Deep
Impact (1998)
It's too bad that they felt it necessary to "sell"
this film as an "action" flick, a disaster movie. It
is not the former and only the latter in the broadest
sense of the term. "Deep Impact" is actually an excellent,
character driven, drama that is subtly frightening in
it's realism.
"Deep Impact" is about the end of the world. A comet
is coming and it's on a collision course with the Earth.
Of course, if you don't know this, the beginning of
the film is much more intriguing. It takes news reporter
Tea Leoni almost 30 minutes to figure this all out.
The film begins with Elijah Wood discovering a comet
during some sort of school outing. Of course, this is
so we can follow his story, along with Leoni's during
the subsequent film. We also get a third storyline involving
the astronauts sent up to space to stop the comet by
drilling into it and planting nuclear warheads which
will hopefully destroy it before it hits Earth. All
of these storylines are interesting and have unique
moments that make them wonderful. They are all also
filled with great actors.
Leoni hobnobs with Morgan Freeman as the president,
James Cromwell ("Babe") as a politician, Bruce Weitz
(TV's "Hill Street Blues") as her boss, Vanessa Redgrave
as her mother and Maximilian Schell as her father. Wood
is surrounded by quality character actors including
familiar faces in Charles Martin Smith ("Starman") as
an astrologer, and Denise Crosby (Star Trek the Next
Generation") as his mother-in-law. Newcomer Leelee Sobieski
is also excellent as his love interest. But the truly
wonderful parts are when the space crew, led by stalwart
Robert Duvall, take the screen. He is surrounded by
Ron Eldard, Blair Underwood, Jon Favreau ("Swingers"),
and Kurtwood Smith ("True Believers"). It's an awesome
cast and magic moments abound.
But an even bigger part of the film success is director
Mimi Leder. Leder took over the film when hotshot Steven
Spielberg dropped it after "Armegeddon" was announced
with it's hot-shot director Michael Bay. The films were
released within 2 months of each other. Leder does a
spectacular job in his stead. The emotions and stories
of the characters are constantly accentuated by the
entire world's reaction to these events. The film always
looks incredibly real and the beauty and the sorrow
of what the human race might become during a cataclysmic
event is brought into the light very stealthily, very
left-handedly. Leder doesn't exploit the situation or
overdramatize it either. She just uses it for a background
and in doing so it's overwhelming intensity creeps ever
so magically into the film. It's remarkable.
"Deep Impact" may bore some action fans. The two hour
plus film has only a smattering of action in the last
30 minutes. Albeit, when it comes, it is remarkable.
But those who love a great story and a great movie going
experience will really love it.
Note: Script by Bruce Joel Rubin and Michael Tolkien.
Music by James Horner (who also acts as orchestrator).
A piece by Puccini from "La Boheme" is also used.
Spielberg acts as a producer. While the film was in
the works under Leder, he worked on "Amistad" and "Saving
Private Ryan."
Filmed in New York, Vermont and Washington, DC.
Review written in 1998
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