FAULTY DISASTER FLICK
In San Andreas, that whole San Andreas Fault thing finally happens — and to worse-than-expected results. The film follows Ray (Dwayne Johnson), a search-and-rescue pilot, as he tries to save his daughter (Alexandra Daddario). The visuals seem shockingly realistic, but overall, it looks like typical disaster flick fare.
San Andreas opens in wide release May 29.
JAMES: The trailer has an effective setup. The Rock, or Dwayne Johnson, walking around, happy with his life. Great wife, daughter. I was just waiting for the bass to drop. What will it be? Kidnapping? Past comes back to haunt him? A plunge into global conspiracy?
CHRISTINA: I got the impression that not everything is well in The Rock’s world — it seemed like that was his ex-wife to me. But, they are going to realize that they still love each other. At least, that’s what tends to happen in a lot of other, similar disaster movies). Actually, let’s hope that’s the case for them, because exes tend to actually live in disaster movies in order to rekindle their love, while happy couples tend to die.
PAIGE: This is disaster porn. Gratuitous, dusty disaster porn.
JAMES: I know it’s supposed to be a popcorn flick. But because we all know how tragic and cataclysmic such an event would be, it’s just weird to focus in on one family. And Dwayne J. is the only guy who can run, jump, swim, fly, drop, roll, and maybe even twirl his way through all of this chaos. Everyone else is helpless. Made me feel hollowed out.
PAIGE: That’s a good point about the scope of things being lost in this kind of film. Filmmakers try to focus on one small detail in the story to help convey the enormity of the tragedy, but that in itself fails to convey how massive the disaster is.
JAMES: This is the problem that CGI flicks have just settled into. There’s disconnect between people and the incredible events transpiring around them. There is no sense of perspective, gravity, scale. It’s easier to show us what it would look like if multiple buildings toppled over like dominoes, harder to make us feel it. And, in fact, I don’t want to feel it. The shots of the masses are effective.
The destruction is realistic. But when that building fell over, thousands of people died. Thousands just lost their loved ones. I would just feel guilty watching this. I wouldn’t even be able to enjoy my hot dog. Instead, I would mournfully take it outside, dig a hole, and bury it.
NICOLE: The thought of dying in chaos due to a tectonic plate mishap makes me cringe a little bit inside. I can see how this could be a terrifying movie. You either drown, get crushed or fall to your death.
JAIMIE: Personally, I wouldn’t pay to see it in a theatre. But I would like to know what happens in the end, so I’ll just wait for someone to provide an extensive plot description on Wikipedia.
CHRISTINA: I am kind of embarrassed to admit that I would see this. I have a soft spot for ridiculous disaster movies. I think the appeal of these types of movies is that you think about how you would handle a similar situation. Like horror movies, it’s supposed to be some sort of catharsis. Although, this seems to not be very effective in that regard, since The Rock is basically superhuman, and no average person could reasonably replicate anything he does.
PAIGE: I think The Rock is very believable in this kind of movie. I can believe he’s a hard-hitting cop who teams up with street racers, or a G.I. Joe, or a superhero or an extremely talented helicopter pilot. He’s The Rock. Of course he can do all of those things.
NICOLE:I think he looks so friendly, and I think he’s a good actor. But sometimes he’s just so big and looks so gross. I saw a photo he posted for his grandma’s birthday where he’s doing the taualuga, and it melted my heart.
JAIMIE: I can’t figure out how I feel about The Rock. Most of the time, I feel like he’s just a bit much — huge, hulking body and veins that look about ready to burst. Plus he always plays the same character. But other times, he almost seems endearing?
