SummaryThis thriller about the dangers of nuclear power arrived in theaters a mere thirteen days before the disaster at Three Mile Island. In it, a reporter finds what appears to be a cover-up of safety hazards at a California nuclear power plant.
SummaryThis thriller about the dangers of nuclear power arrived in theaters a mere thirteen days before the disaster at Three Mile Island. In it, a reporter finds what appears to be a cover-up of safety hazards at a California nuclear power plant.
A terrific film, the triumphant culmination of many elements that have been attempted in previous ambitious films. This has a wealth of true movie ingredients: two or three meaty subjects handled with naturalistic ambiguity, suspense, a variety of interestingly developing characters finely acted, excitement and authenticity laced with restrained satire. [16 March 1979, p.19]
Ultimately, Lemmon's performance is what makes The China Syndrome work: The script contains its share of technical jargon and clunky exposition, but his subtle transformation from complacency to anger to panic tells the story in raw emotional terms. The China Syndrome is ultimately a story about how the potential for human error can trump science and reason, and few actors have ever been as unmistakably human as Lemmon.
This film has aged well. It's astonishingly well-researched and techno-evocative, especially for its times (the late 70s). Here we have a fully-developed thesis about the corrupt nuclear-industrial-corporate system and its dangers, long before any such thesis was mainstream. In retrospect, one can conclude that this film likely darkened the public perception of nuclear power across America to some degree, all by itself, which is a much more important and historic change than most people realized at the time. Now, the nuclear industry is on its last legs, and this film stands near the effective beginning of the movement and the social stigma that has gradually taken down that industry over the course of two generations.
Bravo to a historically-important film well-written, well-researched, well-acted, and well-directed, that serendipitously was in theaters during 3-Mile Island. Makes you wonder if this project was really developed and injected into the system by time travellers tweaking history at just right moment.
Three powerhouse performances punctuate this rousing effort from director James Bridges. And though its subject matter might not necessarily age in the sense that it features many "pressing" questions about the current pace of our country's energy consumption, that doesn't necessarily mean that the issues discussed in "The China Syndrome" aren't reverberating in different respects throughout society today. In fact, problems such as negligence, indiscretion, and general corporate oversight still plague many different forms of the energy industry today (i.e. "Erin Brockovich," "Deepwater Horizon" etc.) It's a truly worthy and riveting effort, featuring one of the best Jack Lemmon performances I've seen. Definitely a must-watch.
All a bit too earnest, despite the seriousness of the subject, with Fonda setting her jaw and stepping into father's footsteps as Tinseltown's very own protector of humanity; but it's tightly scripted and directed, and genuinely tense in places.
It's an archetypal '70s political movie: hard-core melodrama wedded to an important social issue, with slick direction (James Bridges) and big stars (Jane Fonda, Jack Lemmon, Michael Douglas) playing valiant underdogs and reporters. [29 Oct 2004, p.C3]
It becomes apparent during the stuttering course of the movie itself that exploiting a nuclear power plant as an effective deathtrap in a doomsday thriller requires more than melodramatic wishful thinking. [16 March 1979, p.B1]
The China Syndrome is a drama that you watch like a thriller. During the filming of the TV report at the nuclear power plant, a serious accident occurs. Journalists manage to shoot everything that happened at this time. They are trying with all their might to broadcast this material, but influential people stand in the way, interested in presenting the accident as just minor problems. The classic plot and excellent acting blow of the still young Michael Douglas and the beautiful Jack Lemmon. I advise everyone to watch, even more than 40 years after the release, it still looks great. And all this was filmed 6 years before the events in Chernobyl
Eh ben dis donc, Michael Douglas en tout jeune débutant, barbu et quasi-hippie et Jane, la merveilleuse Jane certes moins jeune mais toujours aussi gracieuse. Même avec ses semelles compensées... et sa Golf mazoutée ?!... ils en ont vendu de ces merdes à gazoute qui pue, là-bas ? Bon, au moins, Jack Lemmon roule dans une jolie 2002, l'honneur est sauf ! mais tout de même, question nuisances, ça fait désordre.
Et donc c'est le "syndrome chinois" parce que quand ça pète, les radiations vont jusqu'en Chine... mais rassurez-vous, tout est sous contrôle. Ou presque. Etonnant film de "lanceur d'alerte" donc... quelques années avant Tchernobyl. Oui, ça fait réfléchir, un petit peu quand même. Et les déchets avec leur "demi-vie" de 250 000 ans... aussi.
Un film donc plutôt bien fait qui dénonce intelligemment les risques mais qui se perd également dans quelque méandre caricatural de la grosse société exploitante qui a tout l'air d'une organisation mafieuse (!). On a tendance à exagérer ici pour attirer l'attention, ce qui fait perdre en crédibilité...
Quoi qu'il en soit, on ne s'ennuie pas un instant et les comédiens sont très bien, y compris ce vieux Jack vraiment très bon lorsqu'il ne s'égare pas dans des comédies hystéro-bouffonnes. Un film tout-à-fait intéressant malgré ses excès.
Tagline[From an early TV trailer for the film] The China Syndrome. It's not about China. It's about choices. Between honesty and ambition. Career and conscience. Responsibility and profit. The China Syndrome. Today, only a handful of people know what it means. On March 16, so will you.