{{About|the 1980 Australian action film|the 1996 film|Chain Reaction (1996 film)}} {{Use Australian English|date=February 2012}} {{Use dmy dates|date=August 2021}} {{Infobox film |name = The Chain Reaction |image = The Chain Reaction 1980 poster.jpg |caption = Theatrical film poster |director = Ian Barry |producer = David Elfick |writer = Ian Barry |starring = Steve Bisley<br />Arna-Maria Winchester<br />Ross Thompson<br />Ralph Cotterill<br />Hugh Keays-Byrne<br />Lorna Lesley<br />Richard Moir |cinematography = Russell Boyd |editing = Tim Wellburn |studio = Palm Beach Pictures<br>Victorian Film Corporation<br>Australian Film Commission |distributor = Hoyts Distribution {{small|(Australia)}}<br>Warner Bros. Pictures {{small|(International)}} |released = {{Film date|1980|09|25|df=y}} |runtime = 92 minutes |country = Australia |language = English |music = Andrew Thomas Wilson |budget = A$450,000<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ozmovies.com.au/movie/chain-reaction|work=OzMovies|title=The Chain Reaction|accessdate=30 May 2020}}</ref> |gross = A$796,000 (Australia) }} '''''The Chain Reaction''''' is a 1980 Australian science fiction thriller film written and directed by Ian Barry. The film stars Steve Bisley and Arna-Maria Winchester. The film's plot is about an engineer badly injured in an accident caused by an earthquake. He knows that the nuclear waste will poison the groundwater and wants to warn the public.
The movie features many cast members from ''Mad Max'', among them Mel Gibson as a bearded mechanic, in an uncredited cameo.<ref>[https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000154/ Mel Gibson filmography, imdb]</ref> The taglines used in advertising the film included "A fast drive to Paradise turns into a nuclear nightmare!" and "''Mad Max'' meets ''The China Syndrome''".
The film was rated M in Australia.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.imdb.com/List?heading=14%3BAustralia%3AM&&certificates=Australia%3AM&&skip=8600 |title=Titles with cerficate: Australia: M|website=www.imdb.com}}{{dead link|date=November 2023}}</ref>
==Plot== {{more plot|date=May 2026}} An earthquake in rural Australia causes a dangerous leak at WALDO (Western Atomic Longterm Dumping Organisation), a nuclear waste storage facility. Heinrich Schmidt an engineer badly contaminated in the accident, knows that the leak will poison the groundwater for hundreds of miles around and wants to warn the public. His boss, however, is only interested in protecting himself and believes that the accident should be covered up, when in fact the contamination risks thousands of lives. Heinrich escapes from the facility but is badly injured. Lost in the woods and suffering from amnesia, he is rescued by Larry Stilson, a car mechanic and Vietnam Veteran on holiday, and his wife Carmel. As Heinrich tries to piece together his memories of what happened, his boss' thugs are quickly closing in on the trio.
==Cast== *Steve Bisley – Larry Stilson *Arna-Maria Winchester – Carmel Stilson *Ross Thompson – Heinrich Schmidt *Ralph Cotterill – Gray *Hugh Keays-Byrne – Eagle *Lorna Lesley – Gloria *Richard Moir – Junior Constable Pigott *Patrick Ward – Oates *Laurie Moran – Police Sgt. McSweeney *Michael Long – Doctor *Bill McCluskey – Ralph *Margo Lloyd – Molly *Tim Burns – Survey driver *Arthur Sherman - Byron Langley *Barry Donnelly - Gateman *P. J. Jones - Bernie the Beater *David Bracks - Spray Painter *Jone Winchester - Marcia *Joshua Ward - Jason Stillson *Ryan McKibbon - Stephen Stillson *Kim Gyngell - Crabs *Roger Ward - Moose *Sal Sharah - Pellegrini *Frankie J. Holden - Farts *Mel Gibson – Bearded mechanic (uncredited) *Will Taylor – Little kid
==Production== thumb|right|200px|A car chase sequence of ''The Chain Reaction''. The film was the idea of director Ian Barry. He had been talking to producer David Elfick about making a film called ''Sparks'' about a blind film director, based on a short film he had made, but Elfick thought the subject matter would be too difficult to finance. Barry had written another film, a thriller then entitled ''The Man at the Edge of the Freeway'', and Elfick decided to make that instead. The movie was budgeted at $600,000 but the Australian Film Commission thought it was too high so it was re-budgeted at $450,000. George Miller came on the project as associate producer.<ref name="stratton2">David Stratton, ''The Avocado Plantation: Boom and Bust in the Australian Film Industry'', Pan MacMillan, 1990 p247-248</ref>
Funding came from the Australian Film Commission, Victorian Film Corporation and Hoyts. Shooting started in September 1979 and took place in Sydney and Glen Davis, New South Wales.<ref name="stratton">David Stratton, ''The Last New Wave: The Australian Film Revival'', Angus & Robertson, 1980 p285</ref> Elfick says the location at Glen Davis was rumoured to be the site of an aboriginal massacre and was supposed to be cursed; he believed it because filming was extremely difficult.<ref name="stratton2"/>
Filming took longer than expected and the movie went 40% over budget. Miller was tasked with directing the car chase sequences, which featured the Ford Fairlane LTD in most scenes as the preferred vehicle of the antagonistic authority chasing Larry's modified Holden HQ ute.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.grindhousedatabase.com/index.php/The_Chain_Reaction|title= GrindhouseDatabase – The Chain Reaction|accessdate=11 January 2010}}</ref> David Elfick also filmed some second unit.<ref name="stratton2"/>
The film was shot with a widescreen anamorphic lens. Post production was reputedly very difficult with representatives from the AFC, VFC and Hoyts supervising and discussing every cut of the film.<ref name="stratton"/>
==Distribution== The film was released shortly after ''Mad Max'' and it has a similar theme to that film as well as American films like ''The China Syndrome'' in regards to the whole nuclear-apocalyptic storyline.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cinephilia.net.au/show_amovie.php?movieid=3305|title=Cinephilia – The Chain Reaction|accessdate=11 January 2010|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090922205335/http://cinephilia.net.au/show_amovie.php?movieid=3305|archivedate=22 September 2009}}</ref>
The film was distributed in Australia by Palm Beach Pictures and Warner Bros. Pictures in the rest of the world and released on 25 September 1980.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.inbaseline.com/project.aspx?project_id=70871|title=Inbaseline|accessdate=1 November 2010}}{{Dead link|date=June 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=no }}</ref>
==Soundtrack== {{Infobox album | name = The Chain Reaction | type = soundtrack | artist = Andrew Thomas Wilson | cover = | released = 1980 | recorded = 1980 | venue = | studio = | genre = Rock, film score | length = | label = | producer = }} The music for the film was composed by Andrew Thomas Wilson.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.discogs.com/Andrew-Thomas-Wilson-The-Chain-Reaction-Original-Soundtrack-Music/release/1352248|title=Andrew Thomas Wilson-The Chain Reaction-Original Soundtrack|website=Discogs|accessdate=11 January 2010}}</ref>
===Track listing=== # "Awakening" (1:46) # "The Beast" (4:17) # "Decontamination" (2:05) # "Heinrich's Theme" (3:00) # "WALDO" (1:17) # "A Swim in the River" (1:48) # "Chain Reaction" (4:52) # "Once More with Feeling" (3:00) # "Paradise Valley" (1:03) # "Car Chase" (4:31) # "Carmel's Theme" (1:38) # "WALDO Arrives" (1:57) # "The Hand at the Window" (0:42) # "Message to a Friend" (End tiles)(4:28)
==Awards and critical reception== {| class="wikitable" |- ! Award ! Category ! Subject ! Result |- |rowspan=8|AACTA Awards<ref>[https://www.imdb.com/Sections/Awards/Australian_Film_Institute/1980 AFI Awards Nominees and Winners at IMDb]</ref><br><small>(1980 AFI Awards)</small> |Best Supporting Actress |Lorna Lesley |{{nom}} |- |Best Cinematography |Russell Boyd |{{nom}} |- |Best Editing |rowspan=2|Tim Wellburn |{{nom}} |- |rowspan=3|Best Sound |{{nom}} |- |Lloyd Carrick |{{nom}} |- |Phil Judd |{{nom}} |- |Best Production Design |Graham 'Grace' Walker |{{nom}} |- |Best Costume Design |Norma Moriceau |{{nom}} |- |Saturn Award |colspan=2|Best International Film<ref>[https://www.imdb.com/Sections/Awards/Academy_of_Science_Fiction_Fantasy_And_Horror_Films_USA/1983#Saturn_Award_Best_International_Film Saturn Awards Nominees and Winners at IMDb]</ref> |{{nom}} |- |}
The web page TV Guide.com gave 3 out 4 stars.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://movies.tvguide.com/chain-reaction/review/110610|title=movies.tvguide.com – The Chain Reaction|accessdate=11 January 2010|archive-date=28 May 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120528022011/http://movies.tvguide.com/chain-reaction/review/110610|url-status=dead}}</ref> In Yahoo! Movies, the users rating to the film with a C<ref>{{cite web|url=https://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1800045696/info|title=Yahoo! Movies: The Chain Reaction – Movie Info |accessdate=13 January 2010}}</ref> and 5.5 out of 10 in Internet Movie Database.
==Titles around the world== thumb|right|alt=''Die KettenReaktion'' (1980), a theatrical poster for Germany|Theatrical German poster. *''Detector'' (Italy) *''Ketjureaktio'' (Finland) *''Die Kettenreaktion'' (West Germany) *''Nuclear Run'' *''Peligro: reacción en cadena'' (Spain) *''Perigo...Reacção em Cadeia'' (Portugal) *''Skotoste ton, xerei polla!'' (Greece) *''The Man at the Edge of the Freeway''* (Australia) <small>*Working title</small>
==Home media== The DVD includes these extras:<ref name=Nuclear>{{cite web|url=http://www.michaeldvd.com.au/Reviews/Reviews.asp?ID=8611|title=The Chain Reaction – DVD details|accessdate=11 January 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.digital-retribution.com/reviews/dvd/0607.php|title=The Chain Reaction – DVD |accessdate=12 January 2010}}</ref> #''Thills and Nuclear Spills: The making of the film'' (31:37) #''The Sparks Obituary'' (24:50) #''Deleted and extended scenes'' (8:14) #''TV Spot'' (0:32) #''Stills and Poster gallery'' (2:54) #"Theatrical Trailer" (3:19) #''Aussie trailers'' (9:46) The video presents a 1.70:1 aspect ratio, originally 1.66:1.<ref name=Nuclear />
==Box office== The world-wide distribution rights were bought by Warner Bros. which put the film instantly in profit.<ref name="DVD">''Thrills and Nuclear Spills: The Making of 'The Chain Reaction' '' (video short) (2005)</ref> '' The Chain Reaction'' grossed A$796,000 at the box office in Australia,<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://film.vic.gov.au/resources/documents/AA4_Aust_Box_office_report.pdf |title=''Film Victoria – Australian Films at the Australian Box Office'' |access-date=24 October 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110218045303/http://film.vic.gov.au/resources/documents/AA4_Aust_Box_office_report.pdf |archive-date=18 February 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref> which is equivalent to A$3,607,677 in 2021 dollars.
==See also== *''The China Syndrome'' *''The Crazies''
==References== {{Reflist|30em}}
==External links== *{{IMDb title|id=0080513|title=The Chain Reaction}} *[http://www.ozmovies.com.au/movie/chain-reaction ''The Chain Reaction''] at Oz Movies *[http://aso.gov.au/titles/features/the-chain-reaction/ ''The Chain Reaction''] at Australian Screen Online
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chain Reaction}} Category:1980 films Category:1980s chase films Category:1980s disaster films Category:1980 independent films Category:1980s science fiction thriller films Category:Australian independent films Category:Australian disaster films Category:Australian science fiction thriller films Category:Films about automobiles Category:Films about nuclear accidents Category:Films produced by George Miller (filmmaker) Category:Fiction about nuclear accidents and incidents Category:1980 English-language films Category:1980 science fiction films Category:English-language science fiction thriller films Category:English-language independent films Category:English-language action thriller films Category:Warner Bros. films