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The Final Countdown
During routine manoeuvres near Hawaii in 1980, the aircraft-carrier USS Nimitz is caught in a strange vortex-like storm, throwing the ship back in time to 1941—mere hours before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.
Release : | 1980 |
Rating : | 6.7 |
Studio : | United Artists, Bryna Productions, |
Crew : | Assistant Art Director, Construction Coordinator, |
Cast : | Kirk Douglas Martin Sheen Katharine Ross James Farentino Ron O'Neal |
Genre : | Action Science Fiction War |
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I like the storyline of this show,it attract me so much
I love this movie so much
Redundant and unnecessary.
All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.
Great wee sci-if film with so much to come from the ' what if ' scenario. Good for it's time of release but just watched it again and far ahead of it's time & poses so many relevant questions. If remade I agree with my fellow reviewer Gold 5 that this could be absolutely terrific! Everyone excellent in their roles with Martin Sheen outstanding as always. Nice direction & cinematography too. 8 out of 10.
I first saw this during ABC's premiere presentation broadcast (of theatricals) on the ABC Sunday Night Movie around 1982 - 83 when I was eleven and it blew me away!Decades later, as a Marine Corps veteran when I purchased the special edition DVD, I still marveled at it and watch it every chance I get!If you are a military and science fiction fan, this is a treat. What's not to like? A modern nuclear powered aircraft carrier (with its air wing and arsenal) getting caught in an unexplained phenomenon (in effect, storm) sending it to the day before the Pearl Harbor attack made a wonderful platform. To paraphrase TV Guide's view of the movie, it was a story reminiscent of "The Twilight Zone."Kirk Douglas played a convincing Navy Captain, Matt Yelland commanding the U.S.S. Nimitz and her arsenal that was capable of wiping out the Japanese fleet. Rounding off the players are equally convincing roles by James Farentino - CDR Richard "CAG" Owens, the air wing commander; Ron O'Neal - CDR Dan Thurman, the ship's second-in-command; and Martin Sheen - Warren Lasky, a visiting civilian defense contractor. Charles Durning and Katherine Ross play 1941 characters shocked by their time travelers and ship from the future.Like most stories about time travel, the main characters have to face the main concern about altering the future as they knew it. As one of the characters retorted to another, ". . I don't have your appetite for playing God with the world!" when faced with that prospect. As 1941 friends and enemies come in contact with them, they have to make decisions on how to deal with them to avoid further conflict but at the same time possibly altering the future.The origins of the storm that sent the Nimitz back to 1941 is never explained, so it is left ambiguous. One can surmise that the Nimitz' travel back in time was a test for Captain Yelland and crew to see what they would do with the modern capabilities of the ship in regards to an historical attack they know is coming. Awesome aircraft carrier operations courtesy of the United States Navy spliced with science fiction intrigue make this an appealing tale for both military aficionados and science fiction lovers alike.
This film features a rather intriguing premise; what would happen if a modern (circa 1980) aircraft carrier were to be transported back in time to Pearl Harbor on December 6th, 1941? The how and the why of this is given almost no focus, so you really just have to shrug it off and go with it.'The Final Countdown' is at its best when the principles are debating the "Should we or shouldn't we" of attempting to thwart the attack. Unfortunately that aspect is given too little focus, robbing the third act of its drama. It's still a relatively entertaining film, boosted significantly by stars Kirk Douglas and Martin Sheen.
Fun movie. But I'm surprised I haven't seen anyone else comment about the major time travel paradox flaw. In the first minutes of the movie, we see a mysterious figure in the back of the limo, who we hear designed the carrier. In the last moments of the movie, after the Nimitz has returned from 1941, Martin Sheen enters the limo to meet said mysterious passenger, and who is it but Cmd Owens from 1980 who got stuck back in 1941 -- now 40 years older! And rich from designing the carrier. Slight problem -- the now-80 year old Cmd Owens/Mr. Tideman could not have been in the limo at the beginning of the movie, because the Nimitz had not yet gone back in time to leave him in 1941. The writers of Final Countdown would have been well-served by waiting 5 years to make this movie so they could have learned a little from the Back to the Future story writing ..