Starting with the positives, this is easily the most enjoyable film I've seen this year so far. One of the things I enjoyed most about this film is how fast paced it is. The main story kicks off after around 10 minutes into the film and never seems to slow down. As the film goes on, you feel the metaphorical ticking clock as our characters have to get to a destination and that latches onto the viewers captivity to the film.
Something that really surprised me with the film is even though it's a disaster film, it doesn't focus too much the special effects. It relys on the characters to carry this film and tell the story and explores what the characters are willing to do to survive. The special effects are great but they're not high budget effects and they're not all over the screen and in your face which makes the film better.
The cast are also great. I really like Gerard butler and I'm a big Morena Baccarin fan and they give some fantastic performances. Whilst this shares some common tropes with other disaster films which I'll elaborate more in the negatives, one trope it executes so well is the meaning of family. You feel the theme of family throughout the film as the characters desperately try to survive and you can buy our lead stars as a family. The child actor cast in this film is also really good.
Finally I was really impressed with the marketing for this film. The trailer hides certain plot points unlike a lot of trailers and I was certainly grateful for that. There's a lot of unexpected moments in this film and it's nice to be surprised without everything being spoiled.
Unfortunately this film isn't perfect so let's move onto the negatives. Now I really enjoyed this film and I didn't have any specific issues but there were a few things I wasn't a fan of. First of all, I'm going to start off with a nitpick. I swear Gerard butler had two different accents in this film. One minute he's Scottish then he's American and when he's trying to be American, it sounds really bad. Either get the man A dialect coach or let him use his natural accent.
Also I stated this earlier but this film shares a lot of tropes with other disaster films. Two people having relationship troubles are forced to band together to try and survive a natural disaster. They even get separated at one point and have to find each other to continue their journey. We've seen these tropes in so many disaster films. The day after tomorrow, 2012, San Andreas etc.
Finally whilst this is a face paced film, the film seems to run out of steam towards the 3rd act. The first two acts are gripping and captivating but once we get to the 3rd act, it feels like the weakest part of the film. It's still good but just not as gripping or memorable.
But overall this is the most enjoyable film I've seen this year and it delivered the escapism I look for in disaster films. It's got good effects, good actors and good characters and I would highly recommend this film.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
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