NTV's 55-year Anniversary Project, "252" is about rescue of trapped survivors of a storm that hits Tokyo.
The cast is truly all-star, including many cameo/special appearances. SFX/CG is excellent for Japanese standards, and it's easy to tell they put a lot of effort in production of this movie.
However, as a film, I felt there were WAY too many close-calls and deliberate plot devices (like how one of the guy just happened to be carrying a water-purifier that could be used as a pump in surgery) that fueled the implausibility of the plot. The leading actor Itou Hideaki's acting was a disaster as a usual, and it was too over-dramatized and cheesy for my tastes.
I guess this is expected of a blockbuster natural disaster movie though. Even with all the aforementioned flaws, it kept me interested to the end, and it was somewhat inspirational.
I can't help but to compare this movie with "Day After Tomorrow". Both water-based natural disaster films, but it amazed me how "Day After Tomorrow" was better than "252" in every single aspect, from story, acting, CG, to music. I was disappointed that even with 55-year Anniversary Project budget and 5 years of advantage, Japanese computer graphics in 2009 movies are still way behind the 2004 US movies. A lot of people despise Hollywood films, but movies like this really makes me appreciate the American blockbuster movies.
The cast is truly all-star, including many cameo/special appearances. SFX/CG is excellent for Japanese standards, and it's easy to tell they put a lot of effort in production of this movie.
However, as a film, I felt there were WAY too many close-calls and deliberate plot devices (like how one of the guy just happened to be carrying a water-purifier that could be used as a pump in surgery) that fueled the implausibility of the plot. The leading actor Itou Hideaki's acting was a disaster as a usual, and it was too over-dramatized and cheesy for my tastes.
I guess this is expected of a blockbuster natural disaster movie though. Even with all the aforementioned flaws, it kept me interested to the end, and it was somewhat inspirational.
I can't help but to compare this movie with "Day After Tomorrow". Both water-based natural disaster films, but it amazed me how "Day After Tomorrow" was better than "252" in every single aspect, from story, acting, CG, to music. I was disappointed that even with 55-year Anniversary Project budget and 5 years of advantage, Japanese computer graphics in 2009 movies are still way behind the 2004 US movies. A lot of people despise Hollywood films, but movies like this really makes me appreciate the American blockbuster movies.