cinema has been around for about a hundred years now .
?
it 's not my job to recap this century every time i talk about a new film , but i 'd like to think that i 'm beginning to understand the art more as i watch more films from before my time .
recently , i 've seen the films of hitchcock , capra , fellini , godard , kurosawa , chaplin , lang , and many others . ?
those men were talented artists , and their films reflect their genius . ?
they are likely to be remembered for .
. .
well , quite a while .
?
i like this film , too .
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yes , it 's a disaster - slash - action movie .
?
true , its budget is a lot more money than i 'll ever see in my lifetime . ?
and there 's not a doubt in my mind that the only reason it was conceived was to make a lot of money .
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in fact , i bet the producers of armageddon would have worked towards a lousy film , had they thought it would 've been more profitable .
i certainly do n't care what their intentions were , because michael bay ( the rock ) is such a skilled director that i doubt he 'd ever make a film that is difficult to sit through .
of course , skillful direction does n't complete the package , but the rest of armageddon manages to keep everything together .
the story is well - thought out ( and perfectly paced to provide for an abundance of action sequences that never feel out of place ) ,
the acting is terrific , the script is sharp , and -- get this -- there are characters .
yes , you read that right .
armageddon actually has characters you can care about ! if you do n't like this film , then you have a problem with the genre itself : armageddon is as good as a film like this
can be .
if you 've seen deep impact , then you know the basic framework for the story .
it turns out that an asteroid the size of texas is going to strike the earth eighteen days from the start of the film .
so , it 's up to the u
. s .
government to stop it .
( why the u . s .
is always exclusively saddled with these problems is never fully investigated . )
their plan -- to send a group of experienced oil drillers up to the asteroid , drill down several hundred feet , and detonate a nuclear warhead within .
the head driller is harry stamper ( bruce willis ) .
his group of men is a colorful bunch , including a .
j .
( ben affleck ) , chick ( will patton ) , and rockhound ( steve buscemi ) .
there 's also an interesting triangle formed between a .
j . , harry , and grace ( liv tyler ) , who is harry 's daughter .
a .
j .
and grace are , of course , romantically intertwined , and dad is n't too happy with the situation .
it 's absurd to wish for a complicated story in an event movie or a special effects movie or
whatever it is you 'd like to call armageddon .
it 's not about story -- it 's about viscera and action , and thrills - a - minute , and all that stuff .
it 's incidental , really , that the story is cohesive and even remotely believable , because most people will be too wrapped up in the explosions to give two seconds ' thought to what actually happens .
but bay is the one to congratulate in this case , for he has made a film
so entertaining and so visually sharp
that i doubt any director could have done it better .
i think most of the budget went to cameras alone , because bay films every action sequence from about thirty or forty different angles .
take the spectacular opening scene , for instance , in which a meteor shower obliterates new york .
a meteor flies out of the sky and crashes into a building , which sends fireballs erupting into the air and cars spinning like tops upon other cars .
the action itself might take five seconds in real life , but bay edits so quickly that we get the same scene in six different ways .
i like his quick - edit style , because it 's abrasive and exhausting to watch .
it 's also very loud , and obnoxiously noisy at times .
but it 's fun to be obnoxious sometimes .
the special effects in this film put every other 1998 blockbuster to shame .
deep impact , visually , has absolutely nothing on armageddon , and to offer a comparison between the quality of this film and godzilla is simply laughable .
special effects are very important in a film like this : if they 're not good , then the image is not convincing , and the film does n't work .
everything here looks bright and explosive
-- from the little meteors bursting through skyscrapers , all the way to the shots of the earth through the jutting rocks on the ominously approaching asteroid .
the effects that do n't look totally real are still a pleasure to behold , and i credit everyone involved for creating the first blockbuster
so nice - looking that it actually qualifies as art
.
of course , all of this would add up to little more than an above - average light show , if i did n't get the feeling that bay cares as much about his characters as he does about his action .
the film is two and a half hours long , and not all of that is spent submerged in numbing action .
much of the film is dedicated to developing the various characters ' subplots .
i wo n't suggest that these are complex characters , but their problems are real , and the emotions are n't put forth in a sentimental and overbearing way .
in fact , there are three or four scenes here that had me pretty choked up , and that 's a lot more than i can say about deep impact , which was banking on the feel - good parts of its story .
bruce willis is terrific , and i 'm glad to see him bigger than life again ( recent turns in films like mercury rising have been very disappointing ) .
tyler and affleck are great together , and make a convincing couple -- all of the scenes between them work on a comfortable level .
patton , who is a magnificent actor , thankfully is not wasted here , and the minor subplot revolving around his ex - wife and son is very moving
.
the comic relief from buscemi and peter stormare ( who plays a crazy russian astronaut ) is nifty , and keeps the film lively and funny
.
i was n't challenged to think real hard while watching armageddon , and i do n't mind too much .
but the film does n't insult my intelligence -- it 's pitched perfectly to entertain , which is what all it really wants to do .
it 's not mindless and escapist , but well - crafted cinema .
it might have been created for the wrong reasons , but men like michael bay have my respect for showing me that they are interested in making something good , in spite of the producers and the budget .
i 'm not saying that films like this are risky moves .
what i am saying is that armageddon is a big , loud , expensive motion picture that reminds me that art often comes in the strangest of forms .
perfectly paced a pleasure to behold a magnificent actor , thankfully is not wasted here to offer a comparison between the quality of this film and godzilla is simply laughable terrific the special effects in this film put every other 1998 blockbuster to shame never feel out of place everything here looks bright and explosive manages to keep everything together nifty very moving the acting is terrific , the script is sharp lively and funny it 's not mindless and escapist , but well - crafted cinema so entertaining and so visually sharp well - thought out are great together , and make a convincing couple so nice - looking that it actually qualifies as art pitched perfectly to entertain