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The movie starts out with a couple of scientists, one from India, and one an employee in some capacity with the United States government, deep in an underground laboratory. They discover some troubling information regarding the core of the Earth. If the data is correct, the world as we know it doesn't have much longer.
The first question we must face, is knowing that a cataclysmic event is inevitable, and will result in the death of the majority of the Earth's population, what would be the best course of action from the standpoint of a government body?
The world governments decide to covertly plan an escape for a small percentage of the world's population, with the rest of the people left to fend for themselves. Luckily, the main character, played fantastically by John Cusack, happens across a sage in the wilderness played very convincingly by Woody Harrelson. As these normal characters discover the impending end of the world, they must race against time to arrive at the secret location known only to the super rich, and the super smart, as determined by the world governments.
And as in most disaster movies, we are met with several likeable characters who must look their impending death in the face. While this isn't easy, this is a disaster movie after all, and most people, unfortunately, are going to die.
As it turns out, the secret plan to save the chosen few is to load everyone on arks, just like the story from the bible. Hopefully, they will stay on these arks long enough until the earth sorts itself out, when they can find some dry land and start over again.
The question that is posed to those on board the ships, is what to do with all the blue collar workers who actually built he arks? The project itself was paid for by wealthy investors who paid for the project by securing a seat with a sizeable investment, but when the time came to lock up the boats and wait for the impending rush of water, were they going to leave all the workers to die?
It's a tough question that has filled many psychology textbooks. If you can only save a few people, who do you choose? The rich? The smart? The lucky?
While the choices made in the movie may not reflect your own personal values, the movie is well worth watching, and at the very least is a splendid two hours of fantastic entertainment. I give it two four out of five stars, and my full recommendation.
