Written by: Carlton Cuse (screenplay), Andre Fabrizio & Jeremy Passmore (story)
Directed by: Brad Peyton
Starring: Dwayne Johnson, Carla Gugino, Alexandra Daddario, Ioan Gruffudd, Paul Giamatti
Rated: PG-13
Plot:
Rescue pilot Ray struggles to find and save his daughter during the largest earthquakes every experience at the San Andreas fault.
Verdict:
I had a lot of fun with this movie, though the ending was subdued. It's great, inane, logic-lacking fun. The Rock is the super-hero in every situation, but I didn't find him as charming as he usually is. Every situation in this movie is completely over the top and cheesy, and I wish the dialog follow suit instead of attempting to be pseudo-serious. If you're looking for a 'good' movie this isn't it, but it does offer a good time.
It depends.
Review:
This movie opens with a great scene, subverting the typical scenario. A woman driving an SUV looks down and fumbles in her bag. I see the approaching tractor trail and prepare for the worst. The woman grabs a water bottle, takes a sip, and nothing happens. She passes the tractor trailer without incident. Then she gets a text message and assume this is it. She responds without crashing or swerving. Then a rock hits he windshield and she swerves off a cliff in the most over the top wreck I've seen in a while. This is the movie I wanted to see, and I got it for the most part, though there are a few fumbles.
This movie excels at over the top action scenarios that are pure over the top cheese, but instead of melodramatic dialog to match, it tries to explore a serious story which is a mistake. This movie destroys the Hoover Dam by earthquake in less than twenty minutes and has The Rock rip a door off of a car while hanging from a helicopter. I don't want discussion about divorce or losing a child. The dialog is weak. I want The Rock saving the world. Instead he's just worried about his daughter... small time.
The only reason this movie should have a dead family member is if they were killed in an earthquake years ago and now The Rock seeks vengeance. I wanted to see The Rock uppercut a fault line, and I left disappointed. Instead the movie uses the death of his other daughter as an emotionally manipulative moment that fails every time they bring it up.
The science is suspect and that's okay, but it does annoy me that people hide under a desk. That will get you crushed. You hide beside the desk. The desk will get crushed as it is the highest point, but a small triangle of safety will form around the perimeter of the desk.
A cars roof isn't going to crush like this movie portrays. Car roofs are designed to support 1.5 times the weight of the car.
The ending is anti-climactic, and while it doesn't matter, the movie never attempts to explain why all of these earthquakes are happening. We don't even get an end of the world tirade from Giamatti who can predict the occurrence and magnitude of them, but can't tell us why.
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