- published: 29 Jan 2015
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Testament (1983) is a drama film directed by Lynne Littman and starring Jane Alexander.
The film tells the story of how one small suburban town near the San Francisco Bay Area slowly falls apart after a nuclear war destroys outside civilization.
Originally produced for the PBS series American Playhouse, it was given a theatrical release instead (although PBS did subsequently air it a year later).
The cast includes William Devane, Leon Ames, Lukas Haas, Roxana Zal and, in small roles shortly before a rise in their stardom, Kevin Costner and Rebecca De Mornay.
Based on The Last Testament by Carol Amen, the film script was by John Sacret Young, who would later create the television series China Beach. Alexander was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance.
The Wetherly family--husband Tom (William Devane), wife Carol (Jane Alexander), and children Brad (Ross Harris), Mary Liz (Roxana Zal), and Scottie (Lukas Haas)--live in the fictional suburb of Hamlin, California, within a 90-minute drive of San Francisco, where Tom works. On a routine afternoon, Carol (a stay-at-home mom and volunteer for school functions such as directing the school play) listens to an answering-machine message from Tom saying he's on his way home for dinner. Scottie watches Sesame Street on TV as a sibling adjusts the TV antenna on the roof, when the show is suddenly replaced by white noise; suddenly, a news anchor appears onscreen:
Walking through the garden
Through the garden of temptation
Tempestuous in youth
Seek the testament of truth
An angst that bears no sobs or self-pitied cries
He cherishes his one daily job with pride
The job to stay alive
Quest for reasons in empty hearts
Death the adventure when life's the bore
But in the face of defeat a lion roars
Statutes stand like statues
Laws stagnant in value
For the rulers of the ruled
The fools and the fooled
But should your carcass rot in a gutter
While your ideals go to heaven
When rebellion's the cause
Like a spartacus it's yours today
And tomorrow this testament will fall
Dying to be written
A new testament to be born
The lion roars, the lion roars
The lion roars as never before