The Film:

The Mayans, as well as other wizards of prophecy, have predicted that our world would end on December 21st, 2012. For all of the what ifs, plausible science, and some hefty inconvenient truths, it doesn’t take a scientist or NASA brainiac to see our world is exhibiting a change. Will this change cause and lead us to our doom? Maybe, and I think any logical human would say at least that’s a truth. But I also think any logical person could assume through rational thinking, that December 21st, 2012 is about as scary as all of that Y2K business a decade ago.

If anything, the Mayans, who couldn’t predict their own demise, probably could not predict a Mr. Roland Emmerich would take their Doomsday calendar, and craft pound-for-pound, one of the ultimate disaster films. So, props for the human sacrificers and Hollywood exploitation? Yeah, totally.

Jokes aside, 2012 is perhaps one of the best displays of global carnage ever put to screen. I’ll admit, Emmerich is no better or worse at the things Michael Bay does, but Emmerich has a heart and tries valiantly to inject a story and emotions into the characters, where Bay’s one mission is to blow things up, and how many times he can continue to blow more things up. I’ll give Bay credit though, he’s a great, if not the best second unit director out there, but Emmerich is a director, albeit one that loves B-films and popcorn. To each their own on what’s more entertaining, but Emmerich knows one thing, and that’s how to have fun. He has had some stinkers in his career, but 2012 literally blasts those prior duds to oblivion. 10,000-what?

The proceedings here are pretty typical, as he has crafted the standard issue disaster movie fodder, with stock characters of an estranged dad, humane scientists, father-son issues and their eventual respect, and Presidents as lead characters. Sounds familiar? It should, but one key difference makes all of the Emmerich cliches worth it: Chiwetel Ejiofor. He gives what this film needed, in between the awesome CG devastation scenes, he adds heart and humanity to everything. He’s so good, as he rises above the script, which I’ll admit, thinly characterizes the people. Ejiofor speaks for the theme of the film, and maybe even for the existence of mankind in 2012. Let’s assume if this all went down, that there would be anarchy, as people are struggling to survive. But his character knows outside of all of the science, that civilization and culture isn’t about who’s who in the political circles and who has the most coin in their bank accounts. Regular people doing what they do day-to-day makes up our culture and society, and Emmerich plays this chord in some nerve-racking moments towards the end of the film, that makes 2012 better than most of his other disaster films.

I don’t know where Emmerich goes from here. 2012 is like a maestro playing his grand opus, orchestrating each note to fine precision, all we can do is stand up and applaud. Look, 2012 promised nothing more than an epic display of destruction, and it delivers. True, Emmerich most likely had a blank check to construct these scenes, but they are really worth it. The whole escape from L.A. sequence is full of carnage and awe, and the same can be said for the Yellow Stone National Park scene. The disaster movie genre has been around for a good while, made famous from the ex-king of disaster films, Irwin Allen, but Emmerich has set the benchmark with 2012. Could some of the silliness be left out, and better characterizations be included? Sure, but the few flaws aside, 2012 is pure bliss for our carnage loving souls-a summer movie at heart, and Michael Bay has just been one upped by Emmerich.

On December 21st, 2012, as religious people are praying and atheists are waiting to see, the only ending I’ll be witnessing is the time code on my Blu-ray player, as I watch 2012 for the umpteenth time. It really is the the end-all-be-all of disaster movies. If anyone can top it, I bet his name is Emmerich.

The Blu-ray:

Audio/Video: Sony delivers a blast of reference quality audio and video. Even if you disliked the film, the audio in DTS will crush you, making for a sonic assault with deep bass and constant surround elements. The video is near perfect as well, with solid blue and black levels in the darker scenes, and rich clarity in the daylight scenes. There’s nothing to dissuade me from saying this is a pitch perfect Blu-ray from Sony. Wow.

Commentary: For such a long film, director Roland Emmerich and his screenwriter chat away for the length of the film endlessly with fun tidbits like a hard-to-spot North by Northwest nod, FX work, story ideas, and the like. It’s actually a fun listen, full of info on film making, making it a nice spin for commentary and the film’s fans.

Roland’s Vision: This is a picture-in-picture track. While neat, it’s far from the best I’ve seen using the PiP idea. Comments from the crew and actors are too brief for any real weight, but it’s worth skimming around for a few nuggets of info.

Deleted Scenes: In HD, the touted alternative ending is kind of cool to see, while other scenes were rightfully nixed.

Interactive Mayan Calendar: Okay, I must admit: this is sorta cool. I say sorta, because after a few minutes it gets old, but one learns the Mayan calendar and  glyphs, plus a neat little video on it all.

Countdown to the Future: This HD 30 minute piece is for people like me that dig into all of this End-of-the-World prophecies, as it features all of the Mayans’ beliefs and myths. A decent watch.

Designing the End of the World: In HD, this covers all of the great FX work in the film with behind-the-scenes footage. Good stuff.

Science behind the Destruction: In HD, this covers the film’s use of technology and how it evolved over the course from day one to finished product. It’s a little redundant as the commentary covered it mostly already.

The Master of the Modern Epic is a love letter to Emmerich, End of the World: An Actor’s Perspective is ho-hum, Trailers, Online Activity, and an Adam Lambert Music Video round out the extras. Look for a Digital Copy on the other disc of this set.

Conclusion: Good times with the End of the World from Emmerich on a superb Sony Blu-ray.

The Film: Rating:

The Blu-ray: Rating:

Tags: 2012, Michael Bay, Roland Emmerich