Testament (1983)
84%RT Audience Score: 75%
Awards & Nominations: 15 wins & 25 nominations
Testament shrugs off budget limitations to tell a powerful story that anchors nuclear paranoia in one family’s harrowing ordeal
Testament is a movie that will make you feel like you’ve been hit by a ton of bricks, but in a good way. It’s haunting, emotional, and devastating, but it’s also warm and uplifting. The photography is of high quality, and the director has made excellent use of her limited resources. The performances are outstanding, especially Jane Alexander’s, who shows a resilient admirable core of humanity. It’s a simple and resourceful film that will make you confront nuclear war in a very personal way. So, grab some tissues and get ready for an extraordinary and powerful experience.
Production Company(ies)
Chartoff-Winkler Productions,
Distributor
NA
Release Type
Theatrical
Filming Location(s)
Brussels, Brussels-Capital, Belgium
MPAA / Certificate
Not Rated
Year of Release
2015
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby Digital
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Aspect ratio:2.35 : 1
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Runtime:NA
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Language(s):French, German
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Streaming): Mar 18, 2014
Genre(s)
Drama
Keyword(s)
Testament, drama, Lynne Littman, Jonathan Bernstein, John Sacret Young, PG, Jane Alexander, William Devane, Roxana Zal, Rossie Harris, Lukas Haas, Philip Anglim, nuclear war, radiation poisoning, survival, family, tragedy, emotional, haunting, powerful, low budget, photography, personal, compassionate, love, resilience, humanity, nuclear paranoia, critic reviews, Catherine Rambeau, Kathleen Carroll, Janet Maslin, Sheila Benson, Vern Perry, Dennis Wellington, JoAnn Rhetts, Nancy Scott, Terry Orme, Jack Garner, Ginger Varney, Lou Lumenick, audience score, box office performance, budget, reviewed by critics
Worldwide gross: $15,709,652
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $19,609,861
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,721
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 2,138,480
US/Canada gross: $127,910
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $159,666
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,584
US/Canada opening weekend: $10,422
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $13,009
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,645
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): 8555500
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $10,679,560
Production budget ranking: 1,639
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $5,750,943
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): $3,179,359
ROI to date (est.): 19%
ROI ranking: 1,295
William Devane – Tom Wetherly
Roxana Zal – Mary Liz Wetherly
Rossie Harris – Brad Wetherly
Lukas Haas – Scottie Wetherly
Philip Anglim – Father Hollis Mann
Jonathan Bernstein – Producer
Lynne Littman – Director, Producer
John Sacret Young – Writer
Director(s)
Lynne Littman
Writer(s)
John Sacret Young
Producer(s)
Jonathan Bernstein, Lynne Littman
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
15 wins & 25 nominations
Academy Awards
Oscar Nominees
All Critics (45) | Top Critics (21) | Fresh (40) | Rotten (5)
There’s nothing impersonal about this movie. Nothing unbelievable, either, if you believe the human animal has a core of righteousness that can shine like a sun when everything else has been lost.
May 10, 2021 | Rating: 8/10
Catherine Rambeau
Detroit Free Press
TOP CRITIC
[Testament] is a haunting, emotionally devastating movie.
May 10, 2021 | Rating: 3.5/4
Kathleen Carroll
New York Daily News
TOP CRITIC
It’s a simple and resourceful film and one that has been made with unmistakable conviction.
May 10, 2021
Janet Maslin
New York Times
TOP CRITIC
Towering over every other performance is Jane Alexander’s Carol Wetherly. It is a side of Alexander that no one has caught before, not even in her finest work.
May 10, 2021
Sheila Benson
Los Angeles Times
TOP CRITIC
It is impossible not to be affected or frightened by Testament.
May 10, 2021
Vern Perry
Orange County Register
TOP CRITIC
It can sober and depress, certainly; but often it does uplift.
May 10, 2021
Dennis Wellington
Sydney Morning Herald
TOP CRITIC
Living an unspeakable nightmare from which there’s no waking, [Alexander] suggests a resilient admirable core of humanity.
May 10, 2021
JoAnn Rhetts
Charlotte Observer
Although Testament was made on a tiny budget (4750,000), the photography is of high quality and director, Lynne Littman has made excellent use of her limited resources.
May 10, 2021 | Rating: 3/4
Nancy Scott
San Francisco Examiner
What lingers after seeing Testament is a warm feeling, one which comes from watching a group of people continue to give of themselves, to show compassion and love, even in the face of unimaginable adversity.
May 10, 2021
Terry Orme
Salt Lake Tribune
Despite its flaws, Testament achieves a commendable goal: It makes you confront nuclear war in a very personal way.
May 10, 2021 | Rating: 4/5
Jack Garner
Rochester Democrat and Chronicle
Littman’s direction and Jane Alexander’s acting are good, too good to be wasted on this thin, sad, sentimental phantom of a film.
May 10, 2021
Ginger Varney
L.A. Weekly
Extraordinarily powerful.
May 10, 2021
Lou Lumenick
Bergen Record (New Jersey)…
Plot
God lives in human form as a cynical writer with his young opinionated daughter in present-day Brussels, Belgium. She concludes that her dad is doing a terrible job and decides to rewrite the world, descending to earth in search of her own 6 messengers to write a brand new testament and change the status quo.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
There is no goofy or funny or odd comment about the film Testament on Fresh Kernels.
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