{"id":21189,"date":"2019-05-16T22:41:01","date_gmt":"2019-05-17T05:41:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/moviemansguide.com\/main\/?p=21189"},"modified":"2019-05-16T22:41:26","modified_gmt":"2019-05-17T05:41:26","slug":"review-earthquake-shoutfactory-bd","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/moviemansguide.com\/main\/2019\/05\/review-earthquake-shoutfactory-bd\/","title":{"rendered":"Earthquake: Collector’s Edition (Shout Select) Blu-ray Review"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Earthquake<\/em><\/strong> is certainly one of the lesser of the disaster film of the 1970s and certainly the story and characters, despite a respectable cast, was the weaker point but I was at least impressed with some of the miniature and special effects work.<\/p>\n

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Earthquake
\n<\/span>\u2014 Collector’s Edition \/ Shout Select \u2014<\/span>
\n(1974)<\/span>
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Genre(s): <\/strong>Action, Adventure, Drama<\/span>
\nShout Factory | PG\/NR \u2013 122 min. \/ 152 min. \u2013 $29.99 | May 21, 2019<\/span><\/p>\n

Date Published:<\/strong> 05\/16\/2019 | Author:<\/strong> The Movieman<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n
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MOVIE INFO:
\n<\/u><\/strong>Directed by: <\/strong>Mark Robson
\nWriter(s): <\/strong>George Fox and Mario Puzo (written by)
\nCast: <\/strong>Charlton Heston, Ava Gardner, George Kennedy, Lorne Greene, Genevieve Bujold, Richard Roundtree, Marjoe Gortner, Victoria Principal, Lloyd Gough, John Randolph, Kip Niven<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
DISC INFO:
\n<\/u><\/strong>Features: <\/strong>Interviews, Promotional Materials, Still Galleries
\nSlip Cover: <\/strong>Yes
\nDigital Copy: <\/strong>No
\nFormats Included: <\/strong>Blu-ray
\nNumber of Discs: <\/strong>2<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Audio: <\/strong>English (DTS-HD MA 5.1), English (DTS-HD MA 2.1), English (DTS-HD MA 2.0)
\nVideo: <\/strong>1080p\/Widescreen 2.35
\nSubtitles: <\/strong>English SDH
\nDisc Size: <\/strong>48.57 GB (Disc 1), 49.85 GB (Disc 2)
\nTotal Bitrate: <\/strong>45.30 Mbps (Disc 1), 39.58 Mbps (Disc 2)
\nCodecs: <\/strong>MPEG-4 AVC
\nRegion(s): <\/strong>A<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Shout Factory provided me with a free copy of the Blu-ray I reviewed in this Blog Post.
\nThe opinions I share are my own.<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

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THE MOVIE \u2014 3.0\/5<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n
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Plot Synopsis: <\/strong>When a major earthquake hits Los Angeles, the various residents of the city cope with the chaos and destruction. Successful architect Stewart Graff (CHARLTON HESTON) argues with his demanding wife, Remy Royce-Graff (AVA GARDNER), as the disaster hits. Later, when he checks in on his flirtatious friend Denise Marshall (GENEVIEVE BUJOLD), they begin an affair. As the personal dramas continue, the city is threatened by aftershocks and possibly even greater quakes. Also leading the rescue efforts is LAPD officer Lew Slade (GEORGE KENNEDY) and stunt motorcyclist Miles (RICHARD ROUNDTREE).<\/p>\n

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Review: <\/strong>I\u2019ve probably mentioned this before, but I have an affinity for the disaster subgenre, even the lesser or dumber ones like Volcano<\/em> or Dante\u2019s Peak<\/em>, but the golden era was the 1970s which produced such classics as The Poseidon Adventure<\/em> and The Towering Inferno<\/em>, the latter a personal favorite of mine. 1974 saw the release of Earthquake<\/em><\/strong>, a movie that probably didn\u2019t have quite the all-star cast in comparison but the spectacle was there, though certainly was missing the magic touch of producer Irwin Allen.<\/p>\n

Certainly these disaster movies didn\u2019t have the strongest plots, mostly an ensemble making their way through life-endangering situations and the characters aren\u2019t the most three-dimensional either. But both The Poseidon Adventure<\/em> and The Towering Inferno<\/em> had at least semblance of characters one could care about. Earthquake<\/em><\/strong> on the other hand? The lead portrayed by Charlton Heston (who a month prior also starred in Airport 1975<\/em>) is a bit of a bastard; sure he was in a loveless marriage and certainly Genevieve Bujold\u2019s Denise was adorably charming and cute, but having your lead be a cheater didn\u2019t make for an endearing character, albeit he does redeem himself at the end, though wasn\u2019t exactly satisfactory.<\/p>\n

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The biggest positive Earthquake<\/em><\/strong> has going for it is the special effects. The miniature work when the big one hits, buildings topple over and some creative set designs, is fairly impressive (some more than others). It does try to replicate some of the more memorable moments of other disaster films (like a man falling to their death through glass), though didn\u2019t have the thrills by comparison.<\/p>\n

The film was directed by two-time back-to-back Academy Award nominee Mark Robson (Peyton Place<\/em>, The Inn of the Sixth Happiness<\/em>) and scripted by George Fox and\u2026 Mario Puzo. Yep, author and scriptwriter of The Godfather<\/em> novel, yeah I\u2019m sure he put his full effort into this endeavor (interestingly, The Godfather Part II<\/em> was released a month after Earthquake<\/em><\/strong>).<\/p>\n

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In the end, Earthquake<\/em><\/strong> isn\u2019t great to say the least and doesn\u2019t have the most memorable characters, although Walter Matthau makes a great cameo as a bar drunk, and yet I still found this to be passably entertaining, but doesn\u2019t hold a candle to others in the disaster subgenre.<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

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SPECIAL FEATURES \u2013 3.75\/5<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n
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This Shout Select Collector\u2019s Edition release comes with a matted slip cover<\/strong>. No reversible cover artwork unfortunately.<\/p>\n

DISC ONE:
\n<\/strong>Audio Interviews:<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n