Volcano

And Dwayne Johnson Morgan Freeman Elisabeth Shue SILENT HILL DEADLY GUNS

Australian Free-to-air TV is in such a poor state that this movie was the best thing I could find tonight. This cliché-ridden piece seemed to have been written by 'my film student nephew' who 'has Final Draft on his computer' with the visual effects done by his mate who owns a pirated copy of After Effects. That's not to say that this film doesn't have its virtues. With a little extra modern day post-production this could be an excellent comedy instead of just an accidental one. Just have Mel Brooks tweak the script (not too much!), then CGI replace Tommy Lee Jones with Rick Moranis, give Anne Heche the voice of Joan Rivers and call it 'Lava Balls'.

Like Mission to Mars, and Red Planet, I would imagine Volcano and Dante's Peak would've had quite a rivalry as they fought for a higher spot in the box office (which neither of them got). Like the two martian flicks, these two lava-laden flicks have equal strengths and weaknesses. Dante's Peak, is the (attempt to be) emotional one, and Volcano is the adrenaline pumped one. In good old L.A. some mysterious gas readings coming from under the city become the tell tale signs of a much bigger problem to come. A volcano hidden under the Labrea Tar Pits, bursts to life in an explosion of lava that threatens to melt the city overnight. It is up to a heroic fire fighter and his scientist friend to save the day. There is not a lot to say about Volcano that cannot be said about any other disaster movie. All the same adjectives apply. It's cheesy, it's silly, but it's sufficiently exiting and fun.

A horrible mish mash of predictable story lines and toe-bendingly poor delivered PC clichés ad nauseam (races working together, the heroine being smart as well pretty, a guy sacrificing himself to save another life, a father/daughter relationship etc etc etc). The movie looks like something created for network television and should have probably stayed there. Even the gifted Tommy Lee Jones does not manage to salvage this BOMB. I urge you not to waste money or time on this cinematic ruin from the time when disaster-movies roamed Hollywood. The two stars are given solely to the CGI-people and the PR-peoples' ability to get even one movie-goer to sit through it.

In my opinion, VOLCANO is a very suspenseful, nail-biting, and action-packed thrill ride. I thought that Mike (Tommy Lee Jones) and Amy (Anne Heche) made a really good team, especially when they were working to save Los Angeles. A couple of things I liked about this film were the scenery and the work from everyone involved, especially Tommy Lee Jones and Anne Heche. Those things really made me feel good and smile. In conclusion, I highly recommend this very suspenseful, nail-biting, and action-packed thrill ride to all you Tommy Lee Jones or Anne Heche who have not seen it. When you see it, buckle up and hold on tight for a ride of pure thrills and laughs.

As a geology student this movie depicts the ignorance of Hollywood. In the scene where the dog grabs the bone from inside of the burning house, it is less then a foot from lava which has an average temperature of 1,750 degrees Fahrenheit. This stupidity is witnessed again when "Stan" goes to save subway 4. His shoes are melting to the floor of the subway while the rest of the team is standing just feet away from the flowing lava. And to finish off this monstrosity of a film, they come up with the most illogical solution, stopping a lava flow with cement K rails. Earlier in the film a reporters voice can be heard saying that nothing can stop the flow fire fighters have tried cars and CEMENT. Common sense dictates this film is a preposterous and gross understatement of human knowledge.

Considering the subject matter, I thought that this film would at least be enjoyable, if stopping somewhat short of a masterpiece. I was wrong. I was still waiting for something to happen and it finished - I thought that the finale was the bit that happened before it got exciting. The only reason I gave it 2 instead of 1 is because the effects guys deserve some recognition.

This film really is one of the most awful pieces of rubbish I have ever had the misfortune to sit through. The storyline itself is weak, the all-American back-slapping nonsense throughout left me feeling drained. Why? I laughed out loud at some of the ridiculous almost farcial plot situations...a volcano in LA?...hmmm. Every great actor has the right to make a turkey...Tommy boy, that was yours!

Take a macho protagonist - in this case a boss of emergency services. Give him a personal problem - care of a teen daughter who doesn't want to be there. Let's have a natural disaster - how about a volcano sprouting in the middle of Los Angeles. Factor in a spunky female lead and a doom-mongering scientist who gives early warning but gets ignored (and cut the budget by having them be the same person). Then have an effects-laden final hour in which things get worse and worse until our hero saves the day. You've seen the formula before - well, here it is again. Tommy Lee Jones does gnarled man with a plan quite well, Anne Heche does spunky scientist quite well, the lava effects aren't bad, and the final effects of blowing up the building are not so good. Even so, it passes a couple of hours moderately well.

The story of a Volcano erupting downtown L.A. sounds like a nice plot for a disaster movie. This one though, is missed bigtime. The movie looks chaotic, has a storyline which is hard to follow or believe and the acting was very bad. Im in agreement with a lot of comments that Lee Jones is only good at bossing people around as a chief in some particular field. In this one, he is heading the emergency office. Being chief of such an office it naturally is a good idea to bring along your daughter to dangerous scenes. Clever thinking. Ann Heche touching walls and walking in tunnels that suppose to be 678 degrees fahrenheit. Yea right. Aside from the bad acting those factual errors make the film look almost as silly as Armageddon. The only good point of this movie is that there is no Ben Affleck to make matters even worse. Avoid this movie at all costs.