A few Disaster films to watch in lockdown - Part 2

We have a few more films/shows to watch that deal with disaster of somekind and some of these are real crackers.  In some ways these shows are benefical to watch as they can help us see things from a different perspective, in particular looking at what is important in life.  So without further delay lets get stuck into it.

Threads (1984)

Ok no messing around here, this grabs straight for the jugular.  By looking at the title you would be excused for thinking this was a dress making show, not an extremely challenging show about nuculear disaster hitting the UK.  This is a show that will stick in your mind for a while.  Its a real sobering show to watch but highly reccomended as it shows the disaster in a way not often seen. 

This amazingly challenging film is shot in such a way that it shows the effect the bomb had in England not just in the time it occoured but also in several time frames after and as can be seen in the above image this show does not mess around.  It can show disturbing images that will stuick with you.  Do yourself a favour and check this out.  

If you are seeking a physical copy of the film (highly reccomended) look for the above shown copy.  This contains the original full screen (that is the copy meant for TV's of that era, 1.33:1 aspect ratio) version plus a new director-approved widescreen version along with a few audio commentaries and documentaries.  This film gets 4/5 tattered and torn ferrets.  It is a very heavy going movie but well worth it.

Chernobyl (2019)

Whilst not a global disaster movie like some others, this had the potential of being a global disaster.  It is also based on a true story which makes it all the more shocking.  The quality of this show is, quite frankly, amazing.  It shows the poor quality government of the time who would not believe the truth, corruption and most importantly the lives of people that were destroyed, and i think that is the hardest thing about the show.  The lives that were thrown away by those in power (similar in ways to the what is shown in the 1981 movie Gallipoli where soldiers were ordered to run accross the battlefield only to get shot down.  So many lived lost.).

A lot of work wasa done to make the show authentic even to the point of having a Ukranian woman ,who lived in that era, check the script to make sure it reflected the speech of the time.  There is one warning i will give from a Christian point of view and that by memory during one scene there is male nudity with workers at the site.  It isnt out of place as such as it is what they did in real life due to circumstances revealed in the show and I dont recall it being for too long.  But that aside you could almost say it was a perfect show.  Very very highly reccomended with 5/5 irradiated glowing ferrets.

Oh did i say it was an awesome show?

Shin Godzilla (2016)

When you see the word "Godzilla" the 1998 or 2014 Hollywood versions probably come to mind.  There are in fact about 36 Godzilla shows, the vast majority of them being Japanese.  To be honest I was initially going to go for the original 1954 Godzilla here but I might go back to that another time so I will stick with what I reckon is one of the best Godzilla movies... Shin Godzilla.  The original is a fantastic movie and in ways out does the Hollywood versions apart from special effects, but i digress, lets stick to the movie in review (which i will no doubt revisit again in a better review).  being a Japanese movie, Shin Godzilla is naturally in Japanese so subtitles will be the norm here.

The original 1954 Godzilla was 50m in height, the 2014 Hollywood Godzilla was 108m tall while Shin Godzilla is 118 terryfying metres high.  Contrary to what you may think this is not al all out action movie but rather a more balanced movie between human (world) response to this creature and the havoc it causes.  If you just want all out action there are other Godzilla movies to hunt down but for a well balanced movie is this one right here.  It also shows a transitioning of the Godzilla in the early parts of the movie and its adapted state as shown above which differs from other Godzilla movies that I have seen.  Really well done I reckon which is what you would expect from a creature living in water for so long.  This scaly terror brings some staggering destruction upon Japan and just like the older movies the government tries all sorts of weapons against it.  Do they succeed? Can they kill this monster once and for all?  

Being Japanese, this has a different feel to the "all action fewer barins" Hollywood movies of this type.  Mind you the 2014 Godzilla and 2019 Godzilla: King of Monsters are not bad movies but just very....Hollywood.  This has more thought behind it than just being an action movie.  For this one there are 4.5/5 cowering ferrets (well actually they are curled up in fetal position screaming their heads off hahaha).  Highly reccomended.

Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978)

I wrote full review of the origina 1956 film here and still believe it holds up very well today.  The remake from 1978 is also, unusually for a remake, a solid movie that is just as good as the original and naturally benefits from better special effects but does not over do it.  I couldnt really say which one is better as they are both great movies.  Both present the case, or mystery, then builds upon it throughout the film to the finale.  The ending however is where the new one has its own compared to the original.  I will not go into details as I dont want to spoil it.

Starring the likes of Donald Sutherland, Jeff Goldblum and the Sci-fi man himself  Leonard Nimoy (Spock from Star Trek), this movie grabs you and keeps you in till the end.  Its not a gore fest but is classed as a Sci-fi horror (what isnt scary about invading aliens?!) and may keep you on the edge of your seat but does also provide a laugh or two as well.  You shoudl still be able to get the DVD or Bluray but the best copy comes from the UK which has a host of extras.  I must warn however that there are two short scenes of nudity toward the end which is unfortunate so please keep that in mind if intending to view.

Overall a very enjoyable movie and comes reccomended (as does the original 1956 version) with 4/5 freaked out ferrets.  Note:  I still do highly reccomend the original, probably above the remake so by all means check it out!

The Poseidon Adventure (1972)
A nice cruise from New York to Greece on a top notch luxury cruise ship......what could possibly go wrong?  Bad fish served at the restaurant?  A dose of sea sickness?  Nah not here.  How about a tidal wave!  Yep a tidal wave.  Imagine the fear and panic that will strick the passengers as they see a huge wave coming directly toward the boat!

This is yet another solid movie from the the golden era of disaster movies (60's to 80's).  The 70's had quite a few such as The Towering Inferno, Airport, The Andromeda Strain, Jaws, Rollercoaster and of course many more.  The acting is great, the sets are great and the suspense keeps you hooked through out its near 2hr runtime.  Its great to see this remastered so well, the image quality is top notch from the bluray and will likely be similar for streamed versions.  Grab a seat and enjoy the trilling cruise!  Comes highly reccomended with 4/5 soaked ferrets!


Hope you enjoy the brief reviews of these films.  There will be more to come soon so keep watchin!