2012

It's the end of the world as we know it.
It's the end of the world as we know it.
It's the end of the world as we know it and I feel fine.

Mr Stipe summed it up very nicely in this song from the mighty R.E.M didn't he? It should have accompanied the teaser trailer when it first appeared on the internet, but maybe he (Stipe) objected to its use in the movie-or maybe he wasn't even asked?  Regardless, its chipper tones would have been a great juxtaposition against the onscreen mayhem unfolding before our disbelieving eyes. Still, your there to see the dollars spent on the visual FX in this film. The music's entirely secondary in an event movie of this kind. Lets face it-we are only going to watch this film for one reason. To see how spectacularly it all ends on 12/21/2012! And if you're going to do a movie of this magnitude, only one name needs to be called. Step up Mr Emmerich! No-one else needs to apply for this position. There is no other director who could be as technically convincing as this transplanted German. Well, maybe Mr Bay-or Spielberg, or Jackson. But you just know its not really their forte. They know to leave it to Rolly to perfectly recreate the end of the world as we know it.


And how do the money shots add up? Do we get our "Bang for our bucks"? Does it seem realistic? Does it entertain us for the length of the running time?


Short answer: Hell yeah!

Long answer: Its a Roland Emmerich movie! If you've seen Independence Day or The Day After Tomorrow, then you'll know what he's capable of. Shit going BOOM! on a bloody massive scale! Lets face it-this is the only reason to justify seeing this movie on a big screen. The story is perfunctory, the acting fairly average (Cusack's good though! Actually so's Woody Harrelson...), the cliches are piled on so much, that you give up after a very short while worrying about these trivial concerns. Everything is geared to one thing only. Shit going BOOM! That it does, extremely well...

There is one thing that does ring entirely true though in this film. That the Chinese are the only nation capable of building the arks within the 'allotted' time-frame! That sorta thing they could pull off most definitely. Any other nation would be looking for the financial gains to be made. And squabbling about union rates etc!

Any other kind of deep analysis on this type of film is redundant. Your only there for one reason. Don't complain about any percieved shortcomings. Its not art. Its commerce. They just want your bum on that seat OK?

Don't forget the main reason for viewing this...

SHIT GOES BOOM!