Blast from the Past

Blast from the Past is a 1999 romantic comedy staring Brendan Fraser, Alicia Silverstone, Dave Foley and Christopher Walken. The film begins by way of a clip from an old documentray showing how Americans were preparing for the Comunist Nuclear threat by building themselves underground bunkers that could sustain them unitill the ‘national crisis’ was over. Step in Calvin Webber (Christopher Walken) a brilliant scientist but somewhat of an excentric that has fashioned (with his supeior intelligence and a hefty sum he made from patented inventions) an underground bunker capable of sustaining the family, his wife and unborn child against a nuclear attack and protect them from the raidiation until it is safe to ‘go up on top’.When the Cuban missile crisis escalates during a dinner party Calvin and his wife take refuge inside then bunker, fortunate for them as an on-board malfunction causes a fighter pilot to jettison and leave his plane to freely crash down in a suburban area – blowing up the Webber’s house. Calvin (Walken) is convinced this explosion was the start of the Nuclear attack on America and for the good of his family seals the doors for 35 years. As the house is destroyed the Webber’s are presumed dead, life goes on as normal on the surface.The Webber’s baby Adam  (Fraser)is born soon after the explosion inside the bunker, the only life he will ever know for the next 35 years. Time skips onwards, we see Adam grow and blossom into a polite and intelligent ‘typical 1960’s’ guy. He becomes an expert at almost everything; boxing, dancing and languages. It is at this point in the film that the plot holes will start to open for the more picky of us critics. Despite the problem of sunlight deprivation, the film makes no sort of explanation to how the Webber’s are able to breath ‘supposedly uncontaminated’ air and how on earth a room of yacht batteries can be modified to provide power to all their appliances for 35 years. It is here where we must trust the genius of Calvin Webber and ask no questions. The film skips between surface and bunker, showing Adam grow and mature and the world on top fester and become corrupted, after 35 years of waiting the bunker opens and Calvin is able to make a re-con of the surface. After seeing what everyday life was like in the 90’s he has a heart attack and Adam, armed with some 1960’s baseball cards and some old stock certificates goes to fetch supplies for his family in his fathers place.This is where the fun part starts, the humour in this film comes generally from Adam’s complete lack of knowledge about society in the future, to him a bus ride is an adventure, a Negro woman a unseen sight and a adult book store a place of horror! Whilst trying to sell some of his baseball cards he meets Eve rustikoff (Silverstone) who stops the owner from ripping him off regarding the  price of baseball cards. She is subsequntly fired and is paid by adam to take him to a hotel in the form of a baseball card. She returns the card the next day as it is ‘to valuable’ to be given away. Adam then makes a deal with Eve to help him buy supplies for ‘people in need’ and find a ‘non mutant wife’ from Pasadena.After a few days Eve introduces Adam to Troy (Foley), Eve’s homosexual housemate, who Adam believes is ‘always happy’ as he does not know the newer meaning of the word gay. Troy is undoubtedly the highlight of the film for me, he adds a lot of subtle humour to go along with the more obvious gags and also a strangely steadying influence to the film. After learning a few more things about the surface, clothes, visiting the sea, Adam is taken to a club to meet women, his instant charm and amazing dancing lead Eve to confront him about his backround. Eventually after sharing a passionate kiss back at home he explains all. This leads to Eve almost having Adam committed until he runs away with his supplies with the help of ‘Archbishop Melker’ a bar worker who is convinced after seeing Calvin Webber come from underground that Adam is ‘the son of God’. Troy and eve attempt to find Adam discovering his stock certificates and the fact that he is a millionaire.I really enjoyed this Film, at first i thought it was a little cheesy, some slight cliché’s the condition of society the superstitions about the Cold War. Eventually I began to see it for what it was, a light hearted feel good comedy, for me Troy and Archbishop Melker steal the show. The end result is touching but unfortunately the run of the film doesn’t make you think anything else is going to happen. Adam and Eve? I think that says enough. For pure fun, with a lot of plot holes: 3/5.