Volcano (Wide Screen) > Reviews > The volcano is hot, the film is not

Author's product rating:   

Did you enjoy it?	Indifferent to it
Story	Satisfactory
Characters / Performances	Good
Special Effects	Good
Soundtrack	Average

Advantages:	Good special effects
Disadvantages:	Lack of characterisation, not enough human emotion

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

The 1990s bought us a glut of disaster movies, each with great special effects, although some were definately better than others. We were treated to the action packed but absurd Armageddon, the thoughtful and emotional Deep Impact, as well as the sizzling Dante's Peak, which is similar to Volcano in every respect, except that Pierce Brosnan is in the lead role and not Tommy Lee Jones. Volcano isn't that terrible, but it definately doesn't class as one of the great disaster movies, even if it does contain some well cheoreographed action sequences and a solid (but not great) performance from Jones. This is definately Tommy Lee Jones's territory, allowing him to run around and save the day, as well as fix the troubled relationship with his daughter. Although the material doesn't stretch Jones's acting ability, he does a good job all the same. The main problem with Volcano is that you don't feel any connection to the lead characters, with a lack of characterisation prevalent throughout.

As the title suggests this film is all about a Volcano and its aftermath. The big difference is that the Volcano explodes in the middle of Los Angeles (which is scientifically impossible, but obviously nothing is impossible in Hollywood), leading to absolute chaos on the streets. The film starts with a minor earthquake hitting Los Angeles one night, leading to a giant burst of lava being release from the La Brea Tar Pits. At the centre of the drama is Emergency Management director Mike Roark (Jones) who is taking his daughter Kelly (Gaby Hoffman) to safety after the earthquake hits the city. Sadly for him, he finds himself in the middle of an erupting volcano, with its deadly lava spilling out onto the streets and damaging buildings and cars. It's up to Roark and sexy sidekick Dr Amy Barnes (Anne Heche) to save the day and stop the volcano from destroying the city.

There were two volcano films released in 1997, Dante's Peak and this effort. Sadly Volcano is the weaker of the two films, even if the special effects and action sequences do make it passable entertainment. In fact the special effects are really really good, particularly the scenes with the lava pouring down the streets, which looks extremely realistic. The volcano explosion is also well done and doesn't look at all tacky, and is definately the highlight of an otherwise mediocre film. The problem is that the film has obviously spent all of its money on the great special effects, without developing the characters more. The film starts with an insight into Roark's troubled relationship with his daughter, but rather then exploring this further instead piles on the special effects, which get more absurd as the film reaches its conclusion, with director Mick Jackson obviously feeling that lots of CGI sequences will disguise the flaws in the film.

Tommy Lee Jones does a solid job and definately looks the part, but he's merely there to add a bit of muscle to the film. Once the volcano strikes it's pretty clear what path the film wants to take, with Jones being used to add much needed weight. Anne Heche also does a good job as the resident know-it-all doctor, even if she is underused for the most part, and has some of the worst lines in the film. The worst part of the film (and there are a few) is the tacky sub-plot involving Kelly Roark being separated from her father, which is blatantly used to try and make us care about the characters involved, which I'm afraid to say is impossible. This film also tries to cram in other stupid sequences, including one involving a racist cop refusing to help a black man, which is a very tacky and rather embarrasing sequence which isn't necessary, merely used to show us how we should care more for each other, not be prejudice.......blah blah.

There's also yet another stupid sequence involving people looting from shops, just to let us know that we are in Los Angeles. I didn't see why this sequence needed to be included, it doesn't really fit in with the rest of the film. I also didn't get why there were so many news reports in the film, telling us stuff that we already know, such as "the house behind me has exploded in flames" and "it's as if the tar had caught fire, melted and somehow expanded". This leads me on to a bigger problem with the film, the script. Jerome Armstrong needs to go back to writing school, because his script is the biggest pile of rubbish ever written, containing hundreds of annoying cliches and rubbish one-liners, which make you cringe just listening to them.

This is one example

Kelly Roark: Please, please. You can't leave me here.
Mike Roark: Kelly, you can not be here and I have to.
Kelly Roark: Why?
Mike Roark: Because it's my responsibility.

etc, etc. The script really does let the film down, and should have been rewritten before they started shooting. Dante's Peak starring Pierce Brosnan is no masterpiece, but it's superior to Volcano in a number of ways, not least because it doesn't rely on lazy and cliche ridden one liners.

Even if Volcano has a number of problems it's still good fun, with a lot of entertaining sequences, mainly during the first third of the film. This is definately watchable entertainment, but instantly forgettable.

(Just as a side note, I wonder how long it took them to think up the title for the film?)