Review of Damnation Alley (1977) by Eric R — 22 Jul 2011

By today's standards Damnation Alley's got cheesy effects and heaps of 70s nostalgic charm. But, at the time, it was intended to be serious sci-fi joining other apocalyptic flicks of the era like Omega Man and Ultimate Warrior. Jan Michael Vincent was a rising young star in the 70s and George Peppard was still a top veteran actor. Alley is the story of a post atomic war America and the survival efforts of a group of military officers and some civilians they meet during their travels across country in armored vehicles called landmasters. During the film they encounter mutant rednecks, giant scorpions and flesh eating cockroaches as they try to reach the supposed uneffected city of Albany. Yes, it's campy by today's standards but, as a nostalgic example of 70s sci-fi, it's a lot of fun. And who doesn't like flesh eating cockroaches?...

Sadly, Damnation Alley was outdated before it was even released as a little movie called "Star Wars" opened 5 months earlier and changed sci-fi and movies forever.