Released November 13, 2009
It is rare when a film comes to China at the same time as the U.S. Although I didn’t experience the hype before November 13th surrounding Roland Emmerich’s 2012, I am sure it was full of cheese. I had no idea it was coming until it was already here. The end of the world on the big screen! Yeah!
In a nearly sold out theater on Shanghai’s east side, Pudong, my girlfriend and I enjoyed a movie that deserved every inch of the big screen. 2012 makes any film lover’s jaw drop. There are two scenes that contain more special effects than many other “action” movies combined. This is by no means a quality film with excellent writing or fascinating characters - but 2012 could have starred Andy Milonakis, Curtis Jackson, or Sarah Palin and I still would have found time to enjoy the cinematic marvel in theaters. There is one reason alone that makes it worth the 50 yuan or ten dollars - massive destruction on every level. If you liked the climax of Titanic (when the ship sank) or the mayhem in Cloverfield, than 2012 is for you.
The story is simple - the Mayan calendar was correct and we are all going to die because of the sun. And no one better for a film with the world on the verge of destruction than Emmerich who directed Independence Day and The Day After Tomorrow. And he has consistently cast classically trained actors since working with the likes of Van Damme and Londgren (while directing Universal Soldier). John Cusak (Sixteen Candles, The Grifters>) surprisingly does not ruin the movie due in part to a fun doomsday character played by Woody Harrelson (White Men Can’t Jump, No Country For Old Men), a great president in Danny Glover (Lethal Weapon 2, The Royal Tanenbaums), Thandie Newton’s sexy-doll face, and Chiwetel Ejiofor’s believability.
Like any big budget action film, there are countless clichés and predictable moments in 2012. Nevertheless, there are a couple twists that kept me at the edge of my awkward reclining seat. So do the smart thing and see it before it leaves the theaters. And lease don’t worry - the Mayan’s didn’t predict everything correctly besides Carlos Santana winning sixty-two Grammy Awards. See it now.
3 out of 4
(Review by Thomas Demerath)
