Surprise, surprise!!!(No, really!)

Rating: Null/10 (27 May 2004)

Forget 'Troy', forget 'Van Helsing' - the main attraction this month is surely 'The Day After Tomorrow'. Low bow to R. Emmerich!
With a huge budget, a bunch of great special effects and a mind blowing story this film did turn my expectations around from the very beginning. The main thing first appealing to anyone, who's going to see this movie - the CGIs. The question is - can the special effects be so blinding that the movie makes lots of cash? Van Helsing didn't do it, Troy also didn't succeed for a lot of reasons. What makes this one different? The answer is simple - it makes sense. Surprisingly. Lately Hollywood's attempts to create an intelligent blockbuster have brought nothing apart from lots of money spent on it and never coming back. Well, maybe 'Independence Day', but hey - that one is also Emmerich's baby! Sure, the guy did not do a good job with 'Godzilla' or 'The Patriot', but what makes me happy is - he actually learned from his mistakes and found his balance. The buzz around the movie is huge, but what positively surprises is the fact that this buzz has a reason. And this reason is so good that I can only highly recommend to everyone to go out and see the movie.
The 2 hour long film makes you feel like a part of it, like you're there with the citizens of NYC, it's a ride through a good constructed virtual reality. With one bitter fact, that separates this one from any other Emmerich's films or any other movies based on the idea of mankind being in great danger. This can actually happen in the nearest future. And we're the one, who are responsible for it. Maybe this won't happen as fast as it does in the movie, but there is no doubt that it will.
Dennis Quaid (Jack Hall) has positively surprised me, making a good come back. The Hollywood underdog - Jake Gyllenhaal finally breaks his rule of not making blockbusters and appears to be a great cast for the role of Sam Hall. Despite all the negative actions in the film it does not lack humor, which is superb. There even is a smooth taste of politics in the movie, which is important in times like these, which is relative both on screen and off. And it doesn't bother. The length of 'Independence Day' with its sometimes bothering talking of 3 hours is cut this time to just two, which move with the speed of the twisters in LA.
This is the best movie I've seen so far this year. Go see it. Think about it...