San Andreas ***
If your world is crumbling around you, the one thing you want is a ‘rock’ of a man to come to the rescue. Enter Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson, a man mountain who seems to grow in muscular stature in every new film he appears in. The earthquakes in San Andreas might be enormous, but Johnson seems to power his way to the heart of the problem, giving this rather silly but entertaining disaster film its natural arch enemies: Johnson verses the rock.
Johnson plays ex-Army-cum -rescue-chopper pilot Ray who makes it his mission to save hapless females in deadly situations, until the predicted – and long overdue – mega earthquake runs the full length of the San Andreas Fault line, causing havoc on West Coast America. He also has to find and save members of his estranged family in the carnage.
Johnson musters as much charm as possible to match is inherent reliability in this when the chips (or buildings) are down, and you can’t fault him for his efforts. He is more than watchable, but follows a predictable path of estranged husband who reunites his damaged family through disaster that’s been done countless times before.
What’s a little more interesting is not all the action scenes are reserved for him and his biceps; striking-looking Alexandra Daddario plays his college-bound older daughter Blake uses what survival skills she’s learnt from ‘daddy’ to rescue her own pair of Brit victims from the San Fran masses. It’s kind of like watching a ‘how to survive an earthquake’ video at times. Even mum, Emma (Carla Gugino), is not without a few action skills, managing to dodge damaged skyscrapers and maneuver a speed boat like a female Bond with ease.
There is a lot of CGI carnage to be thrilled by, without any blood-letting, hence humans defy falling debris without a scratch, much like in a video game. In fact, the film takes itself a little too seriously for a disaster flick, making it laughable in this respect. The only earnest character appears to be Paul Giamatti as world-renowned seismologist Lawrence who encounters the unfolding catastrophe personally at the very beginning, and gets to plead with everyone who’s listening to take heed.
Canadian director Brad Peyton – who worked with Johnson on Journey 2: The Mysterious Island in 2012 – certainly has gleeful fun carving up and flattening California in his film, acting like a prophet to remind current residents of the region of their impending doom with ‘The Big One’ due. Perhaps that’s the reason the film takes itself more seriously as the reality is there?
Whatever the reason, San Andreas may well be clichéd, predictable and rather daft sometimes, but its cast is easy on the eye and characters promote family values – with a little shake up of the earth beneath their feet. It’s an easily digestible flick that ultimately makes some of us relieved we aren’t living in the Sunshine State for once.
3/5 stars
By @FilmGazer
