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Rhyme and Reason

~ Poetry Meets Film Reviews

Rhyme and Reason

Monthly Archives: March 2016

Earthquake (1974) / San Andreas (2015)

06 Sunday Mar 2016

Posted by sgliput in Movies, Poetry, Reviews, Writing

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Tags

Action, Disaster, Drama, Thriller

 

Just another normal day,
Just keeping normal cares at bay,
But then to everyone’s dismay,
The ground begins to shake.
The rocks and hills begin to play,
The soundest structures start to sway,
Entire buildings fall away
Amid the sudden quake.

If you make it through the scare,
You wonder how your loved ones fare.
Do they live and how and where?
You worry more for them.
The worst disasters we must bear
At best encourage us to dare
To save the ones for whom we care,
Whom danger might condemn.
__________________

MPAA rating for Earthquake: PG
MPAA rating for San Andreas: PG-13

There’s something strangely entertaining about a disaster. Whether it be the dated survival tales of the 1970s or the modern effects-heavy world-wreckers, it seems clear that it’s not just the Joker who likes to watch the world burn. Of course, this doesn’t apply to real-life disasters. Films like The Impossible and World Trade Center are serious and painful reminders of tragedies, but others like San Andreas are enjoyed as popcorn fun simply because they’re not real. This seems like a puzzling dichotomy, but it’s no less true.

I thought I’d do a comparison of two similar films from different eras that exploit people’s fondness for destruction: 1974’s Earthquake and last year’s San Andreas. Both revolve around earthquakes blind-siding California and people’s struggles to survive. Both include experts who saw the quake coming but didn’t act fast enough, crumbling cityscapes, characters getting trapped in a parking garage, and a dam’s destruction and subsequent deluge (one at the beginning, one at the climax). While a few of the shaking scenes are even similar (both show a glimpse of a cook suffering at the hands of his stove), the two films are on entirely different levels. Earthquake was groundbreaking at the time and even won an uncontested Oscar for Best Visual Effects, but it seems quaint next to the comprehensive devastation of San Andreas, which is ironic since the quake in Earthquake is a 9.9 on the Richter scale while those in San Andreas only reach 9.6. (Yeah, only.)

I was curious to see Earthquake because of its tie-in to an episode of Quantum Leap, in which Sam leaps into a stuntman who features in a famous scene from this movie, complete with a clip showing Lorne Greene. It’s clear now as it surely was then that Earthquake is a gimmick film. Released at the height of the ‘70s disaster craze and the same year as The Towering Inferno, it seemed to be the result of producers saying to themselves, “Let’s see, we know of movies with a plane disaster, a ship disaster, a hurricane disaster, a fire disaster…What’s left? I know! An earthquake!” Plus, the film was accompanied by a new speaker system called Sensurround, which was meant to heighten the feeling of experiencing an earthquake and which was shorter-lived than the early 3-D craze. With so much effort put into accentuating the quake itself, everything else about the movie seems secondary, even though the actual shaking is relatively short.

Like other disaster films of the era, Earthquake is jam-packed with stars: Charlton Heston as a businessman unhappy with his marriage, Ava Gardner as his sullen wife, Genevieve Bujold as his lover, Lorne Greene as his boss, George Kennedy as a policeman, Richard Roundtree as a stuntman, Walter Matthau (under a pseudonym) as a drunk, and Marjoe Gortner as a psychopathic National Guardsman who uses the disaster for his own empowerment. And that’s not even half of the ensemble. It’s clear what the filmmakers were trying to do, focusing on a large swath of the population dealing with a huge disaster in different ways, yet only five or so characters really matter and even the film seems to forget about many secondaries by the end. Certain scenes are impressive for their time, and several are tense as characters try to escape the aftermath of the quake. I just wish that the cast and the narrative overall had been streamlined, perhaps with a less downbeat ending.

San Andreas, on the other hand, is everything a disaster movie should be, with all the unmitigated damage you could want. We see dams bursting, cars crashing, helicopters crashing, buildings toppled or chipped apart, and entire cities reduced to a flooded, smoking ruin, and it’s cool! Of course, it would be horrific if this actually happened (and I suppose it could), but it’s a feast for the eyes boasting an astronomical body count with no actual bodies. While I don’t really buy the causes for disasters like The Day after Tomorrow or 2012, an earthquake is more plausible and thus more alarming, though I was confused by the inclusion of a tsunami. (Seriously, wouldn’t a tsunami go out toward the sea and hit Hawaii instead of doubling back toward the source of the quake?)

Dwayne Johnson (whom everyone still calls the Rock) isn’t what most would consider a consummate actor, but he certainly knows how to play a tough, capable lead such as air rescue pilot Ray Gaines. Returning as his co-star from Race to Witch Mountain, Carla Gugino plays his soon-to-be ex-wife, whom Ray must save from certain death, along with their daughter Blake (Alexandra Daddario of the Percy Jackson films). There’s also Paul Giamatti’s worried seismologist and Ioan Gruffudd’s architect/home-wrecker, whose character is tested by stress and easily written off as selfish. While there are still many minor players, Ray’s family is the focus, which proves to be far more entertaining than the scattered attention of Earthquake. Screenwriter Carlton Cuse gives just enough emotional baggage and stress-kindled romance to be relatable, while throwing in a few moments that seemed directly drawn from his experience with Lost.

Neither film is what I’d call great cinema, but as a disaster movie, San Andreas is easily the better movie and one of the more exciting entries in the genre. I enjoyed watching it a second time even more because I got to watch my easily excitable dad jump out of his seat with two dozen “OMG” moments. Watching the two films side-by-side did emphasize one of the differences between the old wave and the new wave of disaster movies. While the likes of The Poseidon Adventure and Earthquake weren’t afraid to kill off main roles and leave the audience sharing some grief with the characters, more recent films are more concerned with keeping the protagonists together and finding a silver lining. It’s hard to say which is a better method, but one thing is for sure: movies like San Andreas and Earthquake are why I will never move to California!

Best line from Earthquake (which ties in to my elevator list): (dam caretaker, when told things seem fine after an elevator incident) “Right. People drown in elevators every damn day of the week!”

Best line from San Andreas: (young Ollie, after getting Blake’s phone number for his older brother) “I can’t wait to be twenty.”

 

Rank for Earthquake: Honorable Mention

Rank for San Andreas: List Runner-Up

 

© 2016 S. G. Liput

367 Followers and Counting

 

Genre Grandeur – The Usual Suspects (1995) – Rhyme and Reason

04 Friday Mar 2016

Posted by sgliput in Movies

≈ 5 Comments

Here’s my contribution to MovieRob’s February Genre Grandeur of crime movies: the popular thriller with a twist The Usual Suspects.

MovieRob

Crime-Pix

For this month’s next review for Genre Grandeur – Crime Films, here’s a review of The Usual Suspects (1995) by SG of Rhyme and Reason

Thanks again to Dan of Slipthrough Movies for choosing this month’s genre.

Next month’s Genre has been chosen by Drew of Drew’s Movie Reviews We will be reviewing our favorite Heist Movies.

Please get me your submissions by the 25th of March by sending them to drewsheist@movierob.net  Try to think out of the box! Great choice Drew!

Let’s see what SG thought of this movie:

_________________________________

1

The Usual Suspects (1995)

Five guys in a lineup—how simple a start.

If you think this simple, then you must be smart!

Now four are deceased from a stickup gone south,

And just Verbal Kint’s left to open his mouth.

The others— I can’t quite remember each name—

Well, one had an accent and two were the same,

View original post 626 more words

My Top Twelve Movie Elevators

02 Wednesday Mar 2016

Posted by sgliput in Movies, Reviews, Writing

≈ 6 Comments

Tags

Lists

 

I’m not the first guy to compile favorite elevator scenes, but I do believe that this particular ranking is my own. I was surprised by just how many significant elevator scenes there have been over the decades, from comedies to action movies. This doesn’t count just any film that happens to have a random elevator in it, but films with elevator scenes that are actually memorable with special props to those with more than one elevator scene. This does only refer to movies, but I’ll give a shout-out to notable elevators in TV as well, such as the Star Trek turbolifts, the anime Death Parade, and that infamous death scene in L.A. Law. I’m also well aware of violent elevator scenes in films like Drive, Cabin in the Woods, and The Departed, but since I haven’t seen those, they don’t count.

It’s time then to elevate my top twelve movie scenes involving elevators.
 

  1. You’ve Got Mail (1998)

I’ve never been trapped in an elevator, but this is probably what it would be like. When Tom Hanks’ Joe Fox is stranded with his girlfriend and two others in an elevator, his character has a turning point.

 

  1. October Sky (1999)

As I said before, most elevators take you where you want to go, but some do the opposite. When aspiring rocketeer Homer Hickam must take his father’s place in the West Virginia coal mine he’s been dreading, it is an elevator that drags him from the starry beauty above to the oppressive darkness below.

 

  1. Aliens (1986)

When the girl you’re trying to rescue is many levels below the flight deck with your one chance of escaping an exploding planet, there’s bound to be an elevator involved. Both Ripley and the Alien Queen make good use of the rising cages, and the tension is palpable. The scene that really gets me, though, is when Ripley and Hicks are waiting for an elevator door to close and an alien leaps from the darkness. Why won’t those doors close faster?!

 

  1. The Blues Brothers (1980)

Don’t you just love elevator music? I didn’t think so, but the Blues Brothers make it hilarious as they stoically ascend the floors while all hell is breaking loose outside. SWAT teams yell “Hut, hut, hut” like those “mine” seagulls in Finding Nemo and overkill is an understatement, but all is well within the blissful ignorance of the elevator.

 

  1. Inception (2010)/ Paprika (2006)

Inception has two great elevator scenes, the coolest being Arthur’s zero-gravity wake-up call. The first, though, bears enough suspicious similarity to the surreal anime film Paprika that I had to include these two together. Both movies are about dreams, and an elevator serves as a vertical means of navigating various levels of the subconscious.

 

  1. Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith (2005)

Two Jedi walk onto an elevator full of droids…. Okay, there’s no punchline, but it is cool. Not only does this scene give Anakin a neat move in the elevator shaft, it confirmed that R2-D2 is the coolest droid. Let’s see BB-8 do that!

 

  1. Toy Story 2 (1999)

When Woody is kidnapped, of course he has to be taken to the top of a huge apartment building, and since toys can’t very well ride an elevator like people can, his friends hitch a ride on top. The first elevator scene is funny enough, but later when Zurg shows up, it’s comedy gold as the climax begins.

 

  1. Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014) / Die Hard with a Vengeance (1995)

Both of these scenes have something in common: the lone protagonist is crowded in an elevator by bad guys just waiting to ambush him. Cap and John McClane are too formidable to be taken by surprise and gain the upper hand against all odds. McClane’s method is more violent, but Cap also has to worry about getting out of the elevator as more enemies approach.

 

  1. Willy Wonka/Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (1971/2005)

Both adaptations of Roald Dahl’s classic children’s book include the Great Glass Elevator. Gene Wilder’s version of the button-filled box serves as the film’s finale, while the Johnny Depp version utilizes the elevator a little more. I’d love to ride in both of them. I wonder how it would have turned out if Dahl’s sequel Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator could have been filmed to make the elevator the star. Spoiler warning!

 

  1. The Towering Inferno (1974)

If disaster movies have taught us anything, it should be to NEVER get in an elevator during a disaster. Of course, when a glass high-rise is going up in flames, people panic and pay for it in the elevator. If that weren’t enough, the stakes are elevated higher (pun intended) when another elevator on the outside of the building dangles precariously. Its rescue is the highlight of the film.

 

  1. Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)

James Cameron knew how to employ elevators. Instead of an Alien Queen, this time there’s a liquid metal cyborg on the loose, who’s not about to let an elevator door or roof stop him from completing his assassination mission. The effects and action are both scary and impressive.

 

  1. Speed (1994)

No film captures the terror of an elevator’s worst case scenario like Speed. Before we even get to Sandra Bullock and the runaway bus, Keanu Reeves and his SWAT team must rescue an elevator’s passengers from a bomber (Dennis Hopper). When the elevator hangs from an unstable crane, the rescue keeps you literally on the edge of your seat, and the confrontation with the bomber just happens to take place on an elevator too. It’s a shame I couldn’t find a video for the scene, but trust me, not many elevator scenes can compare with this one.

 

Runners-Up:

 

Being There (1979) – “That was a very small room.”

Die Hard (1988) – “Now I have a machine gun. Ho, ho, ho.”

Earthquake (1974) – The first hint of a problem in this disaster flick involves a flooded elevator, and later more panickers prove why an elevator is a death trap in an earthquake.

Ghost (1990) – I like the little scene where Patrick Swayze and Tony Goldwin prank everyone in the crowded elevator.

Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990) – When gremlins take control of your elevator, be afraid.

The Hunger Games (2012) and Catching Fire (2013) – The tributes are elevated into the arena as suspense builds. Plus, there’s that awkward stripping scene with Johanna in the elevator.

Kate and Leopold (2001) – Apparently if the inventor of the elevator never invented elevators, elevators would still exist but wouldn’t work? Yeah, time travel.

My Favorite Wife (1940) – A great little moment in this Cary Grant charmer takes place in an elevator when Grant sees his presumably dead wife alive again. (See the picture at the top.)

National Treasure (2004) – Not only does Nicholas Cage abscond with the Declaration of Independence in an elevator, but he uses an eighteenth-century equivalent to descend to the treasure.

Oh, God! (1977) – If you rise past the top floor, you may be on your way to talk to God.

Outland (1981) – Have you ever wondered what would happen if a spacesuit decompressed in an elevator? It ain’t pretty.

Panic Room (2002) – It’s more of a dumbwaiter, but Jodie Foster uses her mini-elevator to outsmart the home invaders.

Scrooged (1988) – Bill Murray’s reaction to the Ghost of Christmas Future is priceless.

The Shining (1980) – I didn’t even know that flood of blood was coming out of an elevator until I looked it up.

The Silence of the Lambs (1991) – Further proof that Hannibal Lecter is a sick, twisted genius.

Spider-Man 2 (2004) – So Spider-Man walks into an elevator….

The Spiderwick Chronicles (2008) – Yeah, it’s a dumbwaiter, but when someone gets inside it, it might as well be an elevator.

Superman II (1980) – When there’s a bomb on the Eiffel Tower’s elevator and Lois Lane is underneath it, Superman will be there!

Super Mario Bros. (1993) – The dancing in the elevator is just one bizarre scene from a bad but strangely memorable movie.

Titanic (1997) – When water floods into an elevator, it’s time to stop going down.

Tower of Terror (1997) – This TV movie based on the Disney World ride was bound to feature some doomed elevators.

True Lies (1994) – A horse and a motorcycle get into two elevators….

The Untouchables (1987) – One of the four Untouchables meets a sad and violent end in an elevator.

 

 

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