Catastropic epic.

Rating: 8/10 (14 November 2009)

Writer/director Roland Emmerich sacrifices dialogue and depends on an almost comical storyline to wow viewers with mega destruction. Sure the CGI, sound and special effects will sell a lot of popcorn and soft drinks. Even word of mouth will put people in theater seats. Just leave any semblance of real intelligence at the box office, lean back and hold on...and let your eyes feast on the powerful scenes of devastation.
A geologist(Chiwetel Ejiofor)has the facts and figures that prove validity in the ancient Mayan belief that the wold will come to an end in 2012. He at first will have trouble convincing the President's(Danny Glover)people of the pending doom; but a novelist(John Cusack), who just so happens to have written a book about the lost Atlantis, is an easier believer...and the story line has him and his family out driving and flying the massive earthquakes and tsunamis. And somehow cell phones periodically still work. The finale is actually clever; and as the story eases into salvation, heroic feats of bravery run from sappy to bittersweet. You do end up thinking you got multiple big bangs for your buck. As for entertainment, I really enjoyed it.
Also part of the cast: Amanda Peet, Woody Harrelson, Oliver Platt, Zlatko Buric, Thomas McCarthy and Liam James.