" Pahrump Valley Gazette, Thursday, October 2, 1997 AAI
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"Volcano," w00latile vaporizing vehicle
by Barney Basin
Gazette Reviewer
Los Angeles has been torched again. Only this time it's not
rioters and looters, it's mother nature. Every stop to think just
how dysfunctional the nature family must be when mother
has all this destructive power and is not afraid to use it.
A toasted, L.A., people running amuck, hundred of deaths
and injuries, all due to a nasty river of hot lava. This is the
basic premise of the movie "Volcano.'
A volcano has exploded under the City of Angels. Resi-
dents figure it is just another earthquake. But they should have
been singing "Nearer My God To Thee," or other campfire
songs.
The tar pits reheat, and the lake in MacArthur Park starts
to boil. Now there is something else for Richard Harris to sing
about.
Soon the streets are running with a mean, mad mud,
marshmallowing everything in its path.
Is there no hope for L.A.? Will it become a coastal crispy
critter? Our hero, played by Tommy Lee Jones, has an idea
and it works and the home of Angelenos is saved.
This leaves two questions. Is this plausible, and how did an
actor of Tommy Lee's talent get talked into playing second
banana to a river of hot rocks?
At one point the film takes an attempt at what could have
been an excellent storyline. Does a man owe a greater alle-
giance to the people he is sworn to protect orto his family?
However, the writers barely touched on this point, and then
went on to have more fun burning L.A.
If you want to see good special effects for volcanic action
"Dante's Peak" is the better film to rent. If you were a one time
resident of Los Angeles and just want to see your favorite
tourist attraction go up in flames then rent "Volcano."
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