A Distant Thunder (1978)

Fantastic!

Fanciful, disturbing, and wildly original, it announces the arrival of a fresh, bold voice in American cinema.

The film creates a perfect balance between action and depth of basic needs, in the midst of an infertile atmosphere.

One of the worst ways to make a cult movie is to set out to make a cult movie.

In this sequel to "A Thief in the Night", the disappearance of the Christians (known as "the rapture") has occurred and a hell on earth (known as "the tribulation") has begun. Those people who have become Christians during this time are being rounded up and told to renounce Christ or be executed. Those who choose to renounce their faith are required to get the "Mark of the Beast" and are damned for eternity. "Patty Myers" (Patty Dunning) is one of those who knows the truth but is unsure of what to do and this film follows her up to the point of no return. Like the original movie, the acting and script are pretty basic. However, I thought this film was more polished and was a bit more exciting than the first. Again, this is a Christian movie which is based on a controversial interpretation of the Scriptures which some viewers might not understand or appreciate. In any case, it's worth watching for those who might be curious or simply enjoy this specific type of film.

SPOILERS AVAST! Right, so, seeing as how A Thief in the Night was all a dream, well, it's almost as if this film starts from scratch. The only things carrying over from the first film are the main characters--bless 'em all--and the fact that the rapture came. People are fine, having come together under a world government and receiving the mark of the beast--which is just a tattoo symbol of 666 in binary numbers. Seriously, no one seems to spaz out except the new Christians, who only just realized the evangelicals were right when they all disappeared. For everybody else, it's fine. Well, except weird things start happening, straight outta Revelation. I dunno, it's utter rubbish, but I love it all. I mean, you get the beheading of true believers and the big Blob-inspired cliffhanger ending where you don't know if our heroine is gonna be beheaded or not--that rules. And the fact that the filmmakers basically had to reestablish everything because film #1 was just a dream, well, I think it's great fun. Very innovative stuff here for thelow budget and the fact that it was filmed in my home state of Iowa. I'm all for this kind of filmmaking, even if I'm utterly offended by the views it presents. God bless free speech and the videostore girl who turned me on to this epic, ya know it? Plus, this golden nugget of gold is followed up by a third film in the series: Image of the Beast (filmed in the year of my birth, good ole 1980)!

This is a good sequel to the first, Thief in the Night. The continuation of the main character, Patty, and the "villian," Diane gives it continuity. New characters are also introduced.

Sequel to "A Thief in the Night", this one answers the question: Does Patty sell her soul to Satan? This is the best of the four movies; it's creepy, full of unintended humor, spookiness, and has a funky twist at the end. Accept Jesus into your heart now, before the rapture, or you'll have to hang out with crying high school girls for seven years.