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 | Best offer for Core (Region 2 DVD)Best Price for Core (Region 2 DVD) is at Send It - £3.89
Store: Send It - see offers at all stores | SummaryThe Core is high-tech Hollywood hokum at its finest; smarter than Armageddon and equally extreme. It's scientifically ridiculous, naturally, but this variant of Fantastic Voyage at least tries to be credible as it plunges deep into the Earth's inner core, where a formulaic team of experts pilot an earth-boring ship to jump-start the planet's spinning molten interior, now stalled by a military secret that could seal the fate of all humankind. It's a geophysicist's daydream, which only a fine ensemble cast could rescue from absurdity, and director Jon Amiel (Entrapment, Copycat) draws excellent work (and plenty of humorous interplay) from Aaron Eckhart, Hilary Swank, Stanley Tucci, Delroy Lindo and a host of memorable supporting players, especially DJ Qualls as the world's greatest cyber-nerd. With enough digital FX disasters to satisfy anyone's apocalyptic fantasies, this is a popcorn thriller with all the bells and whistles that its genre demands. Sit back, pump up the volume and enjoy the dazzling ride. --Jeff Shannon |
| So Ludicrous It's Hilarious | | This film is, without doubt, *the* most technically preposterous film I've ever seen - bar none - and that's saying something. If you have a technical grounding in Geology, Physics, Chemistry or Engineering, you will be rolling around in fits of laughter as the pseudo-science in this film (no doubt dreamed-up by someone in the creative arts) is escalated to ever-increasing heights of ludicrousness. The acting is so hammy that I initially though it had to be a spoof, but further research revealed that it's actually meant to be a drama adventure - there are even some disasterously attempted tear-inducing moments (none of which come close to hitting their mark). I'm honestly not sure how to rate this film, as it truly is bad enough to be genuinely entertaining. | Written on 10 November 2009 |   |
| "THE PERSONS AND EVENTS IN THIS FILM ARE FICTITIOUS." | So says the disclaimer in the credits. Yeah, right.
THE CORE looks good, sounds great, has decent acting talent in it and a director with a track record for competency at the helm. There's a list of technical credits a mile long at the end. How can so many people pool their undoubted talents to come up with something so crass and dumb?
The answer lies in the plot, coupled with an inane cliché-riddled script with which to deliver it. Everyone knows that these disaster movies, whether it be DEEP IMPACT or ARMAGEDDON or whatever, are sheer nonsense, just speculative fantasy. But in the main they are still grounded in a reality which has, at its core (if you'll forgive the expression), a fairly honest scientific rationale. The facts may be bent a little to heighten the drama but overall you can suspend your disbelief for a couple of hours and enjoy some escapist entertainment.
Here, unfortunately, the writers have come up with an idea which over-reaches itself in its audacity but, being unwilling to let an intriguing concept go to waste, have then given themselves the impossible task of trying to get it to work. Well, fellas, it doesn't.
The story gets off to a promising start with various electro-magnetic anomalies causing mayhem at selected spots around the planet but when the cause is revealed (and later shown to be the result of man's paranoid meddling) the science underpinning the deeds of our heroes is so much hokum that an eight-year-old would dismiss it as such. And what heroes they are. The scruffy college professor who turns out to be Mankind's greatest hope, the feisty female pilot who wrestles with her conscience before getting all-emotional, the computer nerd who can "hack into the planet", the vanity-stricken so-called expert who is really a slimeball (Stanley Tucci at his greasiest), the self-sacrificing `foreigner' and the token black person - they're all here as the formula dictates they should be.
Most of this film was made using computers. That must include the writing, planning, design and general direction of the movie. Even Christopher Young's music is dire and predictable (a far cry from his more effective scores for films such as HELLRAISER). And, as is a requirement these days, there's even a solitary instance of the f-word simply to obtain the `12' certificate rather than the PG which might suggest it's a film for children. But then, after all, most children wouldn't waste their time on this guff. | Written on 20 October 2009 | |
| The Core (a.k.a.) The Bore | Directed by Jon Amiel, The Core was released in 2003 and stars Aaron Eckhart, Hilary Swank, Stanley Tucci, and D.J. Qualls.
Gone are the days where disaster films evolved around a huge comet, asteroid, or alien attack. This time around the problem lies far beneath our feet as the core (centre) of the Earth has stopped spinning. From this aspect the film is unique, as instead of our heroes traveling into the easily accessible space, they are forced to travel downwards. While this was a refreshing change from the now somewhat standard formula that films like Deep Impact and Armageddon followed, I'm not personally sure if the somewhat unimaginative named "The Core" works.
The film starts by showing a number of strange events occurring all over the world. Soon after this, Doctor Josh Keyes (played by Aaron Eckhart) discovers that all the events are connected by the fact that the Earth's core is coming to a stop, and with it the planet's electromagnetic field (which among other things protects us from solar radiation) is disappearing. Unless something is done, the whole world is doomed (well it wouldn't be a disaster movie if anything else was at stake.) Keyes and his team must find a way to reach the centre of the Earth and restart the core with a payload of nuclear weapons. Along the way they face a series of challenges that have the potential to derail the mission.
While the plot for the film may sound good on paper, in practice it was very random. That is to say random events, caused by a random event, caused by an accident, which lead to a group of random people being faced with a series of random things in their attempt to prevent a disaster (I wonder if I've used the R word to many times there.)
While The Core presented a number of interesting ideas such as the 'Virgil' craft, most of the science in the film is nothing less than drivel. It tends to be made up to suit the film regardless of plausibility or suitability, so switching your brain off for the duration of the movie would be a bonus.
I always like the idea that the fate of the world rests with a select few, but in the case of The Core, those select few are not the greatest characters ever created for film, and maybe with the exception of Hilary Swank (who played Major Childs) the general acting from all wasn't exactly Oscar winning stuff.
According to Wikipedia this film had a budget of $115,000,000 ($85 million for production, and $30 million for advertising). That really is a staggering amount of money, and no doubt the bulk of it was needed for the films numerous special effects. The Core however is a perfect example proving that sometimes special effects alone don't make a film great, and unless backed up by a good idea, good plot, and good acting, will be a waste of money.
There were a few great scenes that do deserve a mention, scenes such as the Space Shuttle landing, and the hacker panicking to destroy his hard drives when he sees the FBI at his door. Not to forget some reasonably impressive special effects. But needless to say there are also some pitiful scenes. What the hell was up with the foil which somehow allows a mobile phone to have free international calls (the Doctor's Sonic Screwdriver is a far more convincing way of 'enhancing' a phone.) One of the most critical ideas of the film is demonstrated with a can of air-freshener and a piece of fruit, even The Day After Tomorrow had some respectable computer based simulations to try and convey the idea to the viewer.
The Core was one of those rare films that really had potential to be something special, a film that would entertain us but also educate and inspire us. But because of numerous problems, and the lack of thought and imagination that went into the film (Unobtainium being a classic example, you should Google that word, the result was more interesting than this film) it is destined to be remembered as a failure and overall a movie that is mildly entertaining at best.
The Core tries to be smart and fails. The few good scenes that I've mentioned and the special effects save the film from a one star award, and it may be worth a watch, but only if your desperate, manage to pick up the DVD for pennies, or if you have to pick between this and say... Norbit.
| Written on 13 April 2009 | |
| Frivolous Fun | Science - swayed from hokey to just about plausible.
Sterio-typed characters - yes
Plot - paper thin.
I enjoy movies of all kinds and knowing what to expect when I rented this out (a somewhat cheesy, implausible disaster-cum-save-the-earth movie) it's exactly what it says in the tin.
This move was good because it didn't take itself seriously (like Armageddon). Lots of comenters have mentioned that film in the same breath as this - though they might as well have mentioned "Towering Inferno" or the other Irwin Allen disaster movies of that ilk.
This film is an Irwin Allen for the modern day. Predictable. You kind of knew who was going to live or die, you knew who was gonna get socked on the jaw. These are the roadsigns of a disaster movie - it's supposed to be fun.
This was fun - I enjoyed it so I give it 3 stars. | Written on 12 February 2009 | |
| Is there a hacker in the room? | The subject is interesting. The topic is fascinating. The treatment is quite reassuring. But the ideology is hateful. Imagine some natural, geological or cosmic catastrophe meaning the end of the earth, hence of humanity. The loss of the magnetic field of the earth is one possibility since it has been going down for a few decades and no one can explain. If such a phenomenon were truly happening, the normal reaction would be to bring all scientists around the world together to find a solution. There cannot be any moral and acceptable salvation for humanity, or even a little part of humanity if it does not mobilize everyone, every country, every nation. The film is unluckily hijacked by the military that imposes the vision of some aggressive attack from an enemy. They seem to listen to the scientists and politicians for a while, but at the same time they have their own Plan B ready which is purely military. That is why the military should have no power whatsoever and their finances should be scrutinized constantly, for them not to be able to have their own plans. That's why the finances of the military are supposed to be voted by Congress, but is what Congress votes always clear? Certainly not and that is true in every country. There are some blind or invisible lines hidden in some other budgets. That is revealing about a lack of democracy in our countries: the armed forces are not 100% open to public scrutiny and they do things they have never been allowed to do. The film though takes a clear stand against this and manages to defeat Plan B, thanks to a hacker in the place. We could of course wonder why they brought that hacker into the sanctuary. But for the film he was needed and was able to fulfill his promise. I must say I did not like his nose. Too visible, too outstanding. A hacker is supposed to be absolutely invisible, hence just plain normal, average, banal, in no way conspicuous. Then the treatment of the volunteers in that last chance mission is quite flat after all. A little bit of rage but a lot of positive tension. A situation in which one must sacrifice after the other should create a real tension that could be and become negative, including the absolute loss of all reactivity in an individual who knows there is no way out. But It was a pleasant film after all.
Dr Jacques COULARDEAU, University Paris Dauphine, University Paris 1 Pantheon Sorbonne & University Versailles Saint Quentin en Yvelines
| Written on 21 September 2008 | |
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