Operation Avalanche

2016
R
1h 34m

IMDb RATING

6.1/10

8.2K

YOUR RATING

Play trailer1:52

9 Videos

19 Photos

Comedy Drama Mystery

In 1967, four undercover CIA agents were sent to NASA posing as a documentary film crew. What they discovered led to one of the biggest conspiracies in American history.In 1967, four undercover CIA agents were sent to NASA posing as a documentary film crew. What they discovered led to one of the biggest conspiracies in American history.In 1967, four undercover CIA agents were sent to NASA posing as a documentary film crew. What they discovered led to one of the biggest conspiracies in American history.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

6.1/10

8.2K

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Awards
- 2 wins & 13 nominations total

Trivia
The filmmakers told NASA they were making a student documentary on the Apollo program in order to get permission to shoot there.

Goofs
At around 60 minutes into the movie, Matt marks Friday the 17th of April (or of another month with only 30 days) as a deadline date, on a wall calendar that has the 1st of January on a Wednesday. The scene takes place in the year 1969. However, although 1 January 1969 is indeed on a Wednesday, 17 April 1969 is on a Thursday, not on a Friday.

In fact, there is no "Friday the 17th" in the year 1969 except in January and October, which are months with 31 days. And the only calendars that have 1 January on a Wednesday as well as 17 April on a Friday, are calendars of specific *leap years* such as 1936, 1964, 1992 and 2020.

In other words, the scene reveals that the filmmakers used a calendar of the wrong year as a prop.

Quotes
Matt Johnson: Movie special effects can be very convincing, especially when you don't know you're watching a movie.

Connections
Features A Trip to the Moon (1902)

Soundtracks
The Bomb Run
from Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)
Written and Performed by Laurie Johnson

User reviews59

Featured review

6/10

Nice try about a piece of history, too often overlooked by today's film industry

Seen at the Viennale 2016: It seems that Matt Johnson, an exaggerated enthusiastic filmmaker, had a lot of fun doing this movie. He was able to transfer his enthusiasm onto the movie and the movie was able to transfer it to the Viennese audience. There are a lot of meta levels in the making of this mock documentary. The movie content is based upon the crazy conspiracy theories surrounding the first moon-landing. The main level just shows a documentary that shows the tricks that had to be played that the whole world believed that the landing was real. One sub level is that Johnson interviewed the real NASA in tricky ways to get answers in the right direction, so he was able to include that footage into his movie. Another level is the story of the camera team that develops this story in the movie itself. Johnson is the director of the film crew in the movie and also the director of The Avalanche. Another story is about politics and the power of state to hide its secrets. Even footage of Stanley Kubrick could be used. Quite entertaining. But most impressing: the pictures showing the moon mission of Apollo itself. The result is a homage about this great decade of the US flying to the moon. The mock documentary is not faultless, but quite good entertainment. And also added is a low-budget car chase - a real highlight to see.