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Super Comet: After the Impact (TV)
R1 - America - Image Entertainment Review written by and copyright: James Teitelbaum (7th January 2008). |
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The Film
 Produced by the Science Channel, this dramatic presentation imagines that a comet similar to the one that destroyed the dinosaurs (65 million years ago) is going to hit the Earth in modern times. An overly dramatic narrator reads a script that behaves as if everything is being presented as fact, as though this is a real documentary about actual events, not a speculative work. In other words, it is a mockumentary that is not mocking anything at all - it takes itself completely seriously. A variety of scientists are interviewed in a roundtable discussion, and they have also been coaxed into speaking as though the pretend cataclysm is a reality. They present the facts about what would happen, but substitute 'might happen' for 'is happening'. The story then follows several survivors: a family in France, a Mexican immigrant in Texas, a team of researchers in Hawaii, and a pygmy tribe in Africa. We see them all preparing for the inevitable coming disaster. An effort is made to nuke the comet, and it fails. The comet hits the Yucatan peninsula. All of the characters attempt to make it through the impact and deal with survival in a vastly changed world. Our Mexican friend has gone back there to see his family. Driving right towards ground zero when the disaster happens, he is sort of screwed. The Parisian family panics and gets into a bit of a corny adventure story, the scientists in Hawaii employ survival techniques, and the pygmies freak out. The story becomes relentlessly grim as the entire human population and all recognizable aspects of our civilization completely fall apart. The few humans who have survived are plunged into a toxic version of the dark ages. "Super Comet: After the Impact" is a terrifying what-if, guaranteed to give anyone the creeps. Unlike any horror film, this show presents a situation that could possibly happen for real - and once did, if the Earth was hit by a rogue comet 65 million years ago, then why not again? The story is told with an array of special effects that are impressive for a cable television network production. The production values here are moderate to high, and it all looks pretty good. The stories of the Hawaiian scientists, the Cameroonian pygmies, and the Mexican man are believable and sometimes even gripping; only in the case of the French family does the story fall apart a little. I liked that the pygmies thrive the most successfully; they're used to living off of the land.
Video
"Super Comet: After the Impact" is presented in a non-anamorphic 1.78:1 aspect ratio. Running time is 1:25:00, divided into 11 chapters. The picture looks a bit murky overall, but given the fact that most of the dramatic sections take place in an Earth encased in a dust cloud, then perhaps the darker image was a conscious choice by the cinematographer..
Audio
The only sound option is Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo, in English. The ominous and theatrical voice over is balanced competently with the actors in the dramatic footage, and with the scientific interviews. I thought that the ridiculously bombastic music was a little loud, but I guess the mixers were looking for impact. Overall, the stereo mix is rather wide, making full use of the soundstage. There are no optional subtitles.
Extras
There are no extras at all on the DVD.
Overall
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