Britney Broussard
Picture this. You’re a father, your little girl is in college and you have a kick-ass job where you save lives for a living. But life is far from perfect. You and your wife are separated and you just learned that she wants a divorce and is moving in with her boyfriend, Daniel (Ioan Gruffudd: Fantastic Four). Welcome to Ray’s (Dewayne Johnson aka The Rock) reality.
Now the San Andreas Fault along the coast of California is causing various earthquakes that haven’t been seen or active in 150 years! What do you do? You do what you do best. Save lives. That includes your wife Emma (Carla Gugino: Sucker Punch) and your daughter Blake (Alexandra Daddario: Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters).
Now think about this, you, Lawrence (Paul Giamatti: The Illusionist) and you and your partner Dr. Kim Park (Will Yun Lee: Wolverine) have just figured out how to predict earthquakes. This should be the highlight of your career. But you are on the Hoover Dam, and you start to feel the ground shake. You yell for your partner to get to safety and for everyone to get off the Dam. You see your partner coming, but he stops short, to pick up a little girl. The ground behind him is falling as he runs then…..did you really think I was going to tell you what happens?
Now picture this, you’re in Blake (Alexandra Daddario) college, trying to deal with her father and mother getting a divorce and moving in with mom’s boyfriend. He gives you the speech of not wanting to take your father’s place but loving your mother and wanting to be friends. You stop at his place of business to wait for him and meet a cute guy (Hugo Johnstone-Burt: Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries T.V. series and his little brother, Olie (Art Parkinson: Dracula Untold). Two random people are two people you will need to survive?
This movie is one of the best action- packed summer movies out right now. From the beginning it grabs your attention and holds it until the end. The director does an amazing job of taking three journeys and mixing them together so they flow naturally mixed in with emotion, fear, regret, karma and a little bit of romance with a heavy punch of keeping the audience on the edge of their seat.
But the main three points of what this movie can be summed up in three words: family, survival and karma!
With that said, I seriously urge you to go see San Andreas in theatres May 29, 2015! You will not be disappointed and just to sweeten the deal a little bit more; I recommend you see it in 3D!
Chief Gaines, you have over 600 documented rescues. That’s pretty impressive.
Ray Gaines is a Los Angeles Search & Rescue helicopter pilot who leads his team with dedication and extreme bravery. He is about to escort his daughter, Blake, to college in San Francisco when news arrives that a series of earthquakes is risking lives and causing a great deal of damage. Ray’s soon-to-be ex-wife, Emma, is moving in with her boyfriend who happens to be one of San Francisco’s largest skyscraper moguls. Emma’s boyfriend, Daniel Riddick, flies Blake to San Francisco in his private jet. Meanwhile, Professor Lawrence from Cal Tech receives an update from his crew that the earthquakes are increasing in frequency and severity. While Ray teams up with Emma in L.A. to rescue their daughter from San Francisco, Lawrence attempts to warn the citizens of California that the worst is yet to come.
I cannot emphasize this enough. You need to get out and I mean now. Even though this is happening in California, you will feel it in the East Coast.
Brad Peyton’s San Andreas opens like a flood gate with action from the very beginning. The incredible special effects and very talented cast (especially Johnson, Giamatti, and Daddario) compensate for a less than groundbreaking story. Carlton Cuse, known for Lost, Nash Bridges, and The Strain, wrote the screenplay which includes just enough character development, gripping emotional scenes, and just the right amount of comic relief. Peyton knows just when to shift gears between the three. The audience participation was the highest that I’ve seen in quite some time so I know that everyone was as entertained as I was. The CGI was made for 3D and the overall experience is similar to an amusement park ride. Fly on into the theater to experience this one! ~Movie Buffette
Director Brad Peyton delivers a powerful action film from the opening scene. It begins with a daredevil rescue on the side of a mountain and that is just the beginning. While watching the film, I could not help thinking what a great theme park ride this could be. I loved the special effects. It is hard to believe how far we have come with technology that enables filmmakers to create such realistic images. The tsunami scenes were incredible. For a few minutes I sensed the intensity I felt when watching the Impossible (2012). I want to emphasize this is not a movie for the faint of heart or small children. It is intense as it should be for a disaster film. The screenplay was well written for an action film with just the right amount of humor mixed with suspense. Paul Giamatti is perfectly cast as the Cal Tech seismologist whose groundbreaking theory ultimately helps save thousands of lives. Dwayne Johnson also does a great job in the role of the father and hero with a fantastic supporting cast. I especially loved the two brothers portrayed by Hugo Johnstone-Burt and Art Parkinson. This is a summer movie that must be seen on a large screen – the bigger the better. ~A.S. MacLeod
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