7.1 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.5 | |
Overall | 4.5 |
On its 20-year anniversary, and not a moment too soon, THE ATOMIC CAFE is back to provide us with a much-needed release of comic energy. A dark comedy in the truest sense, this timeless classic took the nation by storm when it first debuted in 1982. Atomic Cafe is a brilliant compilation of archival film clips beginning with the first atomic bomb detonation in the New Mexico desert. The footage, much of it produced as government propaganda, follows the story of the bomb through the two atomic attacks on Japan that ended World War II to the bomb's central role in the cold war. Shown along with the famous "duck and cover" Civil Defense films are lesser-known clips, many of which possess a bizarre black humor when seen today, and it's easy to see why this film, which was produced in the early 1980s, became a cult classic.
Starring: Lyndon B. Johnson (II), Hugh Beaumont, Dwight D. Eisenhower, J. Edgar Hoover, Joseph McCarthy (I)Documentary | 100% |
History | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.34:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.33:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0
English SDH
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (C untested)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 5.0 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.5 |
“Funny” is a word that’s often associated with 1982’s “The Atomic Café.” Such promise of humor is stamped all over the promotion of the picture, with nervous distributors trying to lure viewers who wouldn’t normally be interested in an 87-minute-long summary of American leaders lying to the public about the true destructive possibilities of an atomic bomb blast. Funny this movie most certainly isn’t, but I suppose the actual toxicity of this darkness is subjective, with “The Atomic Café” more of a skillful assembly of footage than a knee-slapper. Directors Jayne Loader and Kevin and Pierce Rafferty spent years stitching together a look at the development of American paranoia and hubris, and they end up with an eye-opening examination of Atomic Age denial and experimentation, delivering, without narration, an extraordinary view of military power and those tasked with deflecting attention away from surefire dangers during a time of reckless experimentation.
The folks at IndieCollect have restored "The Atomic Café" for future use, offering a 4K scan of the 16mm production. The AVC encoded image (1.34:1 aspect ratio) presentation is working with a collection of archival materials, and the creative goal here is to preserve their older, scratchy appeal, not clean everything up to modern digital standards. Embrace this wear and tear, with clarity decent along the way, giving these obscure offerings of propaganda and news reports fresh life in HD while still preserving the filmic appeal of the original feature. Color is limited but effective, handling saturated primaries, while whites retain their brightness. Delineation is secure.
The 2.0 DTS-HD MA sound mix isn't built to wow with dimension, remaining simplistic but effective. Elements retain their aged origin, but clarity is never problematic, offering a clear read of short film speechifying and performances, and political footage is also preserved. Music handles with ease, delivering agreeable instrumentation. Sound effects are defined, perhaps too much so, with the sweetening of screams (animals and otherwise) popping out a bit too sharply.
"The Atomic Café" hit the zeitgeist in 1982, released during a time of nuclear escalation, with the U.S. and Russia locked in an arms race. And now it's being released in 2018, when the world is once again teetering on the edge of chaos, with antagonisms growing amongst superpowers. It doesn't make the film prescient, but it serves as a potent reminder of circular behavior from government leaders only concerned about protecting complacency, not the people. "The Atomic Café" works as nostalgia, with a tightly curated selection of shorts that underline beaming American pride, but it's also there to horrify, tracking the nation's grim experimentation with power, without any real clue how to wield it. Your mileage may vary when it comes to laughs.
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