Azalea Pictures [1967] 80′
country: United States
director: LARRY BUCHANAN
cast: PAUL PETERSON, QUINN O’HARA,
cast: CHARLA DOHERTY, NEIL FLETCHER
After the success of their 1961 film MASTER OF THE WORLD, American International Pictures was itching to produce another fantastic film based on the works of Jules Verne – they acquired the rights to the short story IN THE YEAR 2889 in hopes of adapting it, but the project was shelved. Cut to 1967 – Larry Buchanan was working on another of his infamous AIP TV projects [pictures contracted for to fill out their syndication packages], his fourth such film, and needed a title. Having already purchased the rights to the story and refusing to waste perfectly good money, AIP attached the title of the short story to the new Buchanan film.
IN THE YEAR 2889 has absolutely nothing to do with the Jules Verne story from which it takes its namesake and is in no way futuristic science fiction – it is, instead, a near scene-for-scene remake of the Roger Corman’s post apocalyptic mutants-amok film THE DAY THE WORLD ENDED. Much of the dialogue remains intact in this updating, though the scope of the story [already limited to a single location to begin with] has been downsized a bit due to budgetary necessity [the budget for this TV production was around $20,000, compared to the roughly $90,000 expended on the Corman film].
