2012

Sony

R4 DVD

2012 is another big budget disaster-melodrama from Roland Emmerich of Independence Day and The Day After Tomorrow fame. Emmerich does tend to follow a formula with his film which he has honed to a fine art. There is lots of action, overblown plots, little to no character development, an overemphasis on the nuclear family and related sentimentalism matched with over-the-top extremely high budget special effects.

Using speculation about the end of world Emmerich ties together hokey religious superstitions, overwrought emotionalism and grand spectacle with quite astounding CGI.

However, this is a film which really cannot be taken seriously in terms of plot or character development. The storyline takes its cue from new age speculation about the end of the world and mixes in all manner of pseudo-science. It tries to sound all scientific using references to the new age favourite pseudo scientist Charles Hapgood and spends most of the film revelling in the most ludicrous speculations. The credits mention the film is inspired by Footprints of the Gods by Graham Hancock. Hancock is celebrated by quack archaeologists worldwide for his unorthodox opinions.

If that is not enough 2012 celebrates religious lunacy as the people of the world unite in prayer rather than making any real effort to survive. Scenes such as when the roof on the cathedral in Rome crashes on believers end up having a truly dark and ironic sense of humour.

Of course the United States works out the truth about the coming catastrophe before anyone else and creates “arks” to save the cream of the crop to create a future world. What a future world it will be! Filled with rich bloated bankers, billionaires and anyone else who can afford the one billion euro ticket to get on-board. To supposedly get us to feel the “personal” side of the tale Emmerich places his focus on Jackson Curtis, his ex-wife and her new husband and their two kids. It is so American apple-pie it is revolting. You just know that the new interloper husband will get it (which he does) and Jackson and his wife will get together again (which they do) and the nuclear family will be part of the new world. Ahh shucks !

There is a good sub plot about government corruption with Adrian Hemsley, advisor to the president representing the conscience of a basically immoral group of politicians. He encourages the president to notify the world of the imminent disaster, even if it is way too late, and forces the hand of the bureaucrats to allow more people on-board when one of the arks fail.

None of this really means much to be honest, this is a film you watch for the breathtaking CGI. It cost $250 million U.S to make and it looks every cent. There are scenes which are so absolutely ridiculous they nearly make your laugh but look absolutely incredible. How often the Curtis family escape disaster with earthquakes, volcanoes and collapsing cities trailing them is totally unbelievable. Within a few moments of the disaster beginning common sense just goes right out the window and never comes back. The sheer ferocity of the disaster scenes are amazing and in many ways the portrayal of a small nuclear family bent on survival at all costs while the world is destroyed around them is a little disconcerting. Some reviewers have actually coined the term “disaster porn” to refer to this film and while I can understand their point I would not necessarily go that far. But I am in two minds about 2012.

On one hand it is an unintentionally amusing ride through the end of the world using incredible CGI. On the other hand I think there is a danger giving credibility to pseudo-science, superstition and bogus beliefs about the end of the world. There is enough hype about 2012 without adding mainstream Hollywood films into the mix. Too often speculation about the end of the world has led religious cults into very dark places and this sort of film can easily feed the paranoia that so many of the world’s religions are already filled to the brim with.

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This review will appear in Volume 3 No.2 of the digital and print edition of Synergy Magazine.

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