DVD
REVIEW: 2012
2/28/10
SYNOPSIS: From Roland Emmerich, director of THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW and INDEPENDENCE DAY, comes the ultimate action-adventure film, exploding with groundbreaking special effects. As the world faces a catastrophe of apocalyptic proportions, cities collapse and continents crumble. 2012 brings an end to the world and tells of the heroic struggle of the survivors. Starring John Cusack, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Amanda Peet, Woody Harrelson and Danny Glover.
REVIEW: Jackson
Curtis: It's not just California... it's the whole world.
Yes, the world is coming to an end again. This time it’s on
12/21/12, as predicted by the Mayan civilization hundreds and
hundreds of years ago. That is the world’s expiration date and
we are all doomed (according to the movie). So if you are ready,
buckle up cause you’re in for a hell of a ride. But first, let
me present the main disclaimer . . . this movie is mostly eye
candy and action and not to be considered for its artistic
qualities. Or look at it this way, if you liked Day After
Tomorrow, Core, War of the Worlds, Knowing, or any other
disaster type movie, there is a very good chance that you will
enjoy this one. If you generally don’t like this type of
movie, then don’t bother because this is basically more of the
same but with a slightly different story. With each new revision
there seems to be more and more destruction and devastation.
This one could be the new first place movie for world wide total
disaster. This film is not for the faint of heart. I actually
felt a little depressed for a while after seeing it.
Nonetheless, the action and intensity are very good as well as
the special effects. The effects weren’t exactly flawless (you
could tell too easily when it was computer generated) but good
enough. You can’t really expect a whole lot more.
This movie seemed to imitate several others. It is similar to
Day After Tomorrow for the catastrophic occurrences, Core
because it also deals with the Earth’s core, War of the Worlds
in that this one also deals with divorced parents of two
children, older boy, younger girl, and Knowing in that the main
cause is solar activity. And that’s just to name a few. It
also has the same characteristic of showing the fragility of
human life and yet the determination humans have to survive.
Priscilla is not very fond of this characteristic in movies
because they all show a “blatant disregard for human life”.
In other words, you see people, human beings like you and me,
dying left and right with no importance. I tell her that it is a
consequence of the story so it has to be there by default.
However, I do agree that we as a society are becoming more and
more desensitized to the value of human life because of the
amount of violence in media today that is seen as common place.
Okay, okay, I won’t get on the soapbox. But then again, the
death toll in this film is from an act of nature, not
necessarily violence. Oh yeah, she doesn’t like these end of
the world movies either because they depress her too much. This
film also carries the characteristic of being typically cheesy,
corny, and cliché. At almost two and a half hours long, it has
the length of a heavy duty disaster movie too. But the length
wasn’t too bad though, the movie didn’t seem to drag.
They really loaded up the cast for this flick, lots of big names
and recognizable faces. The performances overall were okay but
nothing spectacular. John Cusack stands out the most. There was
nothing spectacular about the characters they portrayed either.
They weren’t very well developed so the attachment to them was
weak. I’m telling you, in a movie like this the main focus is
the story, its related action, and the special effects needed to
bring that action to the big screen. So if you don’t mind that
kind of movie, go see it. I don’t mind and I enjoyed it for
the thrills. It doesn’t hurt that the Director of this
thriller, Roland Emmerich, also directed Stargate, Independence
Day, Godzilla, The Day After Tomorrow, and 10000 BC to name a
few. Can you see the pattern? Keep up the good work Roland.
Film
Review By Cine Marcos
cinemarcos@smartcine.com
DVD: 2012 is
presented in a widescreen format with a 2.40:1 aspect ratio preserving its theatrical
released format. The picture is complemented with a 5.1 Dolby
Digital audio in English and French. With French and English
subtitles.
In terms of special features
the DVD includes a feature length commentary with Writer/Director Roland Emmerich and Co-Writer Harald Kloser and the featurette “Roland Emmerich: Master of the Modern Epic,” an intimate look at one of Hollywood’s most revolutionary filmmakers. Additional bonus features on
the DVD include an alternate ending, deleted scenes and the "Time For Miracles” music video, featuring Adam Lambert.
VIDEO:
Widescreen (2.40:1)
AUDIO:
English
and French 5.1 Dolby Digital
Subtitles - English
French
SPECIAL
FEATURES:
Commentary with Writer/Director Roland Emmerich and Co-Writer Harald Kloser
Roland
Emmerich: Master of the Modern Epic featurette
Alternate Ending
Deleted Scenes
"Time For Miracles" Music Video by Adam Lambert
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