Product Description

Once upon a time, the Big Bad Bomb was #1 on everyone's Paranoid Hit Parade. Atom-bomb movies were made to scare us; atom-bomb short subjects were meant to calm us down. Now you can relive some of that Mushroom-Cloud Mania with this Nuclear Collection of Atomic-Age Kulture. Just hope you don't end up glowing in the dark... "Atomic War Bride" (1960, 75 min.) - At a church in the country, eternally optimistic John marries Maria, his Atomic War Bride, as planes buzz overhead and bombs start dropping. Though John is "mobilized" by the military seconds after the ceremony, he and Maria are reunited just in time for the Big Bang. "This Is Not a Test" (1961, 72 min.) - When the police radio blares, "Air Raid! Condition Red! This is Not a Test," Deputy Sheriff Dan Colter sets up a roadblock on a lonely section of mountain road in the middle of the night as he and a microcosm of American society wait for the bomb by engaging in various end-of-the-world activities.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #67560 in DVD
• Brand: Image Entertainment
• Released on: 2002-04-16
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Black & White, DVD, Special Edition, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 147 minutes

Customer Reviews

THE ATOMIC BLONDE
Again S.W.V. pulls off another hat trick. Taking two atomic age films from opposite sides of the world (one, THIS IS NOT A TEST is all American, while ATOMIC WAR BRIDE, is all Yugoslavian - yes, they have a film industry), gives you a uncanny perspective on just how nuclear war was looked at. In some ways they are both the same, but in others, there are major differences (THIS IS NOT A TEST dissolves into a kind of material anarchy, while ATOMIC WAR BRIDE asks for and gets civil duty, but they both end with a bang). As for extra's, S.W.V. has a reputation for pulling together a string of themed shorts that are both funny and downright scary - the best of these shorts for this set is YOU CAN BEAT THE A-BOMB. I must warn you now that this short is perhaps one of the most jaw dropping and creepy short films you will ever see - not only does it approach the subject of nuclear holocoust with a FATHER KNOWS BEST mind set, but even for the time it was produced (1950) it is amazingly scant on details, and long on urban fantasy. Very, very creepy (and please, when you see this, feel free to email me, I would love to know what you think of it). As for the movies, both hold up very well. THIS IS NOT A TEST was done on a near zero budget, but manages to pull off the impossible by being entertaining and creepy all at once. ATOMIC WAR BRIDE is pure propoganda (and good luck trying to decide which side this film is really on), and yet oddly compelling. I can't recommend this S.W.V. DVD enough, it's a classic.

CONELRAD says: Support Atomic Film-Buy this DVD!
Something Weird's Atomic double feature DVD featuring "Atomic War Bride" (1960) and "This is Not a Test" (1961) is, simply put, amazing. With this release, Something Weird rescues two fascinating, socially significant Cold War era films from permanent obscurity and does it with wonderful style and humor. The special features section (featuring multiple classic civil defense films and fallout shelter TV spots) is just icing on the mushroom shaped cake. Support the resurgence in and redisovery of Atomic Film and BUY this DVD! You will not regret it!

--Bill Geerhart, editor conelrad.com (all things atomic)

Highly entertaining
I love this stuff! It's so bizarre! I've never laughed so hard as when everyone is told to don their anti-radioactive suits in ATOMIC WAR BRIDE and they're just big garbage bags! And then one guy tries to get inside one with somebody else because he doesn't have one. Pure hilarity!