Armageddon

CinemaSerf

6/10

6/14/2022

This starts off quite entertaingly as "Stamper" (Bruce Willis) discovers that his daughter "Grace" (Liv Tyler) has been having a romance with one of his employees "AJ" (Ben Affleck) and so chases him around a drilling establishment taking pot shots at him with a shotgun. Sadly, though, this silliness is soon replaced by a greater one as we discover a great meteor is heading our way and "Stamper" and his team might be the only hope for mankind. Egged on by "Truman" (Billy Bob Thornton) they must quickly learn to be astronauts, then by way of a Russian space station, head into space to plant a gazillion ton nuclear bomb on the thing so it will split up and harmlessly pass us by. This is probably Willis at the top of his game, lively and mischievous and Affleck was at his most eye-catching, but the rest of this just just fits nicely into the well trodden sphere of sci-fi disaster movie. The visual effects are fine, but the dialogue is pretty pedestrian and the ending has a cheesy sentimentality to it that made my eyes roll. It is far, far too long. We spend at least an hour faffing about on the preamble, establishing the characters and when finally lift off comes, I was not entirely convinced the meteor wasn't welcome. There is quite a fun contribution from cosmonaut "Andropov" (Peter Stormare) who knows just how to fix high-spec technology, but otherwise this is all just a rather colourful vehicle for the star that is enjoyable enough, eventually, but really nothing to phone home about.

The Movie Mob

10/10

1/21/2023

**Armageddon might not be as good as I think, but it’s definitely not as bad as many say.** I know I’m an extreme to love this movie as much as I do, but I can’t help it! I know it’s filled with scientific inaccuracies (I’m ok with that. I don’t watch Michael Bay movies for the science). I know it has some cliche parts and cheesy lines, but it all just works. The casting director for this movie needs a trophy because every character has the perfect actor portraying them. From Stomare’s crazy cosmonaut to Fitchner’s by-the-book commander, along with Affleck, Duncan, Tyler, Wilson, Thornton, and more - this cast is stacked! Bruce Willis is the perfect choice for a grizzled oil driller that could save the world. The result is a cast of characters you care for, are scared for, root for, and almost mourn for. Michael Bay’s explosive directing and love for special effects guys this outlandish plot perfectly. And the soundtrack! Liv’s father, Steven Tyler, and Aerosmith provide an iconic soundtrack with songs like Sweet Emotion, Come Together, and I Don’t Wanna Miss a Thing. The cast, music, effects, camaraderie, and epic heroism make this movie one of my all-time favorites!

Rob

8/10

5/15/2023

Directed by Michael Bay, co-written by J.J. Abrams and starring Bruce Willis just being Bruce Willis while he saves the world from a giant asteroid with a proper bunch of misfits and some oil drilling equipment. I'm in!