What do you do when it looks like the world is coming to an end? Dig a hole to hide, or stay up and party?
That's the question facing the world in Deep Impact, as a comet the size of Texas is on course to collide with the Earth, and the Government, to its horror, finds Bruce Willis is otherwise committed.
This is classed as an 'Extinction Level Event'. It's as big as the comet which wiped the dinosaurs from the face of the Earth. Mankind looks doomed.
Instead of Bruce Willis, this American Government has to turn to veteran Robert Duvall. Can this oldster cut the mustard? Is he still Head Honcho in the astronaut stakes?
While Robert Duvall and team head into space to attempt to deflect the giant comet, life takes its different courses downstairs. Television reporter Jenny Lerner (Tea Leoni) seeks reconciliation with her estranged father (played by Maximilian Schell). Sixteen-year-old Leo Beiderman (a newcomer named Elijah Wood -- remember him from anything more recent?) seeks to save the life of his 14-year-old sweetheart Sarah (Leelee Sobieski). And the dignified American President (Morgan Freeman) tries to get his country to accept its fate with dignity.
This is a more old-fashioned 'end of the world' drama than its immediate rival in the annihilation stakes, Armageddon. More old-fashioned in that it relies on personal drama and characterisation rather than on gung-ho special effects and adventure.
Both films deserve their place as amongst the best of the genre. But this time around, I think I preferred Deep Impact for its strong human appeal and its very real emotion. Next time I might prefer Armageddon, which is much more a Boy's Own adventure tale. Take them in turns.
Deep Impact does miss out here and there. One of the worst omissions comes when we see a small number of people selected for survival being marshalled, and bussed to a huge underground complex in Oklahoma, where they are prepared to stay for two years, until the devastating effects of a comet-strike have disappeared. We see the entrance -- but we should have been able to see inside the complex itself, to explore this giant burrow which is designed to send mankind back to the caves from which we crawled.
That was a bad omission. But overall, the film has quite a deal of strength and beauty. It's very touching in quiet, intimate ways -- the excellent special effects are used sparingly, and aren't allowed to totally take over the movie.
This is a serviceable anamorphic transfer which stops just short of being outstanding.
The film looks to be in excellent condition, with very few artefacts -- and those are only transitory and are not disturbing. But the image fails to leap from the screen; it's somehow muted compared to stand-out yardstick transfers in this Sci-Fi genre such as The Fifth Element or Starship Troopers.
The English DD 5.1 surround sound is used to good effect, though rather muted in use compared to some other special-effect dominated movies. This is a dialogue-driven movie and that is the key emphasis, along with James Horner's musical score. Towards the end, as the comet enters Earth's atmosphere, we get a strong audio work-out with the great dynamic effects missing from most of the movie. It's just enough at the right time.
This is definitely worth the rental, or even buy it if you're into the genre. Keep on your shelf next to Armageddon. And keep a keen weather-eye open for the great-grandaddy of these disaster movie, George Pal's 1951 classic, When Worlds Collide -- classic comedy nowadays rather than classic disaster, but still worth a look.
