Flood! (1976)

A fishing resort town is dependent on its lakes and the tourist trade for their survival. When a rain swollen lake threatens to bust the dam, the town’s mayor (Richard Basehart) refuses to allow the necessary run off that would prevent the dam from breaking because it would be disastrous to their fishing trade. Directed by Earl Bellamy, the master of disaster Irwin Allen is responsible for this low budget knockoff of his star laden bigger budget ventures. The first portions aren’t bad at all as it slowly builds the suspense but the film is a cheat in that it doesn’t deliver the goods. The film’s low budget won’t allow for any “flood” special effects so all we’re given is people running around in panic and bodies (not bodies in) of water. The clichés come thick and heavy including the young pregnant wife (Carol Lynley) who goes into labor as the flood hits, the annoying brat (Eric Olson) who goes missing when the flood hits, the prophet (Martin Milner) who tries warning everybody about the impending flood but no one listens, etc. The large cast includes Teresa Wright (treading Shelley Winters/POSEIDON territory), Barbara Hershey, Robert Culp, Roddy McDowall (whose part has been cut to a cameo), Cameron Mitchell, Ann Doran and Francine York.