THE NIGHT THE EARTH SHOOK (SHORT WALK TO DAYLIGHT)

US, 1972, 73 minutes, Colour.
James Brolin, Don Mitchell, Abby Lincoln.
Directed by Barry Shear.

An early disaster telemovie. It was directed by Barry Shear, a television director who made such features as Wild In The Streets and The Todd Killings. The film is reminiscent of the later Poseidon Adventure and The Taking of Pelham One, Two, Three. It appears fairly conventional material now, but at the beginning of the seventies it would have seemed much fresher. The cast is established quite well, the disaster, while rather far-fetched is shown affecting the lives of the people trying to get out of the New York subway. It has the usual human elements as well as the goals for survival.

1. The appeal of the disaster film? A picture of the seventies? Audience identification, fear, danger? Survival and heroism? This film at the beginning of the trend? The title and expectations?

2. The qualities of the telemovie - for home audiences, strengths, audience involvement, commercial pauses?

3. The quality of the sets especially the New York subway, the explosions and the special effects? The credibility of the events happening?

4. How plausible the film in terms of the people involved, the disaster, terror, human behaviour, survival?

5. The establishing of the terrorist group: the revelation of its aims, the variety of people in it, their tactics, Andre? The dance and the atmosphere of the Saturday night? The accidents and the not placing the explosive in the proper position? The leaders of the group, the women? How well edited in were the sequences concerning the group?

6. The Mayor of New York and his reaction, the T.V. programmes and their commentary? and these being edited in throughout the film?

7. The establishing of the group on the train? The subway itself and its reputation, dangers? Joanne and Sylvia and their coming home from the party, the girl from the country and her fears, the whistle etc.? The black woman and her presence on the train after working all night, her children? Her age? Al and his dark glasses and his menace? The girls and their fear? The relief when Tom Phelan came along? His place as a policeman, on the train? The establishing of the situation of the bombing and its repercussions for the group on the train? The train itself, the journey, the explosions, the time element for survival, the flooding, fears? The plausibility of ordinary people being trapped in this situation?

8. Jack and his girl friend, their presence on the train, the need for drugs? The insulting behaviour? Jack and his going back to loot the purses, his running away, his death? The grief of the girl and her survival? The various aspects of the rest of the group: black and white, ordinary citizen, worker, young girls, police, the age group?

9. Ed and his dealing with the disaster? His role as railwayman and his taking charge, the clashes with Tom Phelan? The various deaths on the train? The deaths during the journey?

10. Making decisions and the group coping, moving through the train, climbing through the hole in the stone and the tunnel, the alternative routes, waiting? Eating, water, resting? The fire, the floods? Each contributing to the other's safety?

11. The decision and clashes? Fear, determination, rivalry? People being injured? Talking together, morale? The binding of the group together? mutual help, the effect of the deaths? People drawing on their better selves? the motives for surviving?

12. The darkness and the light, close-ups, the group scenes?

13. How well delineated each character? Tom Phelan as the young policeman having to cope with something beyond his experience, Ed and his responsibility for the railway, Al and his seeming menace and toughness and his helping, the black woman and her desire to see her children, the two girls and their fears and survival?

14. The popularity of the disaster film? Audience identification, sharing in fears, heroism?