Testament (1983)

“[crying] Who did this, God damn you!” – Carol

Number of Times Seen – At least three times (Cable in the 80’s, 26 May 2009 and 2 May 2019)

Brief Synopsis – Following a nuclear attack, a mother living in a small rural town must deal with the aftermath wile trying to keep her children safe.

My Take on it – This is a film that I recall seeing as a kid on cable at least once and certain scenes have been stuck in my head for over 35 years.

They present this kind of scenario in an interesting way and it allows us to see what the possible after effects of a nuclear war could be in the modern world.

It was made at the perfect time since the Cold War was still in full-fledge at the time and the possibility of such a situation was within reason even if still not certain.

Jane Alexander is super in the title role and she was quite deserving of getting an Oscar Nomination for Best Actress for this performance as a mother doing all she can to keep her family away from the dangers of the time.

This is not a fast paced story yet it moves in a way that it allows us to remain quite informed as to what is going on both within the small community and without.

They do a nice job showing what kind of obstacles and difficulties might present themselves if such a scenario might happen.

Parts of this film are extremely harrowing to watch because things come across as feeling quite realistic.

Bottom Line – Very nice look at the possible after effects of a nuclear war. This film came out at the right time and truly shows the various kinds of difficulties and hardships that might arise if such a scenario might occur. Alexander is superb in the lead and was quite deserving of an Oscar nomination for Best Actress for her performance here. The story moves at a relatively slow pace yet they manage to keep us informed as to what is transpiring both within and without of this small community. The story works quite well in showing what life could be like in this kind of situation and is quite harrowing to watch because it is made so realistically. Recommended!

MovieRob’s Favorite Trivia – The film was originally shot as a made-for-TV movie. Paramount executives were so impressed with it that they released it in theaters as a feature. The cast sued the producers for higher pay, claiming they were paid television salaries and not feature film salaries. The case was settled out of court. (From IMDB)

Rating – Globe Worthy (8/10)