Last uploaded: Saturday, December 20, 1997

What happens when you're faced with the end of the world?

Incredible, to put it mildly. It's one of the best reads I've had in a long time. Essentially, it's about the end of the world, and how we as a species face it. Some of us exemplify the best in human nature, while others sucuumb to their worst tendencies.

Briefly, the storyline is like this: a giant comet is discovered that is on a collision course with Earth in a little over two years. Through an accident of fate, the world doesn't learn about its impending impact with the comet until a MS-NBC news reporter (TΘa Leoni) discovers something suspicious is up with a Senator. And when the world learns exactly what it is that faces them, each person reacts in a different way, from the President on down to the co-discoverer of comet Wolf-Biederman, a teenage boy (Elijah Wood).

And that's what makes this script stand out -- the writing of the characters. Both screenwriters have done a fantastic job of telling their tale as if it's going to happen the day after tomorrow. There's a lot of characters who wander in and out of the story, which makes it somewhat reminiscent of other disaster films like Earthquake or even Independence Day. But because their President of the United States takes a moment "to explain to the children of the world" just what type of crisis now faces the world, or by showing the final moments of the loved ones facing certain death, and having them come across so clearly as people you seem to know, makes the horror of what is about to happen not just more terrifying -- it amplifies it. My heart was racing when I flipped through the pages and read what happens to each of the characters you are introduced to. There are some parts where I was literally shaking as the events unfolded; the premise and the writing are that good.

But there are two asteroid movies coming out next summer; this one and Armageddon starring Bruce Willis. Some industry people have made the comment that essentially the two are the same, but let me be the first to say that they're not. The difference between the two is like the difference between Contact and Men in Black. Armageddon, from what I've heard about it (and to be fair, I haven't had the opportunity to read the script yet) is like The Dirty Dozen meets Top Gun in space: big action, big special effects, and Bruce Willis combine to make an entertaining mix. But Deep Impact, while it also has big FX sequences, chooses to tell you a story about the queasiness you feel when you get a phone call at 3:30 in the morning and you dread hearing bad news. Both films can be enjoyed for what they are, but personally, I've got big expectations for DI. The closest two films I can think of, if you want me to tell you what I felt when reading that script, is for you to go out and rent a little-seen film from the late Eighties called Miracle Mile; for those who have seen it, you know what I'm talking about. The second film is the classic 50's SF picture When Worlds Collide (and which partially served as inspiration for making the film.) We honestly haven't had a show like this in a while, not even Independence Day (can you honestly tell me you didn't know our heroes wouldn't win at the end of it all?)

Rumor has it Steven Spielberg wanted to direct this picture but had to choose between Amistad and Saving Private Ryan. Instead Spielberg chose Mimi Leder, and if she can bring those words I read to the screen, this will be a film that will scare you. When you read the words about how a colossal tsunami is "eating states", or the scene where a woman in a daycare draws down the blinds before a two thousand foot wall of water is about to hit so the children won't see it coming; you realize the guys who wrote this weren't pulling their punches. And when I saw that teaser image last week, those words and mental images swept back into my mind. It's like watching in slow-motion a car accident and thanking God it wasn't you, except in this case the 'car' just happens to be the world, and the 'accident' is coming your way late next spring.

I'll be watching this one closely until it opens next May 8 for signs it'll choose to 'lighten' its tone. I've had my expectations wrecked after reading scripts for movies I loved, only finding out in the theater 'little' scenes were changed, or the tone of the picture was altered. I hope it doesn't happen with Deep Impact because it has the potential to be a truly powerful, epic film. Let's hope that happens.

Patrick Sauriol
Creator, Chief Content Writer & Director
Coming Attractions

Enter the world of Technopolis! Aliens, gangsters and flying roadsters from the 50's Published bi-monthly by Caliber Comics Issue #1 out now, #2 out in late December! To order, call 1-888-22-COMIC For more info check out the Technopolis website.

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