|
|
|
|
|
Without WarningWithout Warning is a TV movie that premiered on CBS on Halloween night, October 31, 1994. The movie centered around one news reporter (Sander Vanocur playing himself) and a scientific analyst (Jane Kaczmarek as Dr. Caroline Jaffe) covering a breaking news story of three asteroid fragments crashing into the Earth's northern hemisphere. The fragments landed in Wyoming, France, and a sparsely-populated area of Northern China. Throughout the film, the story unfolds as survivors are found near the impact sites, speaking in unintelligible syllables. The movie is presented as if it were an actual breaking news event, complete with remote reports from several reporters. The film never breaks character, remaining in front of the camera for the duration of the film and never going behind the scenes. The film employed "accellerated time" (i.e. events said to have taken place an hour apart actually take place a few minutes apart), among other storytelling devices to make it clear to viewers paying attention that it was not real. This, combined with the casting of Kaczmarek, a recognizable actress, as well as several other well-known performers in secondary roles (such as regular John de Lancie as a reporter), was expected to alleviate any concerns that the story being shown was actually happening. In addition, when it originally premiered, the movie had warnings during the commercial breaks stating that the film was completely fictional, and that the events were not actually happening. The producers used actual CBS News graphics to help accentuate the feeling that it was real, however, leading to at least one uproar over the events. In Fort Smith, Arkansas, the CBS affiliate reported that they had received dozens of calls regarding the incident and whether it was actually happening. Other affiliates in the area representing the other networks of ABC, Fox, and NBC were also flooded with complaints, asking them why they were not covering this event at the same time that CBS was covering it. Following the movie, CNN issued an order that its reporters and anchors will not be allowed to play themselves or any other role in a movie. Some accused CBS of being irresponsible in showing the movie during the primetime hours, when some children were still out trick-or-treating, but very few occasions have happened since Orson Welles' 1938 The War of the Worlds radio broadcast that so many people have been taken in so masterfully by a production such as Without Warning. The film was released on DVD July 8, 2003, nearly nine years after its initial, and only, showing on CBS. Similar films
|
 |
| |
|
|