The 2009 disaster film 2012, featuring a stacked cast and praised by fans as a 'must watch', has arrived on Netflix. The film was added to the streaming service on Wednesday, August 26.
Directed by Roland Emmerich, 2012 follows a number of characters as they struggle to survive an eschatological sequence of events including earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and megatsunamis. The concept was based on the global fear that the world was going to end on December 21, 2012.
Plot and Premise
The date in question was regarded as the end-date of a 5,126-year-long cycle in the Mesoamerican Long Count calendar. Scenarios suggested for the end of the world included a devastating black hole. As we all know, the world didn't actually end, but that doesn't stop 2012 from being a must-watch film nearly 20 years after its release.
Emmerich is no stranger to the disaster genre. The German native used his skills developed on Independence Day, Godzilla and The Day After Tomorrow to bring to life a terrifying scenario in a stunning way.
Cast and Reception
The stacked cast boasts Say Anything's John Cusack, Backrooms' Chiwetel Ejiofor, Something's Gotta Give's Amanda Peet, Fargo's Oliver Platt, Mission Impossible 2's Thandiwe Newton, Lethal Weapon's Danny Glover and The Hunger Games' Woody Harrelson.
Audiences rushed to the cinema in their droves to catch the film. It grossed a worldwide total of $791.2 million against a production budget of $200 million, making it a certified hit. Critics weren't too kind to 2012, giving it a harsh score of 40% on Rotten Tomatoes. Its critical consensus reads: "Roland Emmerich's 2012 provides plenty of visual thrills, but lacks a strong enough script to support its massive scope and inflated length."
Fan Reactions
Many fans of 2012 have taken to the movie review site Letterboxd over the years to explain why they keep coming back to it and why you should give it a watch.
@diegoandaluz said: "Excusing the stupidity of the premise, 2012 is a gripping, incredibly entertaining, good looking, and competently structured blockbuster that surprisingly takes many risks with the lives of its characters." @reed added: "They don't make disaster movies like they used to."
@kylo wrote: "Outrageous, jaw dropping special effects. This was balls to the wall over the top. The sequences felt like a wild roller coaster ride at times. The plot and characters are so silly but I just love this disaster movie stuff." @ChrisEvangelista posted: "This actually rules? The disaster movie to end all disaster movies. Killer Arnold Schwarzenegger scene."
@corey commented: "A masterclass in excessively over the top disaster eye candy. roland emmerichs magnum opus i must say." @Charlyvilla stated: "Best apocalyptic movie ever I don't care."
