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| 2012
– Movie Review |
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| By
Behindwoods Visitor K.ANANTH |
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| The
views expressed in this column are that of
the visitor. Behindwoods.com doesn't hold
responsible for its content. |
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Doesn’t
Roland Emmerich just LOVE doing
this? Yup, here comes another
disaster flick from the brain
behind INDEPENDENCE DAY and
THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW team.
And watch out! We just have
three years before our beloved
planet cracks under our feet.
So I am just going to make the
best use of my time available
and...oh yeah I forgot...right,
the review of 2012.
This movie is a mind blowing
- no holds barred - visual spectacle.
With an excuse for a plot the
makers succeed in giving us
a never before seen special
effects bonanza which has to
be witnessed on the big screen
to be believed. It really is
the ultimate "hang out
with your buddies and have a
blast" movie. For the majority
of the 150 odd minutes you are
in the theatres you forget you
have a watch tied safely in
your wrist. Unfortunately this
does not mean Emmerich has bettered
his earlier flicks. 2012, arguably,
is his weakest work so far.
The main reason why this movie
does not work as much as it
could have is plainly because
it appeals only to your eyes
and not to your heart. The film
opens in India in 2009 with
an Indian scientist/archaeologist
predicting that the world will
end in 2012 (yeah got it! So
that is why this one is the
highest grossing English movie
of all time in India!) due to
an alarming and abnormal rise
in the core temperatures of
earth.
Cut to 2012 and we trail behind
a divorced author cum Limousine
driver John Cussack (Jackson
Curtis) hell bent on getting
his family to a secure place,
a special ARK
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which
he comes to know of as a top secret government/private
undertaking set into motion in 2009 fearing
the worst. So much time has gone into showing
various forms of disasters like earthquakes,
volcanic eruptions and melting glaciers
in a detailed way that there is very little
time for proper character sketches for the
lead cast. As a result you couldn't care
less about their destinies.
This sort of detaches you from the movie
but on the flip side paves way for greater
enjoyment. You scream in delight when people
are bombarded with fireballs from volcanic
eruptions or when cars and trains are swallowed
by gigantic cracks on the earth's surface.
Besides, how long can you actually suspend
your disbelief? Cussack and his family manage
to survive one close shave too many for
you to overlook this aspect. Roads cracking
just as the car accelerates barely a centimeter
in front, volcanic eruptions missing them
by the narrowest of narrow margins and for
heavens sake, runways collapsing a second
after the flight takes off!
In the climax you have this crowning glory
for Cussack which is so typically Emmerich.
(Remember Will Smith in Independence Day?).
Having said that, all along you cannot help
thoughts of some other movies like TITANIC,
I AM LEGEND, END OF DAYS etc hitting your
mind as the sequences unfold. Then there
is the American President who decides not
to run away and sink with the ship instead
(Yawn!).
Technically the movie is a marvel. Great
artwork and cinematography and a background
score which helps maintain the tempo and
pace of the movie right till the end are
added pluses.
The fact that the movie could not make bigger
impact despite a decent star cast comprising
the likes of Thandie Newton, Amanda Peet
and Oliver Platt, just to name a few, can
be attributed to the storyline or rather
the absence of it. Some cheesy and uninspiring
dialogues don't help either.
Despite all these drawbacks this movie definitely
warrants a watch for its sheer entertainment
value. Call in your buddies, grab that popcorn
and have a blast!! Literally!
VERDICT: - A NEVER BEFORE
SEEN SPECIAL EFFECTS EXTRAVAGANZA! NOTHING
MORE, NOTHING LESS
Thanks,
K.ANANTH
krishananth1990@gmail.com
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