my brief thoughts on.... 'National Geographic - Killer Wave: Power of the Tsunami'

ever since the Tsunami of 2004 in Sri Lanka, i've been intrigued by them.... something that disturbs me in a lot of ways as i have a fear of drowning.... yet something i will never have to deal with living in Colorado.... but the whole concept and science behind it is crazy.... the fact that an underground earthquake can set off a chain reaction that causes giant waves that can take out whole cities, villages and towns.... and i think the other thing that increased the interest was the mass amount of footage from the one in 2004.... because any that had occured before that was before the dawn of cell phone cameras, digital video recorders, etc.... there's just so many ways to get coverage on a disaster these days it's amazing.... it's almost like there's nothing that the average viewer can't see.... not just Tsunami's.... but anything....
i came across this National Geographic special by accident and didn't realize that it was produced before the Sri Lanka disaster.... so the footage was limited to some fascinating old school news footage and camera shots.... also a lot of paintings from ones back long before there ever was a way to photographically catch any of this.... it covers the history and science of the Tsunami.... but not in the great detail i was hoping for.... it seemed like it was designed for grade schoolers to learn the basics.... i guess i just expected more from it.... there's nothing really new to learn here.... and that's why i only gave it 2 out of 5 stars.... nothing to write home about.

if you want to see what a Tsunami truly can do, just look up Sri Lanka 2004 Tsunami on YouTube and you'll have more than enough to satisfy your curiousity

(there is no trailer for this movie to embed.)

my brief thoughts on.... 'Tidal Wave'

disaster movies are hit and miss..... if you have the disaster too soon, it ruins the possability of a build up.... if you wait too long, you lose the audience.... but if you build it up to where you care about the characters and place the disaster at just the right place and have follow up in the aftermath, they can work.... 'Tidal Wave' was the later kind of movie.... granted, it wasn't Shakespeare.... but it set it to do something and it accomplished it.... i found myself caring about the abundance of chracters that were introduced throughout the movie.... and there were a lot of them to give back story on and the director was able to make each ones story interesting and not overwhelming.... it was an movie with a lot going on and at a mere two hours it accomplished a lot....

not to get too deep into the story as it's extremely complex with all of the people involved.... it deals with a scientist who is trying to prevent what he calls a 'Mega Tsunami' from destroying Korea.... after the wake of a major one in 2004, that's been his lifes work ever since.... however, most people won't listen and just take him as being a bit over the top and over cautious.... meanwhile, everyone elses lives are intersecting and setting the stage for what happens in the last 45 minutes of the movie.... which is pretty intense....i felt this deserved 4 out of 5 stars.... i was a little suprised at the ending being a bit too 'neat'.... but i wasn't expecting the perfect movie.... but they did an amazing job with the special effects during the Tsunami.... and everyone was so well cast in their roles that i really got involved in the story.... i found myself on the edge of my seat during the entire 3rd act.... if you enjoy a good disaster movie.... and don't mind subtitles.... this Korean movie is one that might have slipped under your radar and you should consider blocking out some time to enjoy a summer blockbuster that isn't from Hollywood.... yes, i thought it was that good.

if you like foreign films like this or movies with lots of stuff blowing up, consider: 'The Host', 'Cloverfield' and 'The Day After Tomorrow'