Armageddon -- Criterion Collection

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The latest testosterone-saturated blow-'em-up from producer Jerry Bruckheimer and director Michael Bay (The Rock, Bad Boys) continues Hollywood's millennium-fueled fascination with the destruction of our planet. There's no arguing that the successful duo understands what mainstream American audiences want in their blockbuster movies--loads of loud, eye-popping special effects, rapid-fire pacing, and patriotic flag waving. Bay's protagonists--the eight crude, lewd, oversexed (but lovable, of course) oil drillers summoned to save the world from a Texas-sized meteor hurling toward the earth--are not flawless heroes, but common men with whom all can relate. In this huge Western-in-space soap opera, they're American cowboys turned astronauts. Sci-fi buffs will appreciate Bay's fetishizing of technology, even though it's apparent he doesn't understand it as anything more than flashing lights and shiny gadgets. Smartly, the duo also tries to lure the art-house crowd, raiding the local indie acting stable and populating the film with guys like Steve Buscemi, Billy Bob Thornton, Owen Wilson, and Michael Duncan, all adding needed touches of humor and charisma. When Bay applies his sledgehammer aesthetics to the action portions of the film, it's mindless fun; it's only when Armageddon tackles humanity that it becomes truly offensive. Not since Mississippi Burning have racial and cultural stereotypes been substituted for characters so blatantly--African Americans, Japanese, Chinese, Scottish, Samoans, Muslims, French ... if it's not white and American, Bay simplifies it. Or, make that white male America; the film features only three notable females--four if you count the meteor, who's constantly referred to as a "bitch that needs drillin'," but she's a hell of a lot more developed and unpredictable than the other women characters combined. Sure, Bay's film creates some tension and contains some visceral moments, but if he can't create any redeemable characters outside of those in space, what's the point of saving the planet? --Dave McCoy

Description

Bruce Willis and and an all-star cast of roughneck oil drillers blast off on a mission to save the planet in Michael Bay's doomsday space epic.

Customer Reviews:

My purchase of Armageddon on DVD.......2007-08-27

I love this movie! Wow, this movie has all the qualities I want in a movie - love, loyality, comedy, friendship, drama and heroism. The unique blend of actors and their characters makes Armageddon a movie I want to watch again and again! Thank you Amazon for having this for purchase online!

Armageddon Rocks!.......2007-08-18

Armageddon is a movie about humanity's endless courage and resourcefulness; about our struggle and triumph over the cruel forces of nature that would exterminate us. Pity those who can't enjoy an epic sci-fi action movie with a great story. What could possibly be more exciting than a story about saving the world? Not all movies need deep and meaningful messages, not all movies need highly unexpected plot twists and certainly not all movies need to be 100% scientifically plausible. This movie is just plain FUN and that's all it needs. Michael Bay's movies often have a lot of explosions, destruction and devastation. Don't blame the director if you don't like that sort of genre. It's just the way his movies are and it's why me and my friends love them.

Armageddon, unlike its twin Deep Impact, cuts to the good part at the very beginning. A meteor shower devastates New York City in a spectacular fashion. Some of the meteors even punched a few holes in the World Trade Center although I guess no one thought it was a big deal at the time. It then turns out that the meteors were preceding a much bigger asteroid that will wipe out all life on Earth within 18 days unless a nuclear bomb can be detonated inside the asteroid to blow it apart. Bruce Willis plays Harry Stamper, the leader of the drilling team that's been hired to save the world. There are plenty of colorful characters on the team and the level of comic relief is strong enough to give this movie a warm atmosphere. Particularly funny is Peter Stormare's performance as a half-crazy Russian cosmonaut. That's not to say there are no sad moments since not everyone survives the mission. In addition to the main plot of going into space and blowing up the rock, there's also a love story between Harry's daughter Grace and Ben Affleck's character that Harry doesn't approve of. It is rather predictable, but then again, what love story isn't? There are quite a few `ticking-time-bomb' moments throughout the film, which make good thrills considering that the world is at stake.

Many have complained that Armageddon has many mistakes and scientific inaccuracies but that's really unavoidable considering the movie's far-fetched scenario. If you're not an astrophysicist then these things shouldn't bother you too much. Armageddon has a lot of special effects which is a good thing for a space movie. The Space Shuttles' flight through the meteor field is incredible. The scenery on the asteroid is very beautiful and the jagged cliffs and canyons create a stunning otherworldly environment.

I strongly recommend this movie.

Wow this movie is stupid!.......2007-07-30

What is Armageddon? Well Wrap your head in an American flag, loop "dont wanna miss a thing" by Arrowsmith at full volume, and have a friend poke both your eyes and box your ears.. there you have it

A great sound and fury, signifying nothing........2007-07-27

Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to ADD Theatre!

From what I recall of the press around this movie at the time it came out, there is not shot in this great stain on our cultural landscape that lasts more than five seconds. That might be fine if the shots that were in the film were of a higher quality. Alas, this is not the case.

This movie is loud, obnoxious, annoying and generally sucky. Its single redeeming virtue is that it's better than the American version of "Godzilla". Screening this film before detainees at Gitmo would likely constitute a violation of the Geneva Convention.

The SFX in the film are good, not great. The science is miserable. Not quite as bad as, say, having a shark roar, but bad. The acting is sub-par, which is really sad given the talent in this movie. The directing is about what you'd expect from Michael Bay. The man loves to use orange filters while shooting aircraft in flight. Don't even get me started about the overly jingoistic, rah-rah, Go, America!, nonsense at the end of the film.

This movie is a brutal, unforgiving, assualt on our senses and an insult to our intelligence. "Armageddon" came out at the same time as Deep Impact (Special Collector's Edition), a far superior film covering much the same subject matter. If you wanna see an asteroid movie, watch that. Ignore this.

Michael Bay Conspiracy.......2007-07-15

I'm beginning to think there is a internet conspiracy to smear Michael Bay movies. The same hateful and mindless attacks appear on many of Bay's movies, especially if Ben Affleck apears in them. Well, I think Armageddon is wonderful entertainment, and I've never come across anyone in person who hasn't been enthusiastic about the film.

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