Nerds That Geek TV Movie Review: 'The Day After'

Written by John Edward Betancourt

There was a time in my youth, that the end of the world seemed possible. I say that, because I grew up in the mid 1980's, an era where the Cold War was still a big deal. I distinctly recall news reports about the nuclear arms race and I also distinctly recall the tension that came into the air when people brought up the topic. We were terrified of nuclear war and rightfully so. The act would have meant the end of modern civilization. 

Now most of my memories of all of this come from the latter part of the decade, because I was born in 1979 and before 1986, my attention was only focused on my toys, Star Trek and Return of the Jedi. So, I honestly have no memories of The Day After​, a TV Miniseries that completely pushed the envelope when it aired in 1983, but I most certainly saw it on video many years later and wow, what a show.  

In this tale, the world stands on the brink. The Soviet Union has strengthened its army in East Germany in the hopes the United States and NATO will back away, leaving all of West Germany for the taking. But their plan goes horribly wrong and war breaks out forcing the hands of both governments into an option they had prepared for but had never hoped to use...nuclear strikes. The button is pressed, the bombs are coming and now those who manage to survive must learn to do so in a strange new world.  

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​This is a film that the years have not exactly been kind to. The effects are certainly dated now and while one would think that those are the key to a film like this...they're not. The key to this film lies in the sheer terror and tension that is produced every waking moment of this flick. I mean seriously, from the moment it begins, you feel it in your gut, you feel it build until the missiles arrive and then...your feeling of tension is replaced with dread when you see the bombs fall and bear witness to the aftermath of mutually assured destruction.   

It's actually quite amazing how detailed this film is and how terrifying it is, especially for a TV movie. There's no gore, no splatter, because hey...it's from the 80's and if you think television is conservative now...just imagine thirty years ago. No instead this is a movie that is pure terror. In fact, in doing my research on the film I discovered that after it aired there were 1-800 hotlines for people to vent their terror and even a live television discussion about what people had just seen. 

This was clearly a polarizing event and a movie that to this day when I pop it in leaves me unsettled. Simply because, it could have happened and of course, what's more amazing about this film is the sheer fact that it is incredibly relevant poignant once again since the fear of nuclear war is creeping back into the modern world and perhaps that's why it's a good time to revisit this story, since it is a cautionary tale, one that gives you pause long after the story has come to its end.

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