Reviewing a Disaster movie necessitates a delicate balancing act, unless a reviewer
chooses to simply go all Godzilla on the movie
and
stomp it into oblivion without attempting to compartmentalize what the movie has and wants to
offer versus what other pictures of varied genres and purposes have and want to offer. The
Godzilla method would seem the du jour approach to a movie like Director
Roland Emmerich's latest end-of-days Disaster picture 2012, his biggest and baddest
movie
yet, loaded with special effects and built around every Disaster movie cliché in the book. Indeed,
2012 isn't really all that different at its core than any run-of-the-mill made-for-television Disaster miniseries
-- which are, in fact, disasters of the cinematic kind --
save for the fact that its budget is bigger than the gross domestic products of some small nations
and it comes complete with a collection of name actors, most of whom aren't yet past their
primes or long since
faded
into irrelevancy a decade or two prior. The budget, the actors, the skilled director, and even a
surprisingly moving -- but not all that deep -- script make 2012 the pinnacle of its genre,
a genre that has seemingly become the laughingstock of the film industry considering
the epically bad movies that keep popping up in theaters and on video store shelves and
television sets.
However,
Emmerich seems determined to keep the Disaster genre afloat and give it some relevance, and
he has indeed
made himself into the father of the modern high-dollar Disaster movie, with 2012 being
his most audacious effort yet.
Quickly! Duck and cover!
In the year 2009, Scientist Adrian Helmsley (Chiwetel Ejiofor, Redbelt) becomes
privy to information that neutrinos emanating from the sun are wrecking havoc on the Earth,
causing its core to superheat. Fearful of the imminent natural disasters, Helmsley rushes to
speak with Carl Anheuser (Oliver Platt, Year One), the
White House Chief of Staff and a man with the President's ear. Flash-forward to 2012, and
limousine driver and unsuccessful author Jackson Curtis (John Cusack, Con Air) is taking his
children to a getaway camping trip to Yellowstone National Park while his ex-wife Kate (Amanda
Peet, Identity) works on
her burgeoning relationship with plastic surgeon and amateur pilot Gordon Silberman (Tom
McCarthy). At Yellowstone, Jackson meets a conspiracy theorist and small-time radio host named
Charlie Frost (Woody Harrelson, No Country For Old
Men) who tells Jackson of the coming doom, allowing the father of two to get a head
start on getting
out of Dodge and heading for what Frost says is the last safe place on Earth.
As Jackson races against time to save his family, he happens upon his wealthiest client, a Russian
billionaire (Zlatko Buric) and his twin sons (Alexandre and Philippe Haussmann), his trophy
girlfriend
(Beatrice Rosen), and his personal pilot (Johann Urb), all of whom are headed to a secret facility
that
holds the key to mankind's survival. The group escapes death time and again to avoid a disaster
that
U.S.
President Thomas Wilson (Danny Glover, Saw) must finally
announce to a panicked world that's begun crumbling around every corner.
Not as endearing as Independence Day
but
not as politically-motivated as The Day After
Tomorrow
and not as lethargic as Godzilla,
2012
may be Emmerich's most well-balanced Disaster movie to date. Of all his pictures, it stands out
as easily
the
most base of them all, where neither alien nor man nor a radioactive creature are the enemies
but
rather time and mother nature herself, and they prove to be
Emmerich's most potent tandem of hostiles yet. Indeed, never before has so much been
destroyed on such a grand scale and with such seamless special effects, and never before has so
much death, destruction, and sheer chaos been this much fun. After the picture's slow but not
sluggish open that introduces most of the film's major players -- the obligatory collection of the
scientist, the President, the jerk, the broken family, the rich folks, the trophy girlfriend, and the
conspiracy theorist -- 2012
begins a rip-roaring two additional hours of almost nonstop mayhem and special effects but
manages to
piece together a semblance of a heart and soul and develop its characters to the point that, when
one or two of them inevitably kick the bucket, it actually matters and the sense of loss becomes
surprisingly palpable. Still, Emmerich makes sure that the picture's emotions and characters live
on the periphery where they belong in a movie like this, the director emphasizing the spectacle
first and allowing everything else to fall into place as-needed and in the right time and context to
achieve maximum effect with minimal interference to the dangers and disasters and visual
effects that populate
nearly every frame of the movie's second and third acts.
2012 may be mostly about collapsing buildings, flooding cities, and people surviving
brushes with death in the middle near-miss after near-miss catastrophes, but it works not
because of story -- this is absolutely nothing new, it's just that the
picture plays out on an epically large scale -- but because it's been
made with an eye towards detail and an insistence on making it bigger and better than anything
that's come before it. 2012 is definitely a product of its budget, and every penny of its
whopping $200,000,000 in funds was
well-spent in the pursuit of building the most seamless Disaster
movie of all time. Whether the physical sets or the computer-generated disaster zones,
practically every shot within 2012's 158-minute runtime look fantastic, and the CGI
meshes with the real-life actors and props seamlessly. This is definitely a hallmark effects film,
and it's a shame it didn't make the cut for an Oscar nomination in said category, though it's hard
to argue with the quality of effects as seen in Avatar, District 9, and Star Trek. Still,
that doesn't change the fact that the special effects -- and their scale and intricate detail in
particular -- will leave jaws
agape as a plane or a speeding limousine maneuver through a crumbling city or an aircraft
carrier tumbles atop a national landmark. It's spectacular stuff -- the reason the film was made,
in
fact -- and because it works so well, the movie, by extension, also works wonderfully for what it is
and all it strives to be.
Finally, 2012 boasts a fairly strong cast not only of name actors but actors that play their
parts with a sincerity rather than simply coasting along and allowing the special effects to hide
what could have been phoned-in performances. As-scripted, the characters are somewhat flat
and
the relationships clichéd at best and phony at worst,
but the performers manage to add some needed but not necessary and certainly not overplayed
depth to all of the primaries. There's a relatable aura about Cusack's character, the actor
portraying an
everyman that manages to escape one disaster after another, and even if the plausibility of such
daring and dangerous escapes could only happen in the movies, his exploits make for exciting,
blood-pumping, and crowd-cheering entertainment at a base level, which is this picture's singular
goal. Mission accomplished. Cusack's character's relationship with his family
might be pulled from the most overused plot device in the book, but Cusack makes it work just
well
enough within the blistering pace and the dark context the movie establishes. Chiwetel Ejiofor
and Oliver Platt form a surprisingly strong good guy-bad guy tandem, both actors turning in
honest performances and playing to their characters' traits and, ultimately, their final
confrontation splendidly. Ejiofor in particular makes for a great hero in a movie like this, the
actor giving not only thoughtfulness to the part but also a soul that convinces the audience of his
intelligence, leadership, motivations, sincerity, and strength of morals. Woody Harrelson is the
film's surprise performer, the actor seeming to have as much fun here as in Zombieland and
milking the unfortunately small but memorable part for everything it's worth and then some, his
character serving as the catalyst for the primary adventure while delivering a healthy dosage of
comic relief.
Danny Glover
turns in the film's only dour performance as a President with the personality of a blank greeting
card and a nonchalance toward a part that, admittedly, could have been better scripted to begin
with.
2012 arrives on Blu-ray with a 1080p, 2.39:1-framed transfer that's a treat for the eyes
but not quite on the same level of excellence as the accompanying lossless soundtrack. Aside
from slight visible banding in a few select shots, there's little room for complaint with this one.
2012 boasts incredibly rich and detailed blacks throughout, and the film's many darker
scenes look extraordinary as a sense of depth and fine detailing both remain intact. Indeed, fine
detail is impressive
throughout the film's lengthy runtime; even the opening scene in the film that sees Adrian
Helmsley descend into an underground Indian mining facility to learn of the coming doom
features rich textures on metallic and other, harsher surfaces, though the film truly sparkles in
above-ground and brighter locales. The special effects-laden locales and vistas remain sharp and
clear throughout; whether distance shots of mountains or close-ups of cracking pavement, the
transfer boasts rich details and textures and, even more impressive, the line between "real" and
"effect" is almost always seamlessly blurred. The disaster scenes deliver intricate renderings of
collapsing structures and all the minutia that one would expect to accompany such scenes,
including massive amounts of finely-rendered debris and human bodies being tossed about. Even
distant objects, such as cars rolling off
crumbling bridges and roadways, are easily discernible and identifiable even at moderate-to-great
distances. Additionally, colors are bold and natural throughout whether in brighter or darker
scenes; no one shade appears as overbearing or, on the other end of the scale, poorly-realized
or faded, and flesh tones also retain neutral and natural shades throughout the spectrum of
ethnicities that appear in the film. 2012's Blu-ray transfer appears in pristine condition,
with no visible scratches or debris, and a fine layer of film grain accompanies what is another
strongly-realized and film-like release from Sony.
2012 splashes onto Blu-ray with an exquisite DTS-HD MA 5.1 lossless soundtrack.
Suffice
it to say, 2012's Blu-ray audio presentation leaves most every other soundtrack in the
dust, and there's rarely a dull moment to be heard, not to mention the more intense disaster and
destruction scenes that positively rock the listening area to its foundation and leave every
speaker
in the 5.1 setup begging for mercy. This masterpiece of sound uses the entire stage to wonderful
effect; surround speakers go ballistic, the fronts handle primary cues with unsurpassed ease and
clarity, and the low end is as tight and invigorating as they come. Musical delivery is just one of
the track's many strengths; the subtle yet haunting opening piece is delivered with a wonderfully
precise low end and pinpoint clarity as it maneuvers through the soundstage and sets a
wonderful tone for the movie that's never as scary or relevant as the music suggests, but does
befit the material on a base level very well. Directional and surround effects are seamlessly
delivered throughout; helicopters buzz through the sky in several scenes and by extension tear
through the listening area with a prodigious presence, while the roar of jet engines send a
screaming force through the soundstage that's as marvelously real and precise as they come.
More subtle atmospherics add a sense of space and realism to the track, and again each effect is
meticulously placed and realistically implemented into the overall sound mix; whether chirping
birds, buzzing insects, or the rumblings and constant hum of a jet engine as heard inside its belly
as it hurtles towards a safe location, all spruce the track up and create a sonic environment that
consistently places the listener in the middle of every scene. Of course, it's 2012's
massive-scale destruction sequences that define the track. Listeners can rest assured that every
major disaster is packed with sonic goodness, from incredible bass to a symphony of
surround activity that's all delivered with a clarity and precision that practically fools the senses
into believing that the world is indeed collapsing all around and with an alarming accompanying
collection of sound effects. Also featuring exceptional dialogue reproduction, 2012
delivers a dazzling and completely immersive listen that certainly suits the film and makes this a
new reference-standard audio presentation.
Though 2012's packaging states otherwise, this is actually a three-disc set with the
feature
film and select supplements on disc one, additional supplements and a PSP-only digital copy on a
second
Blu-ray disc, and a PC/iPod
digital copy on disc three. Disc one begins with an audio commentary featuring Writer/Director
Roland Emmerich and Co-Writer Harald Kloser. Unfortunately, the track is fairly drab with a
monotone delivery from each participant. There's little enthusiasm but there is a nice wealth of
2012
knowledge to be found, with discussions revolving around the scientific backstory of the movie
and making sure the audience could accept the reasoning behind the disaster, set design and
props, character creation and development, the necessity of spending the opening 30 minutes on
character and plot development that's free of action and explosions, the process of writing the
script and
fleshing out the characters, the creation of on-set and computer-generated special effects, and
more. The track is a real drag, not so much because of its content but because of its delivery.
Also included is Picture-in-Picture: Roland's Vision, a secondary video track that plays in a
box atop the movie that features various cast and crew recounting their experiences in the
making of the film and the background revolving around its inception; discussing the plot, its
themes, and its characters; speaking on the creation of the special effects; and much more.
Aside from static
interview shots, viewers will also see behind-the-scenes footage that shows glimpses of the
making of each relevant scene. This serves as something of a larger-scale commentary, and
even though the secondary window could stand to be a bit bigger, the feature works well and is a
strong accompanying asset to the supplements. Disc one also features an alternate ending
(1080p, 3:39); BD-Live functionality; Sony's MovieIQ connectivity; and 1080p trailers for Armored, The
Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus, Did You Hear About the
Morgans?, Angels & Demons,
and Planet 51.
Disc two begins with Interactive Mayan Calendar (1080p), a supplement with four
options. Mysteries of the Mayan Calendar (3:53, also available separately in the main
menu)
provides viewers with a look at how
the Mayan's calendar system works and the importance of the year 2012. Mayan
Personality Profile allows users to learn about their character traits based on the tzolk'in
calendar (oddly enough, users can input a birthdate in years beyond 2012, supposedly for future
use by as-of-yet unborn 2012 and Blu-ray enthusiasts, assuming there's still electricity
and
people in several years). Finally, Mayan Horoscope provides a future outlook for users
based
on birthdate. Also included is a legend with explanations of various words, names, and symbols
found throughout the pieces. The next supplement is Designing the End of the World
(1080i, 26:03), an in-depth examination of the film's extraordinary special effects and the
challenges of acting around a series of blue screen-laden sets.
Roland Emmerich: The Master of the Modern Epic (1080i, 9:31) features cast and crew
praising the work, vision, and style of the famed Disaster movie director. Science Behind the
Destruction (1080i, 13:19) offers viewers a slightly more thorough examination of the
science that sets the stage for the events in the movie. Next up is The End of the World: The
Actor's Perspective (1080i, 7:34), a short piece that looks at the film's ensemble cast and
the strengths they brought to the project. Countdown to the Future (1080i, 22:03) is a
piece that takes a look at the Mayan calendar, the importance of the year 2012, and the
possibility that the end-of-the-world prophesy may be coming true. Also included on disc two are
five deleted scenes (1080p, 4:55); the "Time For Miracles" music video by Adam Lambert (1080i,
4:19); the making of the "Time For Miracles" music video (1080i, 2:43); and 1080p trailers for
Close Encounters of the Third
Kind, Michael Jackson's This is
It, By the People: The Election of Barack Obama, and "Breaking Bad."
Disc two also contains a PSP-only digital copy of 2012. Unfortunately, it was unavailable
for sampling at the time of publication, but this section of the review will be updated as this
package's
release date approaches. Disc three contains a standard PC/Mac digital copy of the film that,
unlike the PSP edition, was available for downloading and sampling at the time of publication.
Sampled on a Second Generation iPod Touch, viewers will find a watchable but somewhat
problematic 1080p
transfer that's nicely colored, strongly detailed, and sharp, but falls victim to excessive blocking
and other compression artifacts.
On the other hand, the soundtrack is nicely presented with crisp dialogue, sound effects that
traverse from one side to the other, a fair low end, and sharp dialogue. Obviously, both
presentations pale next to the Blu-ray, but for fans wishing to view the film on-the-go, the
quality proves acceptable for such endeavors.
A few years prior to the movie's namesake, audiences
are treated to a big but not completely dumb End-of-the-World flick that itself is far from being a
disaster, even if anyone who seems hellbent on faulting it for not being the next Gone With the Wind
would otherwise have people believe. No, 2012 isn't Gone With the Wind -- nor
does it want to be -- but darn it if it
isn't big, fun, and even a bit moving in places, a perfect popcorn movie that's everything it
promises
to be and even just a little bit more but without reaching for unattainable or unreasonable
heights. 2012
has its flaws -- few movies don't -- but they're easy to ignore considering they're positively
dwarfed
by the film's scope, scale, special effects, sound, and even just a little bit of heart amidst the
disaster movie clichés and formula construction. 2012 is easy to dismiss outright but
hard
not to enjoy once the lights dim and the curtains open, Director Roland Emmerich's picture the
bearer of bad news but the bringer of one of the year's most entertaining and surprisingly
effective
movies. Sony's Blu-ray release does the film proud, the three-disc set featuring an excellent
1080p transfer, a
stunner of a lossless soundtrack, and a host of extra content. Why not pick up a copy of
2012 on Blu-ray; in a couple of years, it won't matter anyway. Right?
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