Greenland

Greenland is a likably simple depiction of the sudden destruction of the world by a hail of asteroids. How it might happen, how mortals would react to it and how difficult it would be for the lucky ones (read: “the chosen ones”) to get into shelters. It is a disaster thriller with a more modest budget, shot in digital and with more emphasis on the characters. Unfortunately, those characters are placed in the most clichéd relationship context imaginable – an estranged couple who are brought together by their son (the exposition is handled through a rip-off of War of the Worlds). The visual effects and action sequences are excellent, and I was particularly pleased with the aerial shots of Greenland in the ending, as that land is numero uno in my traveler’s heart where natural wonders are concerned (I don’t want to spoil it). (15/12/2020)

A down-to-earth disaster nail-biter with an unexpectedly realistic first half. After the excellent first hour it jumps feet first into the realm of Hollywood and things start to work miraculously. Vaughn approaches this in the same way as Seňor Spielberg in War of the Worlds, concentrating on an ordinary family with Butler in the role of a dad chosen to survive. It chugs along marvelously and there’s always something happening. Surprisingly, the government does what it should; the other characters are not one-dimensional; the powerful scenes with fire raining down and blast waves work splendidly. Movies like this a needed in this day and age; it makes you realize that things could be much, much worse. Covid is nothing in comparison to Clark. (08/12/2020)

A comet is heading for Earth and Gerard Butler must save his family. Not the world or civilization, just his family. On the surface, Greenland is a very ordinary disaster movie, but what makes it different from the others is that it revolves around ordinary people trying to survive. Nothing more. Solid actors, very brisk pace and well built tension. Nothing too new, but above average entertainment. (24/11/2020)

After a long time, a more expensive and bigger film, which is a pleasure in the current crisis, and also the fact that disaster films are like saffron. Greenland has solid visuals, decent pacing, Gerard Butler performing to his standard, and there’s plenty of suspense. The film is mainly a road movie about saving a family, the actual VFX attractions are a bit less, but when it comes to them, it's definitely worth it. Story***, Action****, Humor**, Violence**, Entertainment****, Music****, Visuals****, Atmosphere****, Suspense****. 7/10. (14/11/2020)

You shouldn’t be expecting a shallow action movie, Ric Roman Waugh shows us carefully measured scenes of devastation, often indirectly and with very realistic CGI, thanks to which this movie looks like a movie and not chaotic computer animation. The story focuses on a group of people just trying to survive the impact of a destructive comet, and you will them on to succeed. This is slightly damaged by some typical, predictable tropes - for example, you learn one of the characters suffers from diabetes at the beginning, so it is  immediately clear this is the device that later significantly spices up the story. In other respects, however, I was very satisfied and within a specific subgenre, Greenland is a decent movie that definitely deserves attention. (30/12/2020)