''Beyond and Back'' is a 1978 documentary and "death-sploitation flick"''Beyond and Back'', AMC Movie Guide.
AMC. Retrieved July 14, 2014. released by

Sunn Classic Pictures Sunn Classic Pictures, also known as Sunn International Pictures, Schick Sunn Classic Pictures, and Taft International Pictures was an independent U.S.-based film distributor, founded in 1971. The company was notable for family films and document ...

that deals with the subject of near death experiences.

Production notes

''Beyond and Back'' was produced by

, a

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to its ...

-based

independent film An independent film, independent movie, indie film, or indie movie is a feature film or short film that is produced outside the major film studio system, in addition to being produced and distributed by independent entertainment companies (or, i ...

company that specialized in releasing

low-budget A low-budget film or low-budget movie is a motion picture shot with little to no funding from a major film studio or private investor. Many independent films are made on low budgets, but films made on the mainstream circuit with inexperienced or ...

message movies to non-urban audiences. Along with such features as ''

In Search of Noah's Ark ''In Search of Noah's Ark'' is a 1976 American documentary film based on David W. Balsiger and Charles E. Sellier Jr.'s book of the same name. Released by Sunn Classic Pictures, it explores the alleged final resting place of Noah's Ark. Produc ...

'' (1976) and ''

In Search of Historic Jesus ''In Search of Historic Jesus'' is a 1979 American documentary film based on Lee Roddy and Charles E. Sellier Jr.'s book of the same name. Released by Sunn Classic Pictures, the film speculates on the historical accuracy of the biblical depictio ...

'' (1979), the film was one of a series of releases from the company that attempted to present convincing scientific evidence for Christian theology. Based in part on a book by evangelist Ralph Wilkerson, the idea for ''Beyond and Back'' was suggested to Sunn Pictures by a freelance writer who submitted a treatment for the film after reading about the film studio in

Writer's Digest ''Writer's Digest'' is an American magazine aimed at beginning and established writers. It contains interviews, market listings, calls for manuscripts, and how-to articles. History ''Writer's Digest'' was first published in December 1920 under ...

. The film's screenwriter, Stephen Lord, was a respected television

screenwriter A screenplay writer (also called screenwriter, scriptwriter, scribe or scenarist) is a writer who practices the craft of screenwriting, writing screenplays on which mass media, such as films, television programs and video games, are based. ...

, having written scripts for such notable sci-fi/horror programs as ''

The Outer Limits ''The Outer Limits'' or ''Outer Limits'' may refer to: Television * ''The Outer Limits'' (1963 TV series), a black-and-white science fiction series that aired from 1963 to 1965 * ''The Outer Limits'' (1995 TV series), a revival of the older series ...

'' and '' Kolchak: The Night Stalker.'' Directing chores went to

James L. Conway James L. Conway (born October 27, 1950 in New York City, U.S.) is an American film and television director, producer, and writer, studio executive, and novelist. Movies Conway directed include ''The Boogens'' and '' Hangar 18''. Television ser ...

, who had helmed Sunn's speculative fiction vehicle '' The Lincoln Conspiracy'' the previous year. The movie was filmed by cinematographer Henning Schellerup, a veteran of late '60s and early '70s porn films such as ''Come One, Come All'' (1970) and ''Heterosexualis'' (1973). Parts of the film were shot in Park City,

Salt Lake City Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the capital and most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in Utah. With a population of 200,133 in 2020, th ...

, and Heber in Utah.

Promotion

Since ''Beyond and Back'' never received a traditional wide release, it was able to largely avoid scrutiny from the national media.

mostly screened its films in smaller towns and non-urban areas. It was also popular at drive-in movie theaters. This approach "avoided the audiences and the critical media in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the wor ...

and

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

... if the film failed in any single market, negative

word of mouth Word of mouth, or ''viva voce'', is the passing of information from person to person using oral communication, which could be as simple as telling someone the time of day. Storytelling is a common form of word-of-mouth communication where one ...

did not spread to the next locale." Wasser's assertion has, however, been disputed: "Wow, I saw it when I was 6. Saw it in Brooklyn".

Born-again Christian background and content

Filmed entirely on location in Utah, ''Beyond and Back'' was produced by

Charles E. Sellier Jr. Charles Edward Sellier Jr. (November 9, 1943 – January 31, 2011) was an American television producer, screenwriter, novelist and director, best known for creating the American book and television series '' The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams' ...

At the time of the film's release, Sellier noted that he:

Critical and box office reception

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' film critic

Janet Maslin Janet R. Maslin (born August 12, 1949) is an American journalist, best known as a film and literary critic for ''The New York Times''. She served as a ''Times'' film critic from 1977 to 1999 and as a book critic from 2000 to 2015. In 2000 Maslin ...

criticized the film for its inability to answer the many questions it raised, adding: In his January 1979 ''

Chicago Sun-Times The ''Chicago Sun-Times'' is a daily newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Since 2022, it is the flagship paper of Chicago Public Media, and has the second largest circulation among Chicago newspapers, after the ''Chicago T ...

'' review,

Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert (; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American film critic, film historian, journalist, screenwriter, and author. He was a film critic for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, Ebert beca ...

gave the film one star, noting that it: The film appears on

rogerebert.com ''RogerEbert.com'' is an American film review website that archives reviews written by film critic Roger Ebert for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' and also shares other critics' reviews and essays. The website, underwritten by the ''Chicago Sun-Times ...

, "Ebert's Most Hated" list, as well as in his 2000 book, ''I Hated, Hated, Hated This Movie.'' Produced very inexpensively, the film was a major commercial success. It earned nearly $24 million in U.S. box office receipts and was one of the top 30 top-earning films in the U.S. for 1978.Beyond and Back, Box Office Information.
The Numbers. Retrieved November 29, 2013.

''Beyond Death's Door (1979)''

''Beyond Death’s Door'' (1979), was a follow-up to ''Beyond and Back''. Directed by Henning Schellerup, it featured a

framing story Framing may refer to: * Framing (construction), common carpentry work * Framing (law), providing false evidence or testimony to prove someone guilty of a crime * Framing (social sciences) * Framing (visual arts), a technique used to bring the foc ...

of three doctors working at a hospital, and their experiences with patients’ descriptions of

Heaven Heaven or the heavens, is a common religious cosmological or transcendent supernatural place where beings such as deities, angels, souls, saints, or venerated ancestors are said to originate, be enthroned, or reside. According to the bel ...

, Hell and

out-of-body experience An out-of-body experience (OBE or sometimes OOBE) is a phenomenon in which a person perceives the world from a location outside their physical body. An OBE is a form of autoscopy (literally "seeing self"), although this term is more commonly use ...

s. The film featured vignettes from its predecessor, including the segments on

reincarnation Reincarnation, also known as rebirth or transmigration, is the philosophical or religious concept that the non-physical essence of a living being begins a new life in a different physical form or body after biological death. Resurrection is ...

and Duncan MacDougall’s “ 21 grams experiment.” The film was based on the book of the same name, written by Maurice Rawlings.

References

External links

* * * * ''Beyond and Back'' (1978) on the Internet Archive * ''Beyond Death's Door'' (1979) on the Internet Archive * {{DEFAULTSORT:Beyond and Back 1978 films 1978 documentary films 1970s English-language films American documentary films Documentary films about the paranormal Films about evangelicalism Films directed by James L. Conway Films shot in Utah Near-death experiences 1970s American films