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List Price: $14.99 | | Label: Buena Vista Home Entertainment / Touchstone
Salesrank: 1598
Released: January 5, 1999 |
| Our Price: $4.53 |
| Used Price: $3.00 |
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MPAA Rating: Unrated
Media: DVD |
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Editorial Review:
When an asteroid the size of Texas is headed for Earth, a ragtag team of roughneck oil drillers are sent to drop a nuclear warhead into its core.
Genre: Feature Film-Action/Adventure
Rating: PG13
Release Date: 25-JAN-2005
Media Type: DVD
Description of Armageddon:
The latest testosterone-saturated blow-'em-up from producer Jerry Bruckheimer and director Michael Bay (The Rock, Bad Boys) continues Hollywood's millennium-fueled fascination with the destruction of our planet. There's no arguing that the successful duo understands what mainstream American audiences want in their blockbuster movies--loads of loud, eye-popping special effects, rapid- fire pacing, and patriotic flag waving. Bay's protagonists--the eight crude, lewd, oversexed (but lovable, of course) oil drillers summoned to save the world from a Texas-sized meteor hurling toward the earth--are not flawless heroes, but common men with whom all can relate. In this huge Western-in-space soap opera, they're American cowboys turned astronauts. Sci-fi buffs will appreciate Bay's fetishizing of technology, even though it's apparent he doesn't understand it as anything more than flashing lights and shiny gadgets. Smartly, the duo also tries to lure the art-house crowd, raiding the local indie acting stable and populating the film with guys like Steve Buscemi, Billy Bob Thornton, Owen Wilson, and Michael Duncan, all adding needed touches of humor and charisma. When Bay applies his sledgehammer aesthetics to the action portions of the film, it's mindless fun; it's only when Armageddon tackles humanity that it becomes truly offensive. Not since Mississippi Burning have racial and cultural stereotypes been substituted for characters so blatantly--African Americans, Japanese, Chinese, Scottish, Samoans, Muslims, French ... if it's not white and American, Bay simplifies it. Or, make that white male America; the film features only three notable females--four if you count the meteor, who's constantly referred to as a "bitch that needs drillin'," but she's a hell of a lot more developed and unpredictable than the other women characters combined. Sure, Bay's film creates some tension and contains some visceral moments, but if he can't create any redeemable characters outside of those in space, what's the point of saving the planet? --Dave McCoy
Armageddon Reviews:
Anal About Realism? Not for you. Want To Be Entertained? This is it. 
2008-09-29 - I believe this movie to be well directed and scripted. It had the right amount of humor, drama, and "feel good" ending. They knew when to be funny and when to be serious. It had a great cast and overall it was a very enjoyable movie. From what I've read, this was one of those "hate it or love it" movies and I really liked the movie.
As for realism, yeah most of that stuff probably wouldn't fly realistically but if the only way to save our planet was to drill a hole in the sucker, would I prefer astronauts be given last minute instructions on how to drill or would I prefer some guy who has done it for years? I guess it sounds kinda funny/stupid at first but...I would prefer the experienced driller.
In any case, if realism is what you wanted, this isn't for you. If you want a to watch an entertaining movie, this is one of the best I've seen.
every cliche and movie ploy in the book 
2008-09-02 - the best thing about this movie is it's fast paced and therefore the pain of various scenes is short-lived. also, there's some good one-liners on the moon. however, this movie attacks you with a blended mash of movie standards such as: the macho hero, the love interest, patriotism, action, rising music to artificially stir your emotions, the scientific genius,
the misunderstood father, the misunderstood daughter, suspense, comedy,
the bumbling bureaucrats, the rough-edged construction workers and of course, highly improbable drama. it's the full playbook crammed together, and because of that, it's virtually an educational guide about what not to do. it's a total mess overall, and horrible science fiction, but grabs your attention here and there. Unfortunately, though not even a decade old, it seems very outdated, largely b/c of the theme and the presence of the twin towers, but also because the computer effects are embarrasing in several places. overall, highly ridiculous.
OVER HYPED. BORING. 
2008-08-25 - This movie is over hyped. It's boring after 15 minutes into the movie. There's nothing exciting. It's also illogical.
A celebration of excitement and excess
2008-08-03 - Michael Bay's films are an odd addition to the Criterion collection, until you recall the Criterion Collection's mission statement reads "All we ask is that each film in the collection be an exemplary film of its kind."
Armageddon is ultimate distillation of Michael Bay and Jerry Bruckheimer's commercial action movie formula, a formula that they introduced in Bad Boys (Special Edition), improved upon in The Rock - Criterion Collectionand finally, post-Armageddon, ran into the ground in Pearl Harbor. Later Bay films like The Island and Transformers (Two-Disc Special Edition)are informed by this formula, but none of them come close to this masterpiece of 1990s action.
As you almost certainly know, the plot of Armageddon involves a gigantic asteroid on a collision course with the Earth. The only ones who can stop it are a rag-tag crew of oil drillers, who hitch a ride with some astronauts on a pair of fighter-jet space shuttles to blow the rock to bits with a well-placed nuke. Sounds silly? It is, and the film has a couple of winking acknowledgements of its own silliness. Mostly though, the film believes in itself, and it is easy to become caught up in the (false) grandeur of the undertaking.
Lots of people will bad-mouth this film, but those people are movie snobs. Armageddon was one of the most popular movies of 1998, and it was a defining element of the popular culture of the time. Ignoring it just because you dislike its style or story is to put on cultural blinders.
Personally, I felt that Armageddon's most interesting cinematic characteristic is Bay's use of a kind of cinematic short-hand. Much of Bruce Willis' character is defined by previous Bruce Willis movies, creating a kind of ready-made character who already feels familiar when he first appears. Likewise, the sequences involving the military are largely understandable only because you know how the military acts in this sort of movie.
But the best example of this shorthand is the character of Billy Bob Thorton. At one point he mentions that he was formerly in the astronaut program, but dropped out. There is a very short, perhaps less than 1 second, shot of a pair of leg braces. With just this flash of visual information, Bay has established an entire history for the character. Anyone who says that Bay is lacking in cinematic skills is ignoring his great gift at conveying information in a fast, visual way. A great example of showing, not telling.
This Criterion DVD has all the usual extra features you might expect, and they are as good as you might expect. The DVD commentary is entertaining and informative, and Bay is quite open about his commercial and pragmatic sensibilities, such as the story he relates that a certain beauty shot of a car was included so that the car-maker would give him money to build a bizarre set that was not included in the budget. Many of the cast members also contribute to the commentary; Ben Affleck is the highlight, obviously well trained from doing Kevin Smith commentary tracks. Bruce Willis is as laconic as his reputation would suggest, but his few comments are sometimes hilarious. This version of the movie is also slightly extended, with some scenes involving Willis' character's father, and a few slight extensions that add character beats to some of the minor scenes. Nothing major.
The second disc has lots of interesting features on the making of the movie, a collection of deleted scenes and a few bloopers. Most of the deleted scenes are comedy bits with the actors riffing in character, and all of them are entertaining but it is easy to see why they were cut out. The best blooper is an appearance by Michael Eisner (Disney's Touchstone division produced the film), who tells Willis that his casting isn't working out and the studio is replacing him with Kevin Costner.
All in all, this is a fantastic DVD of a highly entertaining movie. Don't let the movie snobs shame you into not getting it. If you enjoyed this movie back in the late 90s, you'll find plenty to still enjoy here. It has aged very well, and, from a film history standpoint, this DVD set is almost a time capsule of the bloated studio action pictures of the time.
This movie has great entertainment value
2008-07-31 - I have to admit that this is one of my favorite movies of all time. There are very few movies that even try to touch on almost every emotion and this one does it well in my opinion. For those who didn't like it, I am guessing that they were trying to relate it to reality. Movies like this aren't meant for that. They are meant for their entertainment value and this is full of it. There is action, comedy, drama, suspense, and a little horror. Awesome!
