Yes, you had me at killer cockroaches!
At least that's how I felt about Damnation Alley (1977) as a young boy. It was a gripping piece of post-apocalyptic science fiction based loosely on a 1967 short story by Roger Zelazny which he expanded upon into a novel in 1969. Zelazny was not a fan of the film's final result. This boy, however, will never forget the sight of actor Paul Winfield fleeing killer cockroaches only to find refuge in a dilapidated vehicle filled with them. Blood seemed to pour from his every orifice as they simply ate him alive. These were the days indeed.
A genuine sense of post-apocalyptic isolation and dread was created to strong effect by director Jack Smight for Damnation Alley. Backdrops of pink, red and green skies make the Earth feel almost alien. Entering ghost towns echoes that sense of loneliness created to perfection for The Omega Man (1971). It works to strong effect here too for its handful of survivors. Following a nuclear attack a small band of military personnel gather a few of the living as they journey to of all places, Albany, New York, the land of the living.
Nuclear worries and general apocalypse were indeed on the minds of many creative talents in the 1970s. The aforementioned The Omega Man, Mad Max (1979), Silent Running (1972), The Warriors (1979) and before that Planet Of The Apes (1968) which ran as a franchise throughout the 1970s. All are wonderful examples of life after the bomb or of civilization's collapse.
Damnation Alley may be a B movie at best but it looks remarkably good and credible on its modest 8 million dollar budget with convincing performances by its B movie cast (The A-Team's George Peppard, Jan-Michael Vincent, Paul Winfield and Jackie Earle Haley). The script truly shortchanges what could have been much stronger character work here.
And of course it just can't go without being said, that vehicle, the Landmaster (designed by Dean Jefferies), is one of the stars of our film and is shot to great effect throughout this effective, if imperfect and overly efficient, thrill ride. The strong, solid, beast of a vehicle with its rotating twelve wheel axel system, coupled with great use of photography and color actually compensates for the weak creature effects work (those composited live scorpions beating out the roach effects for the worst).
20th Century Fox released Damnation Alley to a critical hammering in October 1977 but there is a lot more to enjoy here than its given credit. It was one of two planned science fiction releases. The other arrived shortly before Damnation Alley in May 1977. It was Star Wars. It was the end. And it was all over for the once previously heralded and anticipated Damnation Alley. Damn indeed.
Damnation Alley. Director: Jack Smight. Writer: Alan Sharp/ Lukas Heller.
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