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The Main Characters
--Jack Hall (Dennis Quaid) is a brilliant scientist. He is aware of the possible threat to humanity that awaits, though his pleas fall on deaf ears. When the world seemingly starts to end, he is called upon to help the US. He advises everyone leaves to the south but he heads up north to NYC to save his son.
--Sam Hall (Jake Gyllenhaal) is Jack’s son. He is a genius like his father and he gets to go to a competition with his school in NYC. Of course, he gets trapped there when it starts freezing over and his father is determined to come back and get him.
--Laura Chapman (Emmy Rossum) is Sam’s love interest. She is with him in NYC when the world goes mad and he has to save her from blood poisoning before he gets frozen solid.
The Setting
No place on EARTH is safe from this disaster. The hardest hit places are NYC, Los Angelos, and Washington DC.
The Plot
The plot is pretty razor thin on this one, as it should be. It is not it’s storytelling that gets people to see this movie. Basically, it’s like this. Jack warns everyone at an environmental conference that the Earth is headed on a one way collision course with another ice age if something is not done about pollution. He warns that in a few hundred years this will happen. He is basically scoffed at by everyone, especially the vice president of the United States. He goes back home to Washington DC defeated. At home, he drives his son Sam to the airport. Sam has to head to NYC for a competition with his school. He is every bit the genius his father is but they have a rocky relationship. Jack was never there for his son when they were young as he was always away on his geographical missions.
So Jack is in DC and Sam is in NYC with his love interest, Laura when the shit starts to hit the fan. The temperature is rapidly dropping in many areas of the world and strange weather is occuring. Japan gets basketball size hail, Los Angelos is decimated by 3 massive tornados that combine into one and even rips up the Hollywood sign. NYC is not immune either. It starts to rain, and rain, and rain. It starts flooding. Jack and Laura and their token black friend escape with a few other people into the NYC public library before a giant tidal wave wipes most of the people off the streets. Unfortunately, Laura cut her leg and didn’t tell anyone about it. Sam manages to get in touch with his father who tells him to stay in NYC and he will come get him.
Things start getting worse. Things start freezing over. Helicoptors flying start to freeze and people start dying instantly. Jack sees three gigantic hurricane type wind patterns developing over the northern hemisphere. He is finally listened to by the US president and VP and he suggest they all flee to the south, like Mexico and Florida. A funny scene shows the Mexican border being shut down to Americans and they swimming across the Rio Di Jinero to get to Mexico. Jack goes against his own advice and head up north to search for his son. Sam, meanwhile, has to go onboard a strategically placed ship to get medicine for Laura, who is close to dying. He goes with two friends he met and time is running out. If the eye of the storm gets there before they get inside to the fire they started, they will freeze and die instantly. Some well placed coyotes threaten things too. Will Jack be able to get to his son? Will Sam save Laura? That’s the pressing questions.
My Review
I’ve read some reviews of this movie and they call it a perfect popcorn movie. I’d have to agree. It’s not a Hollywood film to be critiqued and analyzed for some sort of deeper meaning. It’s a movie that throws together a story just so they can show off their special effects. It’s a great film for that. The effects are great. Seeing LA get ripped up by giant tornados and NYC getting flooded was really well done. Is it a sign of things to come? I hope not during my lifetime, but it’s terribly fun to watch happen! There’s no real stand out performances. Dennis Quad seems to sleepwalk through the role and Jake Gyllenhaal was alright. The real star was the effects. In the end, it is a perfect popcorn movie. You just sit down, shut off your mind and watch the world end before your eyes.
Overall Rating
**1/4
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