Andromeda Strain

MOVIE DESCRIPTION:

The "Andromeda Strain" is a deadly extraterrestrial virus. It is brought to Earth when a research satellite crashes near a tiny Arizona town. Everyone in the community dies within days, except for a baby and an "insulated" drunkard. Recruited from labs all over North America, doctors Charles Dutton (David Wayne), Jeremy Stone (Arthur Hill), Ruth Leavitt (Kate Reid), and Mark Hall (James Olson) don radiation suits and race against time to isolate and destroy the virus. The film is based on a novel by Michael Crichton. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

DVD FEATURES:

• Region: 1
• Number of Discs: 1
• Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 (Cinemascope)
• Audio: Dolby Digital Stereo
• Screen: Enhanced Wide Screen Letterbox for 16x9 TV
• Subtitle: French, Spanish, English
• Features:
  • • Making of "The Andromeda Strain"
    • A portrait of Michael Crichton
    • Theatrical trailer

AWARDS

• Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences

•     Nominated Best Art Direction - 1971 (William Tuntke, Ruby Levitt, Boris Leven)
•     Nominated Best Editing - 1971 (Stuart Gilmore, John W. Holmes)

• Hollywood Foreign Press Association

•     Nominated Best Original Score - 1971 (Gil Melle)

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

• Director:

  Robert Wise

• Producer:

  Robert Wise

• Book Author:

  Michael Crichton

• Screenwriter:

  Nelson Gidding

• Cinematographer:

  Richard H. Kline

• Composer (Music Score):

  Gil Melle

• Editor:

  Stuart Gilmore, Jack W. Holmes, John W. Holmes

• Production Designer:

  Boris Leven

• Art Director:

  William Tuntke

• Set Designer:

  Ruby Levitt

• Costume Designer:

  Helen Colvig

• Sound/Sound Designer:

  James R. Alexander, Waldon O. Watson, Ronald Pierce

• Makeup:

  Bud Westmore

• Special Effects:

  Douglas Trumbull

• First Assistant Director:

  Ridgeway Callow

REVIEW:

• Based on the novel by best-selling science fiction alarmist Michael Crichton, The Andromeda Strain combines nuclear fears with space-age technophobia and early-'70s paranoia. Though the action occasionally flags, director Robert Wise documents a diverse group of scientists' efforts to identify a mysterious killer organism and vanquish it with clinical precision, making the most of split-screen editing to show the complexity of the work and ratchet up the suspense. Mostly shot on an elaborate set with a cast of unknowns, The Andromeda Strain also showcases the power and allure of technology, reaching a visually trippy climax as a young doctor scales the core of the multi-level, underground "Wildfire" lab and dodges lasers to avert a nuclear holocaust. One of the period's many dire cautionary tales about the perils of overreaching and the potential nefarious motives of the government, The Andromeda Strain still earned attention for its sleek look, garnering Oscar nominations for art direction and editing. ~ Lucia Bozzola, Rovi