The China Syndrome

The China Syndrome (1979)

Runtime: 122 minutes

Directed by: James Bridges

Starring: Jane Fonda, Jack Lemmon, Michael Douglas, Scott Bridges, James Hampton

From: Columbia

Believe it or not, this was a first time watch for me. I checked it out on Turner Classic Movies last night. Yep, I dug it. I talk all about it below: 

Here is a famous movie I have known about for many years and yet it wasn't until last night on TCM that I was able to check it out. I am glad I finally gave it a shot.

In short, it's about a TV news crew who was at a nuclear power plant in California when they witness a near accident happen at the plant, and Michael Douglas is a cameraman who surreptitiously filmed the incident-even though he wasn't supposed to-so it becomes a classic 70's paranoid conspiracy thriller where the crew wants to air the story but the station refuses and you see that some want the plant back operational no matter what and no matter how dangerous it may be to do so too early. Jack Lemmon and Wilford Brimley are among those that work at the plant and they are among the ones who wish for more caution, although the characters aren't as stereotypical or one-note as I am making them out to be.

Everyone in the cast does a nice job, from average reporter Jane Fonda to loose cannon Douglas (also the producer of this film) but it was Lemmon who was a standout. He was the supervisor when the accident happened. He at first thought that things would be OK, but as he learned more he realized the possible dangers, so he tried to do the right thing, only to face off against the sort of shadowy mysterious forces we commonly got in 70's paranoid thrillers. He was definitely more than just a funny actor who appeared in some classic comedies.

The movie was well-made. A noteworthy thing is that the film does not have a soundtrack. You hear some songs naturally from characters listening to the radio or what have you (including the opening credits song Somewhere in Between by Stephen Bishop, which was perfect for the California setting as it sounded like the perfect late 70's light rock from California tune) but otherwise you hear no music. It really isn't needed anyhow; there are long stretches of silence and it's perfect for the movie as it's during very tense moments.

I won't get into how overblown this movie might or might not be; I'll just note that the Three Mile Island disaster happened when this was still playing theatrically, and there were some eerie parallels. I also won't go into my opinions on alternative energy sources and how nuclear power ranks among them. It is obvious how disaster could happen if things go catastrophically wrong, as Chernobyl later proved. If you forget all that, this is still a thrilling tale with big stakes and a chilling finale.