Armageddon

When it comes to delivering a great afternoon of entertainment few movie genres can rival the disaster flick for encompassing the widest range of emotions. There is everything from dramatic sacrifice to romance set against the background of impending destruction often on a global scale. The master of the genre, Irwin Allen, had an interesting take on this type of film. He preferred to call them survival movies since the disaster is only the initiating event or circumstances. What matters in these films is the human response to impossible situations in order to survive. In many ways this is a brilliant touch of insight from a man who helped to establish the fundamental elements of the genre. What matters most in these movies is not the relatively small amount of screen time affords the unstoppable fury of nature or whatever force is on a rampage. The true focus is the response of people caught in the middle of things. During a real life disaster like 911 the most encouraging stories of bravery came out to reassure people. This is what keeps people flocking to disaster movies; they are actually extremely uplifting providing not only a roller coaster ride of excitement but a real look at some of the core human emotions. One of the most memorable films of this category is ‘Armageddon’. While not the best example of the genre it remains a fan favorite. One possible reason for the less than stellar critical reception maybe it was released around the same time as a movie with a similar theme and better technical construction; ‘Deep Impact. With that said ‘Armageddon’ does have its memorable moments and great special effects and it does hit every one of the required elements that define this type of flick. While its rival may have been deemed more accurate it couldn’t hold a candle to the sheer distraction entertainment value of ‘Armageddon’. This is a movie that most likely has a spot on your collection shelf but you may want to consider a repurchase. The Disney Company has been releasing some of their most popular movies in high definition. After comparing this new edition with my old DVD version it was like watching the flick for the first time.

For a disaster flick a lot depends on its pedigree and one thing you have to say about this one is it has the best. The producer is a man synonymous with action, Jerry Bruckheimer and directed by a talent who knows his way around big budget action blockbusters, Michael Bay. For this type of movie you could hope for a better collaboration. Despite mediocre critical response the film had no problem recouping the $135 million budget with domestic box office. These names are just about on par with movie stars for their ability to fill seats in the theater. It is true that just about any film will look and sound better in Blu-ray a movie like this will be the kind you bring out when friends drop by just to demonstrate the full abilities of you high definition system. As if this wasn’t enough one of the authors of the screenplay was J.J. Abrams, one of the most successful and sought after creative minds in television and cinema. The combination of these talents forms a nearly unstoppable and proven force to tailor make something designed to maximize your enjoyment.

The difference between this editions and the standard DVD that preceded it is immediately apparent from the start. As the film opens a huge meteor is careening towards the earth. It measures about the size of Texas but much smaller pieces are striking the planet. In high def the sound of the rocks zoom through your living room exploding with the roar of the sub woofer. The 7.1 audio creates a sound stage that is almost three dimensional. The video shines with a panning shot over the moon. You can see a remarkable amount of detail to the craters and valleys. In the scenes where the oil drillers are training to become astronauts the time practicing in the water is excellent. The nuances of the environment is evident both with the little, subtle sounds but also the clarity of the water reflecting. This is also important as part of the story. Most of us grew up with astronauts held up as an elite class far beyond the normal fray. In this flick a group of blue-collar, red neck guys take off for the ultimate adventure in space. This is a dream of just about everyone in my generation. The movie actually scores well on the necessary elements scale. For tension there is the sword of Damocles with the asteroid moving closer which also provides the requisite ticking time clock. Forbidden romance shows up in the relationship between the handsome young driller, ‘A.J.’ (Ben Affleck) and the daughter of the boss, Grace (Liv Tyler). Dad, Harry (Bruce Willis), is not your typical movie rock driller. He designs the equipment NASA needs to destroy the asteroid and manages a multimillion dollar company. Some of the other workers are played by some of the best character actors around including Steve Buscemi and Michael Clarke Duncan. They not only add to the action but provide just the right touch of comic relief.

The Blu-ray is near reference quality with a level of detail that will make your upgrade well worthwhile. From the roar of the rocket blasting off to the Aerosmith fueled sound track the DTS Master Audio is flawless. Combined with a brilliant 1080p video and this movie are transformed into something entirely fresh and new. Even if you have an older copy of this film it is work getting again just for the immaculate presentation. I was always lukewarm about this film but after seeing this release I had to alter my perspective and count myself among the fans.

Posted 04/21/2010