Simon Dillon reviews the film

Roland Emmerich has destroyed the world many times in many films (Independence Day, The Day After Tomorrow etc) but in 2012 he really pulls out all the stops in an attempt to produce the ultimate disaster movie. In one sense he succeeds. This tale of solar flares, polar shifts and assorted dodgy scientific theories resulting in catastrophic volcanoes, earthquakes, tidal waves etc plays a little like a disaster movie greatest hits - perhaps a better title might have been "Now that's what I call a disaster movie".

However this is a Roland Emmerich film, which basically means mind boggling special effects populated by a bunch of bland and uninteresting characters in a story that's deeply predictable and way too long. I am not a big fan of Emmerich, though to be fair his films aren't at Michael Bay levels of awfulness and are at least watchable and faintly entertaining on a first viewing.

Since the best thing about the film is the special effects it's worth reiterating that they are indeed spectacular, and those responsible in the visual effects department should be very pleased with themselves. If all you look for in a film is spectacle then 2012 has it in spades. But those old fashioned individuals who value plot, wit, character and perhaps even a modicum of social comment should steer clear. 2012 is a big, dumb unstoppable juggernaut that has been marketed to within an inch of its life to ensure massive box office.

The cast, which includes the likes of John Cusack, George Segal, Thandie Newton, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Danny Glover and Oliver Platt, are ludicrously overqualified for something as daft as this, but they try as best they can with the material they are given. Unfortunately, only Woody Harrelson's enjoyably deranged doomsday Radio DJ makes any kind of impression.

The whole 2012 end of the world thing, apparently predicted in a Mayan calendar, is certainly an intriguing subject, but for me the film singularly failed to generate an iota of tension or pathos. As cities collapse any sense of human tragedy is lost in a cacophony of big explosions and "wow" moments. Plus, the (generally) mind numbingly optimistic view of the human nature prevalent in all Emmerich's film simply doesn't ring true. Compare for example the reaction to an alien invasion in Independence Day to that in Spielberg's much underrated War of the Worlds. The latter is a bleaker, but far more believable depiction. Here, despite a few greedy and selfish individuals, the human race at large is shown stoically facing its doom without any of the looting, killing and goodness knows what else that would surely happen in the event of such catastrophe. Not that one should necessarily come to a film like this for realism, but suspension of disbelief would be nice.

Having said all that, there is one thing about 2012 that from a spiritual perspective is interesting. I have argued in the past that film is a visually prophetic medium in that it sometimes produces images that are prophetic (often divorced from their context). If you don't believe me, just re-watch the end of Fight Club which anticipates 9/11 just two years before it actually happened. From a Christian perspective, I don't necessarily believe 2012 will be any more or less significant than any other year (though of course, the rapture of the church could take place any year), but the end of the age, as described in Revelation chapter 6, certainly contains imagery that this film also reflects visually. Verse 14 of that chapter says "Every mountain and island were moved out of their places". I personally believe this will literally happen one day. It could be in 2012, or afterwards, or even beforehand, but according to the Bible it will eventually happen. However, it will not herald the end of the world, but ultimately the return of Jesus Christ to Earth where he will rule and reign.

With that in mind, I cannot completely dismiss 2012 out of hand. Aside from that the only successful thing about this film is the special effects, which divorced from a compelling narrative make it an empty experience. Watch the much maligned but actually not bad Knowing instead, which does a similar thing in what feels like a fraction of the time. Alternatively dig out the cheesy but entertaining 1950's sci-fi flick Where Worlds Collide. Both are better than this overlong, overblown and frankly rather dull slice of apocalyptic mayhem.