Earthquake

Starring: Charlton Heston; Ava Gardner; George Kennedy & Lorne Greene Director: Mark Robson  Rated:

DVD Features:

Audio:

• Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround - English
• Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo - Spanish
• Sensurround 3.1 - English
• Subtitles - English (SDH), French, Spanish - Optional

Major Awards:

Academy Awards - Best Sound (1974)

Academy Awards - Best Visual Effects (1974)

Academy Awards - Scientific or Technical Award (1974)

Product Description:

This essential 1970s disaster epic, with a script co-authored by Mario Puzo (THE GODFATHER), centers around a devastating earthquake in Los Angeles and the shocking aftermath it causes. The all-star cast is led by Charleton Heston as a construction engineer whose marital problems supply him with plentiful stress before the quake even hits. The film was presented theatrically with a sound process known as "Sensurround," which caused cinemas to physically vibrate during quake sequences.

Plot Synopsis:

The lives of several Angelenos are shaken up when the Big One hits Los Angeles. Heading the gigantic, star-studded cast is Charlton Heston as an adulterous engineer and Ava Gardner as his jealous wife. Other characters include an Evel Knievel-like daredevil, a psychotic grocery store manager, and a hot-tempered cop -- all of whom respond to the disaster in a variety of ways, ranging from heroic to deranged.

Plot Keywords:

1970s | Action | Adventure | All-Star | Blockbuster | California | Disaster | Disasters | Drama | Escape | Essential Cinema | Hollywood | Los Angeles, California | Love Affairs | Love Triangles | Recommended | Special Effects | Suspense | Theatrical Release

Exerpts:

"I know you'll laugh, but -- I think we're going to have a really big quake."

Production Notes:

• Academy Award Nominations: 4, including Best Cinematography. Academy Awards: Best Sound.
• Color by Technicolor.
• Originally released in Sensurround, a sound system which creates low-frequency vibrations that simulate the sensation of small tremors in the theater. Universal charged exhibitors $500 a week for use of the system. A warning for the faint-hearted flashed on the screen before the film began.
• Additional cast members: Scott Haylands (Assistant Dam Caretaker); Tiger Williams (Corry Marshall). Walter Matthau is credited under his real name, Walther Matuschanskavasky.
• Additional technical credit: Jack McMasters, special effects.
• Waldon O. Watson, Richard J. Stumpf, Robert J. Leonard and the Universal City Studios Sound Department received a Class II Technical Award for the development and engineering of the Sensurround System for motion picture presentation.
• The disaster movie was a unique phenomenon of the 1970s. "The Poseidon Adventure," about the sinking of a giant ocean liner, was the movie that launched (no pun intended) the mini-genre. Other entries, besides "Earthquake," include "The Towering Inferno" and the "Airport" movies. All disaster movies conformed to a similar plan: a vast array of characters (portrayed by movie stars and celebrities), usually trapped in one place together (airplane, skyscraper, ocean liner), confront a major calamity. Though these characters are plagued by a variety of personal problems, they are all linked by their common fight for survival.
• Copyright 1974 Universal Pictures.

Cast and Crew: