Review of Deep Impact (1998) by Annukka P — 09 Feb 2009

Deep Impact has a few fresh edges on most disaster movie fare, but ultimately, its conformity to studio standards keeps it from being truly great. See that "hope survives" splashed across the poster? That is the theme, and you will be beaten over and over with it, so make your peace now.

The movie dabbles with some interesting themes, such as abandonment and solitude and even a Shirley Jackon-esque impartial lottery to determine the fate of humanity, but nothing is scratched too heavily. The film is too fragmented, burdened with subplots (most of them unnecessary) and overly concerned with characters who don't really figure into the movie much. It's as if the studio told Mimi Leder that her film was too slow and to throw in more explosions and a happy ending, which just makes it all a bloated mess. And the ending is hellacious indeed, a truly moronic conclusion to a subplot that should have been axed at the first draft of the script. Also, one would suspect that this whole affair would be more palatable if Tea Leoni could act. She just looks bored.

Deep Impact isn't risible or terrible, but it's a total waste of potential, most likely watered down for us dumb Americans. The predictable, overly convenient plot really holds back the interestingly-composed action and the glimmers of intelligence. Worth your two hours if you catch it surfing the Sci-Fi Channel or something but not a flick to actively seek out.