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Customer Reviews
Average Rating:
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Supernova: Lukewarm Apocalypse
Supernova doesn't seem to quite know what it's trying to be and as a result never quite succeeds on any level. As a disaster epic, it can never quite match the visuals of big screen offerings that have dealt out similar levels of global destruction. The sequences of the sun's increasing activity are pretty enough to look at but never convince and feel disconnected from the rest of the action. And scenes of the Eiffel Tower, Taj Mahal and Sydney Opera House being destroyed by giant fireballs descending from the sky are largely unnecessary, only further detracting from the believability of the whole endeavour with some average at best effects work. It's at its best when it presents the aftermath of the effects of the sun's activity on a smaller scale, emphasising the human drama amongst the chaos that ensues.
The science behind the storyline seems rather shaky at best, as evidenced by a key scene involving a piece of elementary and unconvincing mathematics. This could, however, be overlooked if the treatment of the scenario of a sun about to consume our solar system was in itself engaging. Here again, though, Supernova is only a partial success. The notion of an underground hive intended to ensure mankind's survival if life above ground were to become unsustainable is one of the more interesting themes on offer, and so it's a shame it's never fully explored. Instead, there are a number of subplots and situations of varying levels of interest. Of these, Shepard's ruminations on his island retreat are amongst the most poignant as he contemplates his life and work and awaits an end he deems inevitable; his final scene is poorly executed, however, and only detracts from what has gone before. And the plot surrounding a horribly clichéd escaped killer stalking Richardson's family is utterly pointless, providing a "climax" more befitting of a conventional thriller. Perhaps this sought to play safe and provide a recognisable climactic conflict for one of its protagonists, but at this point the movie seems to forget its own premise altogether.
In a variable cast, it is really only the ever-excellent Lance Henriksen who shines, lending sympathy and believable motivation in limited screen time to a character that might very easily have seemed one-dimensional. Luke Perry seems oddly miscast as Dr Richardson and never convinces the viewer of his academic credentials, and neither is his bond to the rest of his family ever properly established. This rendered their subplot all the more uninteresting. Overall, this is an entirely watchable Apocalyptic TV movie so long as you don't think too deeply about it or watch too closely. For the most part, though, it feels like a missed opportunity that could have taken much bolder decisions and been far more affecting as result. Lukewarm at best.
--Adam Chamberlain
Revelation Magazine
Rating: 
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Hallmark does it again...Supernova is great EOW Story!
EOW..End Of World. That's right, with that basic premise we've just about seen it all in movies and novels, from natural disasters to manmade machines of destruction, alien invasions, and disease spreading plagues. Supernova deals with two basic premises...The changing of our sun, and the reactions of the people on earth, as well as thier governments plan.
The made for TV miniseries is great on DVD. Over 3 hours in length, the time put into it lets us follow our characters through tumultuous times. The Cast is superb and gracing the screen are Luke Perry, Tia Carrara, Emma Samms, and Peter Fonda. Supernova is the story that starts with a astrophysicist who discovers something terribly wrong, but at the same time not uncommon or unnatural with the status of our Sun. Soon other's that worked with him are being hunted down by federal agents belonging to a secretive agency that is protecting something...but what? And what happened to Dr. Shepard, who originally made some discovery and emailed many of these colleagues, but is now nowhere to be found?
This is a great, clean family film, but don't let the word "family film" fool you. What I mean is, people aren't saying the "F" word all the time, and the scenes of violence rock us enough to get the point across but don't shove blood and gore down our throats time and time again.
The main plot of the story has been described, but what really ties this all together are the little subplots that we deal with..the governements reaction, the reason Luke Perry's character is so protective of his wife and daughter, and the mystery behind the impending fate of a Dr. Shepard's formula, the Supernova itself, and the struggle to warn the masses by a resilient journalist. Supernova was an extremely well done film and I highly recommend it!
Rating: -
HERE COMES THE SUN
SUPERNOVA is a tv miniseries that runs at almost three hours, and it's a case of less would have been more. The script by Steve Berman is so overloaded with extemporaneous subplots that the focus from the imminent disaster gets sidetracked a little too often. The whole thing with Luke Perry's wife witnessing a serial killer and then her testimony sending him to the death penalty is wholly unnecessary. Anyway, the main plot deals with an impending supernova discovered by brilliant scientist Peter Fonda, based on Perry's calculations. When all the predictions start occurring (migratory patterns change, telecommunications and blackouts, etc.), seems like the earth's goose is cooked. Disaster flick fans should be pleased with the decimation of such cities as St. Louis, Paris, Syndey and the Taj Mahal, and the computer generated effects of the sun's eruptions is visually beautiful if unrealistic. Of course, the nasty government gets involved with Tia Carrere as a Security Agent who whisks Perry and other scientists off in an attempt to prove or disprove Fonda's findings. Lance Henriksen struts his villainous stuff as a man who will be responsible for deciding who will live in underground facilities to repopulate the earth after the disaster, and Emma Samms is the maverick crusading reporter who is determined to let the public know the truth. The resolution of the supernova is kind of ridiculous, and the movie's climax focuses on the serial killer. All in all, it's not horrible, but it fails to give us what disaster movies should: impending doom for people we care or don't care about and this is where SUPERNOVA fizzles.
