The Andromeda Strain (1971) Part 12

The best-selling novel by Michael Crichton was faithfully adapted for this taut 1971 thriller, about a team of scientists(Arthur Hill, David Wayne, James Olson, Kate Reid and Paula Kelly) racing against time to destroy a deadly alien virus that threatens to wipe out life on Earth. As usual with any Crichton-based movie, the emphasis is on an exciting clash between nature and science, beginning when virologists discover the outer-space virus in a tiny town full of corpses. Projecting total contamination, the scientists isolate the deadly strain in a massive, high-tech underground lab facility, which is rigged for nuclear destruction if the virus is not successfully controlled. The movie spends a great deal of time covering the scientific procedures of the high-pressure investigation, and the rising tensions between scientists who have been forced to work in claustrophobic conditions. It's all very fascinating if you're interested in scientific method and technological advances but it's more effective as a thriller in which tension is derived not only from the deadly threat of the virus, but from the escalating fear and anxiety among the small group of people who've been assigned to save the human race. The basic premise is still captivating; it's easy to see how this became the foundation of Crichton's science-thriller empire.

Category:

Film & Animation

Tags:

• Andromeda
• Strain
• Virus
• Michael
• Crichton

[Roodosutaa]

I love old tech with green screens and big illuminated buttons that click loudly :)

And Error 601... must be the 404 of its day

[konachai1]

Amazing movie for it's day.

[beaverpitt]

how did she go from treating the scientist to treating the baby in 2 seconds???

[submariner103182]

I love both the book and the movie and of course the theme of both is that mistakes are made frequently within the scientific process inadvertently. However, if I were Stone, I would have thrown the "odd man hypothesis" out at this point and taken at least two non-essential personnel and charged them with the task of disarming the bomb if it were ever to be activated since Andromeda feeds off pure energy.

[Bobanort]

I thought you guys were joking about the epilepsy.

I didn't catch the lights were flashing and caused her to seize.

[kelseyleannemusic]

haha - poor jackson in there with that crying baby.

does the movie say what the missed 'no growth' culture was treated with?

[wpl955g]

There's a couple lines missing in this version that underscore that irony nicely - after the convince the President's aide to tell him to call it off, he smugly comments that 'The President will be pleased to learn he made the right decision.' Ruth fires back, 'Congratulate him on his scientific insight!' and the poor guy does'nt have a comeback.

[Leechbat]

OMG that´s the problem with the humans...They always want to develop biological weapons...no honor in that, Whats the point if you throw a weapon you can´t control after you used it...It can turn against you...And humans know it but they try to deny it, obsesives about power So best war you can fight isn´t with chemical nor biological weapons, no bio or chemical weapon can be controlled, sooner or later spread and scapes beyond our control, and can kill even their creators, use rifles instead

[Leechbat]

Yah, agree I hate Error 404 and I hate all the windows errors as well, I don´t even know what 404 means...Well by what the doc said 601 was the error for the comp to be overloaded of data, when he ran the simulation, the comp went crazy, it´s the equivalent of running 9 games at once in the system...it will definitely go nutz...

[Leechbat]

Yah...That´s cool

[KipSP]

lol

[EarlSnohomish]

...and even in 2009.