Rating: PG
Genre:
Action
Release Date: 10/27/1998
SubTitles: English/Espanol
Dubbed: English/French
Sound: DD1
Run Time: 119 Minutes
Flags: Violence, Not For Children, Adult Language
Distributor/Studio: Universal Studios
Rollercoaster was a by-product of the brief "Sensurround" craze of the 1970s. Nutsoid
Timothy Bottoms sabotages an amusement-park roller coaster, killing several innocent revelers. After several other acts of terrorism,
Bottoms (whose character is credited as
Young Man) presents his demands to the authorities via audio tape: one million dollars, or he'll stage five roller-coaster disasters simultaneously in five different parks. Because detective
Harry Calder George Segal evinces a grudging respect for the elusive extortionist,
Bottoms declares that only
Detective Calder will be permitted to deliver the money. Thus the stage is set for an explosive climax, which during the film's original run was accompanied by the Sensurround effect, a gimmick that electronically caused the filmgoer's chairs to begin shaking and vibrating during the "thrill scenes." As with most
disaster flicks of the era,
Rollercoaster is top-heavy with "guest stars," including
Richard Widmark,
Henry Fonda,
Harry Guardino, and
Susan Strasberg. Watch for 13-year-old
Helen Hunt as
Detective Calder's spunky daughter.
~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide