for the first time. This movie has been one of my favorites for nearly my entire 60 years. I try to rewatch every few years. Because of this and Contagion, when the ‘Roanie Rona one 9’ happened, I was rather feaked out for a few weeks. We were so lucky actually, it could have been SO much worse. Back to the film, so glad you enjoyed it. Don’t bother watching the remake, this one is by far the best. Look into how they did the visual effects and display screens, fascinating.
Coming back through. Logan's Run, Fantastic Planet- English version, Dr Strange Love, any spoggetti western, original time machine, original planet of the apes, Blade Runner. THX1138 pre-star wars. small but powerful forgotten little movies 1960s 70s are so unusual. A free for all of thinking. A time capsule of thought and reasoning. Anyway great job
Yes Shane!! Logan's run will be the next film I do on the channel, but not the next video. I've watched it already and it's wonderful. Thank you for the suggestions! Fantastic Planet I didn't know existed until this very comment, so that will be added to the list. I shall certainly add Dr Strangelove too. I've seen the trailer and it looks oddball and interesting - right up my street! Ooh yes, Spaghetti Westerns are something I've not seen ANY of, from what I know. The others are absolutely fantastic suggestions and I'm adding them all now! It blows my mind that they don't get spoken about much these days. It's such a shame. For instance, Fantastic Voyage and this one were two that really surprised me as being amazing and yet not heard of them before they were suggested to me. Thank you so much! I'm so glad you like the content Shane!
@@MoviesWithMarty fantastic planet is a French adamated film. Seen that when I was around 13. Scifi film. Very differnt kind of film
The split screen effect was popular around the early 70's.
MICHAEL CRIGHTON WAS A GENIUS!!! ALL OF HIS BOOKS ARE GREAT, MANY MADE INTO EXCELLENT FILMS---
TERMINAL MAN
JURASSIC PARK
CONGO
PREY
SPHERE
TIMELINE
EATERS OF THE DEAD "13TH WARRIOR"
FIVE PATIENTS
Thank you for these Cynthia! Much appreciated
Since you live the split imagery, I suggest you watch The Thomas Crown Affair starring Steve McQueen (not the newer one with Pierce Brosnan).
Ooh! Yes, I shall it to the list. Had that in the back of my head to watch many years ago, but completely forgot. Thank you so much! Yes, usually the originals are so much better!
The end leaves one absolutely uncertain if we created the organism or if it really originated in outer space and it accidentally became entangled in the satellite which just later crashed in Piedmont.
Westworld is another Crichton project a couple of 1970's movies an very short tv series, and lastly the multi season remake that recently ended
Thank you for this! I didn't realise there had been Westworld films?! I thought it was just a TV show. I need to look into it more, were they any good? Heck, I may even watch the films on here in the future. Thank you for watching and letting me know.
@@MoviesWithMarty the movies are worth a watch Westworld and Futureworld, the old TV series not so much and i think they only shot around six episodes of it
Recommend another Science Thriller from back then: 'Phase IV' or possibly 'Phase Four'.
15:00 I haven’t seen this film since I was a kid (when it was shown for the first time on TV in the 70s). I remember being blown away by this scene and from this point on it’s a completely different film. I’m suggested this film a few times when COVID-19 first hit, but you’re the first reactor Ive seen to watch it. Woo hoo!
I like this so much i bought it on TH-cam so i can watch it at work
Robert Wise, who directed this movie, also directed Star Trek The Motion Picture.
He was a sucker for plausability and realism in his movies, no matter how fantastic the story.
His own masterpiece might be the movie The Sand Pebbles. I hope you ever get to watch it, its magnificent.
simultaneous, split screen filming is hard to do right but 1968's "the boston strangler," starring tony curtis, henry fonda and george kennedy, is another excellent film that uses split screen to great effect. check it out. its yet another unappreciated film classic from the past.
I did a book report on ‘The Andromeda Strain’ in HS when it came out. It was a fascinating story for me. The back is filled with an appendix of “sources” that was pages long…. and very well annotated. Except almost every one of them were completely fake…. things like “The odd man out” hypothesis or how colors (every level had a different color) affects work performance, etc. I only found out they were fake because I spent hours in the library using card catalogs, microfiche and reference books (no internet in those days) to hunt them all down and finding only a very few were real.
Having an engineering degree led me to a career where I’ve now built a few labs to contain and grow viruses for vaccine development, I can say that the film had a profound effect on me. I’m still waiting for the chance to build one with a nuclear self-destruct device 😂😂😂
Each of the 5 levels of Wildfire are painted a different color, which is supposed to have a psychological effect on the people working there. Michael Crichton knew about things like that as a doctor, since the "vomit green" gowns worn by surgeons are supposed to put patients as ease.
It wasn't made "by" them - it was collected by the Scoop satellite, so it was brought to earth by them.
Thank you for the info Fire Monkey, much appreciated
@@MoviesWithMarty and thank you - I love that you are looking at old movies [wow - that makes me feel REAL old🙊- I was in university in the 70s] I remember when this one came out - I loved it!🐵
My novel, Fragment, would not exist if I hadn't read this book when I was 13. :)
Great reaction to a good movie that I haven't seen in FOREVER! I thought I'd remember more of the movie than I did, it was really great doing a "refresher" with you. Usually the reactions I watch are of movies I know like the back of my hand so this was a slightly new experience! Ok, next up: Fantastic Voyage! You really are hitting those stylish sci-fis of the late 60s/early 70s. Hey, totally different but have you seen the original "Planet Of The Apes" from 1968? It actually came out the same DAY as "2001: A Space Odyssey". That's a great one, makes a great reaction video (there are a few out there, not nearly enough though!).
You're watching a lot of my favorite films. There were a lot of great Sci Fi films from the early 70s. Many were more serious minded and issue oriented than what we got post Star Wars.
Some that I don't see on your channel that I think you would enjoy are:
Colossus: The Forbin Project (no doubt an influence on War Games and the Terminator films)
Silent Running (special effects from the people who worked on 2001: A Space Odyssey)
Westworld (a clear influence on The Terminator)
A Boy and His Dog (from a story by Harlan Ellison)
Phase IV (terrific insect photography)
Soylent Green (basec on a book by Sci Fi author Harry Harrison)
You talked about the hologram effect featured in the movie,..and for cgi not being invented yet, it is quite impressive how simplistic it was accomplished, well if you haven't do check out Forbidden Planet, on TCM, one night they didn't have the original special effects guys from the movie, but special effects guys from other shows were on and can't remember how they found out, but they explained a phenomenal scene in the movie, where Walter Pigeon, is taking Leslie Nielsen and crewman on a tour of a facility,..similarly that goes deep underground on an alien planet, and they use a transport similar to the one in Logan's Run, and explain the most simplest techniques I've ever heard of for the effect, one I would never have guessed that's how they did it,..and you so cracked me up when they were debating in the movie about destroying a possible sentient being, and you mentioned yeah like a Dalek..and I was like,..ohh no, if it's them, they have to go, no destroy them, them and all their exterminate!, rantings,..no the Daleks have to go, just like ticks, fleas, mosquitoes,..scourge of the planet, ..the flies can stay, cause, you know, what would spiders eat if not for them,..but, this movie, man, it absolutely terrified me, when the doctor cuts open that man's arm when they're checking the town out, and sand, powder comes out, I mean right off the back you get the sense that some plague, has stricken, and I was in I think junior high, no medical knowledge, but it just seemed logical from knowing my own body, humans can't live with sand in they're veins,..and I think it was the first time I was confronted with something unseen by the naked eye that could kill you,..by the time I came along in the 60's,.polio was a distant thing, we were vaccinated for everything else, so in watching this movie, it also facinated me how scientists would go about fighting something so small and seemingly invisible, like the fantastic scene where they're trying to figure out how big the microbe is, is it bigger than a bread box😉, smaller than a virus, and they use filter after filter to gain how to stop it from reaching the animal they have in the box, and also the conundrum of what a poor little screaming baby and a alcoholic old man have in common that protected them from the fate of their fellow townspeople, seeing this movie sparked the science nerd in me,..also I recognized at the time so many actors in this, Paula Kelly, the nurse, was in so many, many shows, she danced with Shirley McClaine in Sweet Charity, fantastic dancer, not the only scifi for her, Soylent Green, Arthur Hill, was in so many shows, the senator or what ever authority questioning Hill at the end was in Porky's,..he was the principal, another very good similar subject, movie, is The Satan Bug, George Maharis is in it, done 5, 6 years prior,..do check it out, and also the updated Andromeda Strain with Viola Davis, Daniel Dae Kim, it also very good,..love that you watch the older cinema, do check out Outer Limits original series in black and white,..loads of scifi, inexplicable plots, with the simplest ideas, and most likely even simplest ideas for special effects,..do keep going,..Godspeed, Peace ✌
she didn't like the flashing red lights
It was fun watching this movie for the first time with you!
"You might destroy the Daleks." Well shit, Tom Baker took a crack at that and failed!
This is one of the first films of a novel by Michael Crichton, author of Jurassic Park. Other films include, "Sphere" and "Congo".
For "The Andrameda Strain" .., one person to note is director Robert Wise...with his long history as director with many successful films. Here's a small sliver of his background: He directed "West Side Story" 1961. Earlier, he directed another Sci-Fi classic "The Day the Earth Stood Still" 1953. Still earlier, he was editor for the classic "Citizen Kane" 1941, ...A truly prolific and marvelous filmmaker. Marty, I recommend reviewing "The Day the Earth Stood Still" if you haven't already. It's black & white. And, it's done with 1953's effects. It's not a huge film. But, the story takes you in.
Star Trek the Motion Picture.
Crichton had quite a few of his books adapted. A genuis at adapting true science to popular fiction drama without boring the reader. Jurassic Park being the most successful. There was Congo, about a gorilla who speaks to humans with sign language. Sphere, with Dustin Hoffman about something found at the bottom of the ocean, similar to this movie where a team of select scientists are brought in to study it. The Eaters of the Dead, adapted by the movie 13th Warrior. Disclosure, a 90s tech thriller with Michael Douglas and Demi Moore. And Timeline which delves into Quantum Theory and time travel, the movie was schlock money grab, unfortunately. Rising Sun with Wesley Snipes and Sean Connery was about Japanese culture. There were a few other notable films as well
check out Phase IV (1974).
Thank you for the request Victor, I shall definitely add it to the list!
Both bits of trivia about the 601 error code could be true (I have no idea if they are or not.) The first piece of trivia said the film was referencing the lunar landing (the first landing?) which came before the film. The second piece of trivia said the code was used in windows computers and chips in cars which came after the film and could be referencing either the lunar landing or the film. They are not mutually exclusive although one or both may not be true.
Silent Running 1972. The time machine 1960.
Brilliant, got them added to the list now. Thank you so much for asking for them both!
The first movie to use computer animation. The movie's soundtrack is equally groundbreaking.
Colossus is an equally good movie about an AI gone wild.
Excellent reaction! You should react to a film set during the Great Depression called " They Shoot Horses Don't They?".
Dr. Ruth Leavitt averts her eyes from the flashing red lights outside the "Agricultural Station". The flashing lights play the role of a Chekhov's Gun, a seemingly unimportant object at the time. Later, as she is monitoring the growth results the one result that shows no growth has flashing red print, causing Leavitt to blank out and thus not see the critical result. It's not until near the end that the red flashing warning lights cause Leavitt to have a full epileptic fit and go into convulsions. The signs of Dr. Leavitt's epilepsy were there right from the beginning for those who could recognize it.
With the silver key inserted and turned, the nuclear explosive for self destruct is armed.
In the event that contamination is detected, indicating the escape of a biological agent, the nuclear device will be activated via a timer that will count down to detonation.
During the count down, the man with the red key can abort self destruct by turning his red key in any substation key receptacle on any level.
If I recall, the idea behind this is that the man with the red key is someone who doesn't have any emotional ties (family, wife, etc.) that may impair rational judgement on whether self destruct should continue. The idea is that one with ties may permit self destruction to continue in an act of selflessly saving others. While that may seem honorable, the act would be considered emotional in response rather than rational; there is a possibility that the self destruct may have been triggered by mistake or where there is no actual danger.
Great reaction. Saw this movie in the theatre at 8 or 9...to this day consider it as one of the scariest movies I've ever seen..from the theme, to the realism, to the near futuristc...remember it was pre home computer, pre video game pre tech revolution....only future wish lists.
You mention the effects, there is something about creating the imaginary from nothing but things at hand, that can lead to magic. If you do star wars, start with episode 4 the first movie, with an original cut, or try 2001 a space odyssey, you'll see practical effects at perfection, no cgi. Models, painted bacground mats, hand applied efects on film....magic.
Dont think the strain was made but captured, accodentally or purposefully...they're referring to the potential manipulation into...?
they filmed the Beginning in "DayNight"or"NightDay" lol streetname,,,,,they shot it in the day then just filtered it or "Stop'd it Down" like Hell on the Caneras when they shot it,,,in most cases nightShoots were/are just to expensive,,, RockOn🌎📽️🎶🎶🎶
Two films I recommend, especially for their special effects, are The Wrath Of Khan and Apollo 13.
Michael Crichton's last name is pronounced 'cry-ton'. Great reaction.
Thank you so much Marla, yeah a few people mentioned this to me. I had sworn I'd heard it mentioned the way I say it, so apologies and thanks for letting me know
Love this movie. You might also like THE SATAN BUG (1965)
Thank you! I'll add that to the list! Much appreciated and thank you for watching
the other major difference was that the central core protection was curare darts, not lazer.
The novel has a short epilogue (Spoiler Alert): After Andromeda migrates away, into the far uppermost atmosphere (to "avoid" too much oxygen), one American and one Russian manned spacecraft burn up on re-entry, putting an indefinite hold on both space programs. The cryptic implication is that Andromeda, in near-space, "ate" their metal/polymer composite heat shields.
The final line of the novel: "The decision is out of our hands...".
I think the Six Million Dollar Man first season episode that used some of this footage was Population Zero. I think it was the first regular season episode, after the 3 pilot movies.