"Deep Impact" was one of two collision-related movies released in summer, 1998 (the other was "Armageddon"). Whereas the latter had no other purpose than to have Bruce Willis kick ass, the former was actually quite good. More than just an action movie, this one shows the human aspect of everything. One of the most interesting aspects is Pres. Tom Beck (Morgan Freeman). Whereas we usually expect black men in movies to be macho, this guy talks about his belief in God. I guess that the only thing of which I would have liked to see more would have been the shelters, but I guess that such an aspect would probably occupy an entire movie on its own. All in all, a really good movie.

What would you do if the end of the world was near? How would you react if you knew that there was no way you were going to survive what was about to happen? Would you want to survive what was about to happen? Deep Impact is an excellent film that tells the story of a giant comet that is heading towards earth and unless it is stopped it will destroy everything. It contains many inter-personal relationships, and it examines how people would react if the end was near. It doesn't get as deep as "Last Night" at examining those issues, but what it does better than Last Night and even Armageddon ( another film that I loved ) is it shows a little more about relationships. It has a father and daughter trying to patch things up before the end is upon them. It shows young love, parental love and the love for a country and the world we live in. Deep Impact had a deeper impact on me and I really admire both Hollywood summer films that came out and dealt with this issue. But Deep Impact has more to say than Armageddon does.

One of the things that I admired so much about this film was how Tea Leoni was so hell bent on uncovering a story so that she could move up in the ranks of reporting, and in the process she uncovers something bigger than any political scandal could ever be. At first she is following a tip about some senator that has retired from office rather urgently. She has transcripts with him talking about a girl named Ellie. And she is determined to uncover who Ellie is so she can embarrass the senator and quicken her pursuit to greatness. She finally confronts the senator on the dock where he is laoding a boat with what looks to be enough supplies to last for a year. She tries to bully the senator into telling her the story but he refuses. She then does some research on the Internet and finds out that Ellie wasn't the name of a woman, but an acronym for the comet. E.L.E. Extinction Level Event. She is horrified. The beginning takes up a good half an hour of the movie and it is during that thirty mintues that I became hooked. My emotions were manipulated to the point where I felt like I should be at home with my family. The direness of the situation was very well executed. And the rest of the film is on the same level. It does a great job at making us ask questions about ourselves. And we examine our own lives and wonder if we would be prepared if something like this ever happened. I realize this may be getting a little sentimental and perhaps sappy, but this film really tapped into my emotions and I think it did that to a lot of people. I highly recommend htis film for all that it is. The acting is top notch, especially from Morgan Freeman. He conveys the hurt, confusion and utter regret as the president of the United States. He knows that it is impossible to save everyone but he has to do what he can to save as many as possible. He truly is a great and gifted actor. The score is also a moving orchestra and the direction by Mimi Leder is swift and appropriatly crisp and dizzying in some ways. I have never heard of her before this, but I heard that Spielberg picked her himself for this project. And he was smart to pick her. She really does a wonderful job here.

Deep Impact is more than just a movie, it is an experience, and one that should be had by all. A wonderful, wonderful film.

A passable, diverting, but sometimes boring disaster flick. At least it's better than some of the ones they made in the '70s, mainly due to the improved special effects. They just weren't able to do them justice in those days, so this blows METEOR out of the water pretty well, although it's still far, far below stuff like THE TOWERING INFERNO. Mainly because effects on their own do not make a film (take VOLCANO for instance).

What makes this film better than most is the focus on the people, not the special effects, which is refreshing for a blockbuster like this these days. We do actually get to know and feel for the characters (even if we hate them),so the ending will have some meaning. Unfortunately, most of the film is made up of slow-moving exposition, lots of dialogue and drippy sentiment which comes across as shallow and pointless, it's so cheesy and bad it makes you sick. There are some good scenes like the mission to Mars, but these are few and far between. I can safely say that the ending is worth waiting for though.

The special effects here involve cities exploding as they get hit by the tidal wave. Just like INDEPENDENCE DAY, but with water instead of fire. While some look unrealistic, they're certainly a lot more convincing than in many other, lower budgeted films, so these expensive movies do have something going for them I suppose. Anyway, the effects look amazing and jaw-dropping, just as to be expected, although there are surprisingly few of them (the whole tidal wave thing can't last longer than five minutes). The spaceship scenes are also good, with excellent character buildings, we really feel for the guys and girls at the end of the film.

The cast is populated by lots of famous names which also adds to the enjoyment level. Tea Leoni is a pretty bland and obnoxious lead, although to be fair she's not as bad as some. Maximillian Schell is heavyweight support and fits his expensive-looking, amiable role like a glove, while Morgan Freeman is excellent, as to be expected, as the first black President, although woefully underused. Robert Duvall is also good value as the aged, grandfatherly astronaut, and he's a character we really care about. In fact the only characters that really grate are the teenagers, with a wimpish Elijah Wood simply awful and his 'wife' nearly as sickly. Further down in the cast list we have cult favourite Charles Martin Smith as a nervous scientist (what else? This guy spends his life playing scientists),and one of my personal favourites, Kurtwood Smith (ROBOCOP),as mission control operator.

Unfortunately, DEEP IMPACT is only spoiled by the overlong, boring sentimental scenes. What we needed was more action and more plot development, instead of endless romances and farewells. What did surprise me was the relatively high mortality rate, a lot more actors and actresses die than you would imagine. Overall I would call this solid entertainment, a little too family-orientated for my liking.