Idaho Transfer (1973)

“I don’t think you have to leave anything behind. Just have a beautiful time like all the other junk litter in the universe, then say goodbye.” An offbeat, slow-moving but ultimately compelling science fiction film directed by Peter Fonda, Idaho Transfer features a relatively unknown cast (besides a young Keith Carradine), desolate landscapes, a powerful ecological message and an extremely bleak ending. Troubled teenager “Karen Braden” (Kelley Bohanon) joins her sister “Isa” (Caroline Hildebrand) and father “George” (Ted D’Arms) at a secret research facility in Idaho. The project involves time travel – specifically sending a group of young adults 56 years into the future in order to repopulate Earth in the wake of an impending ecological apocalypse. When government agents take over the facility, a group of time travelers, including Karen, get trapped in the future. The tagline asks: “Can the future be saved by the ideals of the past?” Idaho Transfer is definitely not for all tastes but every film buff should seek it out. According to IMDb, Bohanon only appeared in one other film, The Christian Licorice Store (1971). Whatever happened to Kelley Bohanon?

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