Reviewed by Peter Veugelaers © 2004
- Don't be deceived -- get out of cinema quick!

The expectation surrounding this is big budget spectacle. The same could be said for the similar Deep Impact but which disappointed audiences with a water drenched finale – the singular special effects sequence in that movie. But The Day After Tomorrow has more water and a lot more ice and a conventional plot is not helped by several clichés particularly those director Roland Emmerich has accustomed audiences to with his movies.

Disaster movies had their heyday during the 1970s with the likes of Airport ’75, The Towering Inferno, and Earthquake. During the 90s there were the tornado turning Twister and Deep Impact about an imminent tsunami making waves when it was released in 1998. Emmerich contributed loosely to this dramatic form with blockbusters like Independence Day and Godzilla. The popularity of these movies at the box office is again evident with the latest effects laden freak of nature epic written and directed by Emmerich.

The story is simple and uncomplicated. The world is verging down toward the resurgence of an ice age forewarned by climate expert Jack Hall, played by Dennis Quaid, who faces resistance from the U.S. Vice-President who will not listen to his claims. But as the storms increase North America is literally flooded. The U.S. President agrees to Jack’s advice and evacuates the south and informs his aids to warn northerners to settle until troops are able to provide a rescuing operation.

Meanwhile, the human interest story is between Jack and his son, Sam (Jake Gyllenhall), and Sam’s romantic interest in Laura (Emmy Rossum). Jack is disconnected from his son and vows to rescue him as Sam and his high school peers are barricaded in the north of the country while on a high school academic trivia competition.

The Day After Tomorrow suffers from a credibility issue when Jack briefs a delegation of international officials on the potential of an ice age in 100 or 1000 years. Without warning, signs of the event are closer than expected. The gap between Jack’s scientifically-based prediction and the reality is not convincing and manipulates the audience. A solid reason for the surprising turn of events is not evident and a token gesture to explain is insufficient. The best explanation is that nature has its own agenda and later in the movie it is clear that humans are to blame for contributing to this ecological transition.

This plays more like a cautionary tale about the wisdom of conservationism than an interesting and emotionally involving story about the end of western civilisation as we know it. Its message is obvious but not crude or offensive enough to be distasteful. Although its heart is in the right place the presentation of its ideas are conventional and the movie plods with unimaginative nerve.

It tries to persuade us to be virtuous and responsible human beings who learn from our ecological mistakes so that disasters like these won’t happen. It is idealistic about how people relate to one another during adversity whereas last year’s independent film 28 Days Later, with its apocalyptic themes, offered a more realistic perhaps cynical estimation of human nature under pressure.

The characters on a whole are one-dimensional but generally the actors do well. Dennis Quaid adds character and presence to a weak storyline and Jake Gyllenhall and Emmy Rossum as the love interests are effective in spite of meagre material. Ian Holm is a welcome presence and although his part as a scientist is slight he carries weight to his scenes. Jack’s relationship with his wife (Sela Ward) is part of the human interest, but she comes across as more of an interested bystander and onlooker than a substantial character.

Depending on how committed you are to its message, or conversely uncommitted and detached, then you might not mind. By using pseudo scientific jargon and easy dramatic set-ups to convince us of the horrendous imploding doom the hope it also wants to convey is heightened, and so manipulates the audience response. In any case this is a movie that has that market savvy promise but that its enjoyment is conditional on compliance.