Blast from the Past

There surely is a lack of originality in movies now. Romantic comedies always seem to have the girl outwit the guy, the guy persisting, and then they finally get together. That's exactly the case in Blast from the Past, except that the guy has been living in a bomb shelter for all of his life. It's a joke that could work for a five minute sketch, or it might just flop overall, but that's not the case here. It's a simple romantic comedy with a huge twist thrown in, which works to the movie's advantage.

Adam (Brendan Fraser) had lived in a fallout shelter for all of his life, because his father (Christopher Walken) thought a nuclear bomb was dropped on the house. 35 years afterwards, Adam goes up to bring supplies and meet a girl, which he does. Eve (Alicia Silverstone) is a feisty, typical 90's American, but since Adam had never met anyone else besides his parents, he just accepts it. Soon he falls in love with her (hence, Adam and Eve), but the reverse is not the same. Will he convince her? Only the cliché on romantic comedies will tell us!

Blast from the Past is surprisingly lightweight romcom. It never goes to take itself seriously, which helps keep the mood light, which is what it's supposed to be. At times it gets silly, including a Benny Hill-ish chase scene, and the obligatory man-who-can't-drive-car-drives-car-wildly scene. A scenario like this could easily descend into heartstring-plucking land, but thankfully stays on the top, and over the top. Director Hugh Wilson, whose resumé includes such movies as the original Police Academy and The First Wives Club, can keep a movie that could turn drastically wrong on the right track.

Fraser is great. It really seemed like he was brought up in a fallout shelter. His mannerisms were all from the sixties, and the way he acted was exactly on key. Silverstone was okay, but nowhere near as good as Walken and Sissy Spacek as Adam's parents. They embody their roles as people who have to live in the same space for 35 years. This movie is everything romantic comedies today don't have: no crude humor, funny lines, good acting, and a fun story. People could really learn a lesson from watching Blast from the Past.

My rating: 7/10

Rated PG-13 for brief language, sex and drug references.

Need an escape? Here's your ticket! This is a delightful movie depicting life in the past and the shock one can get when fast forwarding to the future. There's something about gong back in time! For those of us who lived thru the 60s as teens, it's a reminder of a more innocent time. Seeing the past come alive in the form of music, baseball cards and even the furniture makes you feel like a window has been opened and you're actually watching family life in the early 60s. Watching the reactions of a full grown man who has been in a fallout shelter with his parents, now coming above ground for the first time is hilarious! Seeing him search for a "non-mutant" girl friend while he learns all about life above ground, is just as funny. You have two choices. You can watch the movie as a critic and look for things that you think "don't work" in the movie.....or, you can relax and enjoy the trip, the jokes, the characters and the trip back to the present! That's what I do, every chance I have to see this "Blast From The Past."

What a wonderful film! "Blast from the Past" is charming, sweet, and hilarious. Very funny. The premise is original and interesting, and I thought the film was engrossing and thoroughly entertaining -- I laughed out loud several times. Brendan Fraser is perfectly cast as the goofy, innocent Adam. Alicia Silverstone is better than she's ever been, I'm certainly no fan of her, but she did a more than okay job in this film. But the really ingenious casting decision was to give the roles of Adam's parents to Sissy Spacek and the always brilliant Christopher Walken -- I dare say that the casting of Spacek and Walken in this film is the _opposite_ of type casting, :-).

I really, really liked this film because it is genuinely entertaining, and it is never boring. Brilliant comedy in other words. (8/10)

..."Blast" would have likely won. It boasts excellence in all aspects of the film from story to casting to acting to sets to costumes, music, etc. This tight, creative, unpretentious, and lightly romantic comedy romp between a hip "new millennium" chick and an old fashioned stuck-in-a-fallout-shelter-for-35-years guy is a breath of fresh Hollywood air deserving of it's critical acclaim.

See the movie to find out why, but Brendan Fraser's crazy dad has had him underground for thirty years in an elaborate bomb shelter, so that when Brendan finally goes upstairs in the 90's to get more supplies for his parents, he's in for a bit of a shock.

Christopher Walken is wonderful as the crazy, atomic-age inventor. Alicia Silverstone deserves to be on screen more - she's cute and sassy as the love interest, but still pulls funny faces with her mouth. Brendan Fraser was a perfect choice for the biggest fish out of water ever. His fresh-faced naivety is so convincing. He's larger than life, and sometimes so naive its corny, but he's consistent, so it works. Depending on what mood you're in, Sissy Spacek's part adds psychological depth to the movie or detracts a tad from the fun.

This movie is not at all implausible. There were many people as scared as Christpher Walken during the 60's. In 1962, during the Cuban Missile Crisis, Kennedy and Khruschev were one button press away from blowing us all to smithereens (see Thirteen Days for a historically accurate portrayal of this). And Walken's character is set up as crazy enough to build and stock his shelter with 30 years worth of supplies.

8/10. Terrific fun time-skipping romantic comedy buoyed by the personality of Fraser - perfect to watch with a sweetheart, or with family on a warm weekend in.