The Impossible

The Impossible (2012) starring Naomi Watts, Ewan McGregor, Tom Holland. A family, consisting of husband Henry (McGregor), wife Maria (Watts) and their three young sons, is vacationing at a resort in Thailand in 2004 when the tsunami strikes. This movie tells the story of how they survived and were (eventually) reunited. The focus of the first part of the film is on Maria and her oldest son Lucas (Holland), who get swept away but somehow hold on to each other. But they are separated from the rest of the family, and the bulk of the movie consists of the different parts of the family searching for each other in Thailand, a land where they don't know the language. I found this film to be pretty much a standard disaster movie, well executed but with not much original to distinguish it. Still, it made for a tolerable evening's entertainment. (Subtitles in English are available on the disc, as well as closed captions.) Grade: B+

Dante's Peak

Dante's Peak (1997) starring Pierce Brosnan, Linda Hamilton. Vulcanologist Harry Dalton (Brosnan) is the only one who believes that the dormant volcano Dante's Peak is about to blow, and he gets in trouble for alarming the townfolk. The mayor (Hamilton) of the town of Dante's Peak seems attracted to him, but before they get a chance to kiss, the mountain starts erupting. From that point on, all is chaos. I wanted to compare this movie to Volcano, the other flick that erupted in 1997, and it seems to boil down to whom you prefer -- Tommy Lee Jones and Anne Heche, from Volcano, or Brosnan and Hamilton.  On that basis, I'd have to say I preferred Dante's Peak. It's really kind of a toss-up though, otherwise. Neither one is a great film. (This DVD includes English subtitles for the hearing-impaired, which is fortunate because it lacks closed captions.) Grade: B

Volcano

Volcano (1997) starring Tommy Lee Jones, Anne Heche, Gaby Hoffman, Don Cheadle. The La Brea Tar Pits erupt into a volcano spewing lava, and all of Los Angeles is threatened with annihilation in this exciting disaster movie. Luckily, Tommy Lee Jones and Anne Heche are on the scene, as a disaster official and a geologist, to save the day and divert the lava into the sea -- and maybe, just maybe, fall in love. The special effects are very good. (English subtitles for the hearing-impaired are included, as well as closed captions.) Grade: B