What a waste of my time!!!

Best movie ever!

Too much about the plot just didn't add up, the writing was bad, some of the scenes were cringey and awkward,

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

Astronauts Newman (a solid and sincere performance by Steve Barkett) and Matthews (well played by Larry Latham) return to Earth only to discover that a nuclear holocaust has caused civilization to collapse and subsequently degenerate into a harsh barbaric state. Newman must protect himself and several other people from the evil Cutter (Sid Haig in fine nasty form) and his gang of vicious outlaw bikers. Writer/director Barkett maintains a tough gritty tone throughout (for example, both women and children are brutally killed), relates the engrossing story at a snappy pace, stages the exciting action set pieces with flair, and delivers a chilling "adapt or die" central message. The moments of raw violence and stark savagery pack a fierce punch. The special effects are quite good considering the modest budget. Moreover, the fetching Lynne Margulies provides plenty of spark as the plucky Sarah, Forrest J. Ackerman has a small, but memorable role as a dying museum curator, and Dick Miller's voice can be heard on a tape recorder. The sharp cinematography by Dennis Skotak and Thomas F. Denove gives this picture an impressive polished look. John W. Morgan's robust score hits the rousing spot. An on the money indie winner.

After knowing it "inspired" DEFCON-4, I went in search for this film, since I'm addicted to PA (Post-Apocalyptic) movies. I don't care about budget and technical limitations. I'd rather focus on the feel and the honesty of the work. And in this field, The Aftermath really shines. The history and characters easily overlook the obvious low budget restrictions and put to shame many hi budget counterparts.The premise is: 3 astronauts come back to Earth after a long space mission, just to find it destroyed by nuclear war. One of them die on the spaceship forced landing, and the other two must find their way through the new and haunting reality of a nuked world, facing radiation, mutants, marauders and the lack of hope for the future.The dialog, acting and the action scenes are somewhat laughable, but no one can deny the fact that there's an obvious labor of love beneath each take. OTOH, inventive (altough simplistic) visual effects, a huge and loud soundtrack and the voice-over only adds to the bleak atmosphere. There are effective sequences like the radioactive rain, the dead city landscapes and the corpses on the beach. Surely they're the film highlights.A great movie despite the low budget restraints, and much better than the most contemporary (and some newer) PA movies.

Actually, I grew up with Laura Barkett (Steve's daughter) who was but a wee tot in the movie (those of you who remember the line "this one's for Laura" before Steve offs a villain)--well, that's about the only memorable thing this movie had for me. One night in 1983, I was spending the night at Laura Barkett's house (in Oklahoma; her mom & her dad, Steve, were divorced & he lived in Cali making low-budget, weak-scripted movies that he threw his kids into for fun) and although at that age (11) was an apocalyptic movie NOT up my alley, I agreed to watch it with Laura because she was in it, after all; so was her older brother Chris, and of course, her dad was the one who MADE the movie. I lasted about 20 minutes into the movie. But I do remember being awakened toward the end by Laura telling me "You have to see this part! He says my name!" Hence, the "this one's for Laura" line. Sure, it was interesting seeing my 6th grade best friend and her older brother in a real live MOVIE, and although I was just 11 when I watched it (at least the parts I didn't sleep through), I just don't think I could sit thru it again--except to fast-forward to the parts where Laura and Chris are shown, since I actually KNOW them. The special effects weren't very special, and frankly, I was bored to tears. But hey--judge it for yourself. Frankly, I'd be surprised if it's still AVAILABLE on video. Steve Barkett would've been better off making home movies as a hobby.

yes, total vomit, if I was in this movie, I would be totaly ashamed of it...This is a good example of how NOT to make a movie1) poor quality video 2) crap effects 3) cheap shots 4) lauhable acting / scenes 5) totaly unrealistic, people get shot in the legs and can still walk! 6) shocking sums it upOnly watch this if you want to laugh at a crud movie I give it 0.00000000000001