Review: Blast from the Past

Directed by: Hugh Wilson

Written by: Hugh Wilson & Bill Kelly

Starring: Brendan Fraser, Alicia Silverstone, Christopher Walken, Sissy Spacek, Dave Foley

Rating: [3.5/5]

Fear of the outside world comes natural for things out of the control of the average person. It leaves them trying to find a way to control some aspect of it. When it came to the Cold War and the perpetual fear of the imminence of nuclear warfare, many wanted to build a bunker to protect themselves and in Blast from the Past we see this transpire and the ramifications it has in the ultimate test case of nature vs. nurture. 

Afraid of the Soviets dropping a bomb at any time, Calvin Webber (Christopher Walken) builds a bunker that would protect him and his family from the fallout for at least 35 years. When he feels the day has come, he takes himself and his pregnant wife down to the bunker and locks the door that will not open for the aforementioned 35 years. Now with the door about to open and their baby now a grown adult, Adam (Brendan Fraser) heads to the surface to get more supplies with no idea what awaits him. 

Truly a hilarious premise for a film Blast from the Past poses the question of what would it look like for someone who was completely raised in a bunker for his entire life to interact with the modern world. We get that here with Adam where he believes when he reaches the surface again he will be met with a post-apocalyptic ruin but it’s just the 1990s. Therefore, he grew up with these 60s values with no idea how individuals interact and must come back with the necessary supplies for his mother and father. 

This presents the classic fish-out-of-water sequences of naivety of someone who does not know better as he navigates this new world to him where he meets Eve (Alicia Silverstone). The name choices here certainly came with some intentionality. The two meet as Eve picks up on this naivety and for a price promises to help Adam get what he needs in supplies for his family. The film at that point morphs into a romantic comedy of these two beginning to fall for each other, with Eve thinking of Adam as a lovable log and not knowing the truth of the matter. This looming miscommunication between the two will eventually come to a head, especially with Adam still believing all of these individuals somehow have survived a nuclear apocalypse. 

Adam’s interactions up on the surface exists as culture clashes between how he was raised and the changes that have happened. He lived in as much of a structured environment as has ever existed. Literally always in the same space as his parents, and learning from a very intelligent father. The man knows several languages, how to box, dance, and do so many things but he feels like he came out of a time capsule in the way he interacts with all the other characters as he carries this earnestness of this nostalgic past that no longer fits with a more cynical time. It shows the importance of socialization in the development of an individual, especially when the only limited experience happens to be one’s parents. The extreme version of homeschooling but one where you carry the belief that the world literally ended before your birth. 

Formulating this charming duo, we have Brendan Fraser and Alicia Silverstone as they portray this couple at the center of this story. Silverstone plays the realist who has lived in this harsh world compared to Fraser’s naive Adam. Fraser feels like the perfect person to portray this character, as he carries the perfect smile of genuine innocence and plays up the lack of knowledge Adam has as he steps into the 1990s. He steps in and plays this character perfectly, but I must give some love to Sissy Spacek who portrays the frustrated mother of Adam, Helen, who cannot wait to leave this bunker once and for all. The way she reacts to all the quirks of her husband made for comedy gold. 

After never hearing about this film until watching it at my in-laws one random December, Blast from the Past greatly surprised in its use of almost time travel comedy. Adam leaves the 60s and steps into the 1990s. Truly a delight with several moments of great comedy sprinkled all throughout it brings together a delectable cast, who all put on strong performances and help bring together this overtly silly and successful film.