Le ciel est en feu

I watched this film by accident (a slow Monday afternoon is my excuse). Overall, it doesn't make even B-grade. I've never condemned a film because it is cliched, but in this case I will make an exception.

My only question is: did the producers run out of film and shoot the last third on video? That is the only reason I can think of for the change in film quality.

OK, so this will never win an Oscar but it wouldn't win a Razzie either! This is the televisual equivalent of an airport trash novel. A little love, a little danger, a little science mixed together to make a quick, frothy eco-drama.

The story concerns the damage that Mankind has inflicted on Mother Nature and the fact that even the most benevolent of entities will get hacked off from time to time.

Basically, it is a morality tale that we reap what we sow. As we blindly pour CFC's and the like into the atmosphere and the earth, eventually something will happen.

In this case the "happenings" stretch from the ridiculous to the sublime. The beached whales, psychotic birds and my personal favourite the full grown human held hostage by maggots and spiders (OK when it comes to the second creepy crawly I can see why she did what she did urghh).

The characters never really have the opportunity to develop more than two dimensions, but even then the actors carry it well and I have to say to their credit this movie could have been "hammed up" a heck of a lot more. Even the "it might just work.....it has to" solution to the situation was handled well and didn't feel to easy a plot feature.

As for the main stars, John Corbett (Dr. Evan Thorne) managed to convey the eco-scientist without either hysterical apocalyptic panic or cold detached "I told you so". He made the character reasonably believable (for all it's dimensional limitations as previously noted).

Bradley Whitford (John Morgan), favourite of mine, added some credibility to the film just by being in it. His character again was played middle of the line. Not so closed minded as to be Anti-science/Anti-tree hugger but not so open minded as to be looking for his next quote from Revelations! The love interest/action parts were left to the two "youngsters" Josie Bissett (Jennifer Thorne) and Ben Browder (Racer, never knew if this was his whole name, first name, surname or nick name! But it was pretty annoying as a name anyway). Here we have the double love interest (Jenny is Racer's Fiancé and Dr. Thorne's sister), the obligatory hero (Racer is a Airforce Jet Pilot) and the human element (Both are affected by the situation at one time or another). They were credible performances and again not over the top or soppy! So all in all, it is not a film I would give up shopping or visiting friends to watch. But saying that if I saw it on Channel 5 (UK) or TNT (US) one quiet afternoon I would happily while away and hour and a half with a good cuppa and a digestive.

Provided your belief is suspended about 60,000 feet above sea level (in-joke) this is a brainless, harmless way to spend 90 minutes. It isn't great science so don't expect too much.

Some of the actors are really quite good and it is fun to see them out of their normal milieu. Bradley Whitford is a smooth, skilled, understated actor with just enough quirks to make him always interesting. John Billingsley is always delightful although it would be nice to see him stretch outside his typecast and nearly trademarked nerdiness.

Corbett is quite competent but not in Billingsley's or Whitford's class. The other leads are jobbing actors, good enough, but without the high skill level to make something interesting from their cardboard characters.

Keep your belief well suspended and don't be too critical of the science and this is a way to spend 90 minutes of a boring, rainy day.

Anyway Billingsley's always fun to watch with his weird mannerisms.

I'm one of those people who really enjoy schlocky B-movies (I thought Category 6 was a good film) but this is an insult.

For a start, the movie grinds to a halt in the middle and features 10 minutes of nonstop riot footage.

An infinite number of interesting subplots and ideas are thrown out, and it really feels like the production ran out of money at the end! Watch it, as soon as the jet takes off, the money runs out.

The plot is absurd, and not good-absurd either. It's BAD-absurd!! The characters make bad decisions just to build some suspense, for example: if your house is overrun by bugs, lock yourself in the closet and wait in there for the bugs to come in and bite you. The same shot of the sun is repeated at least 15 times, and "deadly atmospheric firestorms" are little more than (over)actors writhing in bright light.

I have got to read his book. This movie leaves me with a lot of questions about what we are doing to ourselves. We are responsible for what we do and need to know much more about how we are depleting natural resources. It is imperative we clean up the world for future generations.

I have a little more understanding of what the ozone does for us thanks to this movie. We take to much for granted today. Dumping trash in our water, adding chemicals to water and food. How many of the illnesses that humans suffer are direct results of adding chemicals to milk, dehydrated foods etc; so that they are edible past the date of natural consumption. Are we creating new illnesses, new problems by our actions. "For every action, there is a reaction". We need to remind ourselves with movies like this that we reap our own consequences.