San Andreas is one of 2015’s best disaster films and likely one of the better made disaster films for the genre in recent times. San Andreas comes to us directed by Brad Peyton who some may know for his work on Journey 2: The Mysterious Island. The film stars Dwayne Johnson, Carla Gugino, Alexandra Daddario, Ioan Gruffudd, Paul Giamatti, Hugo Johnstone-Burt and Art Parkinson.
San Andreas Trailer
San Andreas Review
In some ways films from the disaster film genre are always really the same. In most films I’ve seen including this one, they always start off with everything great, a big natural disaster comes, people try to survive, people do silly things, then the characters overcome it, or it goes away and it’s the end. Last year we had a really big storm in, Into The Storm and this year we have a big earthquake in San Andreas. But unlike Into The Storm which was lacking when it came to having an a big lead star, San Andreas had just that and it’s, The Rock (Dwayne Johnson).
I’m not sure what it is about Dwayne Johnson lately but you can’t help but love everything he does. He comes across in all his recent films and maybe a bit in real life as well, as just a really nice good guy and when you watch him perform on screen he’s just really entertaining. There’s no way to look around it. In San Andreas we watch Dwayne fly around and rescue countless people, do some fairly amazing things and utter a few funny one liners here and there. He’s like a superhero really, just constantly saving people. It’s great to watch.
Other cast members are fairly good to watch as well. Alexandra Daddario really stands out in the film as Blake, the really beautiful daughter of Dwayne Johnson’s character Ray. The film also stars Art Parkinson who is the youngest of the cast, but he does so well in this and isn’t annoying at all for a kid, hopefully he gets more roles in the future.
Some of the characters are a bit less interesting though and some are just outright unlikable as you’ll see when you watch the film. In my view I didn’t really care for Emma (Carla Gugino) who is trying to get a divorce from Ray (Dwayne Johnson) so she can be with a very ethically conflicted and rich man Daniel Riddick (Ioan Gruffudd).
In looking back at the film after seeing it in full, there’s a side story going on with a scientist who is played by Paul Giamatti that really isn’t necessary at all. He’s just there to tell the audience what an earthquake is and to explain where the San Andreas fault line is located as well as how bad a 9.4 earthquake can be. I’m not sure if this is needed as most people who’ve finished high school should be able to know what an earthquake is by now. I can see how the film was good for using the science, but we can see it, we don’t need to be told.
In mentioning the science side of things though, which are important for natural disaster films like San Andreas, it appeared to me to be fairly accurate. There is a video which I watched online showing how some of the scenes were constructed during filming, which was at the Gold Coast in Australia. It looked to me that a lot went into the scenes and that the filmmakers at least tried to be realistic with what could happen. It felt real, which is good as last year’s Into The Storm seemed more far fetched looking back on it now.
The action scenes are an aspect of this film that a lot of people might be paying to go and see. When looking back on it, they are fairly good action scenes. Although I wasn’t so impressed with the opening scene with the car falling down a cliff, but the rest looked great. San Andreas is fairly action heavy with Dwayne Johnson as well as Alexandra Daddario featuring in much of the action heavy scenes. It’s got nothing on Mad Max: Fury Road, but it’s good enough.
Overall the film is fairly good entertainment and for something from the disaster film genre it’s fairly good. San Andreas feels particularly entertaining due to the presence of Dwayne Johnson who is just so much fun to watch. Alexandra Daddario and Art Parkinson both really stand out in the film and the action scenes are well made throughout. This is a good light film to watch if you want to see a bit of action, like disaster films and enjoy Dwayne Johnson. It’s not a masterpiece in anyway, but it’s fun enough.
