Armageddon (B+ or 3/4 stars)
When a giant asteroid (like the ones that took out the dinosaurs) heads for Earth, the world's best drilling team is assembled and sent to implode it in 'Armageddon', directed by Michael Bay. Dan Truman (Billy Bob Thornton), a NASA chief, realizes that his organization made a big boo boo by not noticing said asteroid as it hurdles towards our planet. Due to strike in 18 days, he is given the task of finding a way to save Earth. His plan? To send a band of oil drillers into space with hope of landing on the asteroid & blowing it up internally. Once landed, they can drill 800 ft. beneath its surface, toss a nuclear warhead down, evacuate before they become toast, & save the world. Ta daaa. The 1st man chosen to lead this deep core expedition is Harry Stamper (Bruce Willis).
His misfit team includes: A.J. (Ben Affleck), a hot shot; Chick (Will Patton), a gambler; Rockhound (the always quirky Steve Buscemi), a sex addict; Bear(Michael Clark Duncan), a strong, huge man; Max (Ken Hudson Campbell), another strong, huge man; Oscar (Owen Wilson), a geologist; a pair of NASA pilot (Jessica Steen, William Fichtner), & a Russian cosmonaut (the very funny Peter Stormare). All the while, back at Mission Control, you've got General Kimsey (Keith David) who's just itching to prematurely explode the nuke at the 1st sign of trouble. And Grace Stamper (Liv Tyler), who is both Harry's daughter & A.J.'s fiance, is pacing back a home; praying that she won't lose her father and/or her boyfriend in this incredibly dangerous space mission. Will these new astronauts be able to train, fly, & execute this plan in time to save the world?
THIS is what all summer blockbusters should be like: big, loud, adrenaline-filled & humorous. The many characters/heroes are larger than life. The visual effects are wondrous. The action scenes are great. The emotional content (while manipulative) is off the charts. And before you know it, you see that your popcorn bag is empty. Sure, the film is not very smart. The story is bogus; if not entertaining. And you won't find master class acting. But the film gets all the intangibles right. 'Armageddon' pulls out all the stops: grand speeches by the President, tons of meaningful slow-motion action shots, pyrotechnics, sweeping/bombastic music, sequences that will surely drive factions of audiences to cheer and/or cry at the same time.
Bruce Willis does what he does best: smirk, deliver his lines with dry wit, & fight like a maniac (a la Die Hard). He's likeable. Ben Affleck's character isn't as likeable, but we believe in his relationship with Liv Tyler's Grace. And I really enjoyed the caricature portrayals from Steve Buscemi, Peter Stormare, & Owen Wilson. Now, taking all of that (and while I did enjoy the movie on a visceral level), it is NOT a great movie. At nearly 2 & a half hours, it goes far too long. I would have cut a touch from the astronaut 'training', and edit some of the action sequences near the end. Still, I think this movie kicks butt. The song that goes with this movie (Aerosmith's 'I Don't Wanna Miss A Thing') is fantastic. And I could definitely see myself watching this again in the near future on DVD and/or television. It's big, loud, stupid, but incredibly watchable.
His misfit team includes: A.J. (Ben Affleck), a hot shot; Chick (Will Patton), a gambler; Rockhound (the always quirky Steve Buscemi), a sex addict; Bear(Michael Clark Duncan), a strong, huge man; Max (Ken Hudson Campbell), another strong, huge man; Oscar (Owen Wilson), a geologist; a pair of NASA pilot (Jessica Steen, William Fichtner), & a Russian cosmonaut (the very funny Peter Stormare). All the while, back at Mission Control, you've got General Kimsey (Keith David) who's just itching to prematurely explode the nuke at the 1st sign of trouble. And Grace Stamper (Liv Tyler), who is both Harry's daughter & A.J.'s fiance, is pacing back a home; praying that she won't lose her father and/or her boyfriend in this incredibly dangerous space mission. Will these new astronauts be able to train, fly, & execute this plan in time to save the world?
THIS is what all summer blockbusters should be like: big, loud, adrenaline-filled & humorous. The many characters/heroes are larger than life. The visual effects are wondrous. The action scenes are great. The emotional content (while manipulative) is off the charts. And before you know it, you see that your popcorn bag is empty. Sure, the film is not very smart. The story is bogus; if not entertaining. And you won't find master class acting. But the film gets all the intangibles right. 'Armageddon' pulls out all the stops: grand speeches by the President, tons of meaningful slow-motion action shots, pyrotechnics, sweeping/bombastic music, sequences that will surely drive factions of audiences to cheer and/or cry at the same time.
Bruce Willis does what he does best: smirk, deliver his lines with dry wit, & fight like a maniac (a la Die Hard). He's likeable. Ben Affleck's character isn't as likeable, but we believe in his relationship with Liv Tyler's Grace. And I really enjoyed the caricature portrayals from Steve Buscemi, Peter Stormare, & Owen Wilson. Now, taking all of that (and while I did enjoy the movie on a visceral level), it is NOT a great movie. At nearly 2 & a half hours, it goes far too long. I would have cut a touch from the astronaut 'training', and edit some of the action sequences near the end. Still, I think this movie kicks butt. The song that goes with this movie (Aerosmith's 'I Don't Wanna Miss A Thing') is fantastic. And I could definitely see myself watching this again in the near future on DVD and/or television. It's big, loud, stupid, but incredibly watchable.