CHAPTER 9

Retreats in the Media

These sources have some relevance to survivalist retreats, though admittedly in some cases not much.

MOVIES

The Beach (2000) – A wandering American gets more than he can handle in a secret Thai island community.

The Book of Eli (2010) – A man travels on a mission to protect a sacred book that contains the secrets to mankind's survival.

The Crazies (2010) – A small Iowa town is ravaged by zombie-ish insane people after an accidental release of toxins into the water supply.

Dawn of the Dead (1978 and 2004) – Survivors of a zombie plague take refuge. Both versions are classics.

Day of the Triffids (1964 movie; 2009 TV miniseries) – Celestial disturbances blind 99 percent of the population, and an invasion by alien plants ensues.

Defiance (2008) – Brothers flee into the Belarusian forests where they join Russian resistance fighters and build a retreat to protect a large refugee Jewish group.

Deliverance (1972) – A group of friends get an unpleasant reception when they take a river trip into Deep South backcountry.

I Am Legend (2008) – One of a few survivors of a zombie plague tries valiantly to find a cure. It's a classic adaptation of Matheson's novel of the same name, one of many adaptations since The Last Man on Earth (1964). Vincent Price plays a sole survivor of a living-dead plague.

Mad Max 2 (Road Warrior) (1981) – In post-apocalypse Australia Mel Gibson saves a retreat community from the marauding hordes.

Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome (1985) – Mel Gibson works two—yes, two—retreats: a sleazebag tech town and a colony of children.

Malevil (1972) – Buddies are in a castle wine cellar and survive nuclear armageddon. They attempt to rebuild a society which must be protected from the evil surviving neighbors.

No Blade of Grass (1970) – A family heads to Scotland when a virus devastates London.

Omega Man (1971) – A self-immunized scientist in L.A. survives germ warfare only to be forced to deal with vampirish zombie hordes of pissed-off survivors. This was an early adaptation of the I Am Legend theme.

Packin’ It In (1983) – A comedy in which families flee to the mountains from strange afflictions in L.A.

Panic in the Year Zero (1962) – Before Red Dawn, this was the ultimate survivalist movie. It's still one of the best and most believable. Nuclear bombs destroy L.A. and other large cities around the world while a family is on a camping trip, and Dad fights to save the family while local society goes to hell in a handbasket.

The Postman (1997) – A con man finds his life's calling delivering mail to post-apocalypse survivors.

Ravenous (1999) – Soldiers, cannibalism, and Indian demon legends combine in a rather gruesome story set near the Sierra Nevada mountains in the mid-19th century.

Red Dawn (1984 and 2011) – This is the classic survivalist movie in which all-American high school kids fight communist invaders, Russians/Cubans in 1984 and North Koreans in 2011.

Reign of Fire (2002) – Years after a plague of fire-breathing dragons take over, a team of dragon-slayer specialists join a local survivor community to destroy the dragons and regain control.

The Road (2009) – Vigo plays the role of a man who will do anything to keep his son alive in a post-apocalypse mess.

The Stand (1994 TV miniseries) – A plague decimates the planet and confused survivors of a small town must deal with the forces of good and evil waging war among them.

The Survivors (1983) - Two strangers end up in a survival retreat preparing for battle after a joint encounter with a hit man who pursues them.

Swiss Family Robinson (1960) – A family is shipwrecked on a deserted island and prepares to do battle with pirates.

Tank Girl (1995) – After a comet wastes, the earth and water becomes scarce, Tank girl does battle against water-monopolizing giant corporations.

Terminator: Judgment Day (1991) – Bad-cyborg-turned-hero Arnold schwarzenegger strives to protect Sarah Connor and her son from an advanced cyborg from hell. This movie contains only a very few references regarding retreats but for some unknown reason is often cited by survivalists as a classic retreat movie.

Tremors (1990) – A group of survivors in a small town do battle against the giant wormlike underground creatures that have surrounded their town and killed off their neighbors. Reba McEntire and Michael Gross are hysterically funny in their roles as classic survivalists.

Twelve Monkeys (1995) – In a disease-devastated future, Bruce Willis is sent back in time to find out what happened.

Waterworld (1995) – Global warming has melted the ice caps and flooded the earth. Costner plays a mutant human with gills and webbed digits who fights off the marauding marine hordes and helps a woman and a child find dry land.

2012 (2009) – A global disaster destroys the world. The chosen few are to be saved on specially prepared “arks” while the have-nots are left to their own resources.

FICTION PRINT

Alas, Babylon, Pat Frank, 1959 – An excellent book by author Frank (Hart) written as he watched the Cold War unfold. The plot involves a nuclear holocaust predicted by the hero, who stockpiles provisions. Disorder prevails but eventually, human spirit and love triumph. Spark notes at: http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/alas/context.html

The Day of the Triffids, John Wyndham, 1951 – see the movie summary.

Deliverance, 1970 – see the movie summary.

Dies the Fire, 2004, S. M. Stirling – This is the first in the Emberverse series by Stirling. “The Change” alters science and technology, resulting in the demise of society and infrastructure. The protagonist battles evil survivalists, rotten lawmen, cannibals, etc.

Earth Abides, George Stewart, 1949 – Civilization is obliterated by disease and survivors adapt.

Ecotopia, Ernest Callenbach, 1975 – This book appeals to left-leaning hippie-style idealists. The story is about Ecotopia, a new country formed by the succession of several western U.S. states to escape the evils of materialism. Listen closely and you can hear the kumbayahs.

Ecotopia Emerging, Ernest Callenbach, 1981 – More of the same.

Farnham's Freehold, Robert Heinlein, 1964 – Farnham's retreat backfires and sends him into a new universe where his family is doomed to slavery.

Lucifer's Hammer, Pournelle and Niven, 1977 – Another comet story. This comet causes all sorts of secondary natural disasters that destroy civilization and bring on a new ice age. Appropriate struggles ensue.

Malevil, Robert Merle, 1972 – See the movie description.

Patriots: A Novel of Survival in the Coming Collapse, James Wesley Rawles, 2009 – During global economic pandemonium, a Chicago group of survivalists escape to their Idaho retreat. This book first appeared in the late 90s but was republished in 2009. Considering the recent economic pandemonium it's not surprising the republished book was a best seller.

The Postman, David Brin, 1985 – See the movie description.

The Road, Cormac McCarthy, 2006 – See the movie description.

The Stand, Stephen King, 1978 – See the movie description.

Tomorrow!, Phillip Wylie, 1954 – This is the story of families in two neighboring Midwest cities dealing with an atomic bomb attack. Wylie is by far the most interesting and prolific of the early sci-fi survivalism writers.

Tunnel in the Sky, Robert Heinlein, 1955 – A survival class somehow finds itself stranded at the end of a cosmic tunnel. The students must work together cooperatively to stay alive.

Wolf and Iron, Gordon R. Dickinson, 1993 – Financial collapse destroys civilization. The hero must cross a plundered, hostile countryside to find safe haven at a Montana ranch.

World Made by Hand, James Howard Kunstler, 2008 – Horrific terrorism, economic collapse, and a pandemic decimate the population and force the government to flee. Cutoff survivors try to rebuild their lives in a dark, violent, dangerous new world.

nonfiction print

Barnyard in Your Backyard: A Beginner's Guide to Raising Chickens, Ducks, Geese, Rabbits, Goats, Sheep, and Cattle, Gail Damerow, 2002

Dancing at Armageddon: Survivalism and Chaos in Modern Times, Richard G. Mitchell Jr., 2001 – This is an exceptional, insightful look at survivalists and survivalism by a participant-observer sociologist.

Fallout Protection, 1961 – A government booklet released in 1961. See it as a pdf here: http://www.orau.org/ptp/Library/cdv/h-6.pdf

FM 5-15 Field Fortifications, U.S. Army, 1944 – See it as a pdf here: http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USA/ref/FM/PDFs/FM5-15.44.pdf

How to Survive the H-Bomb and Why, Pat Frank, 1962 – A classic how-to from the writer of the novel Alas, Babylon.

Home Power Magazine – Not a survivalist magazine or site but a fantastic newsstand or online resource for information on sustainable living and small-scale renewable energy. http://homepower.com/home/

Living off the Grid, David Black, 2008

The Long Emergency, James H. Kunstler, 2005 – Non-fiction predictions and advice from the author of World Made by Hand.

Mother Earth News – A country-style and sustainable-living magazine with subtle undertones of survivalism. Very informative.

Nuclear War Survival Skills, Cresson Kearny, 1979 and 1992 – At the time of this writing, this is available as a free download at this website: http://www.oism.org/nwss/

Survival Under Atomic Attack, 1950 – Another government booklet, downloadable here: http://www.orau.org/ptp/Library/cdv/Survival%20Under%20Atomic%20Attack.pdf

Tappan on Survival, Mel Tappan, 1981 – This is one of the classics written by an early leader of the survivalist movement.

When All Hell Breaks Loose, Cody Lundin, 2007

What to Do When the Shit Hits the Fan, David Black, 2006

Television

There are a myriad of TV movies and series (e.g., 24, Six Feet Under, Lost, Terminator: The Sarah Connors Chronicles, etc.) that have a minor character or subplot that could be survivalist-related. They're often touted as survivalist media references but in actuality, many have little to do with the realities of survivalism or survival retreats. Here are a few exceptions:

The Colony – A Discovery reality series that follows groups attempting to survive under simulated conditions of a global catastrophe.

The Day After – A 1983 TV movie about events before and after a three-hundred-plus Soviet ICBM nuclear attack on the United States.

Jericho – A 2006 series following the story of Jericho, Kansas, in the wake of a massive nuclear attack on the United States.

The Fire Next Time – A 1993 miniseries about the struggle of a family to survive the catastrophic effects of global warming and the resulting chaos.

Survivor – A competitive “reality” series in which contestants are shown surviving in remote, austere conditions. Thought of by this author as embarrassingly lame and unrealistic, it seems to focus on egos and testosterone more than realistic survival scenarios but does give some interesting glimpses into survival psychology.

Survivors – A 1975–77 and 2008 BBC series about a group that survives a horrible plague.

Threads – A grim 1984 BBC TV movie about a couple of families and politicians in Sheffield as they deal with nuclear war.

WEBSITES, BLOGS, FORUMS

alpinesurvival.com

americanpreppersnetwork.com

survivalblog.com

textfiles.com/survival

whatsaprepper.com

worldchanging.com

VIDEO GAMES

Fallout (1997) – This video game classic uses a protagonist who has survived nuclear holocaust in the government shelters (the Vaults) and is forced to leave the safety of the vault to find a replacement chip vital to its water recycler. Fallout 2 and Fallout 3 are now available.

MUSIC

“Year Zero”, Nine Inch Nails (2007) – An interesting album with references to a future dystopia that resulted from events and policies of the present.