1988 Directed by Steve De Jarnatt
After 30 years of searching, Harry has finally met the girl of his dreams. Unfortunately, before they even have a chance to go on their first date, Harry intercepts some chilling news: WWIII has begun and nuclear missiles will destroy Los Angeles in less than an hour!
Appel d'urgence, Die Nacht der Entscheidung
"People are gonna help each other, won't they? I mean, rebuilding things, the survivors I mean."
"I think it's the insects' turn."
It starts out as a romantic comedy about a guy meeting his dream girl and trying to go into a date and suddenly turns into a sometimes absurdist but well imagined end of the world scenario that somehow never forget its romantic center. The last act beautifully moves toward an acceptance of doom that is very affecting (and in its own very particular way deeply romantic) despite all the genre trappings and absurdist touches. It is probably the greatest date movie ever to end with an explosion. This one is a real great odditity, imaginitive, full of well earned detours, good character acting, a nice sense of desperation as Los Angeles slowly but credible spins out of control.
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Film #3 of the March Madness 80s Sci-Fi Movie Challenge!
letterboxd.com/naughty/list/march-madness-80s-sci-fi-movie-challenge/
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The film is dated, acting barely tolerable, predictable schlock through and through and yet.. there is a scene involving the la brea tar pit that even now still chokes me up!
Love in the end of times. I can’t think of a better movie tuned pitch perfect to my tastes than Miracle Mile.
Perfect.
You Have 90 Minutes To Comply: The New Year Project
Don't you love it when a romantic comedy all of a sudden turns into an end-of-the-world nuclear panic thriller?
I clearly made the right decision not reading anything about Miracle Mile before I watched it. I can't even remember how much I read about it to include it in this project in the first place, but I'm just glad I forgot it, whatever it was. If you've not seen, don't read this review. Go on, piss off. I'm doing you a favour.
Because this was not what I was expecting at all. When Anthony Edwards receives THAT phone call, I actually expected it to keep being a romantic comedy and…
(ambiguous spoiler alert) Testament to how invested in the characters I was that the ending kind of pissed me off.
There's nothing else quite like this. It's a real diamond.
I can’t think of many movies with a darker ending. The Mist, maybe. Dumb script with a preposterous premise, but the director does a lot with very little.
Hats off to Kurt Fuller, though. Best minor appearance from him in anything..! “Hope I didn’t fry my brain for an earthquake!”
"Forget everything you've just heard, and go back to sleep."
Tangerine Dream. Sunsets over the horizon. Box televisions. Crazy outfits. Synthpop. Group aerobics with neon costumes. All-night diners by the side of the road. VHS. Helipads on the top of skyscrapers. The threat of nuclear war from Russia.
These are all in Miracle Mile. These are all synonymous with the 1980s. Why are these important? Allow me to continue.
Miracle Mile is, most likely, not just one of the best films of the '80s. It is most likely one of the best films of all time. It's a beautiful, romantic story combined with a sense of nuclear paranoia and borderline sci-fi elements that attempts to keep the glass half-full even…
For someone who didn't grow up during the nuclear fright or ever partake in it much due to my home country stories with this setting don't necessarily hit a strong note with me. An apocalypse is an apocalypse. The tonal combination of goofy shit with the occasional glimmers of some very dark truths within the humanity it sometimes manages to portray is weird. Some times in very good ways. Happy to see this without knowledge of whether or not it's actually apocalyptic or not since it makes the boring middle portion of the movie a lot more fun.
Loved the Tangerine Dream score. It really gives you that running out of time and end of the world feeling.
Great characters, fantastic pacing, an awesome score and a bold ending. The paranoia around the main event was extremely well expressed throughout the film. I love the main characters development throughout the film, how he has his ups and downs yet is still relentless in his pursuit for safety. The biggest flaws of the film are the weak side characters who don't get enough screen time or development despite their role in the film.
Literally only watched this cos it was less than 90 minutes. Glad I did though.
“Finally find the right girl and you blow it”
Film and art often reflect modern fears and paranoia and the public consciousness during and surrounding the Cold War certainly offered a healthy dose of both. Cold War-era cinema can often be a dicey proposition, often capitalizing on cheesy macho jingoism, conservative worldviews and fear mongering (I’m looking at YOU Red Dawn). By 1988 though, the Cold War was winding down as the Soviet Union, losing its iron-fisted rule by adopting more moderate and progressive policies, was beginning to fall apart. Even with the fall of the USSR looming just around the corner, Hollywood had one last major Cold War movie to make and it was the best one of them…
Does a hell of a lot with a small budget, and Edwards and Winningham are really great. I wish I could just soak in the colors and Tangerine Dream's score.
Perfect ending, too.
Thomas Stautland 1,560 films
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