The Philadelphia Experiment (1984)

Today I decided to go with an old science fiction movie, The Philadelphia Experiment. I basically picked it because the name sounded familiar. I later found out that the basic concept is based around a conspiracy theory about a US government experiment preformed in the Philadelphia harbour. Of course the US government claims such a thing never happened. This has lead to all kinds of theories and speculation, and the creation of this movie as well. Need more information? Hit the jump link below!


In this version of the events of that top secret, non-existent experiment in Philadelphia, scientists in 1943 test a way to hide a naval warship from radar detection with a series of super sci-fi looking generators and some crazy radiation emitters mounted on the ship. At first the experiment seems to work perfectly as the ship vanishes from radar screens. It isn't long, however, before all hell breaks loose on the ship as it's further affected by the strange energy. The ship and the men aboard start to glow and radiate with the energy and systems begin to fail, all of this unknown to those on the shore. Moments later it vanishes from the harbour completely. Two of the sailors working in the generator room, and not knowing the full extent of the situation outside, decide to run for it as the generators start to glow and pulse with energy. As soon as they make it outside, they jump over the rail, expecting to land in water, but instead fall through a trippy wormhole, landing in the middle of a desert late at night. What they don't realize, is they've also landed in the year 1984.

David and Jim make for the railing as the warship glows with strange energy

While there wasn't anything terribly amazing about the movie, I still found myself enjoying it. Most of the actors weren't recognizable and their performances were fine, but not great. At least none of them came across as bad. I did recognize 2 actors in the film however. They would be Nancy Allen, who I looked up and realized was in RoboCop, and the great character actor Stephen Tobolowsky! If you haven't heard Mr. Tobolowsky's podcast about life, love, and the entertainment industry, I HIGHLY recommend you seek it out the instant you finish reading this review! In fact, here's a handy link to the first episode. I recommend listening to them in order as he occasionally references events in previous episodes. No man can tell a story quite like Stephen Tobolowsky!

The effects stood out to me. They had that 80's quality of overlaid lighting effects which I'm not terribly sure how they accomplished. They mainly come in the form of lightning and some crazy end-of-the-world sky and cloud effects which all reminded me of Ghostbusters. Then there's that weird red/yellow filter effect they used to represent the energy, which sometimes only glows on a single hand or a person, not always then entire screen. Sure they're dated and looked old, but for whatever reason, they just worked for me, and I liked it.

The warship appears to shine from the shore just before vanishing completely

The other thing I found interesting were David and Jim's reactions to the world of the 80's having been time warped from the 40's. There were so many advances in those years, and the world changed so much that there was almost always something for them to point at and be confused. Not knowing what a pop can is or how to open it for example. Remember, in the 40's pop still all came in glass bottles, and aluminum cans hadn't been invented yet. Even just coming from a pre-World War II to a post Vietnam world is a minor, but interesting concept to think about.

It was a simple film, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. It screamed basic 80's sci-fi all over, but it was charming and nothing really bothered me about it. Compared to today's movies and where sci-fi has advanced to, most will probably find the story pretty uninspired and plain, especially when concerning time travel, but again I say that I liked it. To heck with all those fancy movies and their modern effects, no matter what anyone says, I hold to my word on this neat little movie, and I doubt I'm alone in the world with that opinion.