7.5 | / 10 |
Users | 4.2 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
While doing a report on energy sources, ambitious reporter Kimberly Wells witnesses a near-accident at a nuclear power plant. Attempting to publicize the incident, Wells soon finds herself entangled in an inquiry by a senior engineer at the plant into possible faults that the power company refuses to acknowledge.
Starring: Jane Fonda, Jack Lemmon, Michael Douglas, Scott Brady, James HamptonThriller | Insignificant |
Drama | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 16-bit)
English SDH
25GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (locked)
Movie | 4.5 | |
Video | 3.5 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 3.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
I once had a memorable exchange about The China Syndrome with a poster on an internet movie forum. Although he was barely in kindergarten when the film was released on March 16, 1979, he was utterly convinced that it had permanently stymied the U.S. development of nuclear energy, thereby contributing to decades of dependence on foreign oil and gas. When I pointed out that the more likely cause was the major accident and partial meltdown at Pennsylvania's Three Mile Island nuclear reactor just twelve days after the film's release, the poster conceded that Three Mile Island might have had a small impact, but insisted it was really all about the film. At this point, other posters joined with various expressions (some obscene) of the notion: "Are you kidding?" It may be the dream of every filmmaker to have as much impact on the world as my debate adversary claimed for The China Syndrome, but rarely does a work of entertainment affect public policy directly. Indeed, the makers of the film, including producer Michael Douglas, feared that they would appear to be exploiting the disaster, which took fourteen years and a billion dollars to clean up. Still, it's hard to think of another instance where a topical thriller has so eerily predicted the immediate future. Although the accident portrayed in The China Syndrome isn't an exact match for what happened at Three Mile Island, it was just close enough to make these headline issues of safety protocols and human error feel visceral and immediate. Today, long after the furor has passed, The China Syndrome still holds up, thanks to first-rate performances, a well-crafted script and expert direction.
The China Syndrome was shot by James Crabe (Rocky and The Karate Kid), who, as described by executive producer Bruce Gilbert, had no discernible style but, like a traditional studio cameraman of old, suited his lighting to the material. The production's biggest challenge was to simulate both exteriors (via matte paintings and other trickery) and interiors (with meticulous set design) of the Ventana nuclear plant, since no real plant would grant them the necessary access. Image Entertainment/RLJ's 1080p, AVC-encoded Blu-ray, from a transfer provided by Sony, is an adequate but underwhelming presentation of the film's visuals. Colors, black levels and contrast all look right, and the film's realistic depiction of Southern California in the late Seventies (including the cheesy TV newsroom) will be a trip down memory lane for anyone who spent time in the region during the period. Where the presentation falls short is in the rendering of fine detail, which is satisfactory in closeups and most medium shots but becomes noticeably soft and fuzzy whenever a long shot appears. There are several possible explanations for this weakness, but the most likely culprit is high frequency roll-off to facilitate the compression of this 122-minute film onto a BD-25. Despite a fair number of visually complex and active scenes, the Blu-ray's average bitrate is 17.94 Mbps because of space limitations, and that is exceptionally low for this particular 1.85:1 image originated on film. Grain remains visible, but that doesn't mean there was no filtering.
The China Syndrome was released in mono, but the soundtrack was remixed for 5.1 for DVD. The 2004 "Special Edition" from Sony included the original mono track as an option, but the Blu-ray contains only the 5.1 remix, encoded in lossless DTS-HD MA. The remix is conservative and front-oriented, expanding the soundtrack across the front soundstage and adding resonance through the surrounds. The dynamic range is effectively broad, reaching the highs of the klaxons and alarms that are crucial to the impact of the reactor incidents and descending low enough to convey the rumbles of the heavy machinery in which Jack Lemmon's Godell suspects faults. (A scene that cuts back and forth between a piece of machinery being tested, and Godell and his colleagues watching it on a monitor, provides a wonderful demonstration of the use of silence in sound editing.) As described in the "Creating a Controversy" featurette, a score was composed but ultimately rejected in favor of sound effects and source music. The only exception is the Stephen Bishop song, "Somewhere in Between", which plays over the opening.
Sony first released The China Syndrome on DVD in 1999, accompanied by its famous teaser trailer, which exploited the then-unfamiliar title phrase to suspenseful effect. In 2004, Sony released a "Special Edition" DVD that included two retrospective documentaries, which have been ported over to this Blu-ray from Image Entertainment. Unfortunately, the teaser trailer is not included, but it is discussed and partially replayed in the "Creating a Controversy" featurette. The 2004 DVD also lists "deleted scenes", but it is not clear whether this refers to a separate extra or the various deleted scenes included in the second featurette.
The technology is dated, the media landscape has been transformed, and the energy industry has certainly become more complex, but The China Syndrome remains a tense and involving thriller. The underlying issues haven't disappeared. The same tension between public safety concerns, corporate profitability and the role of government regulation that drive the film's plot continues to play out today in multiple arenas, as does the tug-of-war between investigative journalism and news-as-entertainment (except that much of what passes for "journalism" is now just entertainment by another name). Behind it all, there are no doubt still people like Lemmon's Jack Godell, trying to do the right thing, and not always sure what it is. The video presentation isn't all it could be, but the film is highly recommended.
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