God help us all!

Rating: Null/10 (19 October 2004)

Not that we might face another ice age at some time, but that this truly awful film could take so much at the box office.
I knew this was a disaster movie before I saw it and so did not expect too much. Disaster movies are more about shock/thrill factor than anything else, but most of them in the past have been, at least somewhat, believable. What I did not expect was to watch a film where everything but special effects was dis-regarded. It would appear that the old saying about what makes a good movie has changed. Instead of script, script and script.. It is now special effects, special effects and CGI.
And it gets worse..
Even when the movie is not using special effects and relies on the plot or characters to make a point it fails miserably through lack of thought and plausibility. The best example of this (and only one of many implausible plot points) is the book burning scene(s). Forget if you will, for a moment, the philosophical issues and think about the practical issues involved:
We need to keep warm : OK let's find something to burn in the fire : Hey look! Loads of books, they should burn well.
Ahem, look around you.
What are books stored on? Yes, that's right, bookshelves : What are bookshelves made of? Very good, you're getting the idea now. Now the final question, and this is the real tester: What burns longer, better and gives off more heat, paper or wood? And while you are trying to resolve that little problem in your head, look around you. What do you see? A library that is full of tables and chairs. The walls are panelled with what?
Our forlorn heroes could not work this out. And we were told earlier in the movie that one of these heroes is so intelligent that he is smarter than the teacher that had the audacity to flunk him. The same high IQ possessing hero that had the intelligence to chat on the phone while he stood in a rising flood of icy cold water that was to be his doom in seconds flat.
Oh well, enough said. This film is really awful, but it will probably win the gong for best special effects. Mission accomplished.
God help us all.